Watson v. Beacon Operating Co., Inc.

• Decision Date: 14 May 1934
• Citation: 114 Fla. 773,154 So. 866
• Parties: WATSON et al. v. BEACON OPERATING CO., Inc.
• Court: Florida Supreme Court

154 So. 866

114 Fla. 773

WATSON et al. v. BEACON OPERATING CO., Inc.

Florida Supreme Court, Division B.

May 14, 1934

Error to Circuit Court, Orange County; Frank A. Smith, Judge.

Action by the Beacon Operating Company, Incorporated, against J. E Watson and others. Judgment for plaintiff, and defendants bring error.

Affirmed.

COUNSEL Dickinson & Dickinson, of Orlando, for plaintiffs in error.

George B. Carter, of Orlando, for defendant in error.

OPINION

BUFORD Justice.

The writ of error is to a judgment in favor of the defendant in error in an ejectment suit.

The plaintiff based its claim of title on two tax deeds. The record shows that the deeds were issued on tax sale certificates and that a notice of the tax sale pursuant to which the certificates were issued was published in four consecutive issues of a weekly newspaper, the first being on June 12th and the last on July 3d, and that sale was made pursuant to such notice on July 7, 1930.

The plaintiffs in error in their brief have submitted a single question to be determined by this court, as follows:

'In an ejectment suit is a tax deed valid for the purpose of establishing title in plaintiff when based on a tax sale held July 7, 1930, for the sale of taxes for 1929, the notice of which tax sale was published beginning the 12th of June, 1930, and the last publication July 3, 1930, the sale being held on the 7th of July, 1930?'

Section 50 of chapter 4322, Acts of 1895, was as follows:

'If the taxes upon any real estate shall not be paid before the first day of April of any year, the collector shall advertise and sell in the manner following: He shall make out a statement of all such real estate, specifying the amount due on each parcel, together with the cost of advertising and expense of sale, in the same order in which the land was assessed, and such list shall be published once each week for four consecutive weeks in some newspaper published in the county, if there be a newspaper.'

Section 10 of chapter 4515, Acts of 1897, amended section 50 of chapter 4322, supra, as follows:

'If the taxes upon any real estate shall not be paid before the first day of April of any year, the Collector shall advertise and sell in the manner following: He shall make out a statement of all such real estate, specifying the amount due on each parcel, together with the cost of advertising and expense of sale, in the same order in which the land was assessed, and such list shall be published once each week in five consecutive weeks in some newspaper published in the county, if there be a newspaper, said newspaper to be selected by the Board of County Commissioners.'

The Legislature of 1907 enacted chapter 5596, which covered the entire subject-matter covered by chapter 4322, supra.

In section 50 of chapter 5596, supra, it was provided:

'If the taxes upon any real estate shall not be paid before the first day of April of any year, the Tax Collector shall advertise and sell in the manner following: He shall make out a statement of all such real estate, specifying the amount due on each parcel, together with the cost of advertising and expense of sale, in the same order in which the land was assessed, and such list shall be published once each week for five consecutive weeks in some newspaper published in the county, if there be a newspaper, said newspaper to be selected by the Board of County Commissioners at their first regular meeting in February of each year, and the newspaper so selected shall have been continuously published in the county for a period of not less than one year prior to its selection.'

The Legislature of 1921 enacted chapter 8570. That act amended section 756, Revised General Statutes, which was the amended section 50 contained in chapter 5596, supra, and here the language used in this regard was identical with that used in the act of 1895, supra. Such was the statutory provision controlling when the tax sale here under consideration was made.

In Myakka Company v. Edwards, 68 Fla. 372, 382, 67 So. 217 Ann. Cas. 1917B, 201, this court construed the language contained in chapter 4129, Acts of 1893, providing for service of nonresident defendants and others in chancery cases by publication where the statute provided for the publication to be 'once each week, for four consecutive weeks.' There it was held:

'Under chapter 4129, Acts of 1893, authorizing constructive service by publication of initial process to acquire jurisdiction of a nonresident defendant in a chancery case, where the first...