Lovejoy v. Chapman

Citations

• 23 Or. 571
• 32 P. 687
• 1893 Ore. LEXIS 65

Syllabus

<p>1. Appeal— Referee’s Report — Weight of Evidence. — Findings of fact by a referee, on conflicting evidence, and having sufficient testimony to support them will not be disturbed on appeal, on the ground that the weight of the evidence is against them.</p> <p>2. Costs in Equity Cases — Code, § 554.— The discretion in the taxation of costs in equity cases, vested in the trial court by Hill’s Code, $ 554, will not be reviewed except on a clear showing of abuse; and it is not an abuse of this discretion to tax the costs against defendant upon a decree rendered in favor of plaintiff in a suit to redeem a contract for the purchase of land which had been assigned to defendant as security for a loan, where, although plaintiff did not tender any sum to defendant for the redemption of the contract, the latter did not admit that he held the property as security, or was ready or willing to re-assign the contract on payment of the amount due.</p> <p>3. Parol Evidence — Mortgage.— Parol evidence is admissible to show that an assignment of a contract of sale of realty was in fact a mortgage made to secure a loan. Swegle v. Belle, 20 Or. 323, approved and followed.</p> <p>4. Mortgage — Deed.—A mortgage created by an assignment of a contract of sale of realty to secure a loan, cannot be converted by the mortgagee into an absolute transfer of the contract without the mortgagor’s consent. Marshall v. Williams, 21 Or. 268, approved.</p>