The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-03-27

The Pleasant Valley Coal company
yesterday filed in the Third district
court a petition for a writ of mandate
against the board of county commits
sioners TO compel the board TO recog-
nize the validity of claim of the plain
tiffs for S51 for coal supplied, and to al
low the same and order a warrant
drawn upon the county treasurer in
favor of the plaintiff for the amount
1t is set up in the petition that during
the month of December. 1896. the plain
tiff furnished coal for use at the county
i&il. at an agreed price of $51, and that
the commissioners have refused to al
low the claim, stating that the debt
was contracted by the county in excess
of the taxes and revenue of the county
for the year 1896, and that the contract
ion Of said debt was and is wholly
void
The plaintiff then alleges that the
county commissioners are wrong in
their figures and that the Indebtedness
contracted by the county in 1886 was
not in excess of its revenues for that
year. Plaintiff then goes on to give
figures showing that On Jan. L, 1896.
the county had $40, 24452 cash on hand.
available for current expenses, and that
in 1896 the sum of 1921. 364.SS making a
total of 1857, 6O9.40 and that the liabili
ties incurred during the same period
were 1922, 1852
Afffant further saws that there was
appropriated for debts created prior to
Jan. 1, 1896, the sum of $37, $3.50, and on
Jan. 2, 1897, there was appropriated for
liabilities created in December, 1896, the
sum of S19. 1864, and that there were is
10 o1a % he nd district
court certificates for attendance of
jurors and witnesses during 1896 to the
amount of 81, 390.95, but that no claims
were presented and filed with the
county commissioners upon such GER
tificates prior TO Jan. 1, 1897, and no
appropriations have been made to the
board for said witness and juror fees.
Affiant further states that the county
commissioners included in their esti-
mate upon which their contention is
made that the legal debt limit was ex-
ceeded in 1896, certain claims audited in
1896 in favor of the state of Utah. Salt
Lake City board of education and sun
dry school districts, to the amount of
So. $50. SS, and also interest on warrants
amounting TO 2SS34.1S. Affiant claims
that the interest should not exceed SIS
1868, because the territorial supreme
court had declared $50, 56S. 80 of such
warrants Illegal and the county repudi-
ated furniture warrants Issued to An
drews & Co. TO the extent of So, 973, and
on these items interest Should not be
charged.
Affiant also alleges that in making
the estimate OF the revenues the COM
missioners omitted the $40,24452 on
hand on Jan. / 1896; S29, 2S0.S7 received
on taxes for the years 1894 and 1895, and
$11, SS9 u received from the tax sale re-
demptions.
By this erroneous figuring the affiant
says the Indebtedness created in 1896 is
made to appear to be S277, 571.55 and the
revenues $1S4, 444.79, thus showing an
apparent excess of Indebtedness over
revenue of 500, 1866. while aff1ant al
leges that by the proper way of figur-
ing, as shown above, the total revenue
was S267 609.40 and the revenues ex-
ceeded the debt created in 1896 by $44,-
$685. S