The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1895-03-22
PARK MUST WAIT FOR IT
The New Court House Will Not Be Built
JaSt Now.
THAT'S THE LAWS MANDATE
II Is Said the County Has Already
Exceeded Its Legal indebtedness.
At Any Rate Judge Henry Has
Shut OFF the New Building.
spec,al Correspondenco Of the standard.

Special Correspondence OF the Standard.
LIVINGSTON, March 20.--Judge Frank
Henry of the district court, rendered his
decision to-day in the case of c. S. Heffer-
lin of this city versus the board of COM
missioners of Park county. MIR. Heffer-
Inns action was for an injunction restrain
ing the commissioners from erecting the
$4,000 court house recently contracted
for. Judge Henry's decision was in favor
of the plaintiff and tho commissioners
are perpetually enjoined from construct
ing the said court house building.
The complaint alleged two grounds for
the equitable interference of the court in
restraining the defendants from con-
structing the contemplated court house
and the issuance OF county warrants in
payment therefor. The first was that
the county would be mourning n liability
in excess .of $1,000 gwithout first SUBJ
hitting the question to the qualified
voters of the county for their approval,
and the second was that the present in
debtedness of the county is in excess of
tho per cent. of the assessed valuation
of the taxable property within the county.
The decision of the court is n written
one and in part is as follows:
The agreed statement of the facts show
that the sum of s., 200 was expended for a
court house site upon which the building
is to be erected, and the further sum of
500 for plans for a court house. The con-
tract price of the building is $3.50, and
the additional sum of $3.50 for plans and
supervision of the construction of said
building. can put but one construction
upon tho constitutional provision. To
my mind this county is mourning liabil-
ity of Sl3,S30 for the single purpose of
erecting a court house. The argument of
counsel for defendant, that this expendi-
ture of $500 was made years ago and by
another board of commissioners; that the
warrants then issued have since been
paid and should therefore not be taken
into account, Is not tenable. The lam
guage of the constitution is as explicit as
though il provided that mo county shall
expend for any single purpose, etc." I'm
doubtedly there was an intention to place
n Limitation upon the expenditures made
by the board of county commissioners.
II they desire to make expenditures in ex-
cess OF $4,000 for given purpose it must
be first sanctioned by n majority of the
electors of the county voting upon the
question when properly submitted to
them. 1t is wholly immateral that the
predecessors of the present board of COM
missioners made this expenditure. They
were but the instrument through which
the county incurred the liability. The
contention of defendants counsel that
after tho issuance of n warrant and its
payment by the county treasurer, no
liability has been created under The con-
stitution, can find no support in reason or
authority. If this were true, the county
commissioners, after expanding $500
for n court house site and plans for q
building, could have issued a warrant for
eight or ten thousand dollars for brick
with which to construct the building. This
having been paid, they could issue an
other warrant Tor n similar sum for lum-
Der and other material, and still later
similar sum for the construction of the
building, and in tho end would have in
CURED liabilities of forty or fifty thousand
dollars Tor the single purpose of erecting
a court house. No such power was in
tended to be conferred under the consti-
tuition and, in my judgment, no reasona-
BILE construction of that provision confers
such powers.
with this view of tho case do no;
deem it necessary to determine the othcr
questions presented as to whether the
county has incurred an Indebtedness in
excess of five percentum of the assessed
value of the property in the county. This
might require the determination of the ef-
feet of the recent acts of the legislature
creating the counties of Sweet Grass and
Carbon, upon the contract between the
commissioners and Wolcott. The agreed
statement of facts show the Indebtedness
of the county to be S225, 729.63. and by the
segregation of that portion of Park county
included in the newly created counties the
present assessed valuation of the county