35 S.C. 551 | S.C. | 1892
The opinion of the court was delivered by
Thomas Sartor owned two small tracts of land, and lived on one of them with his wife and daughter Salina. In 1864 he made a deed of gift of one of them to Salina, who, being unmarried, lived with her father. About 1870, one J. A. 'L. Thomas came into the Sartor family in some way not fully explained, but having no family himself, and becoming the owner of a small tract of land adjoining the Sartors, it'was probably considered more convenient for him to live with them. At all events, it seems that he took up his residence there, and farmed his own land, as also part of the Sartor lands, and had general control. This state of things continued until 1883, when Thomas Sartor died, leaving his daughter Salina the only member of the family, and the owner of both the little tracts of land, her father having made her a deed of gift in 1876 of the home tract of land.
After the death of the father, no change whatever was made, but things went on as before until 1887, when Salina died, never having been married, and intestate. S. M. Rice, jr., administered upon her personal estate, which being very insignificant, he instituted proceedings to have the lands sold (both tracts) in aid of the personalty in paying the debts of the estate. After the lands were sold, but before the proceeds of sale were paid out, James A. L. Thomas, on January 2, 1889, under permission given by order of the court, presented an account against the estate of Salina Sartor for $1,313.53 for services rendered, improvements made upon the premises of Salina Sartor, supplies furnished and money paid for Salina Sartor, from the year 1870 to and including the year 1887. The itemized account is stated in “the Case.” . The defendant, S. M. Rice, jr., as administrator, made a general denial, interposed the plea of the statute of limitations, and set up a counter-claim for board, &c., amounting to $2,250.
It was referred to the master, James Munro. Esq., to take the testimony and report upon the claim. Much testimony was taken,
Upon exceptions to this report, the case was argued before his honor, Judge Witherspoon, who concurred with the master in concluding that the proof was not sufficient to establish the claim, and made the master’s report the judgment of the court. From this decree the appellant appeals to this court upon eighteen distinct grounds of appeal, which, being in the Brief, need not be restated here. Exceptions 1, 5,16, and 17 of Thomas raise questions of law which will be considered in their order. All the other exceptions, without making special reference to them, relate only to questions of fact, in which the Circuit Judge concurred with the findings of the master.
Principally, we suppose, from the fact that she left no will, the master, the judge concurring, found as a matter of fact that she had abandoned the intention previously expressed to Mr. Gee in reference to her will, leaving at her death “no acknowledgment in writing of any indebtedness whatever to said Thomas; nor does it appear that she, in the presence of any one, acknowledged any indebtedness.” I have no doubt that one may, for a good and valuable consideration, make a binding contract to do a certain thing upon a future contingent event, and that in such case the statute of limitations does not begin to run until the action accrues ; that is to say, until the event happens upon which the contract becomes enforcible, as in Thompson v. Gordon, 3 Strob., 198, and Price v. Price, Chev. Eq., 167. But in reference to dispositions by will, a party may change his mind. There is no proof of an express contract in this case to compensate Thomas by will. The generous and voluntary expression of such intention at one time being no contract might be changed, and in this case (as found) was actually changed.
This makes it unnecessary to consider the application of the
The judgment of this court is, that the judgment of the Circuit Court be affirmed.