The Young Farmer: Some Things He Should Know Part 13

The purchaser should require of the seller evidence that the t.i.tle to the land is straight and clear; if not, exactly what the defects are.

This is done through an abstract of t.i.tle, which should be prepared by a competent lawyer. This is not an official doc.u.ment, and its value depends largely upon the ability and watchfulness of the party making the abstract. Ownership of land is conveyed by means of a deed. A deed is an instrument conveying at least a life interest in the land. Care should be taken that the deed contains the essential parts and that it is properly executed.

DEEDS

Deeds are of two kinds: Quit claim deeds, which convey all the rights, t.i.tle and interest which the seller has in the land, but does not warrant the t.i.tle; and warranty deeds, which, in addition to what a quit claim does, contain covenants which agree that the seller and his heirs, etc., shall warrant and defend the t.i.tle to the purchaser against the lawful claims of all persons.

THE REQUISITES OF A DEED

The requisites of a deed are: The parties to the deed, the consideration, the description; and with a warranty deed, the covenants. The seller must be of full age, sound mind and if married his wife should always join in the deed. Her name should appear following his at the beginning of the instrument. She should sign and acknowledge the deed, and the certificate of acknowledgment should state that she is the wife of the seller. If the seller is a married woman, her husband does not need to join in the sale of her own property. It is customary to state the consideration upon which the deed is given, but this is not necessary, nor will a false statement as to the amount paid invalidate the deed.

The description of the land conveyed should be as minute and careful as possible, and preferably in the exact language of former deeds. In case former description is in error, it should be referred to and correct description given. Where land is conveyed by metes and bounds, this description governs, although it may not convey the number of acres of land stated. In describing boundaries the location of monuments takes precedence of distances mentioned.

EXECUTION OF THE DEED

A deed must be signed, witnessed, acknowledged, delivered and recorded. In some states deeds must be sealed, but in other states the law has dispensed with this formality. Witnesses to deeds are not required in all states. Some states require one, but usually two witnesses are required. The parties signing the deed are required to appear before an official designated by statute, usually any magistrate, justice or notary public, and acknowledge the same to be his or her free act and deed.

A deed has no effect until delivered, and should be immediately recorded by the purchaser. Generally an unrecorded deed is not good as against a subsequent purchaser in good faith. It is well to note that the laws relating to the transfer of land are those of the place where the land lies and not necessarily those of the place where the deed is made.

METHOD OF LAYING OUT PUBLIC LANDS

The public lands of the United States are, whenever practicable, laid out into townships each six miles square, "as near as may be," whose sides run due north and south and east and west. The townships are laid off north and south of a base line which is a parallel of lat.i.tude, and are numbered north and south from the base line: Thus, T. 3 S., means Township No. 3 south from the base line. Each row of townships running north and south is called a range, and is numbered east or west of the princ.i.p.al meridian: Thus, R. 2 E., means Range 2 east of the given meridian.

The townships are then laid off into sections or square miles of 640 acres, "as near as may be," and these are numbered, beginning always at the northeast section, as shown in the accompanying diagram.

N +-----------------------------+ 6 5 4 3 2 1 ----+----+----+----+----+---- 7 8 9 10 11 12 ----+----+----+----+----+---- W 18 17 16 15 14 13 E ----+----+----+----+----+---- 19 20 21 22 23 24 ----+----+----+----+----+---- 30 29 28 27 26 25 ----+----+----+----+----+---- 31 32 33 34 35 36 +-----------------------------+ S

Each quarter section is referred to as the northeast or southwest quarter of the section, and each forty acres as the northwest or southeast quarter of a particular quarter. For example, an eighty-acre field may be referred to as the west half of the southwest quarter of Section 3, Township 5 North, Range 3, west of ----. Base line and meridian, or in some cases merely the meridian is mentioned.

The curvature of the earth's surface makes it impossible for the sides of townships to be truly north and south and at the same time six miles square. The excesses and the deficiencies due to the convergency of meridians and the curvature of the earth are by law added to or deducted from the western and northern ranges of sections and half sections of the townships. While the above has been the rule in laying out public lands for more than a century, there are many exceptions, due to many causes.

