Bradford v. Davis

• Citation: 219 S.W. 617
• Decision Date: 02 March 1920
• Docket Number: No. 20876.,20876.
• Parties: BRADFORD v. DAVIS.
• Court: Missouri Supreme Court

219 S.W. 617

BRADFORD v. DAVIS.

No. 20876.

Supreme Court of Missouri, Division No. 1.

March 2, 1920.

Appeal from Circuit Court, Crawford County; L. B. Woodside, Judge.

Action by Mary C. Bradford against Artrissa Davis From a judgment for plaintiff, defendant appeals. Affirmed.

E. D. Roberts and A. H. Harrison, both of Steelville, for appellant.

Harry Clymer, of Steelville, for respondent.

GRAVES, J.

This is an action by petition in two counts. The first count is an ordinary petition to determine and quiet title to about 50 acres of land in Crawford county, describing it by metes and bounds. The second is a count in ejectment. The count in ejectment was ultimately dismissed after the hearing of the evidence. The answer, among other things, asks for the reformation of a deed made by Frank H. Farris, and for all deeds subsequent thereto.

Quite a tract of land was owned by William Davis in his lifetime. By his will, his widow, the defendant herein, got the land for life, or until her remarriage, if she remarried. By Davis and wife there was a deed of trust placed upon the land (in the lifetime of Davis) for some $900. It seems that Mrs. Davis had opportunity to, and desired to, sell to certain parties a portion of the land upon which there was a cave at and for the price of $1,500. She could not make a good deed. It was understood that the whole land was to be sold under the deed of trust, and bought in by Mr. Farris, who was to deed to these parties the land which they were to get for their $1,500, and out of the $1,500 he should discharge the deed of trust debt, and pay the balance of the $1,500 to Mrs. Davis, and also make her a deed to the remaining lands. This Farris did. It is now claimed that Farris deeded to these parties (John Meier, John P. Fleeter, and George Bothe) more land than he should have conveyed them under their alleged agreement or understandings.

Defendant does not contend that plaintiff is not entitled to a part of the land in dispute, but denies that she is entitled to all of it, and she asks the reformation of the line of deeds from Farris down to plaintiff, because such line of deeds make a paper title to plaintiff for all the land involved in this suit.

Plaintiff claims to be an innocent purchaser for value, with no notice of the alleged equities set up in the answer of defendant; e., that by mutual mistake more land had been conveyed by the Farris deed than was intended. Trial before the court resulted in a judgment for plaintiff, in which it is found that plaintiff is the owner in fee of the land in dispute. Defendant appeals.

I. There was a contract between Mrs. Davis and John P. Fleeter, George Bothe, and John Meier as to the land involved here. Frank H. Farris dictated this contract. In it Mrs. Davis agreed to procure title, and convey to the three parties the land upon which the cave was located, and some additional land upon which was a mill house and pond. A 60-foot strip is also mentioned. When Mr. Farris bought in the land at the trustee's sale, he undertook to carry out his understanding of the contract. The three parties named above bought the deed of trust, and took an assignment thereof, and then advertised and had the land sold. This seems to have been the plan of perfecting title, agreed upon by the parties, with Mr. Farris acting generally for all the parties.

The sale was made, and Fleeter, Meier, and Bothe paid to Farris the difference between the amount of the deed of trust and the agreed price of $1,500. This difference Mrs. Davis received from Farris. Farris made a deed to Fleeter, Meier, and Bothe for the land, which he thought under the contract was coming to them. That deed covers the land in suit, now claimed by plaintiff. At the same time he made a deed to the remainder to Mrs. Davis. This was in 1906, and plaintiff did not acquire title until 1914. In the deed from Farris to Mrs. Davis, the land is described thus:

"All of the southwest quarter of the southwest quarter of section 26 and the southeast fractional quarter of the northeast quarter, north of the Meramec river, in section 24, and the northwest fractional quarter, northwest of the Meramec river, of section 35, all in township 39 north of range 3 west, save and except that part of the aforesaid tracts which have been heretofore conveyed on April 11, 1906, and described by metes and bounds, to John Meier, and John P. Fleeter and George Bothe, as will fully appear from said deed, which is duly recorded in the deed records of Crawford county, Missouri, in Book 54, at page 418."

The deed thus specifically mentions the deed to the other three parties, giving the book and page of the record of that deed. This deed Mrs. Davis accepted, and did nothing to correct the alleged error up to the time of plaintiff's purchase. Plaintiff took title by warranty deed, as did her immediate predecessor in title, Catherine Weinberg. Mrs. Weinberg got title in 1910, and...