68 W. Va. 484 | W. Va. | 1910
Delilah Campbell, an aged woman, in April, 1905, executed a conveyance to her son, William M. Campbell, for a tract of 50£ acres of land. She went to live at her son William’s, and while there made this deed, its consideration being that William would support her during life. It may be that Barbara Campbell, William M. Campbell’s wife, was a grantee in the deed. Some two or three weeks after the said deed was made Delilah Campbell got possession of it from her son William and burned it. Later Delilah Campbell sold the land to Frances L. Fox for $100 and made her a deed therefor. A little later William M. Campbell and Barbara, his wife, and D'elilah Campbell conveyed this land to another of Delilah Campbell’s sons, John T. Campbell. John T. Campbell is in possession of the land, and he brought a suit-in chancery in Kanawha county against Frances L. Fox to annul and declare void the deed from Delilah Campbell to Frances L. Fox. Frances L. Fox and her husband filed an answer denying the' claim of the plaintiff, denying that Delilah Campbell had ever conveyed the land to William M. Campbell, and setting up the right of Frances L. Fox to the land under her deed, and denying that the alleged deed from Delilah Campbell to William M. Campbell was ever completed by delivery, and asking that the said deed from William M. to John T. Campbell be cancelled. A decree was pronounced dismissing the bill of John T. Campbell and decreeing that the deed from Wiliam M. Campbell and wife and D'elilah Campbell to John T. Campbell be declared null and void as against Frances L- Fox. From that decree John T. Campbell appeals.
Counsel relies as a material point in the case upon the legal principle that when once a deed has been made, delivered and accepted the destruction of the deed does not destroy the legal title of the grantee or revest it in the grantor. Such is the law, but this case presents, before we can apply that principle, the question whether the deed from Delilah Campbell to William M. Campbell was finally delivered and accepted. This, of course, depends on oral evidence. The circuit court has found that it was not so delivered and accepted, and before we can reverse this decision we must be-well satisfied that it is wrong. The burden of proof is on the plaintiff as to this matter. On that
Our conclusion is to affirm the decree.
Affirmed.