Fleming v. Harris

Hart, J. (after stating the facts). The decree was wrong for two reasons. In the first place, where a party desires to rescind his contract for the purchase of land on the ground of fraud, he must act promptly after discovering the facts. The plaintiff, Harris, received a deed from Fleming in the early part of January, 1918, and immediately moved on the farm. A part of the consideration for the purchase was a house and lot in Malvern, Arkansas, which Harris conveyed to Fleming. Fleming went into possession of the house and lot. Harris did not bring this suit until the 3d day of November, 1918. This, under the circumstances just recounted, was an unreasonable time. During all this time, Harris treated the land as his own and made no complaint to Fleming on the ground that there was a misrepresentation as to the twenty acres of timber land. Harris could not wait to experiment and see whether the transaction might not after all turn out well. Acquiescence, under the circumstances of this case, is fatal to his right of recovery, if any before subsisted. It was his duty to have moved in a reasonable time, and, not having done so, he could not speculate for a whole crop season upon whether or not his purchase might turn out well, and then, when he believed that it did not, come into a. court of equity ahd claim a rescission of the contract. Fitzhugh v. Davis, Admx., 46 Ark. 337. In the next place, a careful consideration of the whole record leads us to the conclusion that Fleming did not intend to deceive Harris as to the boundary line of the farm. It is true Harris testified that the principal inducement to buy the farm was the fact that he got the twenty acres of timber land in question, but he is contradicted in this respect by Fleming and by all the circumstances in the case. We think a preponderance of the evidence shows that he was buying the eighty-acre farm for $1,600. There were a house and barn on the premises in a good state of repair worth $1,100. According to Harris ’ testimony there were thirty acres of land in cultivation. According to the testimony of other witnesses there were nearly fifty acres in cultivation. Harris does not attempt to place any value on the timber. The testimony of the other witnesses is that the twenty acres were wet and boggy and that but little of the twenty acres was susceptible of cultivation. Hence it will be seen that the main object of Harris was to buy the eighty-acre farm. He got all the land which his deed called for, and we are of the opinion that under the circumstances the representations made by Fleming as to the boundary line were but a mere expression of an opinion by him as to where his boundary line extended and that they were not representations that the boundary line as a matter of fact did extend to the creek. It follows that the decree will be reversed, and the cause remanded with directions to dismiss the complaint of the plaintiff for want of equity.