Homet v. Singer

Citations

• 35 Pa. Super. 491
• 1908 Pa. Super. LEXIS 71

Syllabus

<p>Landlord and tenant — Lease—Quarry—Rental—Forfeiture—Demand for rent — Notice of forfeiture.</p> <p>In an action of ejectment it appeared that the plaintiff by an instrument in writing had “demised and let” to the defendant the right to quarry stone in the demised premises for a term of years. The defendant agreed “to quarry and remove from the quarry during the continuance of the lease an average of forty carloads of saleable stone per annum,” and to pay as a rent or royalty therefor the sum of $5.00 per carload. It was further provided that if the payment of the rental was not made within a time stated, the lessor might declare the lease null and void, and re-enter the demised premises. The lessee quarried seven loads of stone the first year and sixteen the second year. During these two years a large amount of worthless stone was removed and a large block of valuable stone uncovered, so that quarrying could have progressed rapidly during the third year. About three months after the expiration of the second year the lessor notified the lessee that the lease was at an end and null and void as far as the latter’s rights were concerned, and notified him to quit the quarry until he had paid the balance due under the lease, etc. The grounds of forfeiture were failure to take out the quantity of stone called for by the agreement and failure to pay for what was taken out. The lease did not specify where the rent was to be paid, and there was no evidence that a demand was made for it on the premises. Held, (1) that the agreement was a lease; (2) that the lease did not require the quarrying of forty carloads each year, but only an average of forty carloads for the whole term of years; (3) that as no demand had been made on the premises for the rent, the lessor was not entitled to a forfeiture for the failure of the lessee to pay the rent; (4) that the notice to the lessee was not a valid notice of forfeiture.</p> <p>To enable a lessor to declare and enforce a forfeiture,