35 Kan. 478 | Kan. | 1886
The opinion of the court was delivered by
This was an action in the nature of ejectment, brought in the district court of Chase county by Joseph L. Crawford against David P. Shaft, to recover a certain piece of land situated in that county. The case was tried be
It appears from the undisputed evidence introduced on the trial, that the plaintiff holds the original patent title, and that the defendant claims title under a tax deed issued by the county clerk of Chase county on July 12,1875, recorded July 30, 1875, based upon a tax sale made June 24, 1872, for the taxes due on the land for the year 1871. At the time the land was sold it belonged to a minor, Seymour L. Byington, who did not become of age until March 29, 1883; hence under the statutes in force during that time and still in force, he had a right to redeem the land up to March 29, 1884. (Gen. Stat. of 1868, ch. 107, §101; Comp. Laws of 1879, ch. 107, §128.) On December 20, 1883, he attempted to. redeem the land from the taxes, and paid an amount to the county treasurer sufficient to redeem the same from the taxes, if the tax law of 1868 was to govern, (Gen. Stat. of 1868, ch. 107, §§101, 105;) but not enough if the tax law of 1876 was to govern. (Comp. Laws of 1879, ch. 107, §§127,128,132.) The county treasurer accepted the money, and issued a certificate of redemption to the owner, which certificate was duly countersigned by the county clerk. Upon these facts, the court below held that the redemption was not sufficient; that it should have been had under the laws of 1876, and not under the laws of 1868, and therefore that the attempted redemption was a nullity, that the certificate of redemption is void, that the tax deed is good, and that the holder of the tax deed holds the superior and paramount title. The plaintiff in error, however, claims that this .holding of the district court is erroneous. He claims that the tax laws of 1868 govern in this case, and not the aforesaid §132 of the tax laws of .1876, and therefore that the redemption was good, and therefoi’e that he «holds the better and paramount title; and he claims this, first, because of a certain saving clause contained in the tax law of 1876, (Comp. Laws of 1879, ch. 107, §155;) second, because of a certain
The saving clauses above mentioned read as follows:
“Sec. 155. All matters relative to the sale and conveyance of lands for taxes under any prior statute, shall be fully completed according to the laws under which they originated, the same as if such laws remained in force.” (Laws of 1876, ch. 34, §155; Comp. Laws of 1879, ch. 107, §155.)
“Sec. 1. In the construction of the statutes of this'state, the following rules shall be observed, unless such construction would be inconsistent with the manifest intent of the legislature, or repugnant to the context of the statute: First, the repeal of the statute does not revive a statute previously repealed, nor does such repeal affect any right which accrued, any duty imposed, any penalty incurred, nor any j>roceediug commenced, under or by virtue of the statute repealed. The provisions of any statute, so far as they are the same as those of any prior statute, shall be construed as a continuation of such provisions, and not as a new enactment.” (Gen. Stat. of 1868, ch. 104, § 1; Comp. Laws of 1879, ch. 104, § 1.)
The case of Briscoe v. Comm’rs of Ellsworth Co., 23 Kas. 334, has no application to this case. That ease was decided under chapter 43 of the Laws of 1879, (Comp. Laws 1879, ch. 107, ¶¶ 5911 to 5914,) which chapter contains no saving clause, and it is clear from the contents of that chapter, that it was “the manifest intent of the legislature” enacting it, that the prior statute should be changed -and modified, and that the law, as the legislature then enacted it, should be just what that chapter shows it to be. Besides, in that case it was a county that claimed vested rights under the prior statute, and not an individual person, as in this case; and all the authorities hold that the legislature has' more power over the affairs of counties in regulating and determining rights, than it has over the affairs of individual persons.
If the view that we have taken of § 155 of the tax law of 1876 is the correct view, and we think it is, it will not be necessary for us to further consider any of the other questions presented in the case, and therefore we shall not further consider them.
The judgment of the court below will be reversed, and the cause remanded for further proceedings.