Reynolds v. Wallace
Reynolds v. Wallace
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion of the court.
It was admitted in open court that the parties claimed under a common source, and that the plaintiff had a perfect title to the land as described in the declaration. These instructions were, therefore, wholly unnecessary and unimportant, and might very properly have been rejected. It is obvious, however, that they could not have prejudiced the plaintiff. They simply called to the attention of the jury certain essentials of the plaintiff’s right to recover which were conceded to exist; they were not in any way in conflict with the instructions given for the plaintiff; and they cannot, in any reasonable view of the case, be regarded as having had a tendency to mislead the jury.
Affirmed.
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Reynolds v. Wallace and Another
- Cited By
- 3 cases
- Status
- Published
- Syllabus
- 1. BOUNDARIES — Estoppel—Acquiescence.—In an action of ejectment the entire controversy turned upon the location of the line between the adjoining tracts of plaintiff and defendants. When plaintiff purchased his land his grantor procured a survey thereof with notice to all adjoining landowners, including the defendants’ predecessor in title. Defendants’ predecessor in title and those claiming under him had apparently acquiesced in the survey for about nine years, when the defendants claimed to have found from an examination of the records in the clerk’s office that the survey was not correct. Defendants introduced certain witnesses whose testimony tended to show that the location of the line as indicated by the servey was not correct. Plaintiff objected to the introduction of this testimony upon the ground that defendants’ predecessor in title was present and had acquiesced in the line established by the survey, and that the defendants were estopped from denying the correctness of the line. While defendants’ predecessor did not offer any objection to the result of the survey at the time, he subsequently told his wife, who is now one of the defendants, that he was not satisfied and “was going to the courthouse and get it straight.” Shortly afterwards he died without having given the matter further attention. There was no evidence to show that plaintiff ever knew that a survey was made, or that he was in any way influenced by the connection of defendants’ predecessor in title therewith. Held: That the case did not fall within the influence of the doctrine of estoppel, and that the objection was properly overruled. 2. Boundaries — Acquiescence—Title.—Acquiescence and admissions as to boundaries may become very proper and very important evidence in determining where the true boundaries are, and such acquiescense and admissions may exist or be made under circumstances which will estop a landowner from denying them; but they are not in themselves independent sources of title. No mere parol agreement to establish a boundary, and thus exclude from the operation of a deed land embraced therein, can divert, change, or affect the legal rights of the parties growing out of the deed itself. 3. Appeal and ERROR — Questions not Raised Below. — Objection that evidence came from witnesses who did not possess the qualifications necessary to render them competent to testify on the subject, not made in the court below, cannot be raised for the first time on- appeal. - 4. Appeal and Error — Ejectment—Instructions—Ha/rmless Error.— In an action of ejectment it was admitted in open court that the parties claimed under a common source, and that the plaintiff had a perfect title to the land as described in the declaration. The entire controversy turned upon the location of the line between the two tracts. The court instructed the jury, at the request of defendants: (1) That in order to find for the plaintiff they must find title in him; and (2) that the plaintiff must rely on his own title, and not on any defects in the defendant’s title. While these instructions were wholly unnecessary and unimportant, and might very properly have been rejected, they could not have prejudiced the plaintiff, a3 they simply called to the attention of the jury certain essentials of the plaintiff’s right to recover which were conceded to exist, . and were not in any way in conflict with the instructions given for the plaintiff, and could not be regarded as having had any tendency to mislead the jury. 5. Appeal and Error — Conclusiveness of Verdict. — Where the preponderance of the evidence as set forth in the record appeared to have favored the plaintiff, but there was evidence tending materially to support the defendant’s theory, the verdict of the jury is conclusive upon the appellate court.