Great Falls weekly tribune., 1895-04-26
IMPORTANT DECISION.
Fun Text of Judge H"nton's Decision in
Surthwe.tern Bank warrant Case

----------------
Full Text of Judge Bent"n's Decision in
Northwestern Bank warrant Case.
So much interest has been taken in
the case of the Northwestern National
bank VS.. A. L. Dickerman, treasurer,
that the decision OF the court is printed
in full below:
The motion of plaintiff to strike cut
lhat pnrt of defendants answer specified
III the motion on lille coming on to be
heard, after argument by Nlessre. Lyter
& Greene in favor OF the motion, and A.
j. Shores, Esq, IN opposition thereto,
and due consideration,
II is ordered. that such motion be, and
the same is hereby granted.
g. II. BENTON. Judge.
Memo The controlling question in
the case is the effect OF The bill passed
by the Legislative assembly, approved
February Is, 1885. "A n act to authorize
the board Of school trustees of any
school district in Montana to repay from
the proceeds OF the sale of bonds any
money heretofore loaned or advanced to
it for the erection of school house or
school houses in such district"
olIlGl HuCetlOu5 "Clc NOiNCt. III Tic
case and were urged at the hearing of
the motion to strike out, but if the on
ablipg act above referred to is constitu-
tional, such questions are not material in
deciding the motion.
The defendant urges that such act is
unconstitutional under section l3, arti
Gle u. of the constitution, which pro-
vides that the legislative assembly shall
! l.,,,c fOr h.. ban nf
any Individual or association of individ
uals retrospective in its operations, or
which imposes on the people of any
state new liability in respect to trans
in that, it is retrospective, and that a
school district is a municipal subdivision
of the state, and imposes on the taXpay-
ors of the district new liability in re-
gard to transactions already had before
it's passage.
That such an act is not retrospective
in it's character ia held in Jefferson City
Gas Light Co. Va. Clark. 95 U. S. Co.
Operative Edition), page 52l. The court
says: 1.-The constitutional inhibition does
not apply to legislation recognizing or
affirming the binding obligation of the
state or any of it's subordinate agencies
with respect to past transactions. A law
requiring a municipal corporation to pay
a demand which is without legal obliga-
ton, but which is just and equitable in
itself, being founded upon valuable
consideration received by the corpora
tion, is not a retrospective law"
The authorities, as to the character of
a school district, are not uniform, but, liz
my judgment, the weight of authority is
to the effect that school districts are not
municipal corporations.
The supreme court Of Illinois, in de-
clsion pregnant with sound and logical
reasoning, has said: "School townships
| (districts) being created and continued
only for educational purposes and not
for tho purpose of exercising any of ,h,
functions of government, are not mu
Dicipal corporations in either their nat
ure or purpose" People VS.. Tru~te
IS Ills, 1876.
Judge Dillon ON municipal corpora
tions, 3rd ed, sec. -, says: Corpora
tions intended to assist in the conduct
of local government, are sometimes styled
political, sometimes public, sometimes
civil and sometimes municipal and Ger
tain kinds of them, with very restricted
powers, quasi corporations, all OF these
by way OF distinction from private cor
porations. All corporations intended as
agencies in the administration of civ
government are public, as distinguished
from private corporations. Thus an in
corporated school district or county, al
we'll as city, is public corporation; but
the school district, or county, properly
speaking, is not, while the city is, mu
nicipal corporation. All municipal cor
porations are public bodies created fol