The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1899-06-16
MRS. SMITH WINS.
Has Another Chance to Secure a
Fortune.
Supreme Court 1--WE
eersz.:s:y: :; ) w Nv <n ..,.
namspott Decision.

Mrs. Azella f. Smiths case has met
with favor in the eyes of the supreme
court and she is given an opportunity
to prove her title to the real estate that
is worth fortune. The case is that of
Mrs. Smith as administrator of the es-
tate of the late P. A. Foster against
Geo. T. Barr, the former administrator,
and Hubbard & Palmer, to whom Mr..
Barr sold Mr. Fosters interest in large
tracts of land in Yellow Medicine, Mar
tin, Jackson and Redwood counties.
Mrs. Smith claims that the land was
disposed of too cheaply and sued to set
aside the order of the probate court for
the sale of the lands and to secure an
accounting from Messrs Barr and Hub
bard & Palmer The court held that
she should have commenced the action
in the counties where the land is situat-
ed, and she took an appeal on the ques
ton OF jurisdiction. The supreme
court holds that the suit can be brought
in Blue Earth county. The amount of
land involved is 1000 to 5000 acres,
valued at $4,000 to $50, 1000. The case
will now be decided on it's merits, the
question of Jurisdiction having been set
tied. The case has been pending for
three years. The following is the su-
preme court decision.
The defendants purchased at admins
traitors sale a large quantity of lands as
one lot and for lump sum. They had
sold and disposed of some of these
lands, but still held part of them.
An action was brought against them
by the heirs and present administrators
of the deceased alleging these facts and
| that the administrator sale was void
and asking that the defendants be COM
| PEELED to reconvey the lands which they
still held and to account for the pro-
ceeds of those which they had sold.
Held, that the action was properly
| brought in the county where the defen-
dants resided, although none of the
lands were situated in that county
The accounting for the proceeds of
the lands which had been disposed of
was not merely incidental and auxiliary
to the recovery in specie of the lands
still remaining undisposed of, but was
itself part of the principal and pri-
mary relief asked for in the action.
Whether the district court for the
county or counties in which the lands
undisposed of were situated would have
concurrent jurisdiction of the action.
| Quere?
The word jurisdiction" as used in
the last clause of General Statues 1894,
section $685. construed; modified or ex-
planning the language of Kretzchmar
VS.. Meehen, " F, W. R., Al.
Judgment reversed.
Mitchell, J.
August Ramspott owned a lot in
Mankato and married a wife. They
were divorced and the lot was foreclos-
ed on. She redeemed the lot, took the
certificates of redemption in her own
name and paid the taxes. He sold his
interest in the lot to Ferdinand P. Fritz,
who brings this acton for partition
The court in Blue Earth decided that
his interest was subject to what she
had paid for redemption and taxes.
Fritz appealing, the supreme court
holds that she had her interest in the
lots and lien on his moiety for half
and not the whole of what he paid. Syl-
labus:
Held, that she had an equitable lien
upon his moiety of the lot for one-half
of the taxes paid and one-half, and no
more, of the amount paid to redeem
the lot.
That the record was constructive no
tice to the plaintiff of defendants
equitable lien for the half of the
amount paid for the redemption but
not for her equities as to the taxes paid.
That the burden was on the plaintiff
| to prove that he was a bona fde pur
chaser of his moiety for.value without
notice; that the deed alone was not suf
ficient for that purpose; and, further,
that failing to establish the fact that he
was purchaser without notice and for
value he took his title subject to the
defendants equities as to taxes paid as
well as the amount paid on the redemp
ton.
That the trial court erred in adjudg-
ing a lein ON he plaintiffs moiety for
the full amount paid by defendant OIL
redemption Order modified.
Start, c. J.