Silverwood v. Latrobe

Yellott, J., delivered the opinion of the Court. The appellant is the owner of a lot in Greenmount Cemetery; having paid for said lot and received from the proprietors a certificate of ownership which is dated June 17th, 1865. By the Act of 1837, ch. 164, an association of citizens residing in Baltimore City became incorporated by the name of the proprietors of The Greenmount Cemetery. The eighth section of the Act provides : “ That every lot, conveyed in said cemetery, shall be held by the proprietor for the purpose of sepulture alone, and for none other, as real estate, and shall not be subject to attachment or execution.” The land is conveyed by an instrument in writing under seal, to William Silverwood, his heirs and assigns forever, for the purposes of sepulture alone, with the. right of way to and from the lot so conveyed along the avenues, walks, paths and ways of said cemetery.

By the second clause of the instrument, thus conveying this property, the right is given to the grantee of the lot “ to erect stones, monuments or sepulchral structures therein, and to cultivate trees, shrubs and plants in the same.” By the third and fourth clauses the grantors have secured a right of entry for the purpose of removing anything placed on the lot by the grantee which may have become dangerous, inconvenient or detrimental, or which ⁶²⁸ may be deemed by the president or managers offensive or improper ; but there is no reservation of a right of entry by the grantors for any other purpose. During a period extending from June, 1865, to April, 1887, the appellant had exercised his right to plant and cultivate trees, shrubs and flowers in his lot, and had employed skillful and competent persons of his own selection to do this work. But early in the last meritioned year the proprietors passed an order prohibiting any person, other than a lot-holder or a member'of his or her family, from doing any work in the cemetery except by a permit from the superintendent. In this order the board of rnana-gers declare their intention to take entire charge, through their employes, of all work that may be necessary to the proper care of all lots in the cemetery and authorize the superintendent to make arrangements with the lot-holders for the particular care of their respective lots, in order to carry out their intention thus declared.

The appellant’s agent, sent to cultivate his lot, .having been excluded by the superintendent, a bill of complaint was filed in the Circuit Court of Baltimore City,asking for an injunction to restrain the said board of managers and the said superintendent from further interference with the plaintiff’s right, by obstructing or denying to "bis agents free access to his said lot, for the purpose of improving or repairing the same. A decree having been passed by the Court below, refusing the relief asked for and dismissing the bill, the questions in controversy have been brought into this Court by an appeal. The Act of 1837, ch. 164, creating this corporation, does not delegate to it any political powers. The. right “to make such by-laws, rules and regulations as they may deem proper for conducting the affairs of the corporation, for the government of lot-holders and visitors, and for the transfer of stock and the' evidence thereof” is a right given by nearly every charter creating a corporation, and the ⁶²⁹ grant of this right does not invest a corporation with political powers and delegate to it any portion of the State’s sovereignty.

Undoubtedly this corporation had the right to make bylaws, but no by-law was in existence when the appellant purchased and paid for .his lot, which prevented him from employing his own agents for its cultivation and improvement. Nothing is clearer than if a man, in the transaction of his own business, has a right to do any act, he