The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-06-29
MIR. PHILLIPS PAPER.
Discussing the Torrens System of
Land Transfers.


Discussing the Torrens System of
Land Transfers.
AS bankers are directly, or Indirectly inter-
posed Improvement of present system
would seem to be fitting subject to consider
In a bankers convention. It is said that
among Englsh-speaking peoples there are but
three methods of land transfer.
First-The original method ofrconveyancing
by deed. without record. This was the nearly
uniform method in England Until 1875, and
still continues there to a. very considerable
extent. To convey land under this method
one gust produce all deeds ,orcother papers
cons CIting his chain of title for period Of
time long enough to bar all adverse claims
No provision is made for record, and all pa
pers must be preserved to- show title
Second-Conveyancing by deed, after ex-
animation of the record OF prior deeds or
other papers affecting the4iue- in lieu of the
deeds or papers themselves This is our own
method and differs from the old English sys-
tenn only In substituting an examination of
the records for that of the original deeds In
some respects it is not as safe as the first
though much more convenient. Both systems
involve with every successive transfer an
expensive examination of the title extending
back over a sufficient number of years to es-
tablish title by Limitation Sixty years was
the required time in England until 1875 when
IL was reduced to forty years. In our West
ern states II Is customary to go back to the
original patents from the government or state
regardless Of time. 80.
+ It will be remembered that in the first In
stance careful examination Of the original
documents Is required: In the second the
records are examined insteada of the original
papers. In course of time the.crecords have
system Of indexes has become a necessity.
and from these indexes has evolved the ali.
stract OF title now. almost universally re-
quired whenever land is sod or morteaged
When a title is properly examined, the alb.
stract Is used as a guide in-the examination,
OF the records. but, more than we are apt
10 realize, the abstract itself has come to be
relied upon. without reference to the req
osds: AS the record is made, from the deeds.
the index from the records and the abstract
from the index, 1t follows that reliance upon
OF error as compared with the original
method of transfer without record. But no
one, one pr proposes to go back to the original
and tendencies of the present method n
is not necessary to speak of the expense in
vowed In an examination of title. We are
quite gun Iamiilar with this phase Of the ques-
ton, and do not forget that each succeeding
transfer involves re-examination from the
beginning. The conspicuous feature of our
present system is that there is nothing con-
slant repetition of expense loss of time and
liability OF error, but also az continual in
crease OF these attending difficulties with each
succeeding transfer. An, apt illustration of
the evils Of the present system is the case Of
the Jumel property in New York city, which
Is Is oIten- referred to. quote from Jones on
Lately the Jumel property Was cut IN I'M :,
1888 pieces or parcels of real estate and SO d
at partition -, sale. There appears to have
p Deed apout Soo purchasers at that sale and
ey, carefully employed a coed lawyer to ex-
anime the title to the lot or plat that he
t mao ooagas SO that 800 lawyers each Of
the same work. VIZ, the old deeds and mort
cages ana records affecting the whole pr; p
esty 4or, as it had never been cut up before
nd
no matter how small his PARCEL, and eaah
OF them searched the same volumes Of long
lists OF names, and picked cut from the ssCO
volumes of deeds and mortgages in the New
YORK registrars office the same big, dusty
volumes OF writing, and, lifted them down
ana looked them through-in all 300 tines,
Evidently 2S9 times that labor was thrown
away.done over and over again uselessly
And 90 the clients, those buyers, tog Their
paid 300 fees to; those LAWYERS (who each
earned his money!, but evidently 293 of those
fees were repetitions of the very same work
This sort of thing is daily repea ted, year IN
it's surface.
And the same thing happens in. regard to
loans lta ., on bond and mortgage. Every man
examined, and very properly so, and the Dor
rover has to pay for 1.-THE same old
searches against, the same old names-a5d
pay the same old fees"
Another serious evil of the present system
which is made possible by its multitude Of
teehnica! imperfections of title, is, alluded to
by Coutlee in his introductory Analysis Of
the New System of Title. Reg.strs on in
the following words:
Under the old system an unwilling pur-
multiply technical objections and eventually
after much tedious delay, have perfectly
sa SAFE title rejected as unmarketable
ton made on his behalf was never concIu-
sive: and the same expense and annoyance
might be repeated, with additions on the &C.
land, going repeatedly over the same ground
and causing much delay, for each so!icitor
called call in to pass the title had to test every
assume the responsibility of passing it. I'm
der the new system the; examiners of title
in the land titles office make one invet ga
cial powers to facilitate their examination lei
into matters of title which greatly diminish
the expense OF an ordinary rsol 'ci. or's in
yestigation. and have also the great advan-
tage under special provisions of the act that,
although there may Der TECHNICAL defects in
the title which would iolhe Eyise render it
such title would secure him from eject
ment, or what Is known among lawyers as a
'safe-holding' title I'D. The defects are cured
by the issue of certificate of title, unless
personal fraud or misrepresentation in watch
the person named as registered owner in the
existing certificate has knowingly. .part.c:-
pated, can be distinctly established"
This introduces us to tie third method, or
new SYSTEM SO calleda rspally known as
the Torrens system, because successfully in
| augurated by Sir Robert Richard Torrens in
Australia in 1850. The system has vari ty
of forms to its Details and is rarely exactly
duplicated in any new locality, though the
general features are substantially the same
in all localities. In a general way 1t may be
described as method CT eanveyancing with
out investigation of former title. the owner
having established his ownership and secured
his registration as owner after which a
transfer is made by making over his cer.' fl
cate Of title as one transfers a certificate of
bank stock. 1t is aptly 6eser bid N the pre-
amble to the &C. pass,d by the Mani oba
ia 'ntvs to the tie to estates in land N the