Omaha daily bee., 1909-04-09
If The Are Illegal.

And now comes the Official spokes
man of the Water board, who for years
has beer drawing a salary out OF the
city treasury for doing nothing, with
this declaration:
The ilegality Of the SO. 900. 900 of water
bonds authorized by a vote of the people
in 1900 has been notorious among those
at all acquainted with the water situa-
tion.
How or why the SO, 900, 900 of water
bonds voted in 1900 are illegal is not
explained, but IL these bonds are ille-
gal, what of the legality OF the whole
proceedings for the immediate and
compulsory" purchase Of the water
works. begun in 1903 and not yet
finished?
The very creation of the Water
board and the action of the other city
authorities for the acquisition of the
water works are all p%redicated upon
the legality of these bonds. Water
Bill No. 1, out of which all our water
works troubles have grown, begins as
follows:
Section 1. In any city Of the metropol-
itan class. which has heretofore voted
or may hereafter vote bonds for the con-
struction or purchase of a water plant.
II shall be the duty OF the mayo and
council, and the mayor and council shall,
within thirty days after the election at
which such bonds are or ave been voted.
or in case such bonds have been hereto
fore voted, then within thirty days after
this act shall take effect declare by ordi-
nance that 1t is necessary and expedient
for such city to construct or purchase,
as the case may be, a system Of water
works.
Further along another section
reads:
Section s. In each city of the metropol-
itan class owning and operating a mu-
nicipal water plant, or which has hereto
fore voted or may hereafter vote bonds for
the construction or purchase of a mu-
nicipal water plant. there shall be a
water board consisting of six members.
Such appointment shall be made within
thirty days after the election at which
bonds shall have been voted for the con-
struction or purchase OF a municipal
water plant, OF II such bonds have been
heretofore voted. or II such city mas
SNuANu 6uth O
water plant, then within thirty days
after this act shall take effect.
While 1t is true that the defects of
this first law are supposed to have
been cured by Water bill No. 2, en-
acted two years later, all the jurisdic-
tional procedure In the water works
case was had under the first law.
II the $4,000. 900 of bonds voted in
1900 were not legally voted, then the
governor had no right nor authority
to appoint the first Water board, be-
cause he derived that authority only
from the presumption hat the city
of Omaha had already voted water
bonds.
+ II the 5000, 900 of bonds were not
legally voted, then the mayor and
council in electing to purchase, as re-
CURED by the law, were laboring I'M
der a misrepresentation and did so I'M
der duress, which in ordinary business
transactions would void the act.
If the SO 5000, 900 of bonds were not
legally voted, the appraisers were not
legally appointed and could not have
made a legally binding award.
If there is really a question as to
whether the $4,000, 900 of bonds were
legally voted, why have not the attor-
neys for the city seen to 1t that this
question were raised in the pending
litigation?