Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1897-02-10
THE CITY AND IT'S TREASURER.

There was something OF an agitation
In the City Council Tuesday evening
when a communication from the city
attorney was read, in which the idea
was conveyed that City Treasurer May
was defauller, ana as such was not
eligible to the Office OF treasurer, Tor
the reason that the laws OF the State
say that no person who Is
defaulter to the corporation shall be
eligible to office in the city
government. The city attorney does
not say directly that the treasurer
is u defaulter, even in technical legal
sense, but makes an insinuation to That
effect in suggesting that. If the Coun-
Gil accepts tho new bond 1t has ordered
Mr.. May to furnish, then the bonds
men may escape responsibility for any
shortage on tue ground that the treas
urer was disqualified from holding
office at the time the bond was given.
1t does not appear clear how the
attorneys point has any relation 10
the question involved in the
bond's acceptance. Mr.. Nays ell
gibility or otherwise can have
no effect on tho sutliciency OF the
bond. If the document is drawn up
in proper form, and II the surelies
thereon are good and sufficient, the
Council cannot make any ineligioill'y
ON MIR. Mays part test OF the quality
OF the bond. That is either sufficient
or tits not, independent OF whether MI.
May lie guilty or innocent OF the I'm
piled charge. Tho matter atanus
this way: the CITY Council
has ordered de iacto officer
to furnish new and good bond,
the old one being deemed Insufficient.
Ii the new bonu Is good, II cannot
be rejected. The form OF bond and
sufliciency OF sureties thereon arc the
tests Of It's quality. The eligibility OF
Mr.. May to hold tho Office must be
determined by another and entirely
different procedure to that which
aecertains the tutiiciency OF bond
rendered by an officer.
As to tho city treasurer being
a deiaulter in the eense in
which that word is used in the section
OF law referred to, an examination VIII
show that such 10 not the case. No
citizen is deprived, by the law, OF civil
rights unless he is guilty OF an ofiense
snuotx,t,u ,nnraI iurpilunp. hanrp the
defaulting to which reference ia made
as u disqualification for office Is an act
OF such criminal character "a to dis
play moral turpiIude on the part OF the
disqualified Individual. There Is no
claim of that kind against Mr.. May,
even by way OF suspicion, to cay moth
ing OF its being established by due
process OF law. Therefore Treasurer
May is not deIaulter, hence is not
disqualified upon that plea.
Whatever criticism may be made Of
the defense offered to the city's suit
for money lost in the Bacon bank
failure, 1T Ia evident that the intima-
tIon that Treasurer May ia deiaulter,
even in the technical legal sense In
which the word la used In the section
Of law referred to, 10 unjust, and lie
absurd from the standpoint OF legal
knowledge. As we'll might the treas.
urer be called such detaulier in case a
burglar got into his vaults and took
come OF the oi,y's cash, or in the event
OF y fire destroying the city hall with
some OF the funds in the tressurei's
custody. The ceuncllmen were caught
little suddenly by the presumed
legal lore presented, but when they
have time to reflect they will readily
see the situation as Il IL.