Indiana State sentinel. (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1863-06-08

/ III Itct, tuc OOu-tilutlOu. mat step SuOul0 no
be taken; for If il is, there is danger that it vii
be followed By others in the same direction Ill
the constitutional prohibition is entirely tro1deI
under foot There is no necessity that the Stat
officers should assume doubtful powers. There
no necessity that the Court, in this case, shout,
attempt TO bend the constitutional rule in orde
to create a justification to those officers in IN,
assumption of such powers. The Constitution
has provided against this necessity by author
izing the Executive of the State to cal
the Legislature together 10 supply deficiencies II
legislation. There is, hence. no pecessity tina
the officers Of State should exercise questionable
authority, and disrespect for the restraints of th'
Constitution he thus encouraged. or the credit o
the State be dishonOred. The question, then is
is there an appropriation by Law Of the money Il
pay the July interest on the State debt? 1fther,
is, the proper State officers can pay it. Ii Their,
j. not, they cannot legally do so. What, then
is an appropriation by lawf What is q definition
of il? Judicial decisions are not cited. TO an,
extent on this point. IL has rarely arisen in ths
courts Of this State. and vet it is one of great i'm
~pOrtance in the correct administration Of the gov
eminent, and ought to be definitely settled; and
when it is so, carefully observed. There are
some things which. plainly enough, are not sew.
orally an appropriation. A promise by the Gov
eminent to pay money is not an appropriation
A duty on the part of the Legislature TO make
III NKRA0HAAtNA01H - ~ o1NAH a Jun y
make an appropriation is not an Appropriation
The pledge of the faith of the State is not an ap
preparation of money with which TO redeem the
pledge. Usage of paying money in the absence
Of an appropriation cannot make an appropriation
for future payment. The question is to be set
tied upon the meaning of the Constitution
Usage may be evidence Of the meaning the ad
ministrative officers have put upon that instru
ment, and as such. entitled to respectful consid
Grafton. but it is no finding interpretation; and
the present usage was, in fact, probably commenced
without much consideration See Newell VS.. The
Peoples Selden. on page ga.
An excellent illustration of what constitutes an
appropriation is presented in the summary of the
legislation of Congress upon the subject, found
in Brightly's Digest. o. 40. under the title zap
preparations" That legislation is an exposition
by the legislative and executive departments Of
the Federal Government of the requirements OF
the clause in the Federal constitution, that 'no
money shall be drawn from the treasury, but in
consequence of appropriation madeby law" See
Brightly, D ), note NJ. and Mcconnell vs.. Viii
cox. ] Scamm, (Ils } r. 359. An appropriation
nav be made in different modes. 1t may be
made by an act setting apart and specially appr0
p~riating the money derivel fren a particular
source of revenue to a particular purpose. Our
swamp land act is of this character. I G & H.,
597. Dodd VS.. Miller. IA Ind 433. LANCE VS..
StOner, 10 Ind., lis.
Smith, in his Wealth of Nations, speaking of
exchequer bills, &c, proceeds, p 1888. "when this
resource is exhausted, and it becomes necessary.
in order to raise money. to assign or mortgage
some particular branch of the public revenue for
the payment of the debt, Government has. upon
different occasions. done this in two different
WAYS. Sometimes il has made this assignment or
mortgage for a short period OF time only, a year.
or a few years, for example, and sometimes for
perpetuity. In the one case, the fund was sup
posed sufficient to pay, within the limited time,
both principal and interest of the money borrowed.
In the other, il was supposed sufficient to pay the
interest only. or a perpetual annuity equivalent
to the interest, Government being at liberty to re
deem, at any time, this annuity, upon paving
back the principal sun borrowed"
Appropriation, as applicable to the general
fund in the treasury. may. perhaps. be defined to
be an an authority from the Legislature given at
the proper time. and in legal form. to the proper
officers to apply sums of money out of that
which may be in the treasury, in a given wear, to
specified objects. or demands against the State.
An appropriation of the money to a specific oh
ject would be an authority to the proper officers
to pay the money, because the Auditor is author
lied to draw his warrant upon an appropriation
and the Treasurer is authorized TO pay such war
ran if he has appropriated money in the treas
ury.
And such an appropriation may be prospective,
that is, it may be made in one year, of the reye-
nues to accrue in another. or future years,
the law being so framed as to address itself to
such future revenues.
So. a direction to the officers to pay money out
Of the treasury upon 4 given claim, or for a given
object, may, by implication, include in the direc-
ton an appropriation.
But the pledge of the faith Of the State that
revenues shall be provided in future and applied
10 the discharge Of given claims against the
State. does not authorize the officers
of State, without further legislative direc
ton to apply the general fund in the treas
ury to the payment Of those claims; it is not
an appropriation Of the money in the general
fund. We think there can be no mistake as to
the correctness of this proposition. If it is not
true, then We are certainly thrown back upon that
very official discretion which England abrogated
at the revolution of 1858, and which it was the
design of our Constitution to aDrogate here.
Such pledges are solemn obligations upon the
people and Legislature of a State. but they are
not legislative directions to the officers, tempo
rartly in position, TO pay out the given funds
without further appropriation nv the Legislature.
Such pledges. in the language Of Chief Justice
LOwrie, in Sunburry & Co. VS.. Cooper, are "to
be enforced by means of the moral sense of the
community operating upon the Legislature. and
by means of the moral sense Of the civilized
Woftu Operating uDDn Olu the pcOpic duu Tue
Legislature-an influence and responsibility to
which all States are subject" 7 Am. L Reg.
l5S. S G 9. Penn. State Rep, 27S.
In exact accord with this decision is. as we un-
dersiand it, the case of Clendenin VS.. Frazier. /
Ind. $50.
The act upon which that decision was made. is
found in the general laws of the State for 1913,
at page GA.
That all the Constitutional and statutory pro
visions Qxcanf 0Da raliod -n0n in fbfa casa ~
appropriations FOR the payment of interest on the
public debt are but State pledges is most ~satisfac
torilv shown iu-the opinion by Judge Hanna in
the case If The State, &c. vs.. Ristine. at this
serm. and criticism. &c. upon those sections need
not be repeated here
IL is freely admitted ; it is beyond cavil. that
an obligation is created, by such pledges, on the
part of the state. to make an appropriation !;
but. in the language of Judge johnson in the
great case of Newell VS.. The People, 3 Selden
IN W Rep. 9. on page l04. can appropriation
is always necessary to effect actual payment,
though the obligation is as complete without the
appropriation as with it,"
Thus, the United States has, from time to
time, in the course of her history. entered into
treaty with foreign nations whereby she has en-
gagged most solemnly TO pay specified sums Of
money. at fixed times, which treaties. the consti-
tuition Of the United States declares were "the
supreme law of the land :" { Art. 6, Sec 2;O
and vet no instance is within our recollection
where il has been contended for a moment that
executive or administrative officers could pay
those exactly specified sums. thus due. and on
the payment of which the peace OF the nation
might depend. without a further appropriation by
Congress of the money. unless it had been thus
appropriated in advance OF the treaty, as has
sometimes been the case. We cite. as an ex-
ample, the treaty with Mexico. concluded Feb
ruhry ID, 1913, (Acts of Congress. lS45. D.
260); and the appropriations for its execution
(Aets of Congress, le49, p. 70, See 1, Benton's
IL cnE