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62 Tex. 541

Pearson v. Boyd

Texas Supreme Court

Decided December 2, 1884

Texas Supreme Court · decided 1884-12-02

Tried below before the Hon. L. D. Bradley. Trespass to try title to one hundred acres of land, part of the Lipscomb Norvell headright survey in Limestone county, begun by appellant February 8, 1881. Defendant accepted service and filed his “ original answer and plea making James Phillips a plaintiff,” which consisted of — 1.

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1884-12-02

How this case has been cited

Cited by 12 later decisions — most recently November 1938

11 state decisions

40188418901900191019201930decided

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.

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Delany, J. Com. App.

¶1In our opinion there is no error in the judgment of the court below which will require its reversal.

¶2Appellant’s position is that, as Horton claimed under an executory contract with Horvell, and as Boyd held under a similar contract with Horton, the possession of the latter could not be antagonistic to either of the other two.

¶3In this he is correct. Roosevelt v. Davis, 49 Tex., 463; Keys v. Hason, 44 Tex., 144.

¶4But when Norvell repudiated his contract with Horton and sold the land to other parties, there was no privity between Boyd and these second vendees, and he could hold against them. See authorities cited above.

¶5In the litigation which took place between Horton and Horvoll, and in which the second vendees intervened, Boyd, although in possession, was not made a party; and it is well settled that he was not barred by the judgment.

¶6The sixth and eight assignments are, in effect, that the court erred in adjudging to the defendant one hundred and sixty acres of land under his plea of limitation.

¶7Appellant insists that Boyd had only twenty acres of land inclosed; that he was a mere intruder, and that if he recovered at all, his recovery should be limited to the land actually inclosed; and for this he cites Whitehead v. Foley, 28 Tex., 285, and Cantagrel v. Yon Lupin, 58 Tex., 578.

¶8Counsel appears to have misapprehended the decisions under the different periods of limitation.

¶9Under the statutes of three and five years, a mere intruder would not recover anything; for under the one the holder must have at least color of title, and under the other he must have a deed duly recorded.

¶10But under the long term, if the intruder hold only five acres in accordance with the statute, the law gives him one hundred and sixty acres, including his improvements.

¶11If, however, the occupant holds under some memorandum of title *545duly recorded, his possession will then extend to the boundaries specified in the instrument. R. S., secs. 3194, 3195.

[Opinion adopted December 2, 1884.]

¶12The ninth and tenth assignments may be considered together.

¶13Under the ninth appellant objects that the judgment is not sustained by the finding of the court. The court found that the defendant had held exclusive adverse possession, while the language of the statute is “ peaceable and adverse possession.”

¶14This objection is made for the first time in this court. It was not made below, although there was a motion for a new trial.

¶15But whatever may have been the language of the finding, the evidence is sufficient to sustain the judgment.

¶16It is also objected here — though this objection was not made below — that the court erred in adjudging to the defendant the particular tract of land which was described in his answer; but it is not shown or intimated that this tract was more valuable than the adjoining land.

¶17The objection under the eleventh assignment is that the judgment gave the defendant one hundred and sixty acres of land, although the plaintiff in his petition claimed only one hundred acres.

¶18The answer of the defendant amounted to a cross-bill. He claimed the hundred and sixty acres described and then prayed that his title be confirmed and clouds removed, etc. The plaintiff did not disclaim. If he owned the excess over the amount for which he sued he has no cause of complaint.

¶19If he did not own it, he still cannot complain, and the real owner will not be harmed by the judgment.

¶20Our opinion is that the judgment should be affirmed.

¶21Affirmed.

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