59 Ga. 507 | Ga. | 1877
In complaint for land, the plaintiff’s title was a deed from defendant, dated October 17, 1874. This deed was an'absolute conveyance; and on the day of its date, the plaintiff
Apart from the question of homestead, the deed woiild enable the plaintiff to recover. 54 Ga., 45; 55 Ib., 650, 412, 691; 57 Ib., 601. On what estate did the-homestead proceedings take effect ? On such estate as the debtor had in the land. That estate was purely equitable, and consisted of the right to redeem the legal title, on payment of the money as security for which he had passed that title to his creditor. "When the right to redeem is in question, equitable principles are applied, and a deed, though absolute, will be treated as a mortgage. But thus dealing with it does not involve any concession that the legal title did not pass. It did pass, and for that very reason the necessity arises for invoking principles of equity. This was so before the act of 1871 (Code, §§1969, 1971,) was passed. That act was not required for the mere purpose of enabling a debtor to pass the legal title as security. It had further objects, one of which, as declared in the 1971st section of the Code, was to prevent liens from attaching on the property while title wras held by the vendee. Another object may have
Judgment affirmed.