The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1879-04-11
PUBLIC DEBTS MUST BE PAID.

The supreme court of Connecticut has
recently made decision distinctly hold
ing private property for public debts,
under which merchandise was seized in
the stores and sold at auction to pay de-
faulted interest on city bonds. Some
what in the same line an important de-
cIsiOn has just been rendered by the SUI
preme court of the United States in a
case against the city of New Orleans,
which is thus epitomized by the New
York Mercantile Journal:
The suit arose from an application for
writ of mandamus to compel the au-
thorites of that city to levy a tax To pay
certain judgments entered against it up
pom bonds issued to a railroad company.
The city set up a defense that there was
no legislative authority fer the levy of
such tax. The petitioner demurred to
this answer, but the circuit court over
ruled the demurrer, and denied the writ,
whereupon the petitioner took this appeal.
The circuit court proceeded on the prin-
Ciple that the power of taxation belongs
exclusively to the legislative branch of
the government, and that the judiciary
cannot direct a tax to be LEVIED when
none is authorized by the legislature.
The supreme court, however, holds, in
an opinion delivered by Justice Field,
that although the power Of taxation is a
legislative prerogative, it may be dele
gated 10 a municipal corporation, and
when such corporation is created, the
power of taxation is vested In II as an
essential attribute for all the purposes
of its existence, unless its exercise is in
express terms prohibited. When, there
fore, authority to borrow money or incur
an obligation TO carry out any public OBJ
ject is conferred upon q municipal cor
poration, the power to levy tax for the
payment Of discharge of the obligation
accompanies il, and this, too, without
any special mention that such power
is granted. 1t is always to be assum
ed, in the absence of clear restric-
tive provisions, that when the legis-
lature grants to q city the power to
create debt it intends that the city shall
pay ii, and that its payment shall not be
left to its caprice or pleasure. Whenev-
er a power to contract debt is conferred
it must be held that q corresponding
power OF providing for its payment is al
so conferred. The latter Is implied in
the grant of the former, and such impli-
cation cannot be overcome except by ex-
press limitation. In the present case the
Indebtedness Oh the city OF New Orleans
is conclusively established by the jndg-
ments recovered. Owing to the debt the
city had the power TO levy tax for its
payment, and 1t is clearly its duty so to
do. The payment was not q matter rest
ing on its pleasure, but duty to the
creditor, and having neglected that duty,
a mandamus should have been issued to
enforce its observance. The judgment
OF the lower court was thus reversed, and
the mandamus granted compelling the
| levy of a tax which would seem to put
| this part of the question finally at rest.
If, in addition to this decision, the
United States supreme court is prepared
to approve the decision of the Conneoti-
cut supreme court, that private property
is liable for municipal debts, the repudi-
alton of such debts will hardly be at
tempted. We suppose, of course, that
the owner Of private property so seized
would have q claim upon the public
treasury of the municipality concerned
to reimburse the loss inflicted upon him