A. sued out a writ of error returnable to the October Term,
1877. The return was duly made, the transcript of the record lodged
in the clerk's office in September of that year, and a citation
issued and served in time, but by an oversight of A.'s counsel, no
fee bond was given. The cause was not docketed. In September, 1878,
the bond was filed and the cause then docketed, no motion to docket
and dismiss having in the meantime been made.
Held that a
motion made at the present term to dismiss the writ must be
denied.
The facts are stated in the opinion of the Court.
MR. CHIEF JUSTICE WAITE delivered the opinion of the Court.
The writ of error in this case was returnable to the October
Term, 1877. The return was duly made, and a transcript of
Page 102 U. S. 576
the record lodged in the office of the clerk of this Court on
the 27th of September, 1877. A citation in due form was issued and
served in time. By an oversight of the counsel for the plaintiff in
error no fee bond was given, and the cause was not docketed during
the term of 1877. No motion to docket and dismiss was ever made,
and on the 3d of September, 1878, the attention of counsel having
been called to the omission of the security for costs, an
acceptable bond was given and the cause docketed in form. Under
these circumstances, we are not inclined to dismiss the suit. We
are aware that in some of the cases it has been said that a writ of
error or an appeal becomes inoperative if a transcript is not filed
and the cause docketed during the term to which it is made
returnable, but this has always been in cases where a return had
not been made and a transcript had not been filed within the time.
The language should therefore be construed in connection with those
facts. In
Owings v. Tiernan's
Lessee, 10 Pet. 447, and
Van
Rensselaer v. Watts, 7 How. 784, leave was given to
docket the cause after the term, when the transcript had been filed
in time, but through inadvertence a fee bond had not been given and
there had not been in the mean time a motion to docket and dismiss.
That is this case. In
Selma & Meridian Railroad Co. v.
Louisiana National Bank, 94 U. S. 253, the
transcript was filed in time, but the cause not docketed because of
a failure to furnish a fee bond. In this state of things, and while
the default continued, a motion to docket and dismiss was made
under Rule 9, and granted. At the next term, the appellant
appeared, and moved to set aside the order of dismissal and docket
his appeal. This we refused, under the circumstances of that case.
After a cause has been docketed and dismissed it cannot be again
docketed unless by order of the court. Such is the rule. If a
return is made and the transcript deposited in the clerk's office
in time, our jurisdiction is kept alive. The docketing of the cause
after that is mere procedure, and if unreasonably delayed, the
parties may be subjected to the consequences of a failure to
prosecute a suit, which rest largely in the discretion of the court
when not provided for by rules. Rule 9 is of that class.
In this case it is abundantly shown that the omission to
give
Page 102 U. S. 577
the bond was through inadvertence and without any intention to
delay the due prosecution of the suit. No harm has been done, save
possibly a short extension of the time for bringing on the hearing.
The defendants in error have delayed their motion to dismiss until
a new writ is barred by lapse of time.
Motion denied.