The New Orleans crescent. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1866-1869, 1868-11-22
THE BELQT CASE.

/ rr M THE BEL0T CASE.
The Republican says that the man Belot
who charges against the city, the neat and
modest little sum of $4,000, is entitled to
the protection of the law; and that journal
publishes about a column of argument TO es.
tablish this proposition. 1t might as well
expend the same time and space in proving
that Grant is not an orator, or that the king
of Siam is not white elephant, or that feas
are not Holsters; all of these propositionsb being
quite as much in need of demonstration as
the one to which the Republican devotes its
logical acumer. Nobody ever denied that
Belot is entitled to the protection of the law,
nor was the discrepancy between his return
of taxables and his claim for property de-
stroyed, referred to for any other purpose
than to show him to be a person entirely IN
worthy of credit-at least in his relations with
the city government A man who will not
scruple to defraud the city treasury by MAX
ing false return of his taxable property, will
not scruple to defraud the city treasury by
making false statement of property de-
stroyed when he expects to force the city to
compensate him for the loss.
The Republican quotes law of the Legis-
lature to prove that municipal corporations
are liable, under all circumstances, for pro-
perty destroyed by mobs within their limits.
1t reaches this conclusion by discovering that
the law. as it stands, is absolutely withou.
qualihcation-that is to say, it does not ex-
cept those cases in which the city may not be
IN fault. Precisely so-because, when the
law was passed no such exception was con-
templated as of possible occurrence. The
Constitution of 1852 guaranteed to the city
the right of appointing and regulating its
own police and police magistrates, and as
long as this guarantee existed the legal sup
position was that the city would comply with
its obligation to furnish adequate pro.ec-
ton for property, and the non-existence
OF such protection was justify
regarded as conclusive of culpable neglect
on the part of the corporation. 1t certainly
never occurred to the Legislators or 1866 that
a day would come when a few hundred in
truders, in conjunction with the negroes,
would deprive the city of New Orleans of a
constitutional guarantee Of her local and mu-
nicipal rights, and that body assuming to
be Legislature, taking advantage of this
omission, would first deprive her of those |
rights, and then attempt to make her res |
ponsible for the consequences of the depriva- |
ton. The Republican claims that the law of |
1855 in regard to the liabilities of municipal |
corporations is still in force. We say that it
is not in force as to the city of New Orleans.
The reason is plain-as to the city of New |
Orleans 1t ceased to operate the moment that
the metropolitan police act went into effect.
1t is true that it was not repealed, in terms,
by that act; and that law cannot be re-
pealed, technically, except by direct
legislation. But the adoption of new
legislation inconsistent with an ex-
sting law must operate as
repeal, or else the new law must be inopera-
i've. Now the metropolitan police act is
Inconsistent in every way with the act of
S55, and hence that act cannot be pleaded by
'elot to give him q claim against the city.
he Republicans idea that an act of the
legislature can entail responsibility on any
.e for acts or events over which he has
/, c, ,ntroI is absurd. Ten Legislatures and
tbo,. sand statutes co1ld not do it any
ore than they could make two and two five.
o court ever would hoid the city of New
rleaps responsible 60. p.,o,, -" even if
e Legisis' r0 shonld ,oss o. 90, ov,rass,r /
an G the corporation responsible, any more
Jan q court could enforce q law which should
old Smith responsible to Johnson's tailor or
hoemaker in case johnson should decline to
ay his little bills, and his tailor or his
hoemaker should see fit to call on Smith for
be amount. Courts may sometimes do fool
IN things, but they could not do anything so
,oiiissh and SO stupid as that