St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-02-27
COURT HOUSE MAY GO ON.
LAW FOR 6oED ISSUE TO COMPLETE
TIE STRUCTURE
FOUND TO BE NOT SPECIAL

Court House ana city Hail
Committee Could Not Make
Contract to last Beyond Its
Term ofOfice-Supreme Court.
Minneapolis and Hennepiu county
Fan now go on with the completion of
their city hall and court house building.
Upon reargument the supreme court
holds the law under which the bonds
were issued is good.
The building was commenced under
special law of 1887, which also provided
for the purchase of the land on which
the building stands, but the funds not
being sufficient additional bonds be
came necessary In the meantime
constitutional amendment had been
adopted prohibiting special Legislation.
In 1898 new law was passed to meet
the emergency, being IAN act entitled
All act to provide additional means for
the completion and furnishing the
court and city hall in the city of Mime
RpoliS. and to authorize the issue OF and
sale of bonds therefor" Approved
April s. 1898. Suit was brought TO
compel the auditor to sign the bonds.
and Judge Seagrave Smith held the law
under which the bonds are issued good.
but on appeal to the supreme court the
law was held TO be unconstitutional.
Upon reargument the supreme court
holds L. all of the propositions stated in
its former decision that were based on
the points then presented. 1t was con-
ceded that the law was special i'll opera
ton as well as in form, but it was urged
that ii was not an act regulating the
affairs of any city or county within the
meaning of the constitutional prohibi-
ton; that the specific prohibitions
enumerated in the second clause
limit the prohibition against special
legislation to cases where a general
law cannot be made applicable.
The former decision Oh both these points
was adverse 10 the relatOr, assuming as
was conceded that the law was special
and the conclusion followed that it was
invalid. The court is still unanimous
as to both of the questions presented at
that time. and that the farmer decision
was right. but on reargument the court
was confronted with the question
whether the act was in fact special
within the meaning of the constitution.
and have reached the conclusion that it
was not special act. 1t would not have
been possible for all act more general
than that of 1898 to have met the case.
If the act had been general in form it
could not have been more general in
fact and still cover the situation. The
L., nd In,
judgment of the court below affirmed.
The following is the syllabus:
State OF Minnesota eX rel. Board of Court
House and City Hall Commissioners of City
of Minneapolis, respondent, VS.. Clayton r.
Cooley as County Auditor of Hennepin
County, appellant. Judgment affirmed.
COLLINS, J.
S.jllabus-The decision on the points
presented OH the former argument al
hered to.
a constitutional prohibition against
special legislation on subject does not
prevent the legislature from dividing it
into classes and applying different rules
TO the different classes.
But such clasSi ication must be based
upon substantial distinctions which
make one class so differentfrom another
as to suggest the necessity of different
legislation with respect to them.
And the characteristics which form
the basis of the classification must be
germane to the purpose of the law; that
is. the legislation must be confined to
matters peculiar to the class.
Further classification must be COM
ple;e, so that the law will apply to
every member of the class or every OBJ
ject under the same conditions.
If the basis of classification is valid. it
is immaterial how many or few mem-
bers there are in the claSS--how many
or how few objects there are 10 which
the law can apply.
The character of an act as general or
special depends Oh its substance and
not on its form.
Tested by those rules Laws 1893, chap.
243, entitled IAN act to provide addl-
tional means Tor completing and fur
nishing the court house and city hall
building now in process of erection Ill
the city of Minneapolis, and to author
lie the issue and sale of bonds therefor"
although special il form, is general in
fact
In the case of Patrick Egan VS.. The
City OF St. Paul ct al, the Ramsey
county district court Is reversed. Mr..
Egan was appointed JanItor for term
Of two years at $500 per year by reSo-
luton of the board, May 30, 1891. the
term commencing June 1, 1891. July l,
1892, the committee reduced the salary
to $1,000, and July 20 Bigue was APP
pointed In his stead, commencing work
Aug. l. Egan sued for his salary
under his supposed contract, and the
court below gave him Judgment. The
supreme court holds that the committee
could make 10 contract that was bind
ing beyond the year for which they
were elected. and that the effect would
be, if they could, to take the manage
ment out of the hands of those elected
for that purpose, and leave it in the
hands of those who had been displaced,
for if they could make contract for
one year they could for three or five
years. The syllabus is as follows:
Patrick Egan, respondent, VS. City of St.
Paul ct al, appellant. Order reversed.
COLLINS, j.
The committee having charge of the
combined court house and city hall
building in the city of ST. Paul under
the provisions of S. l.. 1889. Ch "a. Sec.
e, and authorized to appoint janitor,
custodian and such other employees as
MAY be deemed necessary, has no power
to appoint any of these employees for
period of time extending beyond the
year for which the members of said
committee, with one exception, are
themselves appointed.
In the matter of Matthias Theisen, ad-
ministrator, estate OF John Lohr, de-
ceased, appellant, VS.. w. F. Porter &
Co., respondents, the order Diminishing
the action is reversed. and the case goes
back to be tried on its merits. Lohr
was killed by bursting steampipe,
through the carelessness, ignorance or
mismanagement of Porter's foreman,
who was experimenting the steam
heating apparatus, and the brewing
company's engineer, who turned on the
steam under the foreman's orders. The
syllabus is as follows:
Matthias Theisen Administrator Of John