Brothers v. Mitchell
Brothers v. Mitchell
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
There was no error in rejecting the offer recited in the first specification; nor do we think, in view of the evidence, that there was any error in 'declining to affirm the defendants’ first point. On the subject of constructive notice, etc., to which that point relates, the instructions contained in the general charge were adequate, and all that was warranted by the testimony.
The third and last specification challenges the sufficiency of the verdict as a reliable, guide in executing the judgment in favor of plaintiffs. It alleges that the verdict “ is void, in this, that it does not define by a draft or any other paper, what lands the plaintiffs did recover, the jury finding for the plaintiffs the lands described in the prascipe, without saying whether it was the lands described in the original praecipe or the amended praecipe, nor is it material which praecipe, because both praecipes give the plaintiffs the ancient graveyard, whereas it was manifest that it could not be recovered at all by reason of its being visible, open, notorious and readily perceived by a vendee for nearly a hundred years, and hence it was in itself notice.”
This position, we think, is well taken. While the charge of
In view of this instruction, it is not improbable that the jury intended to find in favor of the plaintiffs for this last mentioned piece of land only, and were misled by assuming that the praecipe contained a correct description thereof. But, however that may be, the record discloses an error that ought to be corrected either by amendment or reversal of tlie judgment. For tlie purpose of securing the former and thus avoiding the latter, the plaintiffs, on the argument, moved for leave to further amend their praecipe and correct the judgment so as to restrict their recovery to said last mentioned lot, and thus exclude the old graveyard and additions thereto. As expressed in the motion made and filed here May 24,1893, their proposed amendment, etc., is as follows: “ The plaintiffs in the court below hereby disclaim any and all lands now inclosed within the
The judgment is affirmed accordingly.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Brothers et ux. v. Mitchell
- Cited By
- 5 cases
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- Syllabus
- Evidence — Competency of witness — Ejectment. In an action of ejectment where the land in controversy is a family graveyard, one of the trustees, who is a member of the family and claims an interest personal to himself as one of the class for whose benefit the trust was created, cannot, after the death of the grantor, testify against the interest of the plaintiffs who claim the land as grantees of decedent. Notice — Marks on ground — Constructive notice. In an action of ejectment, where plaintiffs claim the land by a deed subsequent in date to defendants’ unrecorded deed from the same grantor, a point to the effect that if certain stakes marking corners were visible and readily discovered, plaintiffs were put upon inquiry, is properly refused, where the evidence discloses that the stakes were hid among underbrush and plaintiffs had no actual knowledge of their existence. Ejectment — Praecipe—Verdict—Amendment—Practice. In an action of ejectment where the praecipe included bji- mistake more land than plaintiff claims, and a verdict is rendered for plaintiff for the land described in the praecipe, plaintiff may amend his praecipe in the Supreme Court by disclaiming the land included by mistake, and the Supreme Court will then affirm the judgment entered on the verdict. Costs — Ejectment—Amendment. In such a case the Supreme Court will impose the costs, up to the time of the application for amendment, upon plaintiff, as a condition of the affirmance of the judgment.