The opinion of the court was delivered by
The contention of the plaintiff in error is that the court erred in not rendering judgment for the said plaintiff in error on the findings of fact as made by the court, and alleging that the judgment should have been given for the. plaintiff in error instead of the defendant in error. The first conclusion of law arrived at by the court is based upon the seventh,
The question fbr us to determine is, How was it served ? The summons being lost, we are unable to say what the return was. The presumption is that it was served according to law. Now, what is there in the findings to overthrow that presumption? The finding is that two or three weeks prior to the commencement of said action John T. Holland and wife removed from the land described in the petition of plaintiff to other land in the vicinity thereof; that two or three weeks prior to the commencement of said action said John T. Holland went from Sumner county, commencement of said action, was seen in Sedgwick county, Kansas. The court also found “that the deputy sheriff of Sumner county, Kansas, testified that he left in the possession of certain persons unknown to’ him, who were then residing on the premises described in the petition of plaintiff, two copies of the summons issued in said action, and that he reported the said facts of service in such manner to the person who was sheriff of Sumner county, Kansas, in. 1878.” The court also found that the record in said case showed .that the said defendants John T. Holland and Emma. L. Holland were not brought into court by service county, Kansas, and, after the
It will be presumed, in the absence of any showing to the contrary, that the district courts have jurisdiction to render any judgment or order which it is shown that they in fact did render. All presumptions are in favor of the jurisdiction of the court. (Carey v. Reeves, 32 Kan. 723 ; Head v. Daniels, 38 id. 12; English v. Woodman, 40 id. 752.) Not only are the presumptions in favor of the jurisdiction of the court over the person of John T. Holland, but the appearance docket of the district court of Sumner county, Kansas, states that a summons was issued out of said court in said action, and returned ‘‘ served, ” and the notation of the fact of service of said summons appears on said appearance docket. To overthrow the presumption of jurisdiction and the presumption of the legality of the service by the sheriff, the court finds that ‘ ‘ two or three weeks prior to the commencement of the action the said John T. Holland went from Sumner county into Sedgwick county, Kansas, and after the commencement of said action was seen in Sedgwick county, Kansas.” This was not a finding that he was not in Sumner county at the commencement of the action, or that service of summons was not regularly made upon him either in
The most that can be claimed for the ninth and tenth findings of fact is that they raise a doubt as to whether the summons was served upon them in Sumner
It is not necessary to notice the other assignments of error, for the reason that our views upon the question of jurisdiction will compel the rendition of a judgment in favor of the plaintiff m error.
The judgment of the district court is reversed, and the case remanded, with instructions to render a judgment in favor of this plaintiff in error, Henry Stunkle, and against the defendant in error, James H. Holland, for costs.