Public-domain · open source
OpenJurist

126 Ark. 194

Bethea v. Jeffres

Supreme Court of Arkansas

Decided November 20, 1916

Supreme Court of Arkansas · decided 1916-11-20

This is an action of replevin instituted in the circuit court by Noah L. Bethea against W. H. Jeffres to recover two bales of cotton, 1,500 pounds of the cotton in the seed, 2,000 pounds of cottonseed and 60 bushels of corn. The case was tried before the court sitting as a jury.

Relies on Page v. Fowler · Floyd v. Ricks · Faulcon v. . Johnson

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

affirmed · Decided 1916-11-20

How this case has been cited

Cited by 5 later decisions — most recently July 1965

3 state decisions

20191619201930194019501960decided

Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.

View the full empirical analysis of this case →

Hart, J.,

¶1(after stating the facts). There are authorities which hold that where a crop is sown by a trespasser, and is by him cultivated’ and severed, it becomes the personal property of the severer as against the owner of the land. 8 R. C. L., p. 366, and cases cited. But it is not necessary for us to pass upon this proposition; for it is not involved in this case.

¶2Jeffres leased the land from Orie Plair, who claimed to be the owner of it. He planted, cultivated and harvested the crop while he was in possession of the land. The rule in such cases is that, with respect, to crops which are the result wholly of the labor of the person holding adversely or his tenant, and which he has severed and removed from the premises while still in possession, the title is in him, and that the sole remedy of,the owner of the land is his action for mesne profits. It has been said that it would be an oppressive rule to require every one who may be found to have a bad title to pay the gross value of all the crops he has raised; and it would be an inconvenience to the public if the bad title of the farmer to his land attached to the crops he offered for sale, and rendered it necessary to have an abstract of his title to make it safe to purchase .his produce. Page v. Fowler, 39 Cal. 412, 2 Am. Rep. 462; Phillips v. Keysaw (Okla.), 56 Pac. 695; Brothers v. Hurdle, 32 N. C. 490; Faulcon v. Johnston, 102 N. C. 264, 11 Am. St. Rep. 737; Waltenbarger v. Hall (Okla.), 110 Pac. 911; Lynch et al. v. Sprague Roller Mills (Wash), 99 Pac. 578. See 12 Cyc. 977.

¶3Counsel for plaintiff seeks to reverse the judgment upon the authority of Floyd v. Ricks, 14 Ark. 286; but we do not think the case sustains the contention of counsel. The facts in that case show that the purchaser of the land had entered into possession of it, and had taken charge of the crop and applied it to his own use. Suit was brought by the maker of the crop, who was a trespasser, against the purchaser in possession for conversion. The settler had nothing beyond a mere naked possession, and the court held that he could not recover.

¶4The judgment will be affirmed.

Humphreys, J., not participating.
/126/ark/194 · .json · Public domain