The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1900-09-05

urer becomes the owner Of the public
moneys in his hands, but on the con-
trary, all through the statutes the ter
ritoria1 funds are treated as the property
Of the territory. BY the express provis-
ion of the statutes the treasurer can be
compelled to submit his books, accounts,
vouchers, and funds in the treasury TO
the inspection of either branch of the
legislative assembly or to any commit
tee appointed for that purpose by the
legislative assembly or by the governor,
and the committee so appointed are
empowered to administer to the treas
urer an oath and it is made their duty
to rigidly examine him and all his clerks
deputies and others undeg oath touching
all matters connected with the bust
ness of his office, and the committee are
to require the funds of the territory In
the hands Of the treasurer to. be produced
in cash and counted in their presence
and shall see that the money so counted
is not borrowed and to determine that
fact, the committee may compel any and
all persons to appear before them, or
subpoena issued by them and served, and
testify fully
From these provisions Of the stat
utes,'' the opinion proceeds, at is clear
that the legislature never intended that
the treasurer's board alone should stand
in lieu Of the territorial funds in the
treasurer's hands, and to make the treas
urer simply a debtor Of the territory.
If so, why should the treasurer be re-
quired to submit the cash TO be counted
and the committee by law be compelled
to see to 4tdhat the money is not Dor
rowed for l.pe occasion? By inference,
which is as strong as express language,
the section Of the Jaw referred to makes
1t the duty Of the treasurer to hold the
territorial funds to meet the obligations
Of the territory whenever needed and for
the purpose, and not to us the funds
for any private purpose whatever. A
law that would compel a debtor TO sub
NIT his cash to be counted by his cred
itors at any and all times that his cred
itors might count it wiuld be sui
generis and while we agree with the
authorities cited by appellant in that if
the money is the treasurers' money he
has the right to loan it or do what he
pleases with it, the money is not his.
If it were, he could use it in any way
he choose until needed in the coure of
the administration of his office for the
payment of warrants, ETC., or until the
expiration of his term; and If 1t did not
belong to the territory he would not be
required to submit it to the committee
to be counted whenever the legislature
or governor desired. II the money were
the treasurers' the legislature and gov
ernor would investigate to see as to
whether or not his official bond was
good; to see If the obligation which he
had executed to the territory for the
faithful discharge of his office were a
sufficient protection to the territory. The
territory would be interested in knowing
that those who signed his bond were re-
sponsible and would care nothing about
the amount of cash the treasurer had,
so long as he paid out these funds when
it become his duty to do so. But the
legislature intended to absolutely prohib-
it the treasurer from using the funds for
any private purpose and makes ii a crime
for any such officer to appropriate to
his own use any public funds
All OF the justices concurred in the
opinion except McAtee, who was not
present. Justice Hainer concurred in the
conclusion, but not in the line Of reason
ing
The other cases in which decisions were
rendered this morning were: Boggs VS..
United States. appeal from Pottawato-
mic county; and McKennon VS.. McKen-
non appeal from Logan county; the ac-
ton of the lower courts being affirmed
in both instances. The case. of Boggs
has been pending for over two years.
Boggs was the Shawnee postmaster con-
victed of embezzling postoffice funds and
this will probably be his desperate effort
to evade his four-year sentence, al
though strong sentiment exists in his
home community that he is innocent and
that he should be pardoned.