Ohio Cent Co v. Central Trust Co

• Decision Date: 20 January 1890
• Citation: 133 U.S. 83,10 S.Ct. 235,33 L.Ed. 561
• Parties: OHIO CENT. R. CO. v. CENTRAL TRUST CO
• Court: U.S. Supreme Court

133 U.S. 83

10 S.Ct. 235

33 L.Ed. 561

OHIO CENT. R. CO. v. CENTRAL TRUST CO.

January 20, 1890.

[Statement of Case from pages 83-85 intentionally omitted] H. L. Terrell, Ashbell Green, and Thomas Thacher, for appellant.

Stevenson Burke and T. E. Stillman, for appellee.

[Argument of Counsel from pages 87-89 intentionally omitted] Mr. Chief Justice FULLER, after stating the facts as above, delivered the opinion of the court.

These first mortgage bonds matured January 1, 1920, and there was no provision in them, nor in the mortgage, that they should become due or could be declared due before that date; nor were there any allegations in the bill upon which to predicate a finding or decree to that effect. The mortgage provided that, in case of entry by the trustee for non-payment of interest, or of principal at maturity, the income and revenue should be applied to the payment of such interest, and the residue to the payment of the principal; and that, if the property went to sale, the net proceeds should be applied 'to the ratable payment of principal and the then accrued interest of all the said bonds, whether the principal be then due or not;' but if, in case of entry or of proceedings to sell for default, in payment of interest before the bonds should become due, and before the sale should be made, the interest in arrears should be paid and satisfied, together with all costs, expenses, etc., that then the proceedings should be discontinued, and possession of the mortgaged premises restored, as if default or entry had not occurred. While, therefore, the intention is clear that the bonds were not to become due before the specified date of maturity, the proceeds of sale, after the satisfaction of the accrued amount, were properly applied upon the outstanding liability. Railroad Co. v. Fosdick, 106 U. S. 47, 68, 1 Sup. Ct. Rep. 10. Neither in the pleadings nor in the reports of the special master, nor in any part of the record, can we discover the basis for the statement: 'The court therefore finds that there is due from said defendant, the Ohio Central Railroad Company, to the complainant, as trustee for the holders of said bonds secured by said first main-line mortgage, upon each of said bonds, the sum of eight hundred and two and sixty-eight and one-third one-hundredths dollars, ($802.68 1/3.)' Certainly, as $197.31 2/3 had been realized on each bond, $802.68 1/3 remained to be paid, but only according to the tenor of the bond. There are no allegations in the bill as to when the income bonds matured, nor is a copy of the second mortgage given. The deficiency decree says that 'the court further finds that no fund has come under the control of this court from which any payment can be made upon the three thousand main-line income bonds in the bill of complaint set forth, and that no payments of any kind have been made upon any of said income bonds. Wherefore, the court finds that there is due from the defendant, the Ohio Central Railroad Company, to the complainant, as trustee of the holders of said income bonds, upon each...