Samuel Blatchford

“ It is contended for the plaintiffs that the defendant is estopped from denying that they were seized in fee of the property sued for, on the ground that Richards, after the sheriff's sale, abandoned or turned over to the Visschers the line of culverting and grading, as far as he could do so,-that is, he exercised no further authority over it, and the Opelika & Oxford Company made no further claim to it ”

“ The contract specified the terms of compensation, and provided that on the completion of the 20 miles, and the payment of the amount of the contract, D. W. Visscher should trans fer to the company 'all right and title vested in him to all franchises, right of way, or other property belonging to, or pertaining to, the said road, under the old organization known as the Opelika & Oxford R. R.' The Visschers were not paid the full amount due to them for the work done under the contract, and claimed that there was due to them more than $100,000. ”

“ Richards, as late as 1863, removed, at a small expense to himself individually, some logs which had lodged in one of the culverts, to save the culvert and grading from injury, and he looked over the work from time to time. No meeting of the directors or stockholders was held after July, 1861, and no corporate act was done by either af er that date. ”

“ The policy of the state of Alabama on this subject is indicated by the provisions of her constitutions of 1865, (article 1, § 25,) of 1867, (article 1, § 25,) and of 1875, (article 1, § 24,) 'that private property shall not be taken or applied for public use unless just compensation be made therefor ”