Chauvenet v. Person

Citations

• 217 Pa. 464
• 66 A. 855
• 1907 Pa. LEXIS 738

Syllabus

<p>Mines and mining — Lease—Continuous mining — Forfeiture.</p> <p>The right to forfeit a mining lease for cesser of mining for one year is not defeated by a provision in the lease for the payment of a minimum royalty, and the acceptance of such a minimum royalty is not a waiver of the right of forfeiture.</p> <p>A lease of iron ore gave the lessee one year to explore the premises for ore and contained a covenant that immediately thereafter mining operations should commence, and that if the lessee failed to prosecute the operations, and should at any time during the remaining term of the agreement for a continued period of one year fail to mine and raise ore upon which royalty was payable, “with the view of fully working said land, everything contained herein shall at the option of the lessors, cease and be forever null and void, excepting as to the liability of the lessees herein.” The lease also provided “that after the expiration of one year from the date of this lease, the lessee must mine and take away at least one thousand tons of ore annually, or pay the royalty on that amount.” Held, (1) that after the expiration of one year, the lessors could avoid the lease on the lessee’s failing at “any time” to prosecute the mining operations for a continuous period of one year; (2) that the provision for the payment of a minimum royalty did not defeat the right of forfeiture for cesser of mining for one year; and (3) that the acceptance of the minimum royalty was not a waiver of the forfeiture-bearing clause of the lease.</p> <p>Elkin, J., dissents.</p>