The Evansville daily journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, 1857-06-08
G5ansbilIe 9aiIg gonraal.
CircRit Court of the United States.
Important Decision.

! the United states Circuit Court at In
dianapolis, involve all the legal point.
and principles likely to aris. IN the claim
ofthe Straight Line Railroad upon oul
city for the issue OF its bonds. If We
fully understand the scope ofthc decision
We should have very little legal ground
to stand upon in legal contest with the
Road.
DAVID c. WALLACE as. THE CoMuIs.
sIoNEas or KNOX CoUNrY.-This was
one OF the most important cases of the
term, and was argued on a demurrer 10
the declaration, with signal ability, by
Mr.. Judah and NJ. n. {. Mclean for
the plaintiff, and M. Mcdonald and Mr..
HOvey fortho deserda'it. The facts OF
the case were substantially the following:
The Board of Commissioners of Knox
county before the adoption of the COnsti
tutlon OF 1851, in pursuance Of the terms
OF q statue authorizing the same. sub
Scr!bed 100000 to the capital stock of
the OHIO and Mississippi Railroad Com
'pany, and after the Constitution took eff
lect, issued their bonds with coupons.
ior the payment ofthe stock, in the usual
iorm. The county failed to pay the in
terest coupons when they became due.
and this suit was brought to recover the
amount Of the coupons held by the
plaintiff, as the bearer. The defence rest
cd upon several grounds.
/. That the subscription was Void. the
county having no right to make it for
railroad purposes.
z. That the bonds were void. having
been issued after the taking effect of the
Constitution of 1851.
3. That the coupons were void for The
want OF power to issue them, even if the
bonds were valid.
4. That the law Of the State submit
ting the question to the people of Knox
county, whether the Commissioners shall
subscribe the stock, was unconstitutional
and void.
We may have omitted some subordin-
ate points, but these were the main Oh
jectlonS taken.
Judge Mclean in an able AMI lengthy
opinion covering the whole ground of the
action and defence, held that action
could be maintained upon the coupons:
that each OF the points raised in the de-
lence was unsustalnable in point OF law:
that the subscription was valid and bind
inS upon the county of Knox, that the
Court would have compelled by mand-
anus the issue of the bonds. had the
Commissioners refused to issue them:
that the subscription having been made
before the Constitution of Indiana of 1851
was IN lo-ce, could not be affected by that
instrument; that the issue of the bonds
Is not inhibited by The State Constitution
which only applies TO subscription made
after the Constitution took effect; nor
could the Constitution effect these bonds
even 1t tonds were named in its prohibi
tlon, as they were not a new contract. but
merely the consummation ofthe previous
contract OF SUBSCRIPTION that was made
before the adoption Of the Constitution.
therefore both the subscription and bonds
were protected by the Constitution Of
the United States; that the coupons
were merely incident TO the bonds, and
derived all their legal effect from the
bonds, and We're clearly authorized TO be
attached to the bonds as a matter of con-
venience, and TO facilitate the payment of
the interest; that the law submitting
the question of the subscription to the
counties was avald and binding enact
ment. In delivering the opinion Judge
Mclean took the occasion To enlarge
in course of eloquent remarks, upon
the great importance to the country. as
we'll as to the counties through which
the work passes, Of the Ohio and MisSis-
sippi Railroad, and the good faith that
should be observed in the subscription to
enable the company to carry out the
enterprise in faith with their creditors.
G. W. WEST 4 Co. us. THE CRY OF
AURoRA-This case involved most of
the principles Of the case above, Of David
G.. Wallace VS. The Commissioners OF
Knox county, and was argued by y. C.
Mclean and Spooner IL Brewer for the
plaintiffs, and Holman & Haines, and
Dumont & Torbett for the defendant
The action was brought to recover the
amount of certain coupons of bopiS is
sued by the city OF Aurora, on subscrip-
ton to the Ohio and Mississippi Railroad
Company. The argument was made
upon demurrer to the declaration. The
questions raised by the demurrer were,
whether the city Of Aurora had the pow
er under her Charter and the laws OF the
State, to subscribe to the work in ques-
ton, and to issue her coupon bonds to
pay the subscription? And whether it
was necessary to aver in the declaration,
that the subscription was authorized by
a vote Of the people, as required by the
Charter?
The opinion of the Court, delivered by
Judge Mclean, held: that the sub
scription, bonds and coupons were obi
gatory on the city Of Aurora; that re-
covery could be had upon the coupons;
and that it was not necessary to state in
the declaration that the vote had been
taken authorizing the subscription, as
the milking of the subScription--and the
issue of the bonds and coupons-were
sufficient on the part of the plaintiff to be
averred in the declaration to make out a
wdma tacia case, which is all that is re-
quirel on the part Of the pltintiif leav-
ing the defendant to set up any legal de-
fence to the recovery. The Judge, in de-
liverins the opinion, referred to the
decision of the Supreme Court at the
present term, on similar question Of the
liability ofAurora upon her bonds, with
4.