Hall v. Redding

Baldwin, J. delivered the opinion of the Court Field, J. concurring.

This was a bill filed by the plaintiff as a creditor of Redding, to subject to plaintiff’s judgment a mortgage executed to Red-ding by the Uncle Sam Mining Company. The bill charged that Redding had, before the judgment, made a jiretended assignment of this mortgage to the defendant, Fall, to secure him against a certain demand against Redding, for which Fall was his security. This assignment the bill charges to be fraudulent. 1. It was without legal consideration. 2. Made to hinder creditors. 3. Because the mortgage was not delivered to Fall. 4. And it is further asserted that the assignment is insufficient on its face to pass the title of the mortgage.

Fall and Redding answered denying the fraud charged.

The Judge below finds this state of facts : That in September, 1857, Redding was President of this mining comjtany, and that the company authorized Redding and one Burgess to buy a steam engine and other machinery to work the claims; that to raise the money they negotiated a loan with one Decker for five [218]thousand dollars, to secure which, the note of Redding, Fall, and two others—the last three as sureties—was made; that of this sum three thousand dollars was appropriated to buying a steam engine and appurtenances—the balance paid to the Treasurer of the company or laid out for its uses; the machinery was placed in the claims, where it is yet. At the maturity of the note, Decker delivered it to the makers, and it was canceled, when a new note was given to Decker, for the same money, due 25th of May, 1858, signed by Redding, Fall, Taylor, and one Cingle; the company paid the interest on these notes as it fell due. That some time after the five thousand dollars was obtained, and before the making of the mortgage to Redding, in the bill mentioned, the company issued an order on the Treasurer of said company, payable to Fall and others, for the sum of five thousand dollars. That at the time this mortgage was executed, a settlement took place between Redding and the company, and a balance of one hundred dollars found due the company from Redding, which was deducted from the order drawn in favor of Fall & Co. Redding then desired that the company should execute a mortgage on the mining claims to secure Fall et al. against their liability on the note of Decker; this the company refused to do, for the reason that they did not wish to have so many creditors, but proposed to execute a mortgage to Redding individually; this was accordingly done on the 12th April, 1858, and it is the one in controversy. On the execution of the mortgage, Redding delivered up to the company the order in favor of Fall et al. When the last note to Decker became duo, he demanded a renewal of it, and the makers renewed it, taking up the former. At this renewal, Redding assigned the mortgage to Fall, and both the assignment and mortgage were duly recorded, 25th May, 1858. That at the time of the assignment of the mortgage, the same was delivered to Fall, who retained it for a few minutes and then returned it to Redding, as the agent of Fall, to receive the interest of the company. The Court finds that the consideration of this assignment was the liability of Fall et als. on this note 'to Decker. The Court find the subsequent acts of the parties consistent with the arrangement—the .Decker note has not yet been paid by these sureties. There is no debt due from the company to Redding, other than appears from the facts already stated.