Simpson v. Stoddard County

• Court: Missouri Supreme Court
• Writing for the Court: Fox
• Citation: Simpson v. Stoddard County, 173 Mo. 421, 73 S.W. 700 (Mo. 1903)
• Decision Date: 20 March 1903
• Parties: SIMPSON v. STODDARD COUNTY. I. & J. H. HIMMELBERGER v. SAME.

73 S.W. 700

173 Mo. 421

SIMPSON v. STODDARD COUNTY.

I. & J. H. HIMMELBERGER v. SAME.

Supreme Court of Missouri.

March 20, 1903.

SWAMP LANDS—GRANT—PATENT TO COUNTY— PRIVATE SALES BY COUNTY COURT—POWER —STATUTES—CONSTRUCTION — TRUSTS — APPLICATION TO PROCEEDS — DEFECTIVE ORDERS — BONA FIDE PURCHASER — NOTICE — —RECORDS—COUNTIES — LACHES — CURATIVE ACTS — VESTED RIGHTS — APPLICATION TO PENDING CAUSE.

1. Act Cong. Sept. 28, 1850 (9 Stat. 519), granting public swamp lands to the several states in which they were situated, for the purpose of reclamation, etc., constituted a grant to such lands to the states in præsenti, and did not require a formal conveyance to transfer the title to the states.

2. By Act Feb. 23, 1853 (Laws 1852-53, p. 108), the state donated swamp lands received from the federal government, located in S. county, to such county; and Act Nov. 4, 1857 (Laws 1857, p. 32), declared that such lands previously or thereafter patented to the state should vest in full title and belong to the counties in which they lie. The swamp-land laws were subsequently revised and included in Gen. St. 1865, c. 48, § 1, which provided that all such lands were donated to the counties in which they were respectively situated, and "should be the absolute property of such counties for the purposes designated," which consisted of the drainage and reclamation of such lands, and provided that after costs of reclaiming, draining, and selling such lands had been paid, the balance of the price should be paid to the school fund. By Act March 27, 1868 (Laws 1868, p. 68), such lands were directed to be sold by the sheriff at public sale for not less than $1.25 per acre; but by Act March 10, 1869 (Sess. Laws 1869, p. 66), the register of lands was directed to prepare patents from the states to the several counties of such swamp lands, and section 6 gave to the county courts full power to sell and dispose of the same in the same manner as other real estate belonging to the county. Held, that under the latter act the county court had full power to sell swamp lands granted to the county at private sale for less than $1.25 per acre.

3. Act March 27, 1868, § 8 (Laws 1868, p. 68), providing for the sale of swamp lands, the title to which had previously vested in the counties in which the lands were located, declares that the net proceeds of sales of such lands, after defraying certain expenses, shall be paid into the county treasury for the benefit of the county school fund. Act March 10, 1869 (Sess. Laws 1869, p. 66), provided that the several county courts should have full power and control over such lands, with a right to sell and dispose of the same in the same manner and with like effect as conveyances of other county real estate. Held, that the trust in favor of the school fund with relation to the sale of such lands applied only to "the net proceeds of the sales," and did not run with the land, so as to charge a bona fide purchaser with the county's misapplication of such proceeds.

4. Where a county court, having power to sell swamp lands belonging to the county, appointed a commissioner to make the sales, and the commissioner's patent, which was the only paper relating to the conveyance entitled to registration in the land records of the county, was regular on its face, and there was nothing therein to indicate any insufficiency in the order appointing the commissioner and authorizing such sale, a subsequent bona fide purchaser of the land was not charged with notice of defects in such order for which the conveyance might have been set aside.

5. Where swamp lands granted to a county were conveyed by the county court under statutory authority, and thereafter passed to bona fide purchasers, who took without notice of defects in the order authorizing the sale, and occupied and paid taxes on the lands to the county for over 30 years, claiming to be the owners in fee, the county was barred by laches from subsequently claiming title to the lands on the ground that the conveyance was invalid.

6. Laws 1901, p. 202, provided that in all cases where county courts of the state prior to 1880 sold swamp lands in their respective counties, and caused patents to be issued therefor, and the patentees have been claiming such lands and paying county and state taxes for more than 20 years, the grant shall be deemed and held to be valid, and no action shall be maintained for the purpose of setting aside or calling in question such patents. Held, that since a county was a mere political division, in subordination to the state, from which the swamp lands were acquired, such act did not impair the county's vested right, but was a valid exercise of the state's power to validate the title to such lands as had been patented, and for which the full consideration had been paid.

