The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1895-09-26
WOLEING MUST STOP
How Western PeOpleAre GOuged
and PIundered
By the Infamous Personal
Judgment Feature
OFTHEMORTGAGELAW
Not Only Does It Take All a
Man Has
But Gets a Lien Upon His
FusNe.
A DASTARDLY SCHEME
Planned By ScOundrels, Thieves
and ShylOcks
And Kent in Operation bV an
Not Only Does It Take All a
Man Has
But Gets Lien Upon His
FutiNe.
DASTARDLY SCHEME
Planned By Scoundrels, Thieves
and ShylOcks
And Kept in Operation by an
Apathetic People.


very important question is to be sub
mitted to United States District Judge
Foster in few days II is whether the
holder Of mortgage may get 'judg-
meHt ovsr" on d force. .Osure sale.
This is a point in the law which has
been the cause of bankrupting more than
one man in Topeka and many in the
state. BY the law the mOrtgagee may
take judgment against the mortgagor
for the florence between what the prop
erty brings at forced sale and the face Of
the mortgage
There is no question that the state law
permits such a judgment and effort to
pass "A law last. winter to correct this
intqnitous practice was buried No one
knows whether it was at the instigation
OF the loan companies or not. Before
that, attempts were made to pass such
law, but they always failed The loan
companies are very well satisfied with
the law as it is and it does not matter to
them if a duz5n or a hundred men are
ruined in consequence. Their policy is
10 get all they can.
In the federal court it is different. The
judges are not pursued by a fear that
they may not be re- elected and they have
no state law to hamper them. That is
why Judge Riner refused last winter to
confirm mortgage sale unless the mort
gagee would make the property satisfy
the mortgage. He said that the property
was gwen as security for the debt and
that il should satisfy if.
But every one can not go into the
United States courts. Foreclosure suits
in the federal court can only be had
when the controversy is between people
of different states. The original mort
gage must be given to citizens of
other states in order to give the
parties the right to be heard before a
United States judge and shat fact will
prevent great many of the cas- - ever
being carried outside the district court of
the county. If the foreclosure case is in
the district court the mortgagor may as
we'll resign himself to fate and prepare
TO carry the weight of Judgment for the
rest OF his life, besides losing his prop
= erty.
If any one cares TO see how the mort
gage mill works let him go to the front
door of the court house on Monday morn
ing. The sheriff comes out with his hands
full Of publication notices. There are
perhaps 4 dozen lawyers there repre-
seuting eastern clients who hold the
mortgages. They are there to bid in the
property covered by their clients mort
gage.
There may be one or two unhappy
looking men there also They are the
men whose properly is TO be sold. They
are like people at their own funerals.
They have no money and could not buy
back the properly If it were to sell for
oae-tenth the face of the mortgage, but
they are there nevertheless. and if YOU
asked them why they could not tell you.
More of these men stay at home and al
low events to take their course.
The sheriff reads in an unintelligible
manner the description of the property
to be sold. There is mortgage of
$500 on it. "IIow much am 1 offered?"
he says
Five hundred dollars" says the mort
gagee's lawyer.
"Are you all done? am offered $500
for this property" says the officer, zone,
two, three-sold Who is the buyer?"
''fhe plaintiff, says the attorney and
the property passes into the hands of the
man who held the mortgage.
That much is ell right. No one
would object & that proceeding
but that is nsf all. The sher-
if enters q Nd1fnent against the
man whose property has been taken for
$1,000 besides, 50 that if he is fortunate
enough to be possessed of anything else
it is seized under execution and sold to
Or if he in the future attempts to buy
any property that too is subject to the
judgment
There is a beautiful mansion about a
mile west of Washburn college. 1t was
built at a cost of $4,000 The man who
built it soon afterward found it necessary
TO mortgage the house and the grounds.
A mortgage company cheerfully lent
$4,000 on the property and took mort
gage against it.
Then misfortune came to the owner
like it has TO many other men IN Topeka
who own property, and he found it i'm
possible to pay the mortgage. A few
days ago it was sold at sheriff's sale to
satisfy the mortgage and was bought by
the mortgagee for $500. He got the
property and also q judgment against
the former owner for $14 500. That is
he may get 4,5OO for what is only
worth sS0.0OO
The four lots south of Parkhurst &
Davis, on Kansas avenue, were sold two
weeks ago. There was a mortgage of
$4,000 on them. The MORTGAGE bought
them for $4,000. and the balance of $i2,-
QUO was entered up as a judg-
mens against the former owner.