In the older settled sections the land was laid out in lots, often in a very irregular manner, although in some cases within a given tract the area was more or less regular. In these cases, the land must be described minutely and carefully by metes and bounds. In some of the southern and western states, also, where there were Spanish grants, much irregularity in the surveys exists. Over much of the north Central states this rectangular system of laying out lands obtains and has worked well in most respects.

THE LANDLORD AND TENANT

Leases of real estate follow the same procedure as deeds, except that a verbal lease, if for a term of not to exceed one year, is valid in most states. A written lease should be carefully drawn, because, according to common law, there are few things implied in a lease that are not stated. Definite statement concerning repairs and insurance is desirable. A tenant should also acquaint himself with the law of the state concerning the surrender of the farm upon the expiration of his term.

It is the duty of the tenant not only to guard the property, but to conduct the farm in a husbandlike manner. Unless otherwise stated in the contract, the tenant must pursue those methods of husbandry which are customary in the vicinity.

THE RELATION OF THE FARMER TO HIS WORKMEN

The requirements of a valid contract, as previously stated, control most of the relations which the employer has with his employees.

Contracts for labor, unless for more than one year, need not be in writing. If, however, the service to be rendered is unusual, the agreement should be reduced to writing, because, in the absence of specific agreement, the law a.s.sumes that customary service and wages are implied.

Like all other employers of labor the farmer is under obligation to protect his workman from injury. He must not subject them to unusual and unreasonable risks. He must hire workmen suited to the employment.

For example, if he employs a young boy to drive a fractious horse, he would be liable for any injury that might occur. In like manner, he must exercise proper care concerning the safety of the machinery placed in the hands of his workmen. He must keep his premises in a safe condition and must not expose his workmen to risks not incident to the employment for which they are hired.

The farmer is liable in damages for the acts of his workmen which are within the scope of their employment, although the authority may not have been expressly conferred. "He who acts by another acts himself."

In case one is sued for the acts of his employee, the burden is upon him to prove that the act of the workman was without authority, expressed or implied.

[D] Haigh's "Manual of Law," p. 69.

CHAPTER XXI

RURAL LEGISLATION

Various laws have been enacted by federal and state legislatures for the better protection of producer and consumer. Much of this legislation affects in a very special way the interests of the farmer. Not infrequently, in fact, generally, the state department of agriculture has more or less direct jurisdiction over their enforcement. State departments of agriculture usually publish a collection of the laws of this character. These laws vary greatly in the different states and only the most general outline, as they affect the interests of the farmer, can be given here. Persons can inform themselves as to the details as enforced in a given state by applying to the state secretary of agriculture.

A number of these acts affect interstate commerce, concerning which the United States Const.i.tution says: "No state shall, without the consent of the Congress, lay any impost or duties on imports or exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing its inspection laws." By a series of judicial decisions it has been determined that a State has a right to enforce laws affecting interstate commerce when traffic in the articles thus modified or prohibited affects the public welfare. When it is necessary to have a police regulation to prevent fraud in the traffic of an article or for the purpose of guarding the public health or morals, police laws, so called, may be enacted and enforced. Around this general question there has waged a bitter controversy which has occupied some of the best legal minds and is one involving some difficulty.

FERTILIZER CONTROL

One of the first of the "control" measures to be enacted, and the one which has been most universally adopted by the several states, is the law requiring the manufacturer and dealer in commercial fertilizers to guarantee the percentage of the so-called essential fertilizing elements--nitrogen, phosphorus and pota.s.sium--contained in each bag of fertilizer offered for sale. Subsequent control laws have been modeled more or less closely after this law. Hence a description of the operation and execution of it will serve for all.

The execution of this law is usually under the immediate supervision of the state secretary of agriculture, while the necessary chemical a.n.a.lyses are made by the state experiment station. In some states the enforcement of the law is in charge of the state experiment station, while in others the state department of agriculture has its own laboratories or employs a private chemist. It is, however, becoming a more and more settled policy to place all police regulations in charge of the state department of agriculture, while at the same time the chemical a.n.a.lyses and other scientific and technological inquiries are made at the state experiment station.

