Stauffer v. Johnson, 2578

• Decision Date: 07 July 1953
• Docket Number: No. 2578,2578
• Citation: 259 P.2d 753,71 Wyo. 386
• Parties: STAUFFER, v. JOHNSON et al.
• Court: Wyoming Supreme Court

Page 753

259 P.2d 753

71 Wyo. 386

STAUFFER, v. JOHNSON et al.

No. 2578.

Supreme Court of Wyoming.

July 7, 1953.

M. A. Kline and Arthur Kline of Kline & Kline, Cheyenne, for appellant.

Clarence W. Cook and P. W. Spaulding, Evanston, for respondents.

RINER, Justice.

By these direct appeal proceedings a review is sought of a judgment of the District Court of Uinta County. That court affirmed a ruling of the State Board of Land Commissioners hereinafter usually mentioned as the 'Board' granting a lease of the School Section 36 Township 13, N., Range 120, West of the 6th P.M., to Milton A. Johnson, the old lessee, in a lease which expired March 1st, 1950. Appellant J. C. Stauffer filed on February 15th, 1950, with the Land Commissioner, usually to be mentioned as the 'Commissioner' a conflicting application for the lease of this land. The application of the old lessee and his wife was filed with the commissioner aforesaid on January 9th, 1950.

The parties to this controversy will usually be referred to as follows: the old lessee as the 'appellee' or by his name, 'Milton A. Johnson' and the rival applicant as the 'appellant' or by his name, 'J. C. Stauffer.' The ruling of the Board affirmed the decision of the Commissioner.

The applicants for the lease in question here are Milton A. Johnson and his wife, Gweneth M. Johnson of Evanston, Wyoming, who made a yearly rental offer of $256; the yearly rental on the old lease was $195. J. C. Stauffer of Willard, Utah, tendered a yearly rental offer of $3,500.

The Land Commissioner prior to his disposition of the contest also set out certain information derived from the several applications of these parties as follows:

'Improvements: Applicants Johnson report improvements owned by them on the Section on which they place a valuation of $19,450.00. These improvements consist of two squared log dwellings, two barns, one coop, one corral, one shed, one garage, 3/4 mile road and bridges, irrigation ditches, 160 rods three inch woven wire fence, three miles of four wire fence and 3/4 miles of six wire fence.

'Applicant Stauffer reports improvements on which he placed an estimated valuation of $4,000.00 and that amount accompanied his application as the estimated value of the improvements on the Section.

'Stock Water: There is stock water on the Section applied for furnished by Mill Creek.

* * *

* * *

'Applicant Milton A. Johnson was the old lessee. Applicants Johnson own land which adjoins the Section in conflict on the north and east and part corners it on the northeast. Part of their leased land is about 2 1/4 miles northeast of the Section. They own 5 horses, 5 beef cattle, one hog and one dairy cow, a total of 12 head of livestock. Their application reports 290 acres of the Section in grazing, 320 acres in wild hay, 7 acres in wheat and 23 acres in barley. It states that 638 acres of the Section has a water right under Bear River Wyoming Water Division No. 4. They state that the hay meadow had about $100.00 worth of commercial fertilizer scattered on it in 1949. The former lease on this land was held by the Wyoming Farm Loan Board under Loan No. 895--Uinta--Milton A. Johnson and if a new lease is awarded to Mr. Johnson it will also be held by the Farm Loan Department in connection with his loan. This land has been leased by the Johnson interests since January 15, 1921. On June 2, 1947, Mr. Joseph A. Johnson assigned the lease to Milton A. Johnson, who held the lease to its expiration date. The expiring lease carried a rental of $195.00 a year, based on 350 acres of cultivated land at 50cents an acre, 240 acres of grazing land at 7 1/2cents an acre and 50 acres at 5cents an acre. They offered $256.00 a year for the Section in conflict but they did not set out as to just how their offer was figured, but on a per acre basis it would amount to 40cents an acre for the 640 acres. When the Johnson family leased this land in 1921 there were 100 acres of hay land on the Section and 540 acres of grazing land. In the years in which they have held the lease they have improved the property to such an extent that it is a very valuable Section, which value exists largely through the labor and money they have put into the land and improvements on the Section, and its present value is due to the efforts of the Johnson family.'

As to the application by Stauffer the Commissioner said:

'Applicant J. C. Stauffer owns land which adjoins the Section in conflict on the south and part of his deeded land is about one-half mile southwest of the Section. He owns 900 head of beef cattle. He desires to lease the land for grazing purposes.

