Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1905-11-21
SHELLEY RULE APPLIED
An Interesting Decision In a
Case Brought In Dubuque
County Courts
COURT REvERsEs
ITSELF
Decision That RuIe in the Shelley Case
Applies in Iowa Made by Supreme
Court Brings Case Back for RetriaI
and Court Makes Decision in Ac-
cordance Herewith.
Special to Times Republican.

Special to Times Republican.
Dubuque, Nov 21-The final decree
has been handed down in the case Of
Martha Mersch VS.. Dominic Rhom-
berg and the German National bank.
The case was originally tried in the
district court Of Dubuque county, and
decided in favor of the plaintiff. An
appeal was taken to the supreme
court, where the decision was revers-
ed. Under the ruling of the supreme
court the district judge has made his
ruling In favor OF the defendant.
The decision on which this ruling is
made is one that has lately been
adopted in Iowa and there Is every
probability that the Legislature will be
asked at the coming session to cover
the question and do 1t adversely to
the precedent lately established.
An Unusual Case.
The case is the first one of the kind
from Dubuque county to be settled In
compliance with the decision in ques-
ton and but The third one in the state
Of Iowa. In 1876 Mrs. Catharine Beck
OF Dubuque decided a three-story brick
building on the corner of Nineteenth
street and Coulter avenue to her
daughter Margaretha Mersch. Later
Dominic Rhomberg loaned to Mar
garetha .Mersch money to remove GER
tain mechanics liens against the prop
erty. Finally there was a sale of the
property and 1t was bought in by
Rhomberg and in 1898 a decree was
granted quieting the title in Rhomberg
to which all Of the children of Me-
garetha Mersch were made parties.
Then Rhomberg disposed of the
property to the German Trust and
Savings bank in satisfaction of a
mortgage for money he had borrowed
from the bank.
Where the Test Came.
Shortly after, Mrs. Mersch died and
after her death her daughter, Mar
garetha Mersch, commenced this action
in which she claimed there had been
no notice served on her in the action
to quiet title and that the original deed
given by Catherine Beck to her daugh-
ter, Margaretha Mersch, only convey
ed life interest in the property and
that on the death Of the mother her
children became the own 5 Of the
property. She asked new trial on the
ground that this question Gas to what
interest the deed gave Mrs. Mersch in
the property life interest or a fee
simple) had not been passed on in the
former trial of the case Of Rhomberg
vs. Mersch.
The court thereupon granted new
trial. After the order granting the new
trial the supreme court in deciding a
question on deed in which the identi-
cal wording used in the Beck deed
came up, decided to give fee simple
title and also decided that the rule in
the case of one Shelley Can old Eng
lish rule) was applicable to deeds in the
state of Iowa.
This establishes {. new precedent.
The first time the rule was brought
into play was in the case of Doyle VS..
Andis, from Tama county The de-
cison holds that the true construction
of the deed given by Catherine Beck
to her daughter conveyed a fee simple
title and as the latter disposed Of her
title during her life time, her heirs
would have no interest in it, though
the wording Of the deed was apparent
ly plain that but life interest was in
tended.