Page:United States Reports, Volume 209.djvu/547

 2 U.S. Aument for Compla/nant, Par. III, plaintiff's draft, directs that the master ,,win make and return with his report any apco r alternative statements of the accounts between the complainant and the defendant in the premises which either may desire him to state or which he may deem to be desirable to present to the Complalnaut obiects to par. II, .defendant's draft, on the ground that it seems to lend the sanction of the court in vance to a bsis or scheme for the statement of the account, which is not shown by anything as yet in the cause to be either equitable or just. Before any such question can be fairly adjudicated, .it is necessary that the evidence in the case be taken and kave the aid of its master in collating and thoroughly  it. There is not enough in the record to enable the court to come to any just or defiuite conclusion as to the prese scheme which it would be equitable to adopt in stating the account. To do so at this stage of the litigation, would be to deide an important question in the case before the evidence is taken. The effect of par. II would be to have the court prejudge the case a to the basis on which the account hl! be stated. The case is now only submitted for a decree referring it to a master, to state and report to the court the data necay to enable the court to iustly decide it upon its merits. If it should the appear tlt the basis rescribed by the Wheelhg ordlnne is binding upon the paries, and must be followed as the basis upon which the account shall be mte up, that basis would be adopted. But if it should be then rao. nlfest that that arbitrary basis of settlement is not the one on which the account should be stated, because it would, if applied to the facts of the case as they shall appear in the evidence, lead to absolutely uncouscionab]e resuits and operate to impair the obligation of the contracts by which th common debt was created, contracts which were and are alike-bla- tory upon Virni and upon West Virnla or for any other valid reason, then the scheme of settlement, indicami in tl

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