The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-11-17

- 80 " t1e kerfas OF the e8ntF4ets
u valid, many Thousands OF dollars xorsh
% warrants would have 70 be so issued.
ins defendant, coanty Treasurer Phe,u-
should De restrainsd lest he pay raore cs
the warrants already issred-
The next allegation 10 Of great fnsuort-
arcs. IL thns neither Gasch. Woo9inr
ana Rutherford. nor any other county
commissioners, ever estimated tfse coat az
the asnshouse about 10 BE construrfsd
ana submitted i 20 the people TO be voted
upon at the nsxt general election. aud sor
tnat reason no majority Of the voters. or
any voters ~ al. ever voted in favor Of q
special OF other tax concerning sneh cost
or estimate. Ard there vas net during
the ysar 1898. or ~ any other time. in the
county treasury surplus Or any fund saf-
Dcaeut for the construction Of the building
according 70 the contract.
Then the startling allegation is made
that kitchie ana Rlgby knew the last two
aiisgations 20 be true as the time, and
mat by reason Of the premises Gaseh,
Hooding and Rutherford were guilty OF
misconduct in oGIice and are. with Rigby
and kiichie. causing 20 the county and It's
taxpayers great damage, already amount
ing 70 $4,000 and upwards. and unless
their unlawful acts are at once declared IL
legal and set aside by some competent
court as null and void the burden Of Taxa
ton in King county will be largely in
creased. Nothing has ever been done
either By the plaintiffs or by other TAX
payers to rasify the aforesaid illegal &C
lions. and that before November IA, 1888.
neither Of the plaintiffs ever bad any
knowledgs Of all the illegal acts men
toned. nor did many or most of the cleo
tors In the county.
The remaining two paragraphs OF the
complaint are merely explanatory Of the
objects OF the suit and contain nothing Of
| interest
The first paragraph Of the prayer OF the
complaint - that Gasch. Rutherford and
Wooding. as commissioners. and Twicheil,
a. auditor. be restrained temporarily and
permanently from issuing any more
warrants In payment Tor the building. or
any medication or supplement whatever.
under color Of compliance with the con-
tracts mentioned, or by any pretext what
ever.
The second, that Richie be restrained
temporarily and permanently from trans
ferrfug, delivering or negotiating TO any
but the defendant county or its authorized
ceiyed from the county commissioners in
payment of any claim under the contract
between himself and the board. and that
he be compelled 10 return TO the county
every such warrant now in his possession
or TO come into his possession.
The third paragraph asks the same con-
corning RigDy and bis warrants.
The fourth paragraph asks that Treas
urer Phelps be restrained in the same
manner from paying any warrant so issued
| 10 either Rigby or Richie.
The fifth paragraph asks that each and
every contract mentioned in the COM
| plalns, togather with every modification,
| be set aside as utterly null and void.
| The sixth paragraph asks for general
and particular discovery from each of the
| defendants OF all that has been done under
the contracts. and Of how many and what
| warrants have been issued In compliance
| with said contracts, together with their
| present owners and holders.
The seventh paragraph asks that the
defendants be required TO make good 20
King county in money every loss il may
have sustained by reason of the unlawful
acts mentioned.
The eighth and ninth paragraphs pray
for costs of the action and for attorneys
fees. together with all further relief the
| court may see fit to grant
The complaint was filed at 40 o'clock
| yesterday afternoon. accompanied by affi-
| davits for a restraining order making the
| same statements. Ii was taken from the
| files Immediately, however, and the appls-
| cation for the restraining order made to
Judge Langley. the suit being one IN
equity. The judge was engaged in the
| trial of q case, but continued IL and going
into his chambers then heard the argu-
| ment Of Judge Roger s. Greene In sup
| port Of the application. The matter being
somewhat complicated 1t was not until
| past the hour Of adjournment. 5 o'clock.
| that the restraining order was signed.
| When the original order had been signed
| II was taken IL into the Office OF the clerk
| OF the court and certified copy to be
served upon each one of the defendants
made. These were served by Deputy
| Sheriff CTabsree last night summons in
the case were served by the plaintiffs at
torneys yesterday afternoon previous to
| the filing of the complaint
In speaking Of the matter yesterday
evening Judge Greene, who brings the suit
for the plaintiffs. said;
THE action We have taken is n rather
| novel one. Ii IL is decided in our favor, or
even II il is not, so long as u is fairly aud
squarely determined. IL will definitely III
| aud limit the powers of county commits
| sioners in this state. The gist of the COM
| plaint We have today filed is not that IL
| alleges certain irregularities in the con-
| strnction of the county hospital build.
ing, but that il alleges the county commits.
| sloners 10 have exceeded their powers in
letting the contract for its construction
without first submitting IL to vote Of the
| taxpayers There IL where the statutes
| have bsen violated and there is where our
| fight will be made.
why do We sue the commissioners as
| individuals7 Ii Is very simple question.
| We sue the commissioners rs individuals
| for this one reason, because We regard
| their action as board as totally un-
| authorized, and them as only responsible
| personally for their actions. The case Is
Just like this: II you could imagine three
men, not county comm issioners, ia some
way usurping the full power OF county
commissioners, building a building OF
their own on county property aud paying
for IL with county funds. then asking the
people TO approve their action and accept
the building, you would look upon them
as we look upon the county commission
ers. Or suppose ! should steal your
money and busld a house on your property
with IT, then ask you to take il OF my
hands that would be a proposition OF the
same kind.
The commissioners took the county's
money and built an almshouse at an enor-
nous cost on the ground Of the necessity
of making some provision for the county
y,s,or Th@v Lad u1 onM hat ksEft