Brooks v. Slaughter

218 S.W. 632, 1920 Tex. App. LEXIS 93
CourtCourt of Appeals of Texas
DecidedJanuary 7, 1920
DocketNo. 1588.
StatusPublished
Cited by22 cases

This text of 218 S.W. 632 (Brooks v. Slaughter) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Brooks v. Slaughter, 218 S.W. 632, 1920 Tex. App. LEXIS 93 (Tex. Ct. App. 1920).

Opinions

BOYCE, J.

This is a boundary suit, and requires a decision as to whether there is a vacancy between the south lines of sections 1326 and 2328, block 1, H. & O. B. Railway Company surveys, and the north lines of section 403 and section 10, Tyler Tap Railway Company surveys, in Garza county. The appellant L. N. Brooks was awarded, on his [633]*633application to purchase said land as being vacant and belonging to the public school fund, a strip of land between the said surveys, which strip of land so awarded is 537 varas wide on the east end and 526 varas on the west, and extends east 2,180 varas from the northwest corner of said section 403. The appellee is the owner of sections 1226, 1228, and 403, and, as plaintiff, recovered judgment against appellants in the court below on the theory that the land claimed by the appellant is a part of said sections 1326 and 1328.

We attach hereto a plat which appellants contend correctly shows the relative position of said sections 1326, 1328, 403, and 10, as they should be located on the ground. We do not adopt the plat as being correct in all particulars, but it may be conveniently referred to in connection with our further statement of the facts, and in connection therewith will be sufficient to a general understanding of the issues to be decided.

The evidence establishes the following facts:

(1)All of the actual surveying upon which the field notes of all of the surveys shown in the plat were based was done by Jasper Hayes, though Such field notes were signed by other parties. The field notes of the sections in block 1, H. & O. B. Railway Company, were signed by Geo. Spiller, the surveyor of Young district. The corners shown on the map as the Gobb corner, Black Bottle corner, and comers D and E, were put in by Jasper Hayes on September 27 and 28, 1877, and the field notes of those surveys upon which we have placed a check mark thus, +, were dated September 27, 28, and October 1, 1877. These corners just referred to are identified on the ground; it appearing that the Oobb and Black Bottle corners were established oh September 27, 1877, and corners H and E on September 28, 1877; the course of the line from the Black Bottle corner to the Cobb corner is N. 89° 10' W.; that from the Black Bottle corner to corner D is S. I 35' E.; and that from corner D to E is off true meridian 13', the evidence not disclosing which way. The courses called for in the field notes of the surveys are north, south, east, and west. There is an excess in the distance called for by the field notes between all the corners except corners D and E. The field notes of sections 1326 and 1328 tie back through their calls and the respective calls of the field notes of intermediate surveys to corners D and E. Both parties assume that they also tie to the Cobb corner. The field notes of intervening surveys necessary to enable us to say definitely whether this is true are not in the record. However, all of the maps introduced in evidence indicate that this is correct, and we will assume that this statement, concurred in by both parties, is correct. A mound is called for at the northeast corner of section 1313, and a pile of stone at the northwest corner of 1225, but these were not found on the ground. There do not appear to be any calls for any marks on the ground in the field notes of any of the other surveys of 1877 except the calls for the corners we have mentioned, and there is nothing to show that the surveyor was on the ground at any other place, and reference to his field book failed to show that he ran any other lines at this time.

(2) In January, 1878, Hayes returned to the vicinity of those lands, and running west from the Cobb corner established on January 10, 1878, corner A; there being an excess of 104 varas in the distance called for between the Cobb corner and corner A. Erom said corner A he ran a line three miles south, thence three miles east, thence south ten miles, where he put in the comer not shown on the map. So far as appears from this record these two corners were the only marks of this survey put in on the ground. The field notes of most of the other surveys not checked by us on the map, and whose numbers run in the twelve, thirteen, and fourteen hundreds, were dated on January 10 and 11, 1878; the locations being in the name of various grantees. The field notes of this January work call -to tie these surveys to the surveys located in September and October, 1877.

(3) In May, 1878, Hayes again returned to this vicinity and put in the Grapevine, Camp Branch, and Annheuser Beer Bottle corners; at the same time he established nine comers north of the Camp Branch corner, including the comers at the northwest corners of sections 1361 and 552, which we have marked E and G. These corners just mentioned are also found on the ground. There Is an excess of 95 varas between the Camp Branch corner and Corner G; 55 varas of this excess being between the Camp Branch corner and comer E. At the same time said [634]*634surveyor ran from tlie Annlieuser Beer Bottle corner westward and northward, putting in other corners not shown on the map. A more detailed statement of this further work appears from the opinion of this court in the case of W. R. Standefer v. W. F. Vaughan, No. 1557, 219 S. W. 484, this day handed down, hut we do not deem the work done west of this locality to be material to a determination of the questions now before us. The field notes of surveys 403, 404, 405, 406, 1301, 552, 553, etc., were based on this work done in May, 1878, and call for such corners and tie to each other. The comers north of the Camp Branch corner were earth mounds and pits. The field notes of section 553 call for an earth mound at its northeast corner, described as being the southeast corner of section 1367, and southwest corner of section 1365. The field notes of section 403 call for its northwest corner to be at the southwest corner of 1326, a mound and two pits, and its northeast corner to be at the southeast comer of 1326, an earth mound. As we have already stated, the field notes of sections 1326 and 1328 do not call for any mark of any kind at these corners. The line of corners north of the northeast comer of 553, put in in May, 1878, were evidently supposed to be the corners of sections 1365, 1322, etc., although the field notes of those surveys were dated in October, 1877, and January, 1878, and had already been filed in the land office, and such field notes did not call for any such comers. The field notes of section 10 are dated in May, 1879, and call to begin at the southeast corner of 403, 1,940 varas north of the Grapevine comer, and also call for its northwest corner to be the northeast corner of 403 and the southwest corner of 1328.

(4) A map entitled “Fannin Scrip, E. L. & R. R. R. R. Co. Sketch,” and purporting to be signed by J. Hayes, was filed in the land office on July 22, 1878. This map shows sections 403 and 404 to lie south of and corner with sections 1324 and 1326. The maps in use in the land office for many years thereafter showed said sections to be thus contiguous.

(5) If the south lines of sections 1326 and 1328 be located by course and distance from corner E, such lines will be several hundred varas north of the north lines of sections 403 and 10, located from corner G and the Grapevine corner, and if the western lines of said sections 1326 and 1328 are located by course and distance from either corner E or the Cobb corner, said western lines will be sieveral hundred varas east of the western lines of said sections 403 and 10.

(6) Corrected field notes of the H. & O. B.

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218 S.W. 632, 1920 Tex. App. LEXIS 93, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/brooks-v-slaughter-texapp-1920.