Seufferle v. Macfarland

28 App. D.C. 94, 1906 U.S. App. LEXIS 5222
CourtDistrict of Columbia Court of Appeals
DecidedJune 13, 1906
DocketNo. 1639
StatusPublished

This text of 28 App. D.C. 94 (Seufferle v. Macfarland) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District of Columbia Court of Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Seufferle v. Macfarland, 28 App. D.C. 94, 1906 U.S. App. LEXIS 5222 (D.C. 1906).

Opinion

Mr. Justice McComas

delivered the opinion of the Court:

Pursuant to an act of Congress, a board of sanitary engineers appointed by the President of the United States had prepared and submitted a report on the sewerage system of the District of Columbia, and in it were detailed plans for a certain outfall sewer for the discharge of the sewage of Washington, which was recommended. Congress made appropriations to pay for lands and right of way and for other expenditures. The appellees, the commissioners of this District, accordingly instituted this proceeding to condemn such land and right of way for an outfall sewer, and, among other acquisitions, to condemn a right of way 20 feet wide and about 1,200 feet in length through the land of George J. Seuiferle, the appellant, whose land is located in this district near Giesboro point on the Potomac river. Under chapter 15 of the Code of tbis District [31 Stat. at L. 1265, chap. 854], the appellees filed a petition in the supreme court of the District of Columbia, holding a district court of the United States, seeking to acquire by condemnation “under judicial process” certain lands in fee and a right of way 20 feet wide in certain other lands, extending from the land of the United States Hospital for the Insane as far as the point in the land of Alexander T. Grimes (one of the respondents in this proceeding), where said outfall sewer will enter the Potomac river. The appellant, one of the respondents, owned a tract containing about 188 acres, adjoining the laird of Grimes, and the lands of both border on and extend to the low-water mark of the Potomac river, where the tide ebbs and flows, — the land of Grimes fronting about 850 feet and the land of the appellant about 3,4 00 feet on the Potomac.

WThen the outfall sewer leaves Grimes’s land it will pass under the hed of the river to the bottom and center of its channel, 100 or 800 feet away, where its outlet will be, and the sewage of Washington city (now being discharged into that river and [97]*97into its eastern branch, and above said branch), after having passed through a strainer of 1-inch mesh and a sediment chamber, and after being skimmed, will pass through the outfall sewer and its outlet into the Potomac.

This outlet will be further down the river and distant 1,000 feet from the nearest point of appellant’s land, and in the middle of the channel, where, of course, the water is deepest, in greatest volume, and where the velocity of the current is greatest. In accordance with chapter 15 of the Code, providing for condemnation of land for public use, and pursuant to appellees’ petition, three commissioners were appointed to appraise the values, and these commissioners made their award, with which all parties were dissatisfied, and of such dissatisfaction the court was duly notified. Thereupon, pursuant to the Code, the marshal was directed to summon seven disinterested men as a jury of condemnation, and it appears that the court below gave the jury certain instructions, and then the jury went Tip on the premises to be condemned, and, after hearing the parties and certain testimony of other persons, agreed upon its written verdict, which the marshal returned to the court below, the statute providing for “a written verdict to be signed by them, or a majority of them, and attested by the marshal; who shall return the same to the court, where it shall be recorded.”

The appellant filed exceptions to the verdict of the jury and made a motion that the court set the same aside and direct a new jury to be summoned. The court below overruled these motions and exceptions, and the report and verdict of the jury for the amount of damage for the right of way over the land of the appellant and the amount of damage which would result to the remainder of the appellant’s land for the taking of such right of way for an outfall sewer, were finally ratified and confirmed, and the right of way so taken was condemned. From the order of the court below denying his motion for arrest of confirmation of the verdict of the jury, and from the subsequent order of the court below finally confirming said verdict, the appellant entered an appeal to this court.

Before proceeding to consider the merits of the case, we must [98]*98dispose of a 'motion- to dismiss this appeal, which was filed, claiming- that -in this summary- proceeding for condemnation of ' land .this court could not review the proceeding, and the respondent below had no right of appeal in this case. This question has been decided by this court at' this term, in the case of Winslow v. Baltimore & O. R. Co. post, 126, where this court held that, in a condemnation proceeding under several acts of Congress relating to said railroad and to the Union station for steam railroads in the city of Washington, by which acts a special appeal was given to the court below in proceedings for the condemnation of certain lands, this court has the power and it is its duty to review the final order of the supreme court of this District holding a district court of the United States ratifying and confirming a condemnation of lands for public use; and that such appeal is within the general appellate jurisdiction conferred upon this court by section 226 of the Code. [81 St-at. at L. 1225, chap. 854.] In accordance' with that decision, we now decide that an appeal from the condemnation in this case, a proceeding under chapter 15 of the Code, relating to the condemnation of land for public use, and not providing for an appeal, lies to this court under such general appellate jurisdiction. The motion to dismiss this appeal is overruled. We need not here repeat the reasons for this action. We refer to the decision in the Winslow Case.

We proceed to review this case upon such appeal. After the jury was sworn the court below, in behalf of the appellee, granted ten instructions to the jury, which we need not here consider. The respondent, Seufferle, asked the court for fifteen instructions to the jury to guide them in ascertaining and deciding the damage sustained by reason of the taking of his land for any of the objects of the petition in this case. The court gave all these instructions asked for, excepting those numbered 9, 13, and 14. The jury were instructed that the respondent was entitled to damages for the right of way taken, and to damáges for interruption of drainage, if any, and to interference or obstruction thereof by the construction of said sewer, and, if such obstruction be found, damages for -the effect thereof upon the [99]*99whole tract of land of the respondent. Among others the court granted the following instruction:

“8.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
28 App. D.C. 94, 1906 U.S. App. LEXIS 5222, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/seufferle-v-macfarland-dc-1906.