Omaha daily bee., 1874-04-01

be haters of bonds already issued, {
nd a doubt be thrown over those I
which may hereafter be put forth, 6
which must result in a prejudice to ]
he credit of the State, which IAN ]
,nly be removed by q final adjudi-
by this tribunal"
This pamphlet and the additional
light pages of manuscript are now
IN file with the Clerk as the opinion
this case.
The Judge hastens to the duty OF
quieting the "uneasiness" of East
ern capitalists who would speculate
in our bonds and who are generally
supposed to be able to take care OF
themselves, but forgets the perturba-
ton among the taxpayers at home,
many of whom were then selling
their corn at Is cents per bushel to
nav the interest on these bonds. 1t
is evident that his honor had never
taken the hay-seed degree, to say
nothing of the corn cob and other
higher degrees of the order.
The balance of the opinion was
devoted chiefly to the point urged
by the plaintiff that before real
estate could be sold the chattels
must be exhausted.
His Honor concludes the case In
these words : 1.-THE tax is due ; and
common justice demands that it
should be paid. With the manner
of its collection we have nothing to
do. The plaintiff may save both
| his personal and real property by
having q Just claim. If he refused
| to do this, 1t Is of little concern to
us as an equitable question, whether
the Treasurer sell the real or per-
sonal property or whether he throt-
tie the plaintiff and force him to
perform his duty to the govern
ment which protects both him and
his property.
must be affirmed
Justice Lake concurs."
Opinions maydffer rs may taste,
but there are those who would re-
card the language employed and
spleen manifested by this mouth
piece of our supreme tribunal as ex-
ceedingly inappropriate and unbe-
coming.
After the accession to the supreme
bench of two new Judges another
case, johnson VS. Hahn was taken
up and argued at the last January
term, Justice Maxwell delivered
the opinion Of the court, on the 18th
of February last, reversing the
Judgment below and Of course over
ruling the ease of Halenbeck VS..
Hahn. The decision rests upon the
law that the Treasurer must first
exhaust the personal property. The
bonds were held legal under the
rulings Of the Supreme Court of the
United States made since these
cases were brought.
The case of Estabrook vs.. john
son o under the law relating to
the cities of the first class and OF
course is interesting to those living
out Of the city only as it exhibits
the tendency of the times. John
son is City Treasurer and a such
seized my law library and Office
furniture, and my household furni'
ture to ostensibly satisfy taxes due
since 1859. This property was cart
!, ed to an auction room and advertis
ed for public sale. These facts wert
paraded through the papers under
startling headlines. The property
was sold 10 the highest bidder
bringing less than one-fifth Of it!
) value. Not content with this exhi-
! bition of me before the public he at
forward took occasion In my alb
sence to seize two old horses, an ole
buggy and an old hack and hitchinG
them all together behind an express
wagon moved them to the head o.
. Farnham street, thence in solemn
procession down Farnham to Ninth
street, thence back again to Thir'
teenth, and thence to Harmonic
stable; there, after keeping them
a week or more, hs says be returned
to where he found them. If he did
It was with less eclat, and the fac1
was not the subject Of public an
nouncement through the news
paper. Now, all this may have been
in the line of official duty, and the
circumstances may have instified q
public verdict of 'sserved him right
as to me, but when it comes to be
known that there were many hun
dreds of persons as actually delin.
ouent as myself-that most of these
had personal property as I had
that he made no other levy except
upon nv property-that he made
no attempt to levy any where else
except at Maj. Balcombe's, where
the spirited lady of the house me-
him at thu door and persuaded
him to let things alone-that many
of these delinquent taxes are still
unpaid with an abundance Of per
sonal property in sight, as to which
he has nevertheless returned under
oath that he had made dilligent
! search and failed to find property
out of which to make the taxes,
then the animus of the transaction
may be better understood. l die
not resist the first seizure, nor die
my wife, pistol In HANDY so that hi
had little trouble in earning fol
himself title of "BRAvE E. j.
and thus, having displayed me and
my case as a frightful example tt
warn Others Of the wrath to come
and having succeeded, he made thu
second seizure to deepen the Inn
preston of the awful doom awaiting
the finally incorridible. For thest
seizures 1 brought suit aver
ring the taking and the con
version to his use.
The defendant answered, setting
up simply his warrant in justifica
l ton. To this I demurred, and OF
the demurrer raised these questions
, L. There can be no delinquent lis
in the hands of the City clerk, since
!, there has ever been in the genera
: revenue law this proviso : When
ever In the collection of any district
| city or local tax which may have
been levied according to law, the
collector Is not able to make the TAI
by distress and sale Of personal pro
perry, and real estate is to be solo
: for the the same 1t shall be the duty
. of the collector of the tax to senl
such delinquent list to the County
Treasurer on or before the fifteenth
day of July Of each year, and thu
County Treasurer shall receive tn,
, delinquent list and advertise tn,
same at the same time he advertise.
: the sale of real estate for delinquent
{ 90 fsor prOvidad nv addiuf