El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1898-03-03
COUNTY INTEGRITY.
Iii is Protected by the Court of Civil
AnnaatS


Appeals.
The following Preside county case
recently before the court of civil 40
peals is of special interest because of
the question involved, and the synopsis
of the courts d ci-ion is herewith
given. The City National bank of
Paducab, KY, su- d the county of Pre-
sidio, to recover of it So. $50 alleged to
be due as interest on certain bonds is
suo by the county to build court
house. A trial resulted ia Judgment
for the plaintiff, who is appellee in tn s
court
The cours saws: The fifteenth assign
ment of error rails es the question OF the
Illegally of the bonds because they
were issued fer t. g purpose OF build
ing court house at time when the
county h sd court house at Fort Davis,
the legal county seat, and from which
the county seat had never legally been
moved. 1t may be assumed that the
evidence showed tb at the county seat
was legally located at Fort Davis and
that the remova from that place was
illegal. because the proposition for
removal was not sanctioned by GwC
thirds of the voters Of Preside county.
The removal to Maria took place in
1885, and since that time the district
court has regularly met AID performed
the functions comm tied to 1T by the
state, the probate court has performed
its business. the ommissioners court
has regularly met there. And In fact
all the business of the county has been
performed there. In 1887, the iegisla-
ture formed out of territory belonging
to Preside county additional counties.
among the number being the county of
jeff Davis in which was situated Fort
Davis. Again in 1889, the legislature
statedsin an amendment to be act Great
ing Brewster, Buchel, Foley and jeff
Davis counties, that "their boundaries
were placed within less than twelve
miles of Maria, the county seat of Pre-
sidio county," an Indirect recognition
of the fact that Maria was the legal
county seat. In view of all these facts,
we are of the opinion. says the court,
that the appellant should not be heard
to question the validity of bonds, out OF
whose proceeds the court house it has
been using for the last ten years, was
built.
The removal to Maria was not in
violation of any constitutional prOvi-
sion, because the constitution, Art. y,
sec. places no Limitation upon. r5-
movals of county seats, except that no
county seat within five miles of the
geographical center of a county shall
be removed, except by q vote of two
thirds of he voters. The legislature
is clothed with full power to pass laws
covering the question. 1t was. there
fore, g. legislative provision that was
violated by the removal to Maria; and
the violation was not only acquiesced
in by the people of the county, but by
the courts of the state, and was ratified
by the legislature. Had there been
speedy challenge by the state or any
one interested, different case would
have been presented, perhaps, but it is
too late now to assail the very exis-
tence of county that has been so long
recognized for all purposes appertain-
ing to countysgovernment. AS said in
Ashley VS.. board of Supervisors, so
Fed. as, "the public interests have been
adjusted to the actual condition of