222 Pa. 573 | Pa. | 1909
Opinion by
This was an action in ejectment. The plaintiff rested its right" of recovery on an article of agreement .for the purchase of the land in dispute with John E. Herrold, under whom the defendant also claimed, executed December 18, 1900. When the agreement was offered in évidence objection was made that it was not stamped in accordance with the requirements of the act of congress of June 13, 1898, 30 Statutes at Large, 448. While the paper did bear a revenue stamp, it was admittedly inadequate in amount. The court overruled the objection, and admitted the paper without giving any reason for the ruling. The record leaves us to conjecture as to what the reason was, or find a sufficient one for ourselves; and the argument for the appellee gives us no aid. To secure observance of its requirements with respect to tax on instruments of this character, the
I. The question whether the disqualification here put upon an unstamped agreement as a matter of evidence, was intended to operate in state as well as federal courts; and if so, whether to this extent, congress did not assume a power not warranted by the constitution, — a question in regard to which there are conflicting decisions, — does not here call for consideration. The provision of the act of Congress of June 13, 1898, which imposed a tax upon instruments of this character, was repealed by act of April 12, 1902, 32 Statutes at Large, 96, without reservation of right thereafter to demand the tax in cases where the stamp had been omitted from instruments executed during the period the act was operative, or enforce any of the penalties or forfeitures which the act provided should follow a disregard of its provisions. Without question the provision in the act putting a disqualification upon unstamped instruments as evidence, is penal in its character; it contemplated, as a penalty to be suffered for a violation of the law, the forfeiture of what is an unquestioned right in every individual, to use his written agreement with another as evidence in any court, to support whatever claim he might be there asserting under it. In this forfeiture the government could have no vested right; nothing could accrue to it from its enforcement. The rule which applies in such cases, is thus stated in Endlich on Interpretation "of Statutes, sec. 478, “Where an act expires or is repealed, it is, as regards its operative effect, considered, in the absence of provisions to the contrary, as if it had never existed, except as to matters past and closed. As to all future matters, all steps yet to be taken, the repealed statute upon which they are based, is treated as utterly obliterated;” and in sec. 479, “Actions in their nature penal, pending at the timé of the repeal of the statute authorizing them, fall with it. . . . A fortiori must such be the result where, though the liability has arisen, no proceeding has been taken for its enforcement. And the same rule applies to all proceedings, whether civil or criminal, going on by virtue of a statute at the time of its repeal.
II. If the question here was between a vendor and vendee as to the time when possession was to be given the vendee under the written contract, it might be argued that by fair intendment payment of purchase money was to be a condition precedent.
While the vendee is here a party to the action, his controversjr is not with his vendor, but with a stranger to the agree
III. This was not an equitable ejectment to enforce specific performance of a contract; but an ejectment brought solely for the purpose of recovering possession of the land in dispute. The defendant was not entitled to receive purchase money from the plaintiff under any circumstances; therefore no tender was necessary, nor was it necessary that plaintiff should have
In what we have said we have expressed ourselves with respect to each one of the several assignments of error. We find them to be without merit, and they are overruled.
Judgment affirmed.