26 Miss. 439 | Miss. | 1853
delivered the opinion of the court.
The complainant filed his bill on the chancery side of the circuit court of Claiborne county, to recover of the appellees, as trustees of the Port Gibson Academy, the sum of four hundred and twenty dollars, being the amount of money, after paying all charges arising from the sale of a slave,- the property of the complainant, sold as a runaway by the sheriff of said county, in accordance with the provisions of the statute on the subject.
The counsel for the appellees insists, that, by the 6th section of the act of 1838, the money is given absolutely to the president and trustees of the academy. On the contrary, it is argued on behalf of the complainant, that he is entitled, by virtue of the 34th section of the act of 1822, Hutch. Code, 518; to recover the money, notwithstanding the provision contained in the 6th section of the act of 1838, McNutt’s Code, 813.
The question for our consideration under these Statutes, is, whether the act of 1822, requiring the net proceeds of the sale of a runaway slave to be paid into the county treasury for the use of the county, but requiring the county to pay the money to the owner on his proving his property in the slave, has been repealed, so far as the county of Claiborne is concerned, by the 6th section of the act of 1838, declaring that the president and trustees of the said academy shall be entitled to all money arising from the sale of slaves sold as runaways in said county.
The general law of the State recognizes the owner’s right to the net balance of money, after defraying all expenses for apprehending, maintaining, and selling the slave. This right is certainly recognized, so far as we are advised, by the law in every county in the State, with the single exception of the county of Claiborne; and, in our opinion, under a fair interpretation of the law, that county does not constituid an exception. Under the act of 1822, the county was entitled to the use of the money till the owner established his right to it, by proving his property in the slave sold as a runaway. Did the statute of 1838 transfer merely the right of the county in the money to the academy, or did it transfer the right both of the county and the owner of the' slave ? If the latter, then the act of 1822 is entirely repealed, so far as the county of Claiborne is concerned. If the former, it is only repealed so far as the rights of the county may be affected. We are inclined to the opinion, that the act must be construed to affect only the right of the county, and not the right of the owner of the slave. There is
We are therefore of opinion, that the act of 1838 only gave to the academy such right and title as the county of Claiborne, under the act of 1822, had in the money; and that the claim of the complainant ought to be enforced to the same extent against the president and trustees of the academy, as it could have been enforced against the county of Claiborne, if this act of 1838 had not been enacted. Whether this view of the law is entirely free from doubt, we will not undertake to say. It fully accords with those principles of justice which must force the approbation of every rightly constituted mind. The act of 1822 is founded in a just and a wise policy. The act of 1838, if interpreted as contended on behalf of the academy, would be palpably unjust; and the question therefore arises, Whether a law, which is just and equitable in its provisions, shall be considered as repealed by a subsequent law of doubtful meaning, and not expressly repealing the previous law. One construction makes the law harmonize with the policy of the State, and with the acknowledged principles of equity; the other construction makes the law violate this policy, as well as shock the conscience and moral sense of every man who hears the proposition stated.
There is no law of the State which declares that a man shall forfeit his right to the net proceeds arising from the sale of his runaway slave. On the contrary, the whole legislation on this subject has looked to the protection of this right. The law
Decree reversed, demurrer overruled, and cause remanded.