Jackson v. Honeycut

A Grant founded on an entry made in a county office after the act of 1778, for lands lying west of Browns line is void.

Equity. Pro confesso.—The plaintiff states, that on the 21st of October, 1783, an entry was made in John Armstrong’s office, no. 91, for 200 acres, upon which a warrant issued on the 7th of June, 1784, which the plaintiff purchased, had the same assigned on the 1st February 1788, had it surveyed, and on the 18th of May, 1789, obtained a grant. It is also stated, that this land lies south-west of the line from the mouth of Cloud’s creek to the Chimney top-mountain commonly called Brown’s line. The defendant on the 24th of November 1778, entered the same land in one of the counties, and during the revolutionary war, left this country and attached himself to the British; on the 23d October 1782, the defendant obtained a grant. Some time in the year 1797, the defendant brought an ejectment against the tenant in possession, upon which the plaintiff was admitted as a co-defendant—a trial was had and a verdict and judgment rendered for the plaintiff. The bill charges, that the jury in rendering their verdict, proceeded upon a mistaken ground, which was that the defendant, Honeycut, had an improvement on the land, as early as the year 1777, which he averred was not the case. The jury also conceived that the survey of the defendant included the improvement which he claimed, which also was wrong. The plaintiff rested his case principally upon the illegality of the defendants entry, there being no law to authorise the entry, but one expressly forbidding it. April 1778, C. 3 s. 5 Ird. 352. The prayer was for a perpetual injunction, and that the defendant's grant should be annulled.