Jewel v. Norris

62 N.W. 740, 94 Iowa 241
Supreme Court of Iowa·Decided April 5, 1895·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

Robinson, J.

The plaintiff claims that in July, 1893, the defendant purchased of' one Frush a farm in Kansas for the sum of four thousand eight hundred dollars; that, to* pay a part of the purchase price, the plaintiff, at the request of the defendant, conveyed to Frush a house and four lots in Independence, Iowa, which were of the value of two thousand five hundred dollars, and for which Frush allowed the defendant the sum of two thousand seven hundred dollars; that the defendant agreed to pay to the plaintiff, in land, two thousand five hundred dollars for the property conveyed as stated, but that he has failed and refused to do* so. The plaintiff further alleges that his contract with the defendant for the conveyance of the property was partly oral and partly written. He asks judgment against the defendant for two thousand five hundred dollars. The defendant denies that he purchased a farm of Frush, and alleges: That it was purchased of Frush by the plaintiff, who gave for it a conveyance of the Independence property, as statéd, subject to incumbrances thereon to the amount of two thousand three hundred dollars. That, after the plaintiff had purchased the Kansas farm, he desired to exchange it for a farm of the defendant in Buchanan county, which contained three hundred and twenty-three acres, and that the plaintiff and the defendant entered into a written agreement for an exchange of the farms, the parts of which material to a determination of this case are as follows: “This contract, made and entered into by and between Lafayette Norris, of .Aurora, Iowa, party of the first part, and James E. Jewel, of Independence, Iowa, party of the second part, witnesseth: That said Norris has this day sold to said Jewel [land in Buchanan county, Iowa, which is described], for which the said Jewel is to convey or [243] cause to be conveyed to the said Norris [land in Osborne county, Kansas, which is described]; by full warranty deed, subject to twenty-three hundred ($2,300.00) dollars incumbrance, with all interest paid to October lp 1893, and is to pay to Mm the sum of five thousand five hundred and seventy-eight ($5,578.00) dollars on March 1, 1894, without interest * * * Norris is to give possession to his farm March 1, 1894, and’ Jewel is to give possession of the Kansas land, if desired, by February 15, 1894. Each party is to furMsh a full and complete abstract of title to the land he is to convey, showing the same clear of all incumbrances (except the $2,300.00 noted above), liens, and clouds. Jewel is to give Norris deed and abstract of the Kansas land July 15,1893, and Norris is to give his deed to Jewel on or before August 10,1893. * * This agreement was signed by Norris and Jewel, but not by the wife of Norris. She refuses to sign it, and refuses' to join in any conveyance of the land of her husband, therein described. That land includes their homestead. The defendant, in consequence of the refusal of his wife to ratify the agreement, as he alleges, declines to execute it on. his part, and he and his wife duly executed to the plaintiff a special-warranty deed for the Kansas farm, and tendered it to him before this action was commenced, and have since kept the tender good. The evidence was sufficient to have authorized the jury to find that the plaintiff has fully performed his part of the agreement, so far as he was permitted to do so by the defendant, and there is no claim that it was not entered into voluntarily and in good faith by both parties to it.

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Jewel v. Norris, 62 N.W. 740, 94 Iowa 241 (iowa 1895).

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