The Portland daily press., 1894-02-15

are acquired by lapse OF time: AS the
form of every instrument must DE exam
ined and approved before being entereu
upon the register, the chances OF de1ects
in execution and technical errors IN de-
scription or other matters are very much
reduced. Fraud and forgery are better
guarded against by this system than by
any other, as not only must the dupll-
cate certificate, having official signatures
and seal attached, be produced WIN
each instrument affecting the lano. puI
provision is also made in some OF tne
cts for the signature OF the registered
owner being attached to the original GER
titicate which makes part OF the regis
ter, and thus certain frauds to Whlca Ihe
English system and our own have been
shown to be liable are carefully guarded
against. The facility with which Land
cap be transferred under this system
makes it readily available as security for
loans at times where despatch IS requls-
tie, and the safety connected with such
transfers, in addition to relief from the
unnecessary and burdensome expenses
which exist under the present system,
give an increased value to real estate.
Wherever the system has been tried, 1T
has found favor, and once tried has never
been given up. 1t was introduced IN
South Australia in 1858; in Queensland
in 1861; in Victoria and New South
Wales in 1862; in Tasmania in 1868; IN
New Zealand and British Columbia, IN
1870; in West Australia in 1874; in Tor
onto in 1884; in Manitoba in 1855.
Substantially, this system has been ID
operation for more than century IN
Prussia, Bavaria and other European
States, and notably in the city OF Ham
burg, where 1T has been in operation Tor
more than 600 years. Purchasers of es-
tates in Paris may also obtain an insured
title, by payment of small sum to the
city.
testimony Of the Registrar General OF
South Australia, Queensland, New Mea-
land, Victoria, New South Wales, Las
mania and British Columbia as to the
successful working of the system.
But it will probably be objected that
the Torrens System of Registration,
while working over well in Australian
colonies where everything is new ana
conditions are flexible. would not ne
adapted to the conditions which prevail
in England and the United States, and
that the conservative instincts OF lawyers
and owners of real estate would be averse
to SO radical a change. So far as Eng.
land is concerned we have the opinion OF
the present Chief Justice of England,
Lord Coleridge, who in his address at
the Congress of the Law AmendmenG
Society at Cbeltenham in 1872 declared
that he had never been able TO perceive
the obstacle to applying to land the sys-
fem of transfer which answered SO well
when applied to shipping, but as MS
learned brethren one and all had declared
that to be impossible, ne had become
impressed with the belief that there
must be something wrong in his intellect
as he failed to perceive the lmpossl bll1ty.
The.remarkably clear and logical paper
which was read by Sir Il. X. TOrrens,
relieved him from that painful impress
ion, and the statistics of the successful
working of his system in Australia
amount to demonstration; SO that the
man who denies the practicabilty OF APP
plying it might as well deny that two
and two make four"
A long step towards the adoption OF the
entire system has already been taken in
England. First, by Lord Westbury's
Act passed in 1862 and second, by Lord
Cairns's Act, passed in 1875 Neither of
these Acts adopted some of the essential
features of the Torrens System, and have
not been altogether successful, but the
advocates of the Torrens System ascribe
the partial failure of these Acts to the
ATTEMPT to com bine two irreconc1la bic
systems. Both of these Acts made re-
sort to it optional, and the former al
lowed property to be withd drawn from its
operation after once registered, and both
of them permitted any kind or form OF
conveyances to be used. involving COM
bination of two Incompatible principles,
a registration of deeds and a registration
of title which a Royal Commission in
1868 pronounced to be "entirely unwork-
able, and to differ little from an incom-
piete registry of assurances" The latter
Act also provided for an indefeasi bic
title to purchasers only, SO that it
offered no inducements to holders to reg
lister, as they would not get their titles
lafn re on ar re
The scale of fees and charges was also
deemed excessive and deterrent. Not
withstanding these disadvantages, the
permissive features of the bill allowing
registration of title have been growing
in favor, so that the Registrar General
of England reports that the number OF
registered owners is steadily increasing,
and that the manifest advantages OF a
registered title are generally overcoming
the deep-rooted opposition of the Eng
Iish landowner to having his title mat
ter of public record. In 1891 a more
sweeping measure, adopting the COM
pulsory feature of the Torrens System
passed the House of Commons, and was
defeated in the House of Lords by mar
row vote. But it may be urged that
while the omnipotence of the English
Parliament might be equal to the task
of imposing this system upon land own
ers in that country, that there are con-
stit,1tional restrictions in the United
States which would render such sys-
tenn here impractlcaple..
On examination it will be found that
these constitutional difficulties are not
insuperable, but simply require some
notifications of the system to adapt
them to our wants. What is needed IS
a conclusive starting point for the title;
fhis can be obtained either by short
statute of limitations or by judicial
proceedings to establish the title. l. the
first method is adopted the certificate
when first issued would not give an in
defeasible title, but the title would
become such by lapse of time. as the
statute of limitations would cut off all
interests which had not, within the
period fixed by the statute, by caveat or
action in court established their rights
to the property In other words, possess
DRY title would be admitted to the regis
try, and the certificate would confer upon
the applicant no greater title than he
actually possessed, but the plan from
the time of the issue of the certificate,
would be transferred according to the
Torrens System, thereby avoiding fur
ther complication of the title, and reach
ing safe starting point. This method
| would not at once reach the result at
tanned by the Torrens System, an absolute
and indefeasible title, but in the end,
si.o 4;+Jo xunc r,ond tho Gonna raS,11f