Maddox Grocery Co. v. St. Joseph Land & Development Co.
Maddox Grocery Co. v. St. Joseph Land & Development Co.
Opinion of the Court
Appellee, the St. Joseph Land & Development Company, being the owner of a large body of land lying in the counties of Liberty and Franklin, state of Florida, leased to Carr Bros., “for the purpose of extracting turpentine and rosin therefrom, all of the pine timber suitable for turpentine purposes, * * * more particularly described as follows, to wit.” Then follows a description of the land. The lessor reserved from the lands so described an existing railroad right of way and such other railroad or tramroad rights of way as had been or should be granted by it. The lessees were given, “in addition to the rights ¡to box for turpentine purposes, the right to enter in, Upon, or over and across said lands, or any part of said lands, to box, work, use, and cultivate for turpentine purposes the aforesaid described timber, for the purpose of producing rosin and spirits of turpentine,” the right to erect “storehouses, storage places, turpentining distilleries, and other places necessary” to be used on the land, and “to cut wood and building and barreling timber from its said lands necessary to be used in the manufacturing and barreling of the turpentine and rosin products.” And the lessor agreed to warrant and defend the lessees “in the possession of the above-described lands and premises.” The lessor reserved an annual rent of $250 per crop of 10,500 boxes and one-half of the net profits derived from the sale of turpentine and rosin and other products from all sources connected with working and cultivating the timber, including commissary stores. The rent was made payable on the 1st days of January and April during the life of the lease.
This suit was brought in the federal Dis
The fund in the registry of the court is sufficient to pay in full the balance due on the fixed annual rent of $250 per crop, and in part only the claim of appellant for commissary supplies, or the claim of appellee for half the net profits earned by the lessees. The final decree adjudges that appellee has a lien for rent, including both the fixed amount of $250 per crop and half the net profits, and orders that lien satisfied in full, or as far as the fund in court would go, in preference to appellant’s claim or judgment.
The argument for reversal of the decree is to this effect: That the lease was a lease of trees, not of land; that, as the trees were the leased premises, appellee’s lien for rent attached only to the naval stores taken out of them by work and cultivation, and to the crops, tins, and gutters attached thereto; that there was no lien for rent, except for the current year; that the lien of the attachment was not removed by the order of the state court, but the only effect of that order was to surrender possession of the property levied on to the federal court; and that, as there could be no net profits until expenses of operation were paid, appellant’s claim for commissary supplies, which was made up of items of expense, should at least have priority over appellee’s claim based on net profits. The lease is pot in the usual form of a lease of timber land for turpentine purposes, but the land is particularly described, and the right is granted to enter upon, to erect the necessary houses and distilleries, and to cut wood off of it; rights of way are reserved, and the lessor agrees to warrant and defend the lessees in their possession of the land. There is no right granted in the usual form of lease that is not contained in this lease.
One who leases real property is given by statute a lien for rent upon agricultural products raised on the land leased for the current year, which is superior to all other liens, though' of older date, and a lien upon all other property of the lessee usually kept on the premises, which is superior to any lien acquired subsequently to the bringing of such property on the leased premises., Revised General Statutes of Florida, § 3556. It follows that appellee had a lien for rent not only on the naval stores produced from the trees, but also on all property of the lessees usually kept on the land itself. The lien upon agricultural products does not expire with the year in which they were raised, though during the current year it is superior to all other liens, even prior ones. The lien for rent given by the statute above cited is not restricted to agricultural land, but applies generally to all classes of real property. Jones v. Fox, 23 Fla. 454, 2 So. 700. As to property of the lessees other than products of the land, the lien for rent does not take precedence over prior liens, but is superior to subsequently acquired liens. It being our view that the land was leased, appellee’s lien for rent attached, not only to the naval stores produced from the trees, but also to the other property on the leased premises.
It becomes unnecessary to determine whether or not the attachment suit was dissolved by the order of the state court, or whether possession only of the property levied on by the sheriff was surrendered to the receiver of the federal District Court; for, if the lien of that attachment was pre
The decree is reversed, and the cause remanded for further proceedings not inconsistent with this opinion.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- MADDOX GROCERY CO. v. ST. JOSEPH LAND & DEVELOPMENT CO.
- Status
- Published