The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1877-09-07
NO WAY TO ENFORCE JUDGEMENr
Matt Carpenter Relates His Experience.
IN collecting Public Bonds.

Matt Carpenter Relates Hls Experience
IN collecting Public Bonds
Ex-Governor Charles Robinson, at
an anti bond meeting in Douglas
county last week, read the following
letter from Ex-Governor Carpenter, of
Wisconsin. It is very interesting in
view of the extent to which the re-
pudiatiOn of public bonds seems to be
contemplated.
s'The attitude of the Federal courts
in regard TO the bonded debt of mu-
inequalities, as indicated by decisions
of the Supreme Court OF the United
States, Is that of strict impartiality
between bondholders and municipal
debtors. The courts will render judg-
ment upon whatever has q decent re-
semblance TO bond, and this ought
to satisfy the bOndholders. The courts
will never enforce the payment of
their judgments, and this ought to
satisfy the municipalities. Indeed,
fairer compromise between debtor
and creditor was never suggested. l
devoted several years to the unwilling
effort to enforce the payment of mu-
nIcipal bonds IN the State of Wiscon-
sin. 1 never failed to obtain q judg-
mept; and ! never succeeded in COM
pelling it's payment, and In every in
stance, after protracted vexRtion and
expensive litigation, was compelled
to advise my client to accept the terms
of compromise they could obtain from
their debtor municipality. In the
case OF bonds issued by Iowa county,
after gears of litigation, and after
decision Of the Supreme Court affirm
ing the legal liability of the county,
my client, after repeated issues of the
writ OF mandamusito county officers,
were compelled TO, and did accept
| such payment as the county proposed.
This was the ease also In regard TO the
indebtedness of the town of Beloit,
and the city OF KenOsha. Indeed do
not know OF an instance In which the
payment OF a Judgment has been en-
forced against persistent refusal of
Municipality In that state. The
Supreme Court of the United States
has decided that In the absence of a
state statute authorizing the courts to
levy a tax and collect it by an officer
of she court-as was the case In Iowa
| there Is no power in Federal
Court to do more than t. issue 9 writ
of mandamus commanding the levy
and collection of the tax. And that
court has decided that in case suit is
brought against the officer for refusing
to.cbey the writ, only nominal dam
ages are recoverable. The result OF
all Is, that If the officers of q munich
pality will not levy and collect the
tax, while the creditor may annoy and
veg them, he can obtain no substan-
tIaI relief. In other words, the result
of the decisi0nl of tho Supreme Court
of the limited States Is. that munich
pal debtors may pay or not, as they
fDleab At ss NTA&%fa So
In q cAsebf IBGEa ednnsS AEIsceAa IN:
after two or three years had been
wasted In attempting 20 coerce the
county board, they finallys for the
Lp0rpose OF R4f3ing tl59 prcceealngs;
fieHied the tax. and then the several
town clerks of the county refused Il
ie1tend the tax upon the regular tax
i4ibts. After this and after the Sn-
preme Court Of the United States had
decided that public officer refusing
ITO perform his duty an athlsH partieaiaI
was liable, 70 nominal damages only
,lfha creditors gave mp In despair and
took what they could geo. And 90 I
| predict it,Ssill Be IA the case undel
kcSnstAerassoAs ~ tis-ts .sosx41 y !.