McKeown v. Collins (38 Fla. 276, 1896)

Liddon, J.:

The appellee filed his bill of complaint in the court below to foreclose a mortgage executed by one R. W. P. Thomas, deceased. The administrator of such deceased mortgagor, his widow, who had joined in the execution in order to bar her right of dower, and the husband with whom she had since intermarried, together with the appellant, were made parties defendant. The appellant was in the possession of the mortgaged premises claiming title thereto, and the bill sought to cancel and annul a tax deed which he claimed to be a valid title to the premises, and to declare that a sheriff’s deed also held by him to a portion of such property, conveyed a title subject to complainant’s mortgage. The decree was in favor of the complainant. The other defendants not desiring to appeal, proceedings against them by summons and severance have been had and the appellant alone prosecutes his separate appeal.

The first question presented by the record is whether the tax title of the appellant was void, so that the* special statute of limitations could not be invoked in aid of it. The land involved in such question consists of two tracts, viz: Northwest quarter of northwest quarter of section one (1), and the northeast quarter of the northeast quarter of section two (2), all in township twenty-one (21) south, range nineteen east, in Citrus county. Among other defects alleged in such tax deed, which was based upon an alleged sale for taxes made after the execution of the mortgage, it is-stated, in substance, that in the assessment book for the year when such taxes were endeavored to be assessed thereon, such assessmen t was made in the following manner, viz: On page 116 of the assessment roll, in the column headed “names of tax-payers,” the-name of “Thomas, R. W. P.” appears as the first name in said column, and in the column headed “parts of section,” opposite said name,'appear the letters “N. W. of N. W.” Proper entries were made in the columns headed respectively “section,” “township” and “range,” and number of acres as for the assessment of 40 acres of land in section one of such township and. range. In the second lire, in the column headed “parts of section,” appear the letters “N. E. of N. E.,” and in the columns headed respectively “section,” “township,” “range” and “number of acres,” appear proper entries and reference marks for the assessment of 40 acres in section two of said township and range. The column headed “names of tax-payers,” the line-opposite this latter attempted description of land in section two, is left entirely blank, containing no mark, word, letter or character of any kind whatever. * The-said tract first attempted to be described by the assessor was valued by him at “150,” and the second. tract at “100,” there being no dollar mark or other - word, mark, figure or symbol, used at the heads of the valuation columns, or elsewhere, to indicate what denomination of money was meant or intended by the use of these figures. A certified copy of such page of the assessment rolls was attached as an exhibit to the bill of complaint and made a part thereof, and is here reproduced as follows:

o ü 52 &0 8 K © K 2 I .9* 1 State of Florida, Hernando County. Revenue for 1885. Names of Tax-Payers. 41 51 H 52 Is ¡5 I 7| 8 | 9 Description of Land. Parts of Section. GQ sf a > &_ 81 ü?g O 2 ft as. , £ c3 Si (xJ &U a 05 £ s ST a 1 t> Sold. Ap. 5. Paid, Mch. 25. April 26. Ad Thomas, R. W. P... 1802 E4 1504 1505 Thompson, Mary A____ Thomas, Thomas........,, Townsend, F. M....... Townsend, Miss Emma. Temple, Jas. R......... N. W. of N. W.... N. E. of N. E..... S. W. ofN. W .... N. W. of N. W.... S. W.4, N. W. of S. In N. E. of N. E.... S. E. of S. E..... E 121 2 21 18 21 401 10 40 40 40 200 8 40 25 85 4 150 100 160 215 920 70 80

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