Sternberger v. McSween

Citations

• 14 S.C. 35
• 1880 S.C. LEXIS 97

Syllabus

<p>1. On appeal to the Circuit Court from a trial justice’s judgment, where the amount involved exceeds §10, there must be a trial de novo, unless appellant states in his notice of appeal that such appeal is taken upon questions of law only.</p> <p>2. The trial being de novo the parties are not restricted to a repetition of the evidence offered in the court below.</p> <p>3. A lienee, under the agricultural lien law, is not entitled to recover from an innocent purchaser the value of property covered by the lien, sold by such' purchaser before action brought.</p> <p>4. An unrecorded chattel mortgage is of no avail against a subsequent purchaser for valuable consideration without notice.</p> <p>5. Under the act of 1878, (16 Stat. 411,) which requires agricultural liens to be filed in the office of the register of mesne conveyance, and an index thereof to be kept by that officer, a lien filed and immediately thereafter withdrawn by the lienee and retained in his possession, is not constructive notice to third parties, notwithstanding the proper entry appears in the index.</p> <p>6. The presumption of law that an officer has done his duty may be rebutted by proof.</p> <p>7. The lienee cannot avoid the consequences of the register’s default in permitting the lien to be taken from its file, when the removal was the act of the lienee himself.</p> <p>8. This court cannot sanction the withdrawal of a paper from the files of a public office, even though by permission of the officer in charge.</p>