Santee River Cypress Lumber Co. v. Elliott

• Decision Date: 05 December 1929
• Docket Number: 12774.
• Citation: 150 S.E. 683,153 S.C. 179
• Parties: SANTEE RIVER CYPRESS LUMBER CO. v. ELLIOTT et al.
• Court: South Carolina Supreme Court

150 S.E. 683

153 S.C. 179

SANTEE RIVER CYPRESS LUMBER CO. v. ELLIOTT et al.

No. 12774.

Supreme Court of South Carolina

December 5, 1929

Appeal from Common Pleas Circuit Court of Sumter County; E. C Dennis, Judge.

Action by the Santee River Cypress Lumber Company against J. Louis Elliott and others. From an adverse judgment, plaintiff appeals. Reversed and remanded.

The complaint, answer, and charge of the trial judge were as follows:

Complaint.

"Complaining of the Defendants, the Plaintiff alleges:

"I. That the Plaintiff is the owner in fee simple and is (along with its lessees) seized and possessed of the following described premises, to-wit:

"All that piece, parcel or tract of land, situate, lying and being in the lowlands of Santee River, in Sumter County formerly Clarendon County, State of South Carolina containing about fifteen hundred acres, more or less; and bounded North by lands of Santee River Cypress Lumber Company, formerly of Richardson, and known as Woodland; East by the highland of what was formerly known as the Matt James Plantation, now said to be the property of the heirs of Gibbs James, high water mark being the boundary; South by lands of Santee River Cypress Lumber Company, formerly of Deas and of Mathis; and West by the Santee River.

" II. That Santee River Cypress Lumber Company claims said premises through a

chain of conveyances and other muniments of title, extending back for over forty years next prior to the commencement of this action.

"III. That, upon information and belief, the Plaintiff, Santee River Cypress Lumber Company, and its lessees, have been for more than ten years next prior to the commencement of this action in the continuous, adverse, exclusive and uninterrupted (except as hereinafter alleged) possession of all of the said premises, founding such claim upon written instruments as conveying the said premises.

"IV. That, upon information and belief, the Plaintiff, Santee River Cypress Lumber Company, and its lessees, grantors and predecessors, have been for more than twenty years next prior to the commencement of this action in the continuous, adverse, exclusive and uninterrupted (except hereinafter alleged) possession of the said premises, founding such claim upon written instruments as conveying the said premises.

"V. That, upon information and belief, the Plaintiff, Santee River Cypress Lumber Company, and its lessees, tenants, agents, licensees, grantors and predecessors, have been for more than forty years next prior to the commencement of this action in the continuous, adverse, exclusive and uninterrupted possession (except as hereinafter alleged), of the said premises, founding such claim upon written instruments as conveying the said premises.

"VI. That the lands above described consist of wild, uncultivated timber lands in the lowlands of the Santee River, and are impracticable for actual residence or the usual uses of agricultural husbandry, being subject to frequent overflow from the floods of the said river; but the Plaintiff alleges that it, and its lessees, are seized and possessed thereof in such manner and to such extent as land of that character is susceptible of.

" VII. That, on information and belief, the Defendant, J. Louis Elliott and R. M. Elliott, themselves, and by and through their laborers, employees, and agents, have recently, and without the consent of Plaintiff or its lessees, entered and trespassed upon the Eastern portion of the said premises, and have cut down and converted to their own uses and removed therefrom a great deal of the pine trees and timber therefrom, all to the Plaintiff's damage as hereinafter stated. That there is a considerable quantity of pine timber still there, which the said defendants are about to cut and remove, and which they are at present in the process of cutting and removing. That the timber upon said premises is its chief value, and the removal or destruction of which will irreparably impair the very essence of the said Estate. That although such trespasses have not yet been long enough continued or have not yet been of sufficient nature to ripen into an adverse title, still they are continued and repeated recurrences and will be continued unless restrained by this Honorable Court; without which restraint the Plaintiff and its lessees will be subject to constant harassment from the Defendants, who are seeking to embarrass Plaintiff's title and reversion and the Plaintiff may lose its title and reversion to the said Eastern portion of said premises if said acts are permitted to continue for a sufficient length of time longer. Plaintiff alleges, on information and belief, that the Defendants are not so solvent that a judgment for damages at law could be collected from them, and the Plaintiff is without remedy at law, and will suffer irreparable injury to its Estate and reversion if it is not protected by the injunctive powers of this Honorable Court. That the aforesaid trespasses by the Defendants have been, and are wilful and high-handed and wanton disregard of the Plaintiff's rights, and to the Plaintiff's damage of Four Thousand Dollars, actual damages, and Two Thousand Dollars, punitive damages.

