Hawley

This action was brought to recover five hundred dollars claimed to be due to plaintiff from defendant corporation for rent under the provisions of an alleged lease. As a defense to the action it is insisted that the corporation never executed the lease, and that it surrendered the leased premises before the rent sued for became due. The facts leading up to the litigation may be stated as follows: The plaintiff executed a lease to the defendant corporation for a certain tract of land for the term of fifteen years at a monthly rental. George P. Gray, as president of the corporation, signed the lease, and acknowledged it as such president. Prior to the day fixed for the entry under the lease plaintiff notified said Gray that she had doubts as to the validity of it by reason of want of power in him to act for the corporation, and requested that the board of directors of the corporation ratify his acts in entering into the contract. Whereupon said Gray forwarded to plaintiff the following duly certified copy of the proceedings of a meeting of the board of directors of the defendant, help October 23, 1889:

At the time this purported certified copy of the minutes of the board was sent,…