El Paso daily herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1881-1901, 1899-12-04
A .TECBNICALITY KILLS
The Bonds Recently Voted
BY the City For Sewer
And City Hall
Purposes

City Clerk Catlin returned from the
state capital Saturday night bringing
back with him the sewer and city hall
bonds unregistered by the state comp
troller, and with them letter from
the attorney general planning his
position.
AS anticipated in the HERALD, he
attorney generals reasons for refusing
to sanction the registering OF the
bonds were purely technical, since as
he says in his explanatory letter to
Mr.. Catlin, every detail excepting tn Q
single point in question, had been
thoroughly and legally complied with.
However. the only course now open 10
the city is a new ele ,tion in wh ich
every formality shall be compile
with, and this will be ordered by the
city council at its next meeting. This
all means delay of several mont hs
and the expense of another electf on
simply to- comply with doubtful
teohnicality.
The letter of the attorney general is
now in the hands OF Judge Kemp, the
city attorney, and in explaining the
refusal to pass favorably upon the
validity of the bonds, Judge Kemp said
this morning:
1.-THE city charter requires that no
tice of election should be given by .
proclamation of the mayor thirty days
before election, and that the election
should be holden, conducted, and re-
turns made as prescribed by the state
law. The act of May 26, 1899, provides
that the manner of holding elections
shall be governed by the laws of the
state regulating general elections.
"Article 1928, statutes of 1895. relat-
ing to the ordering of elections, says
tn at notice of same shall be posted up,
at the place or pla ces Designated for
holding elections in each election pre-
cinct, specifying the time also at hich
the election shall be held, and the Off
Ger or officers to be chosen, or the ques-
tion to be voted on.
''The attorney general holds that he
act of 1899 repesls the me thod provid ed
for in the city charter by publication,
and that notice must be posted up as
provided in article 1928. which con-
struction is. in my opinion, entire ly
erroneous.
''Section of the act of 1899, provides
thai the commissioners court or the
city council of said Incorporated town
or city shall determine the time and
place or places of holding said ele ion,
and the manner OF holding same shall
be governed by the laws of the state
regulating the conduct of elections.
"The eat.Orney-genersl stretches the
words the manner of holding the
same to include the ma aner OF giving
the notice. AS matter of fact it does
not and should not include the manner
of giving the notice, but as it is now,
the city council will have to order q
new election, simply to meet the views
of the attorney general which, In my
opinion, are entirely uncall ed for and
unwarranted, as notice was given In
strict conformity with the provisions
of the city charter on the subject,
which have not been repesled or
changed as to the manner OF giving
notice, by the afores aid act of lS99"
All bonds to be issued by munictpali-
ties are passed On as to their validity by
the attorney general, and in case they
are Lot approved, az in this instance,
they cannot be registered by the state
comptroller in accordance with the
law.
So to all intents and purposes the
election lately held was null and void,
and If the people of Ell Paso want S2O,-
900 of city hall and $685. OF sewer
bonds, they will have to say so again
at the polls.
Metal Market.