Jenkins v. Trager

40 F. 726, 1889 U.S. App. LEXIS 2579
CourtU.S. Circuit Court for the District of Southern Mississippi
DecidedNovember 25, 1889
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 40 F. 726 (Jenkins v. Trager) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering U.S. Circuit Court for the District of Southern Mississippi primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Jenkins v. Trager, 40 F. 726, 1889 U.S. App. LEXIS 2579 (circtsdms 1889).

Opinion

Hilt., J.,

(charging jury.') The plaintiff, in his declaration, alleges that be is the legal owner of the land, and improvements thereon, described in his declaration, and is entitled to the possession thereof, with the rents and profits thereon since the 21st day of May, 1882, when it is alleged the defendant unlawfully deprived him of the possession of the same. To this declaration the defendant has pleaded not guilty, which throws upon the plaintiff the burden of proving to your reasonable satisfaction the truth of the allegations made in tire declaration.

It is admitted that the defendant is, and was at the time the suit was commenced, in possession of the land described in the declaration, though it is insisted that it is in Louisiana. The question to be decided by you is to ascertain from the proof whether or not the plaintiff was, at the time he brought his suit, the legal owner of the land, and improvements thereon, as described in bis declaration. The certificate of the register of the land-office, given to Richard Collins, dated January 1, 1809, is evidence that Collins had entered 480 acres of land lying on the east side of the Mississippi river, but does not describe the land so that it could be found, and, if there was no other evidence in the case, would bo insufficient evidence to sustain the action. But the deed of Richard Collins and wife to William Collins, evidently, was intended to embrace the same land, and describes it as being in Wilkinson county, Miss., bounded on the west side by the Mississippi river, and on the south by the line of demarkation between the United States and the Spanish territory, being the same line now dividing the states of Mississippi and Louisiana. This line of demarkation, as shown by the evidence before you, was established by Andrew' Ellicott, commissioner on the part of the United States, and William Dunbar, commissioner on the part of Spain, in 1798, and has ever since been recognized by the states of Mississippi and Louisiana as the dividing line between them. It is conceded that the land described in the declaration is within the boundary set out in this deed, if it lies north of said demarkation line, and that if it lies south of this line it is not within the calls of any of the deeds read in [728]*728evidence to establish the plaintiff’s title. The deeds and transcripts from the records of the probate courts of Adams and Wilkinson counties, read in evidence, establish the following facts: That William Collins conveyed the lands purchased from Richard Collins and wife to John Wall, and that the heirs at law of John Wall conveyed whatever of title John Wall had in the same lands to John F. Carmichael; that John F. Carmichael died intestate, leaving his sister, Phoebe Carmichael, his only heir at law, to whom the land in controversy, together with other lands, descended; and that Phoebe Carmichael, on the 3d day of August; 1838, conveyed the land thus cast upon her by descent to John C. Jenkins, the father of plaintiff. The uncoutradictod parol evidence establishes the fact that said John C. Jenkins, soon after his purchase, went into actual' possession of the lands so purchased; that he cleared and cultivated a portion of them, and continued up to his death in such possession; that his executors under his will continued in the possession thereof until the 28th of February, 1867, when they were partitioned, and the south-west corner of tire tract, embracing the land conveyed by Richard Collins and wife to William Collins, and through mesne conveyances vested in John C. Jenkins, was allotted to the plaintiff, who immediately went into the actual possession of the same, and so continued up to the bringing of this suit. This actual occupation, therefore, covered a period of about 50 years. From this possession, taken under the deed from Phoebe Carmichael, and so long continued, it will be presumed that a patent was issued by the United States to the original purchaser of the land, and that John C. Jenkins, in his life-time, had, and the plaintiff, his son, has, a valid legal title to the land described in the declaration, unless he be barred, as to that portion of it now in controversy, by the adverse possession of the defendant or Mrs. Cheatham, under whom he claims title. Such adverse possession, however, must be continual and unbroken for the space of 10 years next before the commencement of this suit, to be availed of by the defendant. The possession of a part of the lands conveyed to the plaintiff and his ancestor is a possession of all the lands included in the conveyance under which such possession was taken; but, as to any part of the land not described in the deeds relied on, the adverse possession can only extend to the portion in actual occupation adversely for 10 years without any break therein. This rule applies to the adverse possession claimed on both sides.

The first and most important question to be ascertained by you under the proof is as to where the original line of demarkation, fixed by the commissioners Ellicott and Dunbar, is, as that must fix the boundary, not only between the states of Mississippi and Louisiana.,, but between the land claimed by the parties to this suit; both asserting that line as their line and only boundary. The thirty-first parallel, north latitude, was agreed to be the line between the United States and Spain,, and consequently between the states of Mississippi and Louisiana; and it was further agreed that the commissioners named should determine where that parallel was, and fix and mark its actual location.'' When that was [729]*729done, the line of demarkation as fixed must remain to this day, whether there was any mistake made in determining, running, and marking it or not; and no subsequent agreement or survey (¡an change or alter it, nor can the fact that the one state or the other exercised jurisdiction of any kind on the opposite sido of the line, or that those residing on the one side or the other supposed they were living in one stale when they were in fact residing, in the other state, be evidence of the place where the line of demarkation is, if the proof show's to your satisfaction that the commissioners actually ran and marked it at a different point. The surveys and other written evidence upon the part of the plaintiff place the said line just south of the store-house and ground occupied by defendant, and is prima jade proof that this is the line fixed by the commissioners; but it is insisted upon the part of the defendant that the evidence introduced by him shows that this is not the true line, and that the line run and marked by the said commissioners, properly retraced, is north of the said line, and north of the land in controversy in this suit. Whether this is so or. not, you must determine from all the evidence in the cause, after carefully considering and weighing it. It is insisted upon the part of the plaintiff that before the line was retraced by the engineer, Babbitt, it was a matter of dispute, and doubtful, where the line of demarkation was fixed and marked by the commissioners, Elli-cott and Dunbar; and that he and the defendant mutually agreed that said Babbitt should find out, as best he could, where the said line was, and rerun and remark it; and that when so rerun and remarked it should be the boundary line between them, no matter what the result should bo; and that after the line was run and marked by said Babbitt, and found to be south of the land in controversy, defendant agreed to remove the houses and improvements, and that plaintiff was not informed lie did not intend to do so, or to stand by the agreement, until just before this action was commenced. This agreement is denied by the defendant.

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Bluebook (online)
40 F. 726, 1889 U.S. App. LEXIS 2579, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/jenkins-v-trager-circtsdms-1889.