The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1902-01-25
DEFINES A PEDDLER
SUPREME COURT SAYS SELLING TO
DEALERS is NOT
EDDLING
POLICE COURT is ovERRULED
Minneapolis Police Association
Funds Revert TO City Treasury
City Council Cannot AnnuI
Legitimate Contract.

The state supreme court handed down
five decisions yesterday before adjourn
ing until the April term
Justice Brown filed an opinion in the
case of the city of st. Paul vs. B. T.
Briggs, reversing the municipal court
of st. Paul, and holding the local ordin-
ance for the licensing of peddlers void
as far as it's attempts to regulate repre-
sentatives of wholesale houses. Briggs
represented the J. II. Martin company,
of Minneapolis, and sold supplies to
shoemakers. He refused to take out
peddlers license, and was fined $50. He
appealed and Justice Brown holds that
he is not a peddler, because he sold to
dealers and consumers.
Justice Collins reverses the Ramsey
county district court in the knotty case
of Andrew Rostand VS.. Union Bank Of st.
Paul. A man named Cook was paid $3.50
by a third party, not named, to be paid
to Rostand. He deposited this and
$42.87 additional in his own name at the
Union bank. Then he mailed his check
for the $3.50 to Rostand, who was in
North Dakota. The latter Endorsed the
check for collection at a bank in Hills
boro, N. D. In the meantime the funds
| deposited in st. Paul by Cook had been
garnished by one Fitzpatrick, and the
| check was returned to North Dakota,
/ Il
1901, Cook was allowed to draw on his
deposit for $472.S7, leaving to his credit
| $780, which was enough to satisfy Fitz-
| patricks claim, but left Rostand and
! his check unpaid. Later the bank at
| Hllsboro, in behalf of Rostand, asked
! If he should employ an attorney to col
/ lect the $3.50 due him.
| He was advised by the Union bank
! that 1t was unnecessary. The matter
drifted along for six months, during
/ which there was more or less CORE
/ spondence between the two banks with
regard to the check, and finally Rostand
| brought suit against the Union bank for
! the $3.50.
! The Ramsey county district court held
| in favor of the bank and this decision is
reversed by Judge Collins, of the
supreme court, who holds that the bank
! officials were sufficiently negligent to
make them liable for the $780,
Justice Collins affirmed the decision of
! the Hennepin county court in the matter
! of the defunct Minneapolis Police Relief
association. holding that the association
| must return to the city treasury moneys
| paid from city funds into the association
| treasury. The association was formed
| by the police department for benehclaI
| purposes, and the city council passed a
resolution giving the association 81 per
cent of the fees collected by the city
/
! lected $4,000 in this way. The court
holds that gift money donated to such an
| association for a special purpose must be
! returned to the donor if the organization
/ terminates its corporate existence.
! Justice Collins upheld the decision Of
| the Ramsey county district court in the
case of Almeric H. Paget, as receiver OF
Ella B. Lawton, appellant, VS.. the Elec-
| tricaI Engineering company, respondent.
/ Paget sued the company to recover
rent on a building formerly occupied by
| the company under verbal lease. Inc
| surrender of the building had peen ac-
| cepted by Mrs. Lawton's husband, as
agent. Paget disputed LaWtoh rlsilt 70
! accent the surrender, but the court holds
| that as Iawton continued to act as
agent in charge of the building after the
appointment of a receiver, he had
right to accept the surrender OF the
building BY repeated acts he had SHOWN
that he was in charge of the bullolng,
| although he might have had no formal
| appointment.
Svllabi Of all the cases follow:
Definition of Peddler
Citv of st. Paul, respondent, VS.. B. }.
/ peddler. within the generally &C;
| cepted meaning of the term, Is Sn1an
retail dealer who carries ms aliaa
| with him, travelling from place TO plac5,
! and from house to house, exposing MS
goods for sale and selling them.
2. The power conferred upon munlc 5lpat
! cornorations by their charters TO enact
! ordinances on specified subjects is TO De
! construed strictly; and the exercise OF me
power must be confined WITHIN lhe sen
eral principles OF the law aPpli0e'"i0 ~
8 Under the power conferred by its
| charter to define and restrain peddler5'
| the citv of ST. Paul is limited ana fe-
stricted in defining such term to the gen
| eraIlv accepted meaning and scope OF IiIe
| law relating thereto. Ordinance NO zl51
Of said city in so far as it exceeds such
Inn a Defendant was an agent of whole;
! sale dealers in shoemakers' supplies; anu
| as such made periodical trips through tlie
! ei1ch goods to dealers only, and not TO
| consumers Held, he was not a pedoIef
within the meaning of the law. Judg-
! ment reversed '"H' =
Money Rcverts to City.
In re Dissolution of the Minneapolis 20
| lice Department Relief Association; H.
| n Cone intervening complainant re-
| spondent, vs. Odin Void, as receiver CT
the Minneapolis Police Department he-
| lief Association ct al, 3ppelahtS.
A corporation organized under the pro-
| visions of G. S. 1894, chapter 81. title D.
| has no power to divert gift from the
| specific purpose designated by the oonor
| without his consent. When such corpora
| tiOn declines to carry out the purpose
! or object of a gift of money as impressed
/ upon such gift when made, declines 70
use the money for the purpose for when
| it was donated and by decree of a court
voluntarily dissolves and terminates IT'S
! corporate existence, the amount o. ne
| gift reverts to the donor. 1t is not TO pe
| distributed among the members OF the
If municipal corporation has cause
of action against another, it IS the DUTY
| of its officers to institute legal proceed
ings. and if they refuse to perform this
plain duty taxpayer may apply to a
| court and be permitted to'sue in equity IN
| behalf of himself and all others similarly
| situated to enforce the right
| The Minneapolis Relief association
was a corporation organized to accumu--
late funds through dues, assessments and
| contributions of members and donations
from other persons, to be used for Ger
tain prescribed purposes wholly benef-
| c;ai In their nature. By S. L. 1891. c. 143
tie legislature authorized the city to
set apart and pay over to the associa,
ton 50 per cent of all amounts collected
for dog licenses, to ''be used by said
| relief association for the purposes pro
| yided for ana contemplated in it's articles