Wyatt v. Cely
Wyatt v. Cely
Opinion of the Court
The opinion of the Court was delivered by
This action was brought to enjoin the obstruction of an alley in which plaintiff claimed *541 an easement on the grounds: 1. That it was appurtenant to his lot, because it was substituted for another way which had been dedicated to the use of his lot. 2. By prescription in himself and his grantors. 3. By prescription in the public.
The following issue was submitted to a jury: “Is the plaintiff entitled to an easement in the land in dispute as claimed in the complaint?” To which the jury answered “yes.” Thereupon, a perpetual injunction was issued.
To clearly understand some of the questions presented by the appeal, it will be necessary to have in mind the location and description of the lots affected by this litigation, and the origin and history of the alley. About the year 1876, a lot in the city of Greenville, owned by the heirs of John McKay, was subdivided and sold for partition. It was a parallelogram in shape, fronting 109 feet on Pendleton street, which was on the south, and extending back to Rhett street, on the north. For the purposes of the sale, it was divided into four lots and an alley, and platted accordingly. The alley was eight feet wide and was laid off on the eastern edge of the lot and extended from Pendleton to Rhett street. Three lots were laid off on Pendleton street, each fronting thereon 33 2-3' feet and extending back 100 feet. These were numbered on the plat from west to east, 8, 9, and 10 — number 10 being next to the alley. The balance of the original lot was numbered 11. There was testimony tending to show that the lots were sold with reference to this plat.
At the time of the sale there was a house on lot No. 10, which covered nearly the whole width of that lot and extended four feet into the alley. This alley, therefore, was never opened. The house was subsequently destroyed by fire, being owned at the time by J. A. Speegle. The plaintiff contended that an alley eight feet wide on the west side of lot No. 10 was substituted for the one shown on the plat on the east side of that lot. This substituted alley extends *542 back only 100 feet to the back line of the lots fronting on Pendleton street and there connects with an alley which runs east to River street. The defendant now owns lot No. 10, and was proceeding to build thereon and obstruct the alley, when this action was brought.
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Therefore, under rule 77 of the Circuit Court, which requires this ground of objection to’ be raised first by motion for nonsuit or for the direction of a verdict, the point is not properly before this 'Court. But, waiving the objection, we find that there was evidence tending to establish each of the causes of action.
Judgment affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Wyatt v. Cely.
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- 7 cases
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- Syllabus
- 1. Evidence — Deeds—Declarations.—In an action to enjoin the obstruction of an alley, a deed conveying an adjoining lot containing declarations about an alley at another place if the one in question was not opened, is not competent to show the alley in question was not opened, nor is its record competent to show notice to that effect. 2. Ibid. — Alley.—The evidence being a house which had been burned was situated in part where an alley was claimed to be, it is not error to rule out evidence tending to show that if the house had been rebuilt in the same locality no alley could be located there. 3. Ibid. — Declarations of one partner in a business conducted on a lot owned by the other partner as to an alley leading across another lot to the business are not binding on the owner of the dominant lot. 4. Injunction — Damages—Alley.—In an action to enjoin the obstruction of an alley on the ground that it is a public way the plaintiff . must show some damage to himself different not only in degree but in kind from that suffered by the public by reason of such obstruction. 6. Prescription' — Adverse Use. — Right op way by prescription over an unenclosed city lot arises in favor of the public from the continued use thereof by the public for twenty years without showing adverse use. 6. Issues. — Where a party does not complain of the form of issues submitted to a jury at time of framing he cannot do so afterwards. 7. Nonsuit — Verdict.—That there is no evidence to support a cause of action must be raised by motion for nonsuit or to direct a verdict on Circuit.