Subject of ple'dg'e. Any personal property capable of delivery or transfer may be pledged, except for the peculiar rules of maritime law which are applicable to ship ping, and except, also, that on the ground of public policy the common law (apart from statutory prohibitions which are frequent) does not permit the pay and emoluments of officers and soldiers to be pledged; 1 H. Bla. 627; 4 Term 248. Hence, probably, a fish ing bounty could not be pledged, nor any form of government pension or bounty given for the personal benefit of the donee.
Not only goods and chattels and money, but also negotiable paper, may be put in pledge; Appleton v. Donaldson, 3 Pa. 381; Goldsmidt v. First Methodist Church, 25 Minn. 202 ; Joliet I. & S. Co. v. Brick Co.. 82 Ill. 548, 25 Am. Rep. 341; Alexandria, L. & H. R. Co. v. Burke, 22 Gratt. (Va.) 262. So may choses in action, patent rights, cou pon bonds, and manuscripts of various sorts; 2 Tahnt. 268; Jarvis v. Rogers, 15 Mass. 389; Fisher v. Bradford, 7 Greenl. (Me.) 28; Wilson v. Little, 2 N. Y. 443, 51 Am. Dec. 307; Morris C. & B. Co. v. Fisher, 9 N. J. Eq. 667, 64 Am. Dec. 423. So may bonds secured by a mortgage on personal property and corporate franchises ; White Mountains R. R. v. Iron Co., 50 N. H. 57; and coupon bonds; Stewart v. Lansing, 104 U. S. 505, 26 L. Ed. 866; Morris Canal & Banking Co. v. Fisher, 9 N. J. Eq. 667, 64 Am. Dec. 423; and chattel mortgages of every description ; and policies of life insurance; Collins v. Dawley, 4 Colo. 138, 34 Am. Rep. 72; Stout v. Mill. Co., 13 Fed. 803; lease may he taken in pledge; Dewey v. Bowman, 8 Cal. 145 ; L. R. 10 Eq. 92; for leases are but chattels real; or a mortgage of real estate, which, before foreclosure, is to be ranked with per sonal property; Campbell v. Parker, 9 Bosw.
(N. Y.) 322. Incorporeal things could prob ably be pledged immediately, under the civil law, and so in the Scotch law, or, at all events, by assignment ; 1 Domat b. 3, tit. 1, § 1; Pothier, de Naut. n. 6 ; 2 Bell, Com. 23. In the civil law, property of which the pledger had neither present possession nor title could be pledged,—though this was rather a contract for pledge, called a hy pothecation. The pledge became complete when the property was acquired by the pledger. The same rule holds in our law, where a hypothecary contract gives a lien which attaches when the property is vested ; 1 Hare 549; Macomber v. Parker, 13 Pick.
(Mass.) 175; Parshall v. Eggert, 54 N. Y. 18; Goodenow v. Dunn, 21 Me. 86; Hunting ton v. Sherman, 60 Conn. 463, 22 Atl. 769. And It has been held that a pledge may be made to secure an obligation not yet risen into existence; Wolf v. Wolf, 12 La. Ann. 529. In an agreement to pledge a vessel not then completed, the intent of the parties gov erns in determining when the property pass es; Bonsey v. Amee, 8 Pick. (Mass.) 236; 24 E. L. & E. 220.
Buying and selling through a broker on deposit of a "margin" with him is held in New York t9 create the relation of pledger and pledgee; so that, on the pledgor's failure to keep his "margin" good, the pled gee or broker cannot sell the stock, except upon the pledge formalities, for repayment of his advances and commissions; Markham v. Jaudon, 41 N. Y. 235; and the rule has been adopted in other states; Brewster v. Van Ill. 554, 8 N. E. 842; Skiff v. Stoddard, 63 Conn. 198, 26 Atl. 874, 28 Atl. 104, 21 L. R. A. 102.
Delivery of possession is essential to a pledge. Unless the pledgee take and retain possession there is no pledge; Christian v. R. Co., 133 U. S. 243, 10 Sup. Ct. 260, 33 L. Ed. 589; Beeman v. Lawton, 37 Me. 543; Moors v. Reading, 167 Mass. 322, 45 N. E. 760, 57 Am. St. Rep. 460; Textor v. Orr, 86 Md. 392, 38 Atl. 939 ; Williams v. Gillespie, 30 W. Va. 586, 5 S. E. 210; Delogny v. Cred itors, 48 La. Ann. 08, 19 South. 614. The intent to pledge is not a pledge; Hook v. Ayers, 80 Fed. 978, 26 C. C. A. 287.
If possession be given to a third person for the pledgee such person must know of the trust and accept the obligation it imposes; Succession of Lanaux, 46 La. Ann. 1036, 15 South. 708, 25 L. R. A. 577. But a construc tive delivery is all that is required, that is, such delivery as the nature or situation of the goods admits. Hence goods in transit or in store will pass by transfer of the bill of lading or warehouse receipt; v. Bank, 86 Ay. 176, 5 S. W. 420, 9 Am. St. Rep. 276; Forbes v. R. Co., 133 Mass. 154; Heil bron v. Trust Co., 13 Wash. 645, 43 Pac. 932; Citizens' Banking Co. v. Peacock, 103 Ga. .171, 29 S. E. 752; Friedman v. Peters, 18 Tex. Civ. App. 11, 44 S. W. 572.