cial proceedings, it was for obvious reasons important, not only to the parties to the mortgage itself, and to the assignee, but to subsequent incumbrancers, creditors, and contemplating purchasers, that some permanent and accessible evidence of the existence and contents of the mortgage and of the title to the same should be provided.” Again, in Benson v. Markoe, 42 N. W. Rep. (Minn.) 787, speaking of this same statute, this language appears: “The statute authorizing this method of foreclosure evidently designs that there shall be of record a legal mortgage, and that the record shall be so complete as to satisfactorily show the right of the mortgagee or his assigns to invoke its aid.” From the adjudicated cases and the wording of the statute we conclude that when a party seeks to foreclose a mortgage in this state by advertisement, claiming such right as assignee, the record must show complete legal title to such mortgage in such assignee; otherwise such foreclosure will be a nullity. Any other rule would discourage bidding at such foreclosure sales, and result in the sacrifice of property, and the title so conveyed would remain under suspicion, and values be thereby depreciated. A still more unfortunate result would be the fact that the mortgagor and those claiming under him could not with safety redeem from such sales. Hither the right to redeem must be abandoned or a redemption made with the risk of finding the legal title to the mortgage in some person other than the pretended assignee.
One further question remains. Does the record in this case show such chain of title? We think not. The mortgage run to “Beecher & Dean.” It is not shown even that such parties were copartners, nor is the Christian name of either developed by the mortgage. It is held in Sherry v. Gilmore, 58 Wis. 332, 17 N. W. Rep. 252, where a tax-deed named Gilmore & Ware as grantee, that “the grantee in the tax-deed in question is so described as to indicate a partnership, and the evidence shows that, at the time of the delivery of the deed, the defendants were partners, using the firm name of “Gilmore & Ware.” A firm name is always held sufficient to designate the true name of all the persons composing the firm, and is always used in transaction of the business of the firm.” The point was made in that
