White v. Sutherland

Citations

• 64 Ill. 181

Syllabus

<p>1. Assignment of notes and mortgage. Promissory notes are assignable by tbe statute, but a mortgage is not assignable, either by statute or by the common law. So, while the assignment of notes secured by mortgage carries the mortgage with them, that is true in equity, and only in equity.</p> <p>2. Assignment oe mortgage—subject to what defenses. Where the assignee of a promissory note secured by mortgage seeks to foreclose the mortgage in equity, that court will let in any defense which.would have been availing against the mortgage in the hands of the mortgagee himself—and this, regardless of the fact that the assignee may have purchased the note in good faith, for a valuable consideration, and before its maturity. The rule in Olds v. Cummings, 31 Ill. 188, on that subject, re-affirmed.</p> <p>3. Fraudulent representations—as distinguished from mere expressions of opinion. A party desiring to purchase a farm, and being in such a crippled condition that he could not himself go to examine one he heard was for sale, dispatched several members of his family for that purpose, who, after seeing the farm, reported favorably. .Not satisfied with their opinions, the party wishing to purchase sent for the owner to visit him, with the view to learn all the facts from him. The two had been soldiers in the late war of the rebellion, and the owner of the farm was a minister of the gospel, and the one proposing to purchase appealed to him “ as a Christian, a gentleman and a soldier,” to tell him the truth, telling him he should rely wholly on' his representations in making the .trade. The owner, assuring the other party he would not deceive him, thereupon made false statements as to the selling price of land in that locality; false statements as to the condition and quality of the fences on his farm, anil as to the quantity of rails upon the ground, and as to the sufficiency of timber on the land to fence the whole tract, and knew these statements were false when he made them.