Moore v. Wilcox
Moore v. Wilcox
Opinion of the Court
delivered the Opinion of the Court.
This action of ejectment was brought by J. B. Moore, to recover a small strip of land in the possession of John’ Wilcox. Moore exhibited a patent from the Commonwealth, granting four hundred acres of land to John H. Phelps, from whom he showed a regular derivation o^ title, by deeds to himself; and introduced evidence conducing to prove, that the land in contest was embraced within the boundaries of said four hundred acre patent; but’tlie proof- on this subject is contradictory.
The defendant also exhibited a patent to himself, for one hundred acres, older than that under which the plaintiff claimed; and made some attempt to prpve, that the land in contest was included within it.
He also produced, in pursuance of notice duly filed,
A principal question made in the case, was whether, under the thirteenth section of the act of 1825, 1 Stat. Law. 586, the former verdict and judgment constituted a bar to the present suit. With a view to that question, £nd in order to relieve this case from the bar, the plaintiff moved among others the following instructions;
First—that if the jury believe from the evidence, that the plaintiff, or those under whom he claimed, had the possession of his four hundred acre survey before the defendant settled upon his survey, the former verdict and judgment did not bar a recovery in this suit. And, (fifth,) that if the defendant, since the former trial, has enclosed more of the land claimed by the plaintiff, such enclosure is a new trespass, for which the plaintiff would have aright to sue, unless the jury should believe, that ihe calls of the defendant’s patent interfered with those of the plaintiff’s. Each of these instructions was overruled by the Court.
The statute above referred to does not make the former verdict &c. a bar in cases where the plaintiff, or (as we think is fairly to be understood,) those under whom he claims, had the actual occupancy and possession of the land in contest before the commencement of the suit. And the first of the foregoing instructions, if applicable at all, may be presumed to have been intended to show to the jury, that this case was exempt from the bar, if there had been such previous possession. But passing by other objections to the instruction, it is oh-
We are of opinion, therefore, that the Court did not err in refusing to give these instructions; and as the evidence in regard to the boundary of the plaintiff’s patent and to the question whether it includes the land in contest, is contradictory and uncertain, we cannot say that the verdict for the defendant was against the evidence, or that the Court erred in not setting it aside and granting a new trial on that ground.
It has been made a question in this Court, whether the statement of the evidence contained in the transcript of the record before us, can properly be considered as a part of the record, because although signed by the Judge, it is not sealed, and does not appear to have been for- , , . ,, , , - , many ordered to be enrolled or made a part ot the record’ But as it purports to be certified by the Court, we are inclined to the opinion, that it should be presumed to
But as we should be bound to presume, in case the evidence was not before us, that the opinions of the Cir'cuitCourt were such as the evidence authorized, andas we have come to the same conclusion considering the evidence as a part.,of the record, we have not deemed it necessary to decide, and do not decide, whether it is to be taken as a part of the record or not.
As in either view of this question, we perceive no error in the record to the prejudice of the plaintiff, the judgment is affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.