Wetzstein v. Boston & Montana Consolidated Copper & Silver Mining Co.

66 P. 943, 26 Mont. 193, 1901 Mont. LEXIS 114
Montana Supreme Court·Decided December 23, 1901·No. No. 1,671·Published·Cited by 8 cases

Opinions

MR. CHIEF JUSTICE BRANTLY

delivered tbe opinion of tbe court.

Tbis action was brought by tbe plaintiff to obtain a decree awarding to bim an undivided oneffourtb interest in tbe Comanche lode claim (patented), situate in Silver Bow county, and for an accounting for ores extracted and removed therefrom by tbe defendant, and converted to its own use. Upon tbe filing of tbe complaint an application was made for an injunction to restrain defendant from extracting or removing ores pendente lite, and, after a bearing upon an order to show cause, tbe court made an order granting tbe injunction as prayed. From tbis order tbe defendant has appealed.

Tbe principal questions presented for examination arise upon tbe rulings of tbe district court in excluding certain evidence offered by defendant. Tbe purport of these rulings is best understood by reference to tbe allegations upon which tbe plaintiff bases bis claim of title. Omitting formal matters, a brief synopsis of these is tbe following: That plaintiff is, and since [195]*195March. 21, 1894, has been, the owner and entitled to the possession of an undivided one-fourth of the Comanche lode claim, which is valuable for the silver and copper ores contained therein; that it was located on January 19, 18J9, by one D. N. Upton and one N. L. Turner, each thus becoming entitled to an undivided oner-half interest; that Upton therafter, and on February 28, 1889, conveyed an undivided one-fourth interest to one George H. Tong; that he never thereafter conveyed any other interest to any person until November 16, 1893, when he sold and conveyed his remaining one-fourth interest to one H. L. Frank, who thereafter, and on March 21, 1894, conveyed the same to the plaintiff; that though said Upton had not sold any interest except to Tong, as aforesaid, said Tong, one Patrick Largey, one Howard H. Zenor, and one Nicholas J. Bie-lenberg, on or about June 3, 1890, applied to the United States for a patent to the said claim, fraudulently excluding Upton from the application, intending thereby to obtain for themselves title to the interest belonging to Upton; that Upton was at that time the owner of record of an undivided one-fourth interest; that notwithstanding this fact they procured a patent from the United States for themselves, fraudulently excluding Upton therefrom; that they thus became trustees of the legal title of the interest belonging to Upton; that the patentees thereupon organized the Comanche Mining Company, they becoming the officers and stockholders thereof; that the said company was organized for the purpose of taking title to the claim patented as aforesaid, and that the patentees thereupon conveyed the said claim to it by quitclaim deed, the only consideration therefor being capital stock of the company which they caused to be issued to themeselves; that the company took the conveyance of the property with full knowledge of Upton’s rights; that the said company on November 10, 1896, conveyed the claim to the defendant herein, but that the defendant took the conveyance with full knowledge of plaintiff’s rights under his conveyance from Upton through Frank; that the defendant thereupon entered into the exclusive possession of the claim [196]*196so conveyed to it, and bas ever since excluded tbe plaintiff therefrom, claiming to be tbe exclusive owner, and denying tbat tbe plaintiff bas any right or interest therein; tbat defendant is still in exclusive possession of tbe property, and is mining, carrying away, and converting to its own use large quantities of ores therefrom, and will continue to do so; refusing meanwhile to account to the plaintiff for any portion of them or of their value; tbat it bas already taken therefrom ores of a value exceeding $4,000,000; tbat tbe plaintiff bas no means of knowing tbe exact amount of tbe ores so being taken from day to> day, and tbat, unless a receiver be appointed and tbe defendant enjoined, be will be compelled to rely upon the good faith of tbe defendant when it is finally made to account; tbat the defendant will not, as plaintiff believes, render a correct account; that it is also engaged in working other* mines, and is mixing tbe ores from the Comanche claim with the ores from such other mines, and is treating and smelting them all together', though tbe ores from tbe Comanche are of much greater value; tbat tbe ores from tbe latter are of great richness, and that there can be easily extracted of them during each year an amount of tbe value of $1,000,000; tbat tbe defendant is about to convey all its property, including tbe Comanche claim, to a corporation formed outside of tbe state of Montana, thus increasing tbe danger of irreparable loss and damage to tbe plaintiff unless tbe defendant be required to deliver one-fourth of said ores to a receiver; that plaintiff bas demanded tbat be be let into possession of tbe Comanche claim jointly with the defendant, but that bis demand bas been refused; tbat be bas likewise demanded tbat defendant deliver to him on tbe dump one¡-fourth of all ores extracted, offering to pay tbe defendant one-fourth of tbe expenses of mining tbe same, but tbat this demand bas likewise been refused; tbat plaintiff is able, ready, and willing to pay bis part of tbe expense of working tbe property; tbat be and defendant are in fact cotenants in tbe property, tbe defendant owning an undivided three-fourths interest therein; tbat defendant is extracting tbe ores aforesaid through workings not on tbe prop[197]*197erty, wbicb fact prevents plaintiff from ascertaining tbe amount and value of them; and that prior to tbe commencement of tbis action tbe plaintiff bad instituted another action against tbe defendant and others for tbe reformation of a deed from Upton to Patrick Largey, now deceased, and for various other reliefs, as will appear by tbe complaint filed with tbe clerk of tbis court, to wbicb plaintiff refers and makes part hereof, without setting forth tbe same at length, but with tbe same force and effect as if fully set forth herein.

Tbe complaint referred to in tbe latter part of tbe foregoing synopsis is copied into tbe transcript as a part of tbe complaint; in tbis causes Besides tbe Boston & Montana Consolidated Copper & Silver Mining Company, there are named as defendants therein David N. Upton, George H. Tong, Howard H. Zenor, Nicholas J. Bielenberg, Henry L. Prank, Lula P. Lar-gey, administratrix of tbe estate of Patrick Largey, deceased, Charles S. Warren, and tbe Comanche Mining Company. It sets forth, in substance, all of tbe allegations contained in tbe foregoing synopsis touching tbe location of tbe Comanche claim; tbe proceedings to obtain a patent by Tong and. others; tbe alleged fraudulent exclusion of Upton from tbe application and from tbe patent; the various conveyances from Upton to>-tbe plaintiff; tbe conveyances from tbe patentees to tbe Comanche Company, and from that company to tbe defendant, with tbe allegation of knowledge on tbe part of tbe company and tbe defendant as to Upton’s rights at tbe time tbe respective conveyances were made to them; tbe exclusive possession claimed and held under its conveyance by tbe defendant; tbe mining operations conducted by it; its intention to convey all of its property, including tbe Comanche claim, to a corporation formed outside of tbe state of Montana; the cotenancy of plaintiff and tbe Boston & Montana Consolidated Copper & Silver Mining Company,- — and then continues as follows, alleging by way of information and belief that David W. Upton, before be bad made tbe conveyance to Tong of an undivided one-fourth interest, and before be conveyed tbe other one-fourth interest [198]*198belonging to him to H. L.

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Wetzstein v. Boston & Montana Consolidated Copper & Silver Mining Co., 66 P. 943, 26 Mont. 193, 1901 Mont. LEXIS 114 (Mo. 1901).

66 P. 943 (Wetzstein v. Boston & Montana Consolidated Copper & Silver Mining Co.) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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