Seibert v. Minneapolis & St. Louis Ry. Co.

59 N.W. 822, 58 Minn. 39, 1894 Minn. LEXIS 347
Supreme Court of Minnesota·Decided June 28, 1894·No. No. 8642·Published·Cited by 5 cases

Opinion

Canty, J.

This is an action brought to foreclose a mortgage for $3,887,000 on tbe railroad franchises and property of tbe defendant tbe Minneapolis & St. Louis Railway Company, dated October 12, 1882, and made to tbe Central Trust Company, as trustee. The-plaintiff, Seibert, was subsequently substituted as trustee.

Tbe railroad of tbe mortgagor was built part at a time. After the first two divisions were built, each was mortgaged separately. A third mortgage was placed as a first lien on tbe next extension or third division, and also covered tbe first two divisions as a second lien. A fourth mortgage is a first lien on tbe fourth extension or division, and covers tbe other three divisions as a lien subsequent to said other three mortgages. In this manner seven mortgages were placed, each of which is a first lien on one division,-and stands in its order as a lien on tbe other divisions, except that next after the sixth mortgage is a mortgage known as tbe “Income Mortgage,” secured on tbe income of most of tbe road. Subsequent in point of time to these eight mortgages is tbe mortgage here in suit, of which plaintiff is trustee, known as tbe “Improvement and Equipment-Mortgage.” It was given to secure 4,000 bonds of $1,000 each, but only 3,887 of these bonds have been issued, and are now outstanding. It is provided in this mortgage that all tbe rolling stock purchased [43]*43or paid for in whole or in part with the proceeds of these bonds should be marked, and a schedule of it furnished the trustee, and that this mortgage should be a first lien on all such property. It also covered all the divisions of the road as a lien subsequent to the other eight mortgages. A receiver was duly appointed, who took possession of the road, and subsequently the action was tried, and judgment ordered for the plaintiff, declaring this mortgage a first lien on a part of the rolling stock and some other property, and a lien subsequent to the other mortgages on the rest of the road. From the judgment entered thereon the defendant mortgagor appeals to this court. No settled case or bill of exceptions was ever made or filed.

1. All of the trustees of other said mortgages were made parties to this suit, and the complaint sets out the rights and priorities of the prior mortgages as plaintiff claimed them to be, and prayed that the amount of each be determined, and the property mortgaged be sold free and clear of all of said incumbrances, to pay all sums due on all of them in the order of their priority, and that such sale be held to foreclose and bar all liens and incumbrances of all parties to this suit.

It is claimed by appellant that the object of this suit was foreign to the plaintiff’s trust; that it was an action to wind up the affairs of the corporation, and not to foreclose plaintiff’s mortgage; that to decree the foreclosure of this mortgage alone under that complaint is a departure, or a material variance, from the complaint.

We are not of that opinion. If a part of the relief asked was foreign to plaintiff’s trust, none of the relief granted was. Plaintiff asked more relief than the foreclosure of his mortgage, but the facts alleged by him in his complaint showed that he was not entitled to any more. See former appeal, Seibert v. Minneapolis & St. L. Ry. Co., 52 Minn. 246, (53 N. W. 1151.) If the complaint demanded more relief than plaintiff was entitled to on the facts pleaded, this is no reason why he should not have the part of that relief to which he was entitled. But the statute goes further than that. 1878 G. S. ch. 66, § 267, provides that if there is no answer the relief cannot exceed that demanded in the complaint, but in any other case the court may grant any relief consistent with the case made by the complaint, and embraced within the issue. See, also, Connor v. Board [44]*44of Ed., 10 Minn. 439 (Gil. 356); Metzner v. Baldwin, 11 Minn. 350 (Gil. 95); First Div. St. P. & P. R. Co. v. Rice, 25 Minn. 278; Canty v. Latterner, 31 Minn. 239, (17 N. W. 385.)

2. Appellant contends that such decision of this court in this case in 52 Minn. 246, (53 N. W. 1151,) disposed of this case, and that the District Court had no authority afterwards to enter the judgment herein entered. We do not agree with appellant. On that appeal this court did not so hold. It merely held that prior mortgagees were entitled, out of the income in the hands of the receiver, to have their interest paid, without being compelled to elect to declare their principal due, and join with plaintiff in foreclosure of their mortgages in this action, and “that there is no rule or principle, either in law or equity, upon which a court may require a senior mortgagee, .against his will, at the instance of a junior mortgagee, to foreclose his mortgage before it is due.” This was not holding that the plaintiff could not for this reason proceed to foreclose his own mortgage. In fact that appeal was taken from a provisional order, and did not involve the whole case; so that the most that could be claimed for it is that it established the law of the case as to further proceedings. But it laid down no such law as claimed by appellant.

3. The bonds here in suit contain the following provision: “This bond is payable according to its tenor, with cumulative interest, out of the proceeds of property purchased or paid for with the same, and out of the net income of the railway company applicable to such payment; and no dividend shall be made on the stock of the railway company while any interest on this bond is overdue ánd unpaid.” It is contended that this bond is payable only out of the funds specified in this clause, and that the funds are not an absolute liability of the mortgagor. Counsel for appellant cites cases such as Kelly v. Bronson, 26 Minn. 359, (4 N. W. 607,) where the instrument was payable out of a particular fund, and no other provision was made for its payment. This is not such a case.

Counsel also cites cases, such as White v. Miller, 52 Minn. 367, (54 N. W. 736,) where there was an actual repugnancy or conflict between the terms of the note or bond and the terms of the mortgage, and it was held that the terms of the note or bond should control where the suit was not for foreclosure, but for personal judgment. But this is a foreclosure suit, and besides there is no such repugnancy. The [45]*45bond recites that it is payable out of certain funds, and the mortgage states that it is payable out of these same funds, and also out of still other funds. There is nothing repugnant or conflicting in this. The mortgage secures the bond according to its terms, and also by providing additional funds out of which it may be paid. Neither was this additional fund provided by the mortgage merely as security that the fund provided by the bond should be properly applied. The mortgage will not bear that construction. The former funds are as directly applicable-to the payment of the bonds as the latter funds.

4. It is claimed by appellant that there is no sufficient allegation and no sufficient finding of default in the mortgage of plaintiff to entitle him to commence foreclosure of the same. The only finding' of fact made by the court as to a default is as follows: “Upon the pleadings, and as between the plaintiff and the defendant the Minneapolis & Si. Louis Bailway Company, I find the allegations of the-complaint with respect to defaults made by the mortgagor, the-Minneapolis & St.

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Seibert v. Minneapolis & St. Louis Ry. Co., 59 N.W. 822, 58 Minn. 39, 1894 Minn. LEXIS 347 (Mich. 1894).

59 N.W. 822 (Seibert v. Minneapolis & St. Louis Ry. Co.) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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