'The following letter accompanied his application:

"Cheyenne, Wyoming

February 15, 1950

"Commissioner of Public Lands

Cheyenne, Wyoming.

Gentlemen:

I am enclosing herewith an application to lease All of Section 36, Township 13 North, Range 120 West, which I have sub-leased for the years of 1946, 1947, and 1948, for which I have paid $10,000.00 for most of the mentioned section.

I am enclosing my check for $7503.00 as the initial payment and deposit for improvements as set forth in the lease application.

Very truly yours,

/s/ J. C. Stauffer"

'He offered $3,500 a year for the Section or about $5.47 an acre.'

In disposing of this contest the Commissioner stated:

'Applicant Johnson was the old lessee in this conflict. The Johnson family had this land leased from the State since 1921, having used the school section as the base of an operating ranch unit. Improvements, such as dwellings, and barns, plus fences, irrigation canals, ditches and hay meadows are on this State land. It is today a valuable section of land in that area and of material value to applicant Johnson in connection with his privately owned grazing land adjoining the school section. It is further recognized that this land is a valuable school section through the labor and money put into this land by the former lessees. Applicant J. C. Stauffer intends to use the land in conflict for grazing purposes in addition to other lands he owns adjoining on the south. It is the opinion of the Commissioner that this school section should serve as a base ranch like it has in the past for the best interests of the State, and that the legal preference right of the old lessee to have his lease renewed should prevail. Therefore, the application of Milton A. Johnson and Gweneth M. Johnson to lease the school section in conflict is allowed for a ten year term at an annual rental of $256.00 or 40 cents per acre.

'The application of J. C. Stauffer is disallowed.'

In due time Stauffer appealed from the Commissioner's decision to the Board. Explaining the position in which the appellees stood before the Board they filed May 15th, 1950, with the Commissioner an 'Answer to the Appeal to the Board of Land Commissioners' filed by Stauffer. Among other things the appellees stated:

'4. Milton A. Johnson and Gweneth Johnson, his wife, Appellees herein, are the old lessees under Lease No. 3-4899, have had, and now do have actual and necessary use for said Common School Land, and tney have been and in the future intend to be dependent upon the use of said Common School Land for their livelihood; and they, Milton A. Johnson and Gweneth Johnson, his wife, are lawful occupants of lands adjoining the above described lands as will be hereinafter shown, and have paid the annual rental charged by the Board of Land Commissioners for the use thereof; they and each of them are now bona fide resident citizens of the State of Wyoming, County of Unita, and are qualified to lease the subject lands, and that they previously held the subject lands under an approved assignment from Appellee Milton A. Johnson's father, J. A. Johnson, dated June 2, 1947; Appellees predecessor in interest, said J. A. Johnson having first obtained a lease upon the subject lands in January 15, 1921, and until the date of assignment above mentioned enjoyed uninterrupted possession thereof; and that since the date of assignment, Appellees Johnson have paid rentals thereupon when due, have not violated the provision of said lease and are entitled to and hereby assert and claim a preferred right to renew said lease upon the above described lands upon the terms prescribed by the Board of Land Commissioners.

'5. Appellees Johnson further show the Board that their private property holdings adjacent to and nearby Section 36, Township 13 North Range 120 West of the 6th P.M., the challenged section, are as follows:

"The East One-Half of Section 25, Township 13 North, Range 120 West of the 6th P.M., All of Section 30, 31, 17; 355 Acres in the East One-Half Section 19; West One-Half of Section 16; the West One-Half of Section 20, part of which is Taylor Grazing Land; and the West One-Half of the East One-Half of Section 8, part of which is Taylor Grazing Land, all in Township 13 North, Range 119 West of the 6th P.M., as is shown by Exhibit 'A' hereto appended, a total of 4035 acres, more or less, together with all buildings, improvements and fencing thereon',

'Appellee Johnson's Ranch Operating Plan, identical to that of his father and predecessor in interest, proved to be the most beneficial and practical plan to all parties in interest by some thirty (30) years of experience hereon, has been to use their entire interest above described as a single unit, said single unit having as its base, integral and focal point said Section 36, Section herein under question.

'The challenged Section 36, held under lease from the State of Wyoming bears all habitable improvements for the above-mentioned Ranch Operating Unit. In character it is generally level, irrigable, covered with adequate sweet soil, and presently bears more tillable land for agricultural crops, and produces more and better hay than the balance of the other sections of the Unit combined. More specifically, 290 Acres of the Section are Pasture Lands, 320 Acres are in wild hay, 7 Acres in wheat, and 23 Acres...