Hawthorne v. Walton, 8459.
| Decision Date | 25 June 1930 |
| Docket Number | No. 8459.,8459. |
| Citation | 30 S.W.2d 397 |
| Parties | HAWTHORNE et al. v. WALTON et al. |
| Court | Texas Court of Appeals |
Appeal from District Court, Hidalgo County; J. E. Leslie, Judge.
Suit by J. G. Walton and another against S. C. Hawthorne and others. Judgment for plaintiffs, and the defendants appeal.
Affirmed.
J. F. Carl, of Edinburg, and Strickland & Ewers, of Mission, for appellants.
J. C. Epperson, of Edinburg, and Don A. Bliss, of San Antonio, for appellees.
This suit was instituted by J. G. Walton and J. O. Walton against S. C. Hawthorne, M. L. Woods, A. M. Gunnell, and Woods & Gunnell, to recover actual damages in the sum of $15,000 and exemplary damages in the sum of $15,000. It was alleged that the plaintiffs, appellees herein, resided in Washington county, Mo., and the defendants, appellants, also resided in Missouri, in Jackson county, but at times extended their activities as land agents and promoters to Hidalgo county, Tex., to which locality excursions were organized and potential land buyers carried. It was alleged that the partnership of Woods & Gunnell was created as an instrumentality or agency of Hawthorne, Woods, and Gunnell, behind which partnership appellants operated "in the carrying out of the conspiracy, plan and scheme to defraud and swindle" appellees and others who were enticed into buying lands from them in Hidalgo county. That said conspiracy was put into effect by means of excursions to Texas and false representations as to the quality, quantity, and location of lands, "that various parcels of land in Hidalgo County, Texas, should and would be sold by the defendants, acting through defendants Woods & Gunnell Company, * * * for at least one-half cash, the balance of the purchase price to be represented by notes." It was further alleged that appellees were induced by appellants to go to Hidalgo county, that they went with an excursion in charge of appellants; that they represented to appellees "that all the tracts of land in the vicinity of Edinburg shown to them and especially the tract sought to be sold, and which was sold to plaintiffs by said defendants, were and was owned in fee simple title by defendants, Wood & Gunnell Company," and that appellees were induced to contract for the land for $530 an acre, for the south half of lot 2, block 273, which land when sold nor at any time was the property of appellants, and to which they had no right, title, or interest, and that appellees had already paid to appellants the sum of $5,150 on land which they did not own.
The cause was submitted on special issues, and the jury found, in response to the questions propounded, that a conspiracy was entered into among G. C. Hawthorne, M. L. Woods, and A. M. Gunnell to induce persons to purchase lands in Hidalgo county from Woods & Gunnell, by means of false representations as to material facts, that appellees were induced to purchase lot No. 2, in block 273, in what is known as the Edinburg tract, by the misrepresentations of appellants as to their ownership of such land, which false representations were made in pursuance of a conspiracy theretofore made to defraud appellees; that appellees believed such representations and were induced by them to enter into a contract to purchase said land and pay appellants $6,050 on the purchase money. Appellees discovered the fraud of appellants in March, 1926, and instituted this suit on April 26, 1928, but the jury found that the delay in bringing the action was caused by fraudulent promises of appellants that they would obtain title to the land and convey the same to appellees, and that these false promises were made with the purpose to cause appellees to delay their suit. The jury fixed the exemplary damages at $10,000.
The testimony shows a case of childlike faith and confidence on the part of appellees, utterly inconsistent with the traditional desire attributed to the Missourian to be shown everything before he will accept any statement or proceed on any enterprise. Without an abstract of title, without verifying the location of the lot, appellees parted with their money for a "gold brick" not even washed or plated with the precious metal. They swallowed with avidity all statements about the land and even when it was discovered that the Missouri "realtors" had no right or...
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