St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1892-08-13
The Council, Ignoring the
Legal Department, Gets
Itself Into a Hole.
It's Action in Regard to Edu-
cation Finances Alto
getber Illegal.
The Reform Legal Lights Are
Now Making Certain EX-
plantations.
Attorney General Clapp ADJ
vises That the State Sena-
tors "Hold Over"


been an effort made to ignore the legal
department of the city government.
Comptroller McCardy was the first one
TO announce that when he needed any
legal opinion from the city attorney he
would ask for it, ASsemblyman Light
Der didn't say so in that many words.
but has frequently intlmated that there
were members of the council who were
as well posted on legal questions
as the law department of the city.
City Treasurer Miller made no bones Of
his views, and told gentleman, who
suggested an opinion on legal matter
from the city attorney, that the present
incumbent of the corporation attorneys
Office was Democrat and would be apt
to decide against him. By reason Of this,
what might be termed confidence
in their great legal ability,t the members
of the council have run up against an
obstruction.
Section 3 of the bill passed at the last
session of the legislature, creating a
board of education, provides that the
council shall have the power by Or
dinance TO reduce the total or aggregate
amount of all salaries for the school
year. specifying the amount to be taken
From the Salaries
and the amount to be taken from other
employees of the board. A special cOm-
mittee was appointed by the president
of the common council, who is one of
the foremost legal lights of the city
fathers, to consider the estimate of
the board, which was submitted
to the mayor in June, aud
by that official to the council.
After numerous meetings and much ar
gument and discussion the committee
submitted an exhaustive report, accom-
panied by an ordinance. which was
passed by the board of aldermen Aug. 2
and by the assembly Thurday night.
The ordinance as passed said that the
estimate of the. board of education be
reduced by taking from the amount to
be paid as salaries TO teachers $751; 900,
and from the amount to be paid
as salaries to other employees $4,000.
This was supposed to be all right, and
the mayor, who was the first to recon-
mend reduction in the school board
expenditures, waited around the coun-
Gil chamber Thursday night until the
ordinance had been declared passed.
Yesterday morning the attention of
his honor was called to the fact that the
so-calIed ordinance reported by the
committee and passed by bpth branches
Of the council
Was N. G.
This statement was at first thought by
the mayor to be joke, but an opinion
from the legal department on the So
called ordinance was that it did not
meet the requirements of the OCCASION.
In order to convince the mayor of the
fact his attention was called to part Of
section of the school board law,
which provides that the expense OF
the public schools shall not in
any year exceed the amount Of
therefor by the common council.
Under the ordinance drafted by the
committee, and on which the legal lights
of the board of aldermen and assembly
had put their seal of approval, and after
wards passed, no amount OF money is
appropriated or set apart for the school
expenses. The opinion of one of the
members of the school board seen yes
terday was that. until an ordinance had
been passed apprOpriatlng some certain
amount of money, the board could
not expend one dollar in the
payment of salaries or running eX-
penses of the schools. The member
from the board defined his posi- ton in
the matter
To the Mayor.
and, as it was practically the same as
that taken by the legal department,
messages were sent out to bring the
special committee on schools, as we'll as
Assemblyman Lightner, to the mayors
office. A long consultation was held,
the result of which was that it
reflected on the members of the council
n q
made, and that all the trouble in pass
ing the ordinance was to no effect.
In line with this view, Assemblyman
JOhnson,as soon as the consultation was
over, said the ordinance was ali right SO
far as it went. The members of the COM
mittee, he intimated, had been aware all
the time that the ordinance passed
would have no effect on the question.
1t was simply put through to get all ex-
preston from the members as to what
was the best course to pursue in the
great problem" The regular ordi-
nance under the provisions of section
would, he said, be passed by the board
of aldermen at their next meeting on
Aug. l6. and at special meeting of the
assembly to be called the next night.
AS to why all the unnecessary trouble
had to be taken in drafting and passing
a new ordinance and the reason for not
putting the matter all in one Mr.. john
son didn't say.
Others, who were called in by the
mayor to discuss the situation. didn't
have eXactly.the same explanation as to
the failure to pass the correct ordinance,
but then they were not in position to
underst and the affair which might ac-
count for their versions.
A meeting Of the board of education
was called for last night for the purpose
of taking action OH the reduction as
prov ided for in the ordinance. 1t being
learned that the ordinance. as passed,
had no legal effect. the meeting was
postponed.