If incorporeal property is pledged, a sym bolical delivery suffices ; Little v. Berry (Ky•) 113 S. W. 902. A pledgee of automb biles, not taking •possession within less than four months before the pledgor goes into bankruptcy, loses his lien as against the bankrupt trustee; Bank of North America v. Car Co., 235 Pa. 194, 83 Atl. 622. But an owner carrying stock on margin may, if the broker becomes bankrupt, get back his on paying for it, or the proceeds, if sold; • In re Bolling, 147 Fed..786, affirmed Kean v. Dickinson, 152 Fed. 1022, 82 C. C. A. 667.
A change of the location of bulky articles is not in all cases necessary, but it is suffi cient if the best means available to give no tice of the change of possession are made use of ; Ayers v. McCandless, 147 Pa. 49; posting signs on, or marking, the goods; Wilson v. Hill, 17 Nev. 401, 30 Pac. 1076; or appointing an agent to take charge, which agent may be an employe of the pledgor; Sumner v. Hamlet, 12 Pick. (Mass.) 76; Combs v., Tuchelt, 24 Minn. 423. De livery of a larger 'quantity than the amount pledged with the right in pledgee to select the pledge, is good; Weld v. •Cutler, 2 Gray (Mass.) 195; Crofoot v. Bennett, 2 N. Y. 258; and so where the pledgee is put and kept in possession of a quantity in excess of the pledged amount, allowing the pledgor to add to, or subtract from, the mass, but main taining the quantity of the pledge, the pledge is good; Fidelity I., T. & S.-D. Co. v. Iron Co., 81 Fed. 439. But there cannot be a valid of pc portion of a mass, there being no .segregation, and the pledgor re taining the whole; Collins v. Buck, 63 Me, 459 When goods are in the hands of an agent of the pledgor an order on 'him to hold for • the use of the pledgee, accepted by him, constitutes a delivery; F,irst Nat. Bank v. Harkness, 42 W. Va. 156, 24 S. E., 548, 32 L. R. A. 408..
In the, case of commercial paper, stocks, bonds,, securities, which together con stitute, by far the most important division of pledges, or, collateral securities, and of choses in action, delivery of possession is essential, but to make the delivery effective assignment is necessary, and assignment is transfer of title. As both title and posses sion •are transferred, the distinction between mortgage and pledge ceases to be of much practical importance—the title to the col lateral depends not on 'the principal obliga tion, but on the mode of transfer ; Thomson Houston Electric Co. v. Electric Co., 65 Fed.
341, 12 C. C, A. 643.. But there is a distinc tion between the position of the pledgee in relation to 'the pledgor and in, relation to third persons. His position cannot be de scribed as, simply that of a trustee, because he:holds the collateral primarily for his own benedt,... which affects relation to the pledge; Plucker v. Teller, 174.P.a. 5Z9,, 34 Atl. 208, 52 Am. St. Rep. 825. So far as the pledgor is the question of the title of the pledgee is determined by the intention of the parties; as to third parties he is tically owner. Thus a pledgee of stock may transfer it to his own name; Smith v. Bank, 82 Tex. 368, 17 S. W. 779; though this is not necessary; Tombler v. Ice' Co., 17 Tex. Civ. App. 596, 43 S. W. 896; otherwise in Ver mont; French v. White, 78 Vt. 89, 62 Atl. 35, 2 L. R, A. (N. S.) 804, 6 Ann. Cos, 479; Jones, Pledges § 151; and so far as the poration is concerned he is the owner of it; Boyd v. Mills, 149 Pa. 363, 24 Atl. 287. The legal title to a pledged note or chose in ac tion is in him ; Sandlin, 36 Fla. 619, 18 South. 856; Luter v. Roberts 39 S. W. 1002. He occupies the position of a bona fide holder for value, except when the pledge is for an existing debt; Moore v. Ensley, 112 Ala. 228, 20 South. 744; and though an assignee of a pledgee have notice of equities, he is not bound by them if his as signor, the pledgee,, had not; Louisville Trust Co. v. R. Co., 75 Fed. 433, 22 C. C. A. 378. His title to an accommodation note is good, notwithstanding equities maker and payee; McCrady v. Jones, 36 S. C. 136, 15 S. E. 430 ; and he has the rights of a bona fide holder against the corporation, when the collateral is a certificate of stock which proves .to have been fraudulently is sued; Fifth Avenue Bk. v. R. Co., 137 N. Y. 231, 33 N. E. 378, 19 L. R. A. 331, 33 Am. St. Rep. 712. See STOCK. A pledgee's lien on stock held for a debt is prior to the statu tory lien of the corporation thereon if the debt was incurred prior to the debt to the corporation and if the latter had notice of the pledgee's lien ; Curtice v. Bank, 110 Fed. 830.