The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1903-03-04
MONTGOMERY CO,
RECEIVERS 100000
u. s. Court Hands Down Decree
in Noted Case
COUNTY VERSUS COCHRAN
History of suit Against Treasurer and
sureties, the Fidelity and Deposit
Co. of MaryIand-Morris
Bank Failure.

The United States Circuit Court of APP
peaIs sitting at New Orleans, handed
down yesterday a decree in the noted
case of Montgomery county vs. John J.
Cochran and the sureties on his bond, tho
Fidelity and Deposit Company of Mary
land, reversing the decree of Judge
Thomas G. Jones. rendered last July.
This case has attracted a great deal of
attention, not only among the legal pro-
fession, but the business public generally
in every part of the state. BY this decree
Montgomery county RECEIVERS something
more than 100000 which was lost in the
Josiah Morris bank failure in January
1901.
History of the Case.
John j. Cochran was elected county
treasurer of Montgomery county in Au-
gust 1900 and qualified with the Fidelity
and Deposit Company of Maryland as his
sureties in the sum of $4,000, and the
banking house of Josiah Morris II Com
pany was the designated depository of
the county funds.
AT the session of the legislature in 1900
1901 an act was passed providing for the
safe VI RiuoiVVO Vi Guilty JULIUS III the
purpose of building public roads and
bridges in the county. The bonds were
sold early in January for S11l9OO to Jo-
sah Morris & Company John ]. Kohn
was the chief clerk of the bank, agent
for the Fidelity and Deposit company
and at the same time deputy treasurer
for Montgomery county. Kohn presented
to the clerk of the board of revenue, in
payment of these bonds, in behalf of the
banking company Its check for the price
of the bonds. and the clerk refused to ac-
cept it, saying that he represented the
bank and was virtually the county treas
urer. and insisted that he give the county
credit on the books of the bank for the
money and bring him the receipt of the
county treasurer therefor. This was DONE
and the clerk of the board of revenue
turned over to Kohn the bonds for the
bank
This was on January 8, and on the oath
of the same month the bank closed It's
doors, having paid out of this fund, and
out of this check, about $1,000 There was
in the bank money belonging to the coun-
ty at the time of the failure in current
funds about $4,000; bridge funds pro
ceeds of this check about S102 000
The Fidelity and Deposit company re-
fused to pay any amount to the county,
insisting that they were not liable for
the reason that the payment for the
bonds was not made in money, but was In
I the form of a check
The Suit.
The board of revenue employed Hon.
Jesse f. stallings, now of Birmingham,
to bring suit against Cochran and his
sureties for the full penalty of the bond
Suit was commenced in the City court of
Montgomery in January, 1902 A petition
was presented to Judge Jones soon after
praying for the removal of the cause
from the City to the Federal court on
account of prejudice and local influence.
The prayer of the petition was granted
and the cause removed to the United
States Circuit court Motion was made
by the plaintiffs attorney to remand tho
cause to the City court of Montgomery,
alleging a want of jurisdiction in the
Federal court, as the Fidelity and Deposit
company was a citizen of Maryland. but
Cochran, the co-defendant. was a citizen
of Montgomery, Ala; that the constitu-
ton of the United States, article g. Sec
ton q provided that in order to give the
United States court jurisdiction the con-
troversy had to be between citizens of
different states" which had uniformly
been construed to mean. prior to the ju-
dietary act of 1873 that all of the de-
PENDANTS must be citizens of different
states from that of plaintiff.
This motion was overruled, and the