Cartwright v. Trueblood

• Decision Date: 29 March 1897
• Citation: 39 S.W. 930
• Parties: CARTWRIGHT v. TRUEBLOOD et al.
• Court: Texas Supreme Court

39 S.W. 930

CARTWRIGHT v. TRUEBLOOD et al.

Supreme Court of Texas.

March 29, 1897.

Error to court of civil appeals of Second supreme judicial district.

Action by Sarah E. Trueblood and others against John Cartwright, in trespass to try title. From a judgment of the court of civil appeals (38 S. W. 834) affirming a judgment of the district court in favor of plaintiffs, defendant brings error. Reversed.

McMurray & Gose, for plaintiff in error. Will A. Miller, Jr., J. T. Johnson, and Jno. H. Clark, for defendants in error.

BROWN, J.

The court of civil appeals made substantially the following statement of the facts found by that court: On the 13th day of March, 1857, the state of Texas issued to William S. Blount patents for two tracts of land, one for 640 acres, described as situated in Denton land district, in Wise and Jack counties, and the other for 320 acres, situated in Denton land district, in Wise county; the two surveys being a part of 6,000 acres granted to William S. Blount by the republic of Texas. William S. Blount died at a date not given, leaving, surviving him, his widow, Eliza Blount, and their son, William C. Blount. The widow and William C. Blount conveyed one-half of the 6,000 acres to J. W. Lawrence, of Austin, Tex., who obtained patents thereon in 1854 or 1856. Referring to the statement of facts, we find that the undisputed testimony shows that William C. Blount was the son of William S. Blount and Eliza Blount, his wife, who survived him, and that afterwards, in 1840, Mrs. Blount married a man named Halsey, of which marriage Mrs. Trueblood and John H. Halsey were the offspring. William C. Blount died before the death of his mother, and afterwards the mother, Mrs. Halsey, died, leaving Mrs. S. E. Trueblood and John H. Halsey the only heirs to the 3,000 acres not conveyed by Mrs. Blount and William C. Blount. In 1878, Mrs. Trueblood (then Mrs. White), joined by her husband, George A. White, conveyed to William F. White 736 acres of the land so inherited, lying in Archer county; and John H. Halsey conveyed to J. Kelley 736 acres, lying in the same county. Afterwards John H. Halsey and Mary E., his wife, and George A. White and Sarah Eugenia, his wife, made and delivered the following deed: "This deed, made and executed this twenty-third day of January, one thousand eight hundred and seventy-three, between John H. Halsey and Mary E., his wife, and George A. White and Sarah Eugenia, his wife, of Nancemond county, Virginia, of the one part, and Marmaduke Cartwright, of the same place, of the other part, witnesseth: That the parties of the first part do, in consideration of the sum of twenty-four hundred dollars, grant, with general warranty, unto the said Marmaduke Cartwright, and to his heirs and assigns, forever, two parcels of land situated in Wise county, state of Texas; one parcel contains 640 acres, and the other parcel contains 320 acres; being one-half of two parcels of land patented by William S. Blount, now deceased, who died, leaving one child, to whom these lands descended, which child afterwards died, leaving, as his heirs at law, said John H. Halsey, a half-brother, and said Sarah Eugenia, a half-sister, who now sells to said Cartwright; and, for more particular boundaries, see the patents to said Wm. S. Blount. Together with all and singular the appurtenances belonging to the same; and the parties of the first part covenant that they will warrant the title to the land hereby sold to the said grantee, and to his heirs and assigns, and that the said grantee and his heirs and assigns shall have quiet possession of said land, and that all other assurances thereof necessary and proper shall be executed." The cause was tried in the district court without a jury, and judgment was given for the plaintiffs Mrs. S. E. Trueblood and her husband, William Trueblood joined by other parties, the heirs of John H. Halsey, who instituted suit in the district court of Wise county against John Cartwright and others to recover half of the lands mentioned in the above deed. The court of civil appeals affirmed the judgment of the district court, from which judgment of the court of civil appeals this writ of error was sued out.

The sole question presented for our consideration arises upon the construction of the deed copied above. Did that deed convey to the grantee the whole or only one-half of the two surveys of land mentioned therein? Before examining the language of the deed, we will state some of the rules of law which must govern in the construction of it, and in arriving at the intention of the parties. Every part of the deed...