Finn v. Saffer
Finn v. Saffer
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion of the court.
The plaintiff owns several contiguous tracts of land in Garfield County, and the defendant owns land situate to the south and across a public highway therefrom. Defendant asserts ownership of a sublateral irrigating ditch over and across one of plaintiff’s 40 acre tracts. He demanded of the plaintiff permission to enter upon the same to clean
Plaintiff brought this action and' asked for a decree declaring his land not subject to the asserted easement; for an injunction to restrain defendant from entering upon his land or using the ditch; and for damages suffered by the defendant’s wrongful acts. A temporary injunction was issued as prayed for, and, upon final hearing before the court, without a jury, the same was made permanent and a money judgment of five hundred dollars damages was awarded. As plaintiff offers to remit damages, that feature is not now in the case.
The defendant is here with the record and asks for a supersedeas. It would be idle to grant this request since the judgment is clearly right and sustained by the evidence, as we proceed to show. Defendant’s claim of ownership of the ditch and easement is based upon an alleged irrevocable, accepted parol license given to the defendant’s remote grantor by the then owner of plaintiff’s lands, to build an irrigating ditch across such lands to carry water to irrigate the lands of the licensee, which ditch was built in 1906 or 1907. Unquestionably such an easement may be created either by a writing or parol license. The deeds which the defendant offered in evidence to show his claim of title to the alleged easement, contain no mention or reference to any such easement, either as appurtenant to the lands conveyed or to any other land, and there is no evi
But defendant says that his grantor was given a parol license, by the then owner of plaintiff’s lands, to build a ditch across these lands, and that the license was accepted and the ditch constructed and used for the purpose indicated. Defendant’s evidence to sustain this claim is not made out. The witness Prendergast — defendant’s remote grantor — a witness for defendant, says that he built a ditch across the lands which are now the plaintiff’s by permission of one Fleming, who was then part owner, and the ditch was constructed jointly by the licensor and licensee so that they might be able to use a greater head or volume of water by combining their respective appropriations and carrying the same at one time in this ditch. Prendergast, however, says that this arrangement did not prove satisfactory to either party and such use was discontinued after two seasons and he made no further use of the ditch in question thereafter. His right under a parol license depended upon continued use. See Arthur Irrigation Company case infra. There is no other testimony that the ditch was used or attempted to be used for any purpose by any person for a period of at least twelve years after the discontinuance mentioned, and no claim adverse to the rights of plaintiff was ever asserted until defendant acquired ownership of the Prendergast land about twelve years after Prendergast had abandoned or relinquished use of the ditch. The court’s finding is sustained by evidence that there never has been a continuous use of this ditch, and there is enough evidence to justify the finding of the court that it was the intention of Prendergast to abandon, and that he did abandon, any rights that he may have acquired through the alleged license of the then owner.
When plaintiff bought his land and examined it at the time, he found no trace of the alleged ditch and there was nothing on the ground to indicate that there ever had been
Then, too, there is evidence that at the time Prendergast built a ditch, wherever it was located, he was a tenant of the owner of the land across which it was built and he could not assert a hostile title to his landlord, and that the arrangement for the building of the ditch was for the mutual accommodation of the parties, and there was no intention to grant a permanent easement that would pass by a conveyance as an appurtenance to Prendergast’s lands, and that the right acquired, whatever it was, was temporary and was abandoned within two years and never re-asserted until the defendant asserted the right.
It should be said that as to most, if not all, of the substantial issues of fact involved, the evidence was in conflict. The court, having seen the witnesses and heard their testimony, was better able to judge of their credibility and of the weight and sufficiency of the testimony than this court is. It is sufficient to say that the vital questions in the case were questions of fact and the findings, being in favor of the plaintiff and being supported by competent evidence, this court should not set them aside. The application for supersedeas is denied and the judgment affirmed.
Mr. Chief Justice Scott not participating.
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