The St. Cloud journal., 1870-07-14

resolution presented, with some sligh,
notifications.
1t became my duty professionally t.
oppose the issue Of these bonds, and
If issued to oppose their payment. 4 nd
as matter OF professional courtesy il
answer to letter from the Mayor ask.
ing my opinion as to t.,s power of the
city to donate its b nds to this Rote,
Company, and the sudiciency Of the
resolution passed by the Council on the
10th June, I wrote to the Mayor in
substance as follows:
ST. CLOUD, June 22d, 1870.
Hon. Oscar Taylor, Mayor Of the City Of
st. Cloud.
DEAR S1R.-Yoar favor Of 18th
inst. with the Enclosures was handed
me by MIR. Dorsey on the goth inst. l
deem it proper to state that, prior to the
receipt of your letter, 1 had been re-
tained by some Of our citizens and tax
payers , resist this attempt to impose
upon their property this burden and
charge Of sl2, 800, donated or propos-
ed to be donated by the Common Coun-
Gil for the purpose Of building a hotel.
With this fact understood, SO that you
NAV make due allowance for bias on my
part on account Of it, I take pleasure in
answering as we'll as I can with the
time have been able to give to their
consideration the questions proposed.
10 the FIRST question, I would say that
in my judgement there is no authority
in law by which the Common Council
can issue the bonds of the City tor the
purpose and in the manner speclhed IN
the resolution Of June 10th, 1870.
LIST. 1t will not be claimed that the
City charter coofsrs any such power.
ID. The only law OF which l have
any knowledge under which such au~
thority can, by any pretenee be
claimed, is found on pages 1874 and l93
of Special Laws Of 1869.
This Statute of 1869, Objectionable
and worthless as it is, does not 10 my
jud gmen tprcpose or contemplate any
bonus, git or gratuity, as PROVIDED oy
this resolution. It was intended q
should Judge from what can be gather
ed from its various provislons) to au-
thorize the City to issue ITS bonds TO
aid in the building Of 9 hotel,-o
loan its credit and become a party to
the enterprise ; the Common Council
acting and managing on the part OF the
Citv. With this construction and Tor
this purpose We say that as an exercise
of the taxing power, this law Is a"
abuse of such po,cer and a Pervers,on
of 1t. The use and purpose Ct this
loan $4,000 is not a public use or
purpose, but as very clearly appears
from the resolution and proposition on
file purely private use and purpose
and somewhat speculative at that. 1t
is true that Legislatures have gone all
lengths in the exercise of this taxing
power to carry into effect measures
looking very much more to private
speculation and profit than to the pub.
lie use, and the courts have gone all
lengths in sustaining those laws, but no
LEGISLATURE so far as our knowledge
goes has attempted to start by PROXY in
the Aotel bas;aess, and to place it in the
power Of tho majority Of the voters OF
anv City to take under color of the
tari.g po,oer, the property Of the citi.
zen ae,snst bis will, and by force ii
necessary, for the purpose Of building
a first class hotel to be owned and oper-
ated either by the City alone, or IN
company with Others.
Regarding this law as simply intend.
ed to in substance loan the, credit OF
the City for the purpose specified, 1t IS
an abuse and peruersion of the facing
power. But this resolution proposes
to make donation or gift outright of
this sl2,5O0 to 4 certain private cor
portion (to be hereafter created,) to
assist such corporation or to be used by
such corporation in building hotel.
This hotel is to be o,onrd absolutely ty
this corporation and to be used and
operated by 1t Gf it sees fit to operate
it at alp for lis own pyiuate use "nd
benefit and profit. There is no prop
erty, pouer, right, or use, reseroed to
the public in this hotel. There is no
public policy subserved or end attained.
The hotel need never be opened tor the
reception Of guests not even first class
guests and the public has no power to
compel it to be opened for such pur-
pose. This hotel may be converted
into first class private residence at
any time. There is nothing in it but
a purely private enterprise for the use
and benefit of private parties, and the
taking of this s12,500 from the tax
payers aud giving it to this corporation
is nothing more 0. less than under the
color Of lao and By force taking the
properly Of one citizen and giving it to
another, in violation of all natural right
and every principle of civilized govern
ment. | shall not feel inclined to sub
init upon this point to less binding and
conclusive authority than the judg-
ment of the Supreme Court detcrmin-
Ing and adjudging that building hotels,
eyen first class hotels IN the manner pro-
posed, and to be owned and controlled
as proposed, is thing done for the
public use and the facing po,eer Of the
State may be lawfully invoked to raise
funds for the enterprise or speculation.
But in addition to all this the statute
itself is 50 imperfect and defective in
its provision that no effect can be given
to it. = In answer to
4th question, would say that for the
reasons above stated the Council could
not legally pass the resolution of the
June 18th, 1870. And 10 addition to
the objections above stated, the resoiu-
tion is further Objectionable and illegal
in this: 1st. There is no such corpor-
alton as the st. Cloud Hotel Company
as therein recited, and, consequently,
I'd. No such proposition as therein re-
cited by this corporation could have
been made. The record shows this
raoo1n<;n - Ia ohsol,,tolo fila IN Ill is