The Ottawa free trader., 1850-10-26
Township Organization Law.

The annual meeting of,he board Of supervisors
under the law authorizing township organization,
Is IN November And the board may elect tenn
porary Chairman, whether there j. regular chair
man IN exls,ance or not. Any meeting of the
board Of supervisors, at which a quorum is pre-
sent, must be regarded ms valid That portion OF
the law which coniers jurisdiction over the county
Affairs upon the board of supervisors, went into
operation on the lst Tuesday in April 1850. The
county corporation was not abolished by this law
Its name was changed, but suits instituted in the
old name do not therefore abatc
The question presented fOr tho consideration OF
the court by the parties was rs to the abatement
of the suit. The points raised and discussed are
fully presented by the opinion Of The court.
A. Hoes and II. G. Cotton, for plaintiff in error
L. S Leland and W. H. l.. Wallace for defendant
In error.
Opinion by CAroS, Justice.
This suit was brought BY the County against
the Town, previous to the adoption Of the Town
ship organization law, IN November last, and the
cause was tried and Judgment rendered III favor
of the county, since the first Tuesday in A pril
last. 1t is now objected, for the plaintiff in error
that the old political corporation Of the county Of
La Sale was abolished by the adoption Of the
township law, and Il new political body was crea-
ted by the name of tho board Of supervisors Of tho
Co Of laSalle and that hence the suit abated upon
the adoption Of that law. We agree with the
counsel for the defendant in error that the annual
meeting Of the board of supervisors does rot take
place till November. The time Of that meeting
is made to depend upon the time Of the general
election The first section of the sixteenth arti.
Gle Of the law provides tha. the board Of super.
visors shall meet annually in their respective
counties, for the despatch Of business" and the
next section declares that "the annual meetings
Of the board Of supervisors shall be held on the
first Monday after the general election" Gc. By
determining the time of the general election. we
fix the time If the annual meeting Of the board
The ninth section Of the sixth article of the con.
sutution says "tne general elections shall be hel!
ON the Tuesday next after the first Monday of No.
vember blenpaly, Until otherwise provided by
law The Legislature has not attempted tc
change the times Of the elections, but, by an IRE
slstlble implication. they have changed the gcner
al elections from biennial TO annual so that all o.
the regular November elections are considered
general elections. Requiring annual meetings OF
the board, which are to be held Immediately sue.
ceedng the general elections, implies that there
shall be annual general elections Unless the
general elections occur annually, the law could
not have been adopted so rs 90 into operation
at the time prescribed by the Legislature. The
first section Of the law provides, that the quail
fed voters of cnch county may vote for or against
organization under the law, at the next general e.
lection after its passage; and the fourth section
declares, that it shall 90 into operation on the
first Tuesday in April, 1850, in the counties in
which it shall be adopted. The first general cleo
ton held under the new constitution, was in No
yember, lsis, aud the law was passed in Februa.
ry, 1919. Between that tune and April, 1850,
tho law was authorized to be voted for, at II gen
eral election, while according 90 'hc provisions of
the constitution, no general election would occur
TIL November, $50 Now, unless it shall be
held That the Legislature has provided for the oc
currence N general elections oftencr than is pre-.
scribed by the constitution then We murt say
that the time has not vet arrived ut which the
voters could express an opinion for or against tn.
law for that could only bu done a, a general cleo
ton. Requiring the people to vote at general
election, between February 1919, and April, 1850
Is, IN effect, providing that gcncralcection shall
occur during that period and MS the only clcc.
ton which was provided for, during that time
was to take place in November, lSi9, that. of
the law. Indeed. the second section Of tho elcc.
tion law, which was approved on the same dav
with the law under consideration, may I've fairly
construed to provide ior annual general elections
for that declares in substance that all state and
county officers shall be elected at general clec.
tions, on the TUESDAYS next after the first Mon.
days in November, whether they are elected
quadrennlally, blrnnally, or annually We hold,
then, that the Legislature has, in the exercise Of
the authority conferred by the constitution, provi
dej for annual general elections and that. AS the
law now stands, at least, for all the purposes of
this act, the annual November elections are zen
cral elections, and, hence, that the annual meet
ings Of the board of supervisors must bc held on
the Mondays succeeding those ceciiuhs II was
suggested that 1t might have been the intention of
the Legislature that the annual meeting Of the
board Of supervisors should be held on the Mon.
days succeeding the April elections provided ior
by the act, instead of the November elections
This, however, cannot be, for, by the first and
fourth sections Of article Nineteen the assessments
are To be made between May ana August and
10y the first, sixth and seventh sections of the
twentieth article, the assessment rolls ARE to be
examined and corrected by the board of supcrv.
sors, Mt their annual meeting, and n warrant iss
ued for the collection of the taxes by the fifteenth
of December
Admitting that the annual meeting Of the board
of supervisors cannot take place till after the No
vcmber election, II was argued that as n board
they cannot act till that time, because there is no
provision Of law authorizing them to o.ganlze un
I'll their annual meeting AS We have before
seen, that the first section Of the sixteenth article
requires the board 10 hold annual meetings, aud
that il further provides that, "as board Of super.