7. Where an action was brought to quiet title to swamp lands conveyed by a county under defective proceedings, and while the cause was pending on appeal, but before decision, an act was passed curing such defects, and providing that such grants shall be held good and valid, and that no action should be maintained for the purpose of setting aside or calling in question such patent or patents, the appellate court had power to consider and enforce such statute in the determination of such appeal.

Robinson, C. J., and Brace and Marshall, JJ., dissenting.

In Banc. Appeal from Circuit Court, Stoddard County; J. L. Fort, Judge.

Separate actions by A. P. Simpson and by I. & J. H. Himmelberger against Stoddard county to quiet title to swamp lands. From judgments in favor of plaintiffs, defendant appeals. Affirmed.

These cases originated in Stoddard county, Mo. The questions involved in both cases being practically the same, they were consolidated by agreement of the parties, with the consent of the court, and tried as one case.

The suits in these cases were instituted to quiet title to certain lands, set out in the petition, located in Stoddard county, Mo. The lands involved in this controversy are what is known as swamp or overflowed lands. The petitions in the two cases, as well as the answers, present practically the same questions; and, there being no point presented for review upon the pleadings, we will not burden this opinion by inserting them. There is no dispute as to the facts, other than upon the character of the claim of Ringer against Stoddard county. As to that, there is a conflict of testimony as to whether his cause of action was an ordinary claim against the county, or upon warrants upon the swamp-land fund. We regard this dispute as to the nature of the cause of action in the suit of Ringer against the county as being immaterial as to the vital questions involved. At least, we have concluded that a conclusion reached upon one side or the other upon this disputed question would shed but little light upon the main points of difference in this cause.

On the 13th day of March, 1868, Louis M. Ringer obtained a judgment against Stoddard county for $1,136.90, and in August following caused an execution to be issued and levied upon 107,000 acres of land—the same being swamp and overflowed lands conveyed by the state of Missouri to Stoddard county for the purpose of reclamation and drainage, as set out in the act of conveyance—and had the land sold under the execution, and at said sale the plaintiff's grantors purchased the land in controversy in this suit. At a special term of the county court held in April, 1869, the court entered an order of record, compromising with the purchasers of said land at the sheriff's sale, which order of compromise made by the county court of Stoddard county is as follows, to wit (County Court Record, Book B, page 265):

"Whereas, at the March term, A. D. 1868, of the circuit court of Stoddard county, in the state of Missouri, Louis M. Ringer obtained a judgment against Stoddard county upon warrants on the swamp-land fund of said county, upon which said judgment an execution issued according to law, by virtue of which said execution the sheriff of Stoddard county did seize and levy upon all the swamp lands owned and possessed by said county, of which said lands so levied upon one hundred and seven thousand, or near that amount of acres of said lands, were sold by said sheriff, in due accordance of law, at the September term of the circuit court of Stoddard county, A. D. 1868, to Louis M. Ringer and others; and whereas, the county court of Stoddard county did at its February term, A. D. 1869, by an order of record, appoint William G. Phelan and David G. Hicks attorneys for and on behalf of said county, to institute suit for the recovery of the lands sold as aforesaid, granting to them the interest of the county to fifty thousand acres of the lands so sold, as their fee: Now, therefore, in consideration of the facts that said suit would be attended with much uncertainty in the recovery of said lands, and require years of litigation to terminate the same, it is therefore considered by the court that a compromise of the same would be for the benefit of the said county of Stoddard, if made with the parties who bought said lands at said sale, whose names are as follows, to wit: Louis M. Ringer, D. Starks Crumb, Erastus W. Hill, Thomas W. Johnson, Samuel J. Bartlett, I. Frank Starrs, Robert W. Carter, M. E. Leach, William P. Knox, Clarissa M. O'Dell, H. H. Bedford, James Frazier, William W. Norman, J. Moore, J. E. Liles, and Jesse B. Leggett; and whereas, said purchasers agree and covenant and pay to the said county the sum of thirteen thousand five hundred dollars in Stoddard county warrants, which sum is to be paid into the county treasury on the following terms and in the following manner, to wit: Said parties either paying as aforesaid, or executing their promissory notes, bearing six per cent. interest. One-half of said sum shall be paid as aforesaid on or before the 1st day of January, A. D. 1870, and the remaining half on the 1st day...