Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1904-09-16
JUDGE M'F|E
SUSTAINED
Territorial Treasurer Vaughn Cor.
rect in Refusing Payment Of
Appropriation to AgricuI-
turaI College.
MANDAMUS WON'T LIE
To Compel Performance Of Statutory
Duty Unless Latter is Clear and
UndisputabIe

OUuloPul0UI6
The following opinion was handle
down by the Supreme Court of Ne,
Mexico on Wednesday of this week il
the case of The Regents of the Agri
cultural College Of New Mexico, appel
lants, VS.. j. H. Vaughn, Treasure. o
New Mexico, appellee, an appeal from
the District Court of the First Judi
cial District. County of Santa Fe, Ter
ritory of New Mexico, sustaining thu
court below, the case having been tried
in the lower court by Judge John r
McFie The attorneys for the appel
1ants were A. B. Fall, H. B. Holt ani
G. A. Richardson, while Solicitor Gen
eral Edward l.. Bartlett appeared fol
the appellees.
In the Supreme Court, Territory o1
New Mexico, January term, 1904.
The Regents Of the Agricultural Col
lege of New Mexico. appellants. VS.. J
H. Vaughn, treasurer of New Mexico
appellee
Appeal from District Court. First jul.
dicial District, County OF Santa Fe
Territory of New Mexico.
A. B. Fall, Esq, with whom on The
brief were H. B. Holt and q. A. Rich
ardson, Esqrs., attorneys for appel
lants; Edward L. Bartlett, Esq, Solic-
itor General, attorney for appellee.
Opinion Of Court.
Mills, Chief Justice. This is an ac-
tion in mandamus, brought by The
Board of Regents of the Agricultural
College Of New Mexico. vs.. J. H.
Vaughn, treasurer Of the Territory OF
New Mexico, by which petitioners seek
to compel the said Vaughn. as treas
urer, to pay to them the sum of $25,-
900, out of the Temporary Provisional
Indebtedness Fund.
BY Section 2, Chapter 108 Of the ses
sion of laws Of 1903, (the appropria
tion billy the legislative assembly ap.
propriated to the Agricultural College
of New Mexico the sum of $25, 900. in
addition to another appropriation made
to the same institution, and the law
provided that this sum of $4,000 was
appropriated out of the TERRITORY Pro.
visional Indebtedness Fund hereinafter
created" An examination of Chapter
1OS, Laws of 1908, discloses that there
was attempted to be appropriated out
of the Temporary Provisional Fund,
to be created, to various institutions in
the Territory and for .defraying the ex.
penses of the Statehood COMMITTEES
and to pay various deficiencies, large
sum of money.
BY Section 13, of this same act, there
was established fund to be known as
the Temporary Provisional Fund"
out of which fund the cash appropria-
tions to the Territorial Institutions,
and all cash appropriations made by
the bill were to be Immediately paid
and to provide funds for such pay.
ments, the Territorial Treasurer was
ordered and directed to transfer to
said Temporary Provisional Indebted
ness Fund" for the payment of such
appropriations, all the funds now in
the Territorial treasury or in the Ter
ritorial repositories to the credit Of
the Capitol Building Bond Fund, the
Provisional Indebtedness Bond Fund,
and the Louisiana Purchase Exposi-
tion Fund, together with all the sums
to come into his hands UP to July i,
1903, by virtue of levies heretofore
ordered to be made for the above
enumerated funds.
Demand was made by the Regents
of the agricultural College upon the
Territorial Auditor for the issuance OF
! warrant upon the Territorial Treas
urer for the said sum Of SIS. 900, SO ap-
propl lated, but the Auditor declined
to issue the Warrant on the ground
that the Treasurer had informed him
that there. .fwere no funds available in
the Treasury out of which to pay it.
An alternative writ Of mandamus
was then sued out which sough. to
compel the Treasurer to pay the said
sum or show cause why he should not
do SO.
The Territorial Treasurer fled an
answer to the alternative writ. when
answer sets up that there are not now
and never has been in his hands, I'M
der his control, er subject to his or
der as Territorial Treasurer. nor are
there in any Territorial derositories,
any sums Of money in the Capitol
Building Bond Fund" and traverse
Of q similar nature was filed as to the
Provisional Indebtedness Bond Fund.
The answer also shows that the mon.
ey to the credit OF the Louisiana Pur-
chase Exposition Fund. had been trans
ferred from said fund and credited to
the Temporary Provisional Indebted
ness Fund.
On the hearing, the return of the
enr4e1naenn ~ D6nn .uEas0 - -