103 Cal. 536 | Cal. | 1894
This is an appeal by the defendant McChesney from an order denying his motion to set aside a decree' of foreclosure entered against him by default. His motion is not based upon section 473 of the Code of Civil Procedure; he does not ask to be allowed to answer to the merits; it was not made until more than a year after the rendition of the judgment.. It rests entirely upon the theory that the judgment is absolutely void, and could, therefore, be set aside at any time on motion.
The order must be affirmed. The judgment is not void on its face. It contains a recital of due service, and there is nothing in the record inconsistent with such recital. .The previous direct statement in the affidavit that summons was published each week for two months between two named dates is not overcome and rendered valueless by the subsequent statement under a videlicit. The most that can be said about the affidavit is that it is ambiguous. That which follows a videlicit does not destroy that which precedes it; the general rule rather is that if repugnant to the preceding matter it will be rejected. (Brown v. Berry, 47 Ill. 177; 2 Abbott’s Law Dictionary, 447, 635.) Moreover, the court clearly had the right to allow in evidence the second affidavit, which cleared away any possible doubt which there might be about the meaning of the first. (See Herman v. Santee, ante, p. 519, decided August 13th by Department One of this court, and cases there cited.)
The order appealed from is affirmed.
De Haven, J., and Fitzgerald, J., concurred.