The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1872-06-06
From the Keowee Courier.
Decision Of Judge Orr on the Tax Law.
Whitner Symmes VS.. Louis Wernecke.-C0na-
plant for Possession of Real Property.

This was an action to recover from the De-
fendant house and lot situate in the town OF
Walhalla, and described in the complaint,
sold at public auction, by the County Auditor,
LIB. johnson, 18th June, 1871, to satisfy taxes
assessed against the Defendant, and which had
not been paid, amounting to S11391. The
Plaintiff became the purchaser at the sum OF
S119.S5, and received the proper certificate OF
such purchase from the County Auditor. Pos-
session was demanded by the Plaintiff, and
Defendant refused to deliver up the.same. The
assessments made by the Auditor, with penalty
for non-payment, for the years 1865, leo9 ana
1870, amounted to S113.91. The property as,
sessed for these years, was 1900 acres of land
in White Water Township, $40 acres OF land
in Tugalo Township, and two lots in Walhalla,
one OF, which is the subject matter of this suit.
The taxes on the two lots in town amounted to
Sl3.65, to which add penalty S3.4l, and costs
$500, makes the sum due for taxes on the town
lots, only S2606. The Fl. Fa. was for $l13.91,
and it embraced not only the taxes, &C., on
the town lots, but also SS7.85 for the real estate
owned by the Defendant in Tugalo and White
Water townships.
Defendants only homestead and place OF
residence was on the lot sold and now sued for
by Plaintiff. Before the sale the Defendant
and Doyle went to the office of the Treasurer
and proposed to pay all of the tax, penalty and
costs on the town lots, amounting to S26O6, as
already stated the officer declined to receive
that part Of the tax and release that property,
and insisted that the whole tax should be paid
A few days prior to the Auditors sale, to
wit, on Saleday in June, having previously
levied and advertised, the Sheriff sold both
the tracts of land to satisfy Fl. Fa.'s in his
office-one tract of 600 acres for $4,000, the
other of 400 acres for $50. The Sheriff. on the
day of sale, announced that the purchasers of
the several tracts would be liable to pay any
past due taxes The proceeds of this sale were
applied to the Fl. Fa.'s in the Sheriff's office
against Wernecke, but no part thereof to the
taxes past due on these lands.
On the second Tuesday of June, to wit, the
18th, and eight days after the sale of real es-
tate of Defendant in Tugalo Township, upon
which $s7.S5 of the S11S91 had been assessed,
the Auditor proceeded to sell the house and
lot-homestead-of Defendant to satisfy the
assessments made in Tugalo and White Water
Townships and the two lots in Walhalla,
though Defendant, previous to sale, had ten
dered to the Treasurer the full amount OF as
sessment and costs on the Lot on which his
homestead was situated.
The results were that all of the real estate
of Defendant, not included in his homestead,
was sold, and the proceeds applied in satisfac-
ton of the FL. Fa.'s against him in the Sher-
ifs Office, and that his homestead was sold by
the Auditor to satisfy taxes, not upon that lot
alone, but upon other tracts of land which
Defendant owned, and upon which he had no
homestead.
The County Auditor, in his evidence, stated
that the assessments were made on the several
tracts and lots of land in separate columns for
three years also, that he advertised for sale
the town lots in Walhalla and the several tracts
of land owned by Defendant
Was the sale valid one, and does the GER
tifcate of purchase by the Auditor entitle the
Plaintiff to immediate possession of the lot
sued for? The a. A. 1868, page So, Sec. 10S,
provides, 'That the County Treasurer, &c,
that &c. shall offer for sale, at public auction,
each tract, parcel or lot Of real estate described
in the advertisement aforesaid, on which the
taxes, assessments and penalties charged there
on shall not have been paid, &c.
And the Treasurer shall continue such sale,
from day to day, until each tract, parcel or lot
of real estate described in said advertisement
upon which the taxes, assessments and penal
ties shall not have been paid shall be sold or
offered for SALE"
In Sec. 76, same Act, the County Auditor
ssshall proceed forthwith to determine the sums
to be levied upon each tract and lot OF real
n Sec. Is. Each County Auditor shall
make out lists &C., $50 arranged as that each
separate parcel of real property in each town,
ship, other than city or village property, shall
be Contained in line or lines, opposite the
names of the owners" &C., and $50 that each
parcel or lot of real property in towns or cities
shall be contained in one line," &c.
In Sec. 81, same Act, it is made the duty of
70 10 frcn1
tions furnished by the County Auditor, "a cor.
rect and pertinent description of each tract and
lot Of real property in his district" &C., and
for that purpose may require papers, orders,
SURVEYS, &C., and che shall, in all cases, from
actual view and from the best sources of infor-
nation within his reach determine, as near as
practicable, the true value OF each separate
tract and lot of real property in his district" "
&c. He shall note in his plat-book, separately,
the value of all houses, mills and other build
ings, &C., on any tract of land, &C.; also, "the
number of acres Of arabic or plow land, mead
ow and pasture land, and number of acres OF
wood and uncultivated land in each tract.
In Sec. 70, same Act. "When the taxes,
assessment and penalties charged against any
parcel or lot of real property shall not be paid
on or before, &C., "a penalty of 20 per cent.
thereon shall be added" &C., &C.; and if not
paid, "shall be collected by the sale of such
real estate" &c.
These provisions of the several sections of
the Act Of the Legislature clearly indicate and
require that the assessment on real estate shall
be made upon each several tract and lot OF
land owned by the tax payer.
Under these circumstances, is the sale made
by the Auditor valid, and does his certificate
give the purchaser, Symmes, good title Tor
the land sold by the Auditor? We think not.
See oath Maine, 2S3; 18th Pickering, 492;
9th Maine, 3S6.
'The sale must be according to the parcels
and descriptions contained in the list and the
other proceedings, especially, must conform to
the list" In Pitkin VS.. Yaw, the judgment
was against ten acre lots for an aggregate
sumEtwo only were sold and the sale was held
void. 18th illinois, 25S. In Wiley against