State ex rel. Rice v. Harrison

125 S.W. 1115, 226 Mo. 158, 1910 Mo. LEXIS 55
CourtSupreme Court of Missouri
DecidedMarch 1, 1910
StatusPublished

This text of 125 S.W. 1115 (State ex rel. Rice v. Harrison) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Missouri primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
State ex rel. Rice v. Harrison, 125 S.W. 1115, 226 Mo. 158, 1910 Mo. LEXIS 55 (Mo. 1910).

Opinion

WOODSON, J.

The relator, as collector of revenue of Clinton county, instituted this suit in the circuit court of that county, against the defendant, as curator of the estate of Walter, Virginia and Eunice de Steiguer to recover back taxes due for State, county [161]*161and school purposes for the year 1905, aggregating $418. A trial was had before the court, which resulted in a judgment for the defendant; and the relator duly appealed the cause to this court.

The facts are brief and are practically undisputed. . They are as follows:

Defendant for some cause, not disclosed by the record, neglected to make out and deliver to the county assessor a personal assessment list, as required by law, of the personal property, money and effects in his hands and under his control as the curator of said estates, on the first day of June, 1904. Sometime after October of that year, the collector notified him of that fact, and inclosed to him one of .the ordinary blank assessment lists, with a request that he fill out and return same to the assessor’s office, at Plattsburg. On or about December 31, 1904, the defendant returned to the assessor, at Plattsburg, by mail, the assessment list before mentioned, wherein he placed the value of the property in his hands at the sum of $27,500. This list had been lost and could not be produced at the trial. He testified, however, that he did not place those figures in the column headed “money and notes,” but simply made a statement upon the blank list, showing the balance which was charged against him as such curator of said estates on an accounting as of June 1, 1904. This, however, is positively denied by Mr. McWilliams, the county clerk, a witness for defendant, who entered the list in the tax books. He testified that the return list “shows exactly what the books show.”

This transaction is best explained in the language of Mr. McWilliams:

Cross-examination by Mr. E. C. Hall:

• “Q. Mr. McWilliams, you were the clerk of the board of equalization at the time this record was made? A. Yes, sir; secretary of the board. Q. Do you know the facts upon which this record was made? A. Tes, [162]*162sir. Q. State whether or not there was a list of the property, assessment list, made out by Mr. Harrison, filed before the hoard at that time? A. There was. Q. Calling for the amount of $27,500'? A. Yes, sir. Q. And that, among other lists, was a lot of lists made out by the individuals themselves and sent in too late? A. Sent in after the county assessor turned his books over, but before the board of equalization— Q. Tell the court how that occurred, with regard to the curator or guardian. A. It occurred in this way, as it occurs every year: The county assessor turned his books over in October. After October, after the county assessor turned his books over, quite a number of lists were omitted from the books as the county court approved it. They gave notice; had some blank lists sent to the ones who omitted to give in their assessment between October and April. There was some thirty lists in that call. They were sent to the county assessor and he sent them to the county court and they were put on there by the county court in April. That was the way the lists were put on. Q. Have you made search for that list of Mr. Harrison? A. Well, while I was clerk, Mr. Harrison asked for the lists two or three times. I always gave him the lists called for, as well as I know. In 'January, I believe it was the first Monday or Tuesday in January, we looked for the list at that time and didn’t find it. I don’t know, it may be misplaced. I thought may be the collector had it.”

It is admitted that the list cannot be produced at this time.

By witness: “I expect may be it is put in the wrong box down there.”

Redirect examination:

“Q. This list you speak of, you don’t pretend to know what it shows? A. Yes, sir; it shows exactly what the books show, because I entered it myself. It was signed by C. H. Harrison. Q. Give the wording [163]*163of it? A. Well, I could not do it. It’s the regular county assessment list sent in by Mr. Harrison with the valuation in that book. I am positive of that, for the reason no list was placed on the book except the order these lists were on. Every list was signed that was there. There is no question of that. Q. Yon don’t pretend to remember what that list stated, though? A. I pretend to say it stated that amount of money in the lists belong to the heirs, money and notes. Under the head of money and notes. Q. Money and notes? A. Yes, sir. Q. You say under the head of money and notes. This list you speak of had a column ‘Money and Notes?’ A. Yes, sir; it was the usual county assessment list. Just what that recites in the record. Under the head of money and notes, ‘ $27,500. ’ Q. That was the heading on the list? A. It is in the list under that head, yes, sir. Of course three or four or five times under that. Notes secured and notes unsecured, that is, mortgages secured and mortgages unsecured, but under the head of money and notes comes that amount. Q. You don’t know when Mr. Harrison sent that list to the assessor? A. No, sir; I don’t remember the date. I sent the blanks out to those people myself. He asked me to do it. Q. Was the list by C. H. Harrison, curator, or by C. H. Harrison? A. I could not say as to that. Q. It was a list and this is a copy of it? A. That doesn’t pretend' to be a copy of the list; it simply pretends to give the amount of money. There is nothing in that list except money and notes. Q. Didn’t that list say ‘Balance due, $27,500?’ To refresh your memory? A. No, sir; I have no recollection of anything of that kind being in any list I ever saw. Q. You have no definite recollection of exactly what it did contain except you think it was money and notes? A. No, I don’t think anything about it. I know it was money and notes, because I entered the list myself and I could not make these [164]*164entries except by taking tbe list to make them. There is no other way to make them. ’ ’

Thereafter the assessor turned over to the county court a number of personal assessment lists, one of which was the one in controversy. Thereafter the county board of equalization met and organized, as provided by law; and, among other things, the following proceedings were had :

On Thursday, April 13, 1905, the following entry appears on page 42 of the records of the county board of equalization of Clinton county:

“On motion the following lists which have been sent to the county assessor since he turned his books over to the county court be placed on the personal assessment book for 1905 based on the ownership of property June 1, 1904. O. H. Harrison money, notes, $27,500, and other lists.”

In pursuance of said order there was placed by the secretary of the board upon the personal assessment book of Clinton county, Missouri, for the year 1905, at page 143, the following entry:

“Lists sent to the county assessor since he turned his books over to the county court based on the ownership of property on the 1st day of June, 1904, and ordered placed on the assessment book of 1905 by the county board of equalization. C. H. Harrison, curator, township Cameron, for Walter, Eunice and Virginia de Steiguer.
State taxes .........'.............$ 46N5
County taxes .................... 96.25'
School taxes Cameron............

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Bluebook (online)
125 S.W. 1115, 226 Mo. 158, 1910 Mo. LEXIS 55, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/state-ex-rel-rice-v-harrison-mo-1910.