Rogers v. Ayers

119 Tenn. 340
Tennessee Supreme Court·Decided September 15, 1907·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

Mr. .Justice Neil

delivered the opinion of the Court.

This was an action of replevin, brought originally before a justice of the peace of Campbell county, for a horse and mule, which had been taken by defendant in error from the plaintiff in error, under an execution in favor of one L. P. Smith.

Prom the judgment of the justice of the peace an appeal was prayed to the circuit court of the county, and there the case was tried by the court without the intervention of a jury.

At the request of the defendant in error the court below made a written finding of facts substantially as follows :

That the horse and mule replevied were found by the levying officer and levied on in Jellico, Tennessee, and were the only horse stock of any kind that plaintiff in error had within the State; that plaintiff in error was not present when the levy was made, but on his return, when he learned that a levy had been made, he claimed the animals as exempt and demanded their restoration; that plaintiff in error was a resident and citizen of Jellico, Tennessee, and was the head of a family; that in addition to the animals levied on he owned two small mules, known as “bank mules,” such as are used in coal mines, but these mules were in Kentucky at the time the levy was made upon the other animals, and had been almost continuously at work in plaintiff in error’s coal mine in that State; that these bank mules were kept at work in che Kentucky mine, and, when not actually at [343] work, were kept in a stable or barn at tbe mine, and were never kept in Tennessee, or nsed for hauling or other work in Tennessee; that these bank mules were still in Kentucky when the plaintiff in error demanded the return of the animals levied on; that plaintiff in error was accustomed to use the animals levied on in hauling coal and other articles in the city of Jellico.

On these facts the circuit judge rendered a judgment in favor of the plaintiff in error.

On the trial in the circuit court, after the facts above mentioned were found, the defendant in error asked the circuit judge to make the following additional findings:

“(1) That plaintiff, J. C. Rogers, fraudulently removed his property to Jellico, Kentucky, from his residence in Jellico, Tennessee, shortly prior to the issuance and levy of the execution in this case, and that said Rogers removed his property as aforesaid for the purpose of evading payment of the judgment on which the execution was issued and levied on the mare and mule ill controversy. This request is based upon the testimony of J. C. Rogers, the plaintiff, given on his cross-examination.
“(2) That plaintiff, J. C. Rogers, moved his barn, or, rather, rebuilt his barn, across the State line in Jel-lico, Kentucky, and stabled all his horse stock in Kentucky, and does now, after the suit was instituted in which the judgment on which the execution levied on the mare and mule in controversy was issued; that [344] Rogers’- barn in Tennessee was burned on April 24, 1905; that L. P. Smith instituted suit against Rogers iu June, 1905, and after August 1, 1905,- Rogers built bis barn in Kentucky, where he has ever since, and does now, keep his four head, of horse stock, the mare and mule in controversy, and the two small bank mules, ‘Frank’ and a white mule. This request is based on the testimony of L. P. Smith and J. C. Rogers, the plaintiff.
“(3) That prior to the levy of the execution in question, and after the affirmation of the judgment in the supreme court, by defendant, Millard Ayers, on the mare and mule in controversy, plaintiff, J. C. Rogers, frequently rode, in a run, his bank mule, ‘Frank’ in Jel-lico, Tennessee; but that since said levy plaintiff, Rogers, has kept said mule ‘Frank’ in Kentucky. This request is based upon the testimony of J. C. Rogers and L. P. Smith.
“(4). That plaintiff, Rogers, operates a coal mine in Jellico, Kentucky, which mine is about five hundred or six hundred feet across the State line between Tennessee and Kentucky; that in this mine Rogers works his two small bank mules, and from this mine he works the mare and mule in controversy, in hauling coal into Tennessee to his customers, and to be loaded on cars in the city of Jellico, Tennessee, for shipment. .
“(5) That plaintiff, J. C. Rogers,, failed to bring the two small bank mules in his possession at the time of the levy, and tender them, and offer to exchange them [345] for the mare and mnle in controversy; that, in claiming the mare and mule levied on as exempt, Eogers. never offered the officer, Millard Ayers, the two small mules in exchange for the mare and mule claimed as. exempt.”

The circuit judge declined to make these additional findings.

The case was appealed to thecourtof civilappeals, and there tried, resulting in a judgment in favor of the defendant in error, and from this judgment the case was brought to this court upon certiorari. Errors were assigned here by the plaintiff in error upon the decision of the court of civil appeals, and the defendant in error renewed here his objections to the findings of the circuit judge.

As to the matters covered by the first request, the testimony shows that the plaintiff in error’s piano was moved into Kentucky to avoid its subjection to the judgment of Smith. This request, as bearing upon the bank mules, will be disposed of later, in stating our general conclusion from all the evidence.

The matters stated in the second request are found in the evidence.

As to the matters contained in the third request, it . is shown in the evidence of the plaintiff in error that he frequently rode the mule “Frank” in a run into Jellico. This was before the execution was issued, but whether it was after the judgment of the supreme court does not appear clearly. We think, however, it may be inferred [346] that it was after tbe affirmance of tbe judgment, and before tbe issuance of tbe execution.

Tbe matters contained in tbe fourth and fifth requests are found in tbe evidence.

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Rogers v. Ayers, 119 Tenn. 340 (Tenn. 1907).

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