Rosenbaum v. Foss

63 N.W. 538, 7 S.D. 83, 1895 S.D. LEXIS 40
CourtSouth Dakota Supreme Court
DecidedMay 22, 1895
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 63 N.W. 538 (Rosenbaum v. Foss) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering South Dakota Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Rosenbaum v. Foss, 63 N.W. 538, 7 S.D. 83, 1895 S.D. LEXIS 40 (S.D. 1895).

Opinions

Kellam, J.

This case, the opinion in which is published in 4 S. D. 184, 56 N. W. 114, is now before us on rehearing. Perhaps the following facts may be profitably restated: Prior to June 28, 1884, Charles W. Seefield was the owner of certain grain elevators and a flouring mill situated on leased lands in different counties of this state, and along the track of the Chicago & Northwestern Railway. Upon that day he executed and delivered to appellants a chattel mortgage on the same, by which, as stated in such mortgage, he did “grant, bargain, sell, assign, and transfer * * * all that certain personal property located and described in the Schedule A, hereto attached.” In such schedule the property now in question was described as one grain elevator, situate on the north side of the railway track, in the village of Elkton, Dakota, known as 'Seefield’s Elevator,’ and one steam flouring mill and elevator, situated on south side of railway track in the village of Nordland, Dakota (now Denver station), known as ‘See-field’s Mill and Elevator,’ all of said elevators,” etc., “being situated on railway property.” This mortgage was renewed by appellants, as provided by statute. On the 7th day of July, 1888, See-field, being.the owner thereof, made and executed to appellants another chattel .mortgage by the terms of which he did “grant, bargain, sell, assign, transfer, and make over” unto appellants “all that certain property' described as follows: One grain elevator, situate on the north side of the railway track, in the village of Elk-ton, Dakota, known as ‘Seefield’s Elevator’; also the steam flouring mill and elevator situate on the south side of the railway track in the village of Arlington, Dakota, known as ‘Seefield’s Mill and Elevator,’ together with and including all machinery, fixtures and furniture in each of said buildings, and the implements connected therewith. Said buildings and property are all situate upon railway land, and are now in my possession, in the places in which they, are hereinbefore, respectively, stated to be situate.” In our former opinion it was held upon the facts shown by the court’s findings, and for reasons fully stated in such opinion, that the mortgages were not so filed as to carry constructive notice of their [87]*87contents. Subsequently, and on tbe lOtb day of January, 1889, tbe said Seefield, still being tbe owner of said property, made and delivered to tbe respondents a bill of sale, wbicb tbe court finds “was to take tbe place of and operate as a mortgage upon the property therein described,” for tbe amount named as the consideration, wbicb bill of sale was, so far as pertinent to the question we desire to discuss, as follows: “For and in consideration of tbe sum of twenty-five thousand dollars to me in hand paid by Rosenbaum Brothers, tbe receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged, I hereby sell, assign, and make over to said Rosenbaum Brothers all my right, title and interest in and to that certain roller flouring mill,” etc., the mill referred to being the same one covered by the prior mortgage to appellants. It is found by the trial court that respondents took this bill of sale or mortgage without actual notice of either of the mortgages to appellants. The relief sought in the action was the cancellation from the files of the copies of appellants’ mortgages which had been filed as clouds upon respondents title. The reargument was allowed for the discussion of two questions: (1) Was the only consideration for respondents’bill of sale or mortgage an antecedent indebtedness, and, if so, were respondents purchasers or incumbrancers for value? (2) 'Did the transfer to respondents by Seefield of “all his right, title and interest in and to” the property which he had previously mortgaged to appellants entitle respondents to attack the record of appellants’ mortgages? We shall examine only the second question.

It seems to us that the question thus presented is substantially different from that which determines the right of a party grantee in a purely quitclaim deed, and that the real question here is, did Seefield undertake to- sell and convey to Rosenbaum the same property which he had theretofore undertaken to sell and convey to Foss? If he did, then Rosenbaum’s rights are paramount. Section 4379, Comp. Laws, provides that “a mortgage of personal property is void as against creditors of the mortgagor, and subsequent purchasers and incumbrancers of the property in good faith for value, unless the original, or an authenticated copy [88]*88thereof, be filed by depositing the same in the office of the register of deeds of the county where the property mortgaged, or any part thereof, is at such time situated.” .The obviotis purpose of this statute is to protect a purchaser or incumbrancer of personal property from a prior conveyance or mortgage of the same property; of which such later purchaser or incumbrancer had no notice, actual or constructive. It is essential, therefore, that the later conveyance cover the same property rights as the prior one; for otherwise there would be no hostility between them, and there would be no ground for preferring one to the other. In the ease before us Seefield undertook by his prior mortgages to convey to appellants Foss & Co., certain tangible and defined pieces of personal property. Subsequently he undertook: to convey to respondents Bosenbaum, not the property itself, but his “right, title, and interest” to and in a part of it. Both instruments contained affirmative words of sale, and both specifically define the subject of the sale, and each must be taken to cover just what it defines as the subject of the transfer. Before there can be a case for said section 4379 to operate upon, it must appear that the earlier and later instruments of conveyance purport to convey to different persons property rights that are in whole or in part, in conflict. If the second instrument does not purport to convey any of the rights that the first instrument includes, there is no inconsistency or conflict between them, and each party will take just what was conveyed to him. In any case, what is really sought to be sold or conveyed is primarily a question of the intention of the parties. In this case it is fair to assiime that Seefield himself did not intend to convey to the Bosenbaums the very same property rights that he had already conveyed to Foss & Co.; for, first, he conveyed the properly itself bodily; and, knowing this, his next conveyance, being that to the Bosénbaums, was only of his “right, title, and interest” in and to such property. If, however, the law itself, in a case like this, definitely fixes the meaning of the second description as identical with the first, the rights of the parties must be settled accordingly. That this is so is the vigorous contention of respondents. They say [89]*89that section 3242, Oomp.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
63 N.W. 538, 7 S.D. 83, 1895 S.D. LEXIS 40, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/rosenbaum-v-foss-sd-1895.