Los Angeles daily herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1884-1890, 1889-10-30
THE ASYLUM SITE.
A Way to Head Off the
Veto.
THE CONDITIONS OF THE ACT.
Several Legal Opinions-The Cover
nOr's Approval is Not
Needed.

Needed.
One of the mem ers of the commits
sion appointed by Governor Waterman
to select site for the Southern Califor-
mia Insane Asylum, is in the city and
registered at the Nadeau. He is Mr..
Joseph Brown, of San Bernardino. The
other members of the commission are
expected to arrive in the city today, and
it is probable that meeting will take
place either tonight or tomorrow.
1t will be remembered that the Com
uissioners have made three different at
tempts to pick out site for the asylum
which should be satisfactory to the
Governor. Certain provisions in the act
under which the new asylum was
located in Southern California and
the commission appointed, led them
into the belief that the selec-
ton of site must meet the ap-
prevail of the Governor before it could
be finally settled upon. The first site
named by the commission was in the
Cooley tract, near the city of Cotton.
The people of that city were rather out
of humor when the Governor refused his
approval to that proposition. and the
City Attorney, Frank F. Oster, made a
critical examination of the act to see
whether, under its provisions, it was
necessary that the approval of the Gov
ernor to the site must be obtained. He
came to the conclusion that nothing was
required by the act except that the Gov
ernor should feel satisfied that the price
to be paid WAS a reasonable one.
With this view all Of the prominent
lawyers of Cotton and San Bernardino
agreed. Mr.. Oster came to Los Angeles
yesterday accompanied by John W.
Davis, the President of the First National
Bank of Cotton, and submitted the ques-
ton to G. Wiley Wells, of Wells, Guthrie
& Lee, and to Judge Brunsop, of Brun-
son, Wilson & Lawrence. and obtained
from each of these firms opinions to the
same effect. These three opinions will
be filed with the commission today, and
will in all probability affec. their action.
The list OF opinions is as follows:
MR.. osTER's OPINION.
This is to certify that have carefully
examined the text of that certain act OF
the Legislature of the State of California,
entitled "an act to provide for the
erection and management of State
Hospital for the insane, to be located in
Southern California;" approved March
IL, 1889, and more especially Sections
8 and of said act, and that am of the
hot - sn al 1o,1rv kIo sxrko Il
purport of said act
l. That the Commissioners therein
provided for shall select site for such
asylum, and that their decision is final,
provided it be in accordance with the
conditions imposed by the said act.
2. That the Governor has nothing to
do with the selection of the site or its
approval.
8. That the only matter to be sub.
mitted to the Governor for his approval
is the cost of the proposed site. Respect
fully submitted, FRANK F. OsTER,
Attorney-at-Law.
JUDGE BRUNsoN's OPINION.
We have examined the act and we are
of the opinion that the five
Commissioners appointed by the
Governor have the sole and exclusive
power, and it is their duty to
select the site for the said hospital. The
selection of the site, subject to the guam.
tity and advantages for health, conven-
fence Of access and general sanitary sur
roundings, is exclusively with this COM
mission. After having made the selec.
ton, it is their duty to report the cost OF
the proposed site to the Governor for his
approval, and the only power or duty
vested in the Governor relative to such
location is confined to the approval OF
the value or price to be paid for the site
His discretion in this matter must be a
reasonable discretion, and cannot by a
fair Interpretation of the act be made a
subterfuge to defeat the location of the
site selected by the commission.
BRUNsoN, WILSON & LAWRENCE.
COLONEL WELLS OPINION.
We have examined the statute passed
by the Legislature and are of the opinion
that, by said act, the five Commission.
ers appointed were for the express pur-
pose of ascertaining the advantages for
health, the convenience of access, and
the general sanitary surroundings, and
to locate such place as in their Judgment
they thought most advisable, obtaining
not less than 100 acres of land, and to re-
port the cost of the same to the Cover
nor, and that they have full power to
locate said site, providing it includes
not less than 100 acres of land.
We presume that the Commissioners
are all qualified, in accordance with said
act, viz: One appointed from each of
the counties named in said act, and that
they are all citizens of the United States.
That being true, our attention is called to
the fact that the Commissioners have
heretofore acted upon various sites. The
question arises whether or not the Com
missioners have fulfilled their mission
and exhausted their power when they
selected one of the sites and notified the
Governor Of the cost of the same.
We are of the opinion that if the Board
of Commissioners will proceed at a regu-
lar meeting to reconsider their action To-
eating said site at the different places
that we are informed they have hereto
fore selected, that then they will be open
to select new site. That the Governors
power and prerogative is only to approve
or disapprove the cost of the proposed
site; that the Governor has nc power to
interfere with the commission in anv
way as to the location OF the site, which
by the act is specially given to the com.
mission, his whole power being an ap.
prevail or disapproval of the cost of the
site, and not as to the location. Respect.
fully submitted,
Wells Gurrrpyr q, IT,