In order to facilitate the taking of samples and in order to raise funds for the execution of the law, the manufacturer is required to take out a license and to make a statement of the brands of fertilizers which he will place upon the market in the given state during the given season.

During the spring and fall season agents traverse the state and sample the bags of fertilizers as found on sale by local merchants. The samples are sent by number under seal to the designated chemist, while at the same time the agent transmits to the state officer in charge of the enforcement of the law the necessary information concerning these samples. Upon the receipt of the a.n.a.lysis made by the chemist, who has had no knowledge of the origin of the sample, the state officer compares them with the guarantee of the manufacturer, and if he finds it necessary enters legal complaint. While these laws have been in force for many years in some states and in many states for some years, prosecution has seldom been found necessary. The honest manufacturer is protected from dishonest compet.i.tion, and the dishonest manufacturer, if there be such, cannot afford the publicity which noncompliance with the law would entail.

It has been customary to publish, with the results of a.n.a.lysis, also an estimate of the commercial value per ton of each brand of fertilizer. This estimated commercial value is obtained by multiplying the pounds of each element or combinations of the element in a ton by a value per pound. To the value of the fertilizer thus obtained is added something for cost of mixing, bagging and freight, and something for profit. The price per pound given to each element or combinations of the elements is based upon the commercial value of the element when purchased in raw materials. The price for each year is usually determined by a conference of those in control of the execution of the law in the several states for certain groups of states. As a matter of fact, the price varies little from year to year.

The published figures, therefore, const.i.tute a table of comparative commercial values as determined by the most expert knowledge. While not const.i.tuting a statement of absolute commercial value for any given locality, they do enable the purchaser to determine whether the price quoted on a given brand of fertilizer is within reason. Persons who are unacquainted with the principles controlling the use of commercial fertilizers may, however, be led to believe that the price of the fertilizer is an indication of its value for the production of a given crop. As is well known to all students of the subject, there is no necessary relation between the commercial value of a fertilizer and the fitness of its formula for a given soil and crop. For these and other reasons, the publication of tables of commercial value has been strongly opposed by some manufacturers, and in certain states the custom has been discontinued. While granting that tables of commercial value are subject to misinterpretation, it is perhaps fair to say that such tables have been of most benefit, and, moreover, have been of great value to those who were most likely to misinterpret them.

It has been customary in most states to make a.n.a.lyses only of mixed fertilizers. Thus such raw materials as nitrate of soda, sulphate of ammonia, dried blood, bone meal, rock phosphate, tankage, muriate of potash, sulphate of potash, have not been brought under the operation of the law. If one wishes to purchase nitrate of soda, muriate of potash and tankage with the intention of mixing them according to a formula of his own, he may not find any protection in his state.

However, these products can be obtained through reputable dealers who will willingly guarantee the contents. In case of doubt, the purchaser may secure an a.n.a.lysis by his state experiment station at a moderate cost.

The law requires that there shall be affixed to every package of fertilizer offered for sale a statement about as follows:

The minimum per centum of each of the following const.i.tuents which may be contained therein:

(a) Nitrogen.

(b) Soluble, available and total phosphoric acid, except in cases of undissolved bone, basic slag phosphate, wood ashes, unheated phosphate rock, garbage tankage and pulverized natural manures, when the minimum per centum of total phosphoric acid may be subst.i.tuted. This latter applies only in those states where raw materials are subject to inspection.

(c) Potash soluble in distilled water.

It is possible to comply with the law and yet state the guarantee upon each bag of fertilizer in such a manner as to mislead the uninformed.

It is not the purpose of this book to deal with such technical details, but if the purchaser of commercial fertilizers is not already well acquainted with fertilizer terms, he should secure an elementary textbook on the subject or write to his state experiment station for a bulletin discussing them.

FEEDING STUFF CONTROL

The law controlling the sale of stock foods is of more recent origin than the fertilizer control act and has not been so universally adopted up to the present time. The necessity for such a law arises from the growing use as stock foods of various by-products in the manufacture of liquors, starch, glucose, sugar, cottonseed and linseed oils and breakfast foods. Various mixtures, varying widely in chemical composition, especially in protein and crude fiber, were placed upon the market. In some instances mixtures were grossly adulterated with such things as oat hulls and ground corn cobs.