"VIII. That the Plaintiff is informed and believes that the Defendants claim to have acquired some alleged right to cut the said timber by and through certain of the heirs of one, Gibb James, deceased.

"IX. That the said heirs of Gibb James, deceased, claimed to be the owners of the high-lands of the above mentioned Matt James Plantation. That many years before the said heirs of Gibb James, or their ancestor, Gibb James, deceased, came into interest in said property, the previous owner of the said Matt James Plantation, Mrs. Annie S. Manning, now believed to be deceased, sold and conveyed the low lands of the said Matt James Plantation to the grantors and predecessors of this Plaintiff, at which time the high-water mark was agreed upon as the boundary between said high-land and said low-land, of which the said Gibb James, deceased, and all claiming under him, including these Defendants, took and acquired their right, title, interest or claim, with full and due recorded and actual notice. The Plaintiff alleges that the aforesaid boundary, as thus agreed upon, would embrace the land upon which the Defendants have been and are cutting pine timber, as aforesaid, within the tract of land so sold and conveyed to Plaintiff's grantors and predecessors and by them duly conveyed unto this Plaintiff; but, notwithstanding this, Plaintiff is informed and believes that certain of the heirs of Gibb James, deceased, and these Defendants, have recently made unfounded claims that such is not the case, but that the lands on which the aforesaid pine timber is being cut are appurtenant to the high-land portion of the said old Matt James Plantation. And, notwithstanding that they had the aforesaid notice, and notwithstanding that they knew that the same was and is claimed by this Plaintiff, and without seeking any settlement of these contentions, or an establishment of the true and proper line by means of the lawful process of this Court, they have unlawfully, wilfully and wantonly undertaken to invade said premises and cut and remove said timber, all to the Plaintiff's damage as aforesaid. Plaintiff alleges that for the proper and just settlement of these respective claims, it is necessary that the Defendants should be enjoined and restrained, pending their settlement, from the destruction of the very essence of the said Estate as aforesaid; and that a survey of said premises should be had under the direction of this Honorable Court, showing the lay and nature of the ground involved, so as to enable this Court to arrive at a true and just solution of the matter.

"X. That the Defendants, Gibb James, Emma E. Johnson, Aaron James, Solomon James, Emma James, Lee Ben Johnson, Louisa Singleton, Sallie Johnson, Napoleon Richardson, Gibb James Richardson, Irene Richardson, Emma Julianna Richardson, David Richardson, Susan Richardson, Laura B. Richardson and Christina N. Dow, are, as Plaintiff is informed and believes, the heirs at law of Gibb James, deceased. That the Plaintiff, Santee River Cypress Lumber Company, is a Corporation created by and existing under the laws of the State of South Carolina.

"Wherefore, Plaintiff demands judgment:

"(a) That the Defendants, and especially the Defendants, J. Louis Elliott and R. M. Elliott and their agents, employees and servants, under a rule to show cause, be enjoined and restrained during the pendency of this action, from committing any of the acts herein complained of, upon any and all of the premises described or referred to in the foregoing complaint, as being a part of the low-lands therein mentioned.

"(b) That during the pendency of this action, this Honorable Court do order a survey of the premises herein involved to be made, which shall show the lay and nature of the territory involved so as to enable the Court to arrive at a just and true solution of the questions here presented.

"(c) That this Honorable Court do adjudge that the Plaintiff is entitled to all of the premises hereinabove claimed to be a part of the low-lands of the said Matt James Plantation.

" (d) That the plaintiff may have judgment against the Defendants in the sum of Four Thousand Dollars actual, and Two Thousand Dollars punitive damages.

"(e) For such other and further relief as may be just and proper.

"(f) For the costs and disbursements of this action."

Answer.

"I. The Defendants herein, answering the Complaint of the Plaintiff, deny that they have information or knowledge sufficient to form a belief as to the truth of the allegations contained in Paragraphs I, II, III, IV, V, VI,...