Saturday news. (Watertown, S.D.) 19??-19??, 1914-05-28
Supreme Court Oh
City Limit Case

lily LlIlllI N6SG
The following is the text Of the
decision Of the supreme court BIZ
Judge Whiting, handed down last
week in the case Ola. n. Cole. ct al
US. the city 81 Watertown. This is
the case involving the setting out 81
certain lands from the city limits,
wherein Judge Sherwood set out a
portion Of the land asked BY petition
ers and retained certain parts within
the city limits. As will be seen the
decision Of the lower court is revers-
ed and all the lands in question re,
main within the city limits. City
Attorney Mcfarland represented the
city's case in the hearing before the
supreme court and Attorney Perry r.
Loucks that Of the petitioners. we
are giving the supreme courts de
cision In full because it is a case Of
general interest to Waterfowl citi-
gans and n in which every city in
the state will be interested.
Sections 1909, 1911 and 1872 Of the
Political Code Of South Dakota pro-
vide, among other things, as follows:
1903. On petition in writing, signed
by not less than three-fourths Of the
legal voters and by the owners Of not
less than three-fourths, ia value, Of
the property in any territory within
any Incorporated city - and being
upon the border and within the limits
thereof, the city council Of the city
= = may d~isconnect and exclude
such territory from the city : +;
provided, that the provisions of this
section shall only apply to lands not
laid out into city lots or blocks.
Upon the failure Of the city council
= ' to grant the request contained
in a petition y for thirty days
after the last publication of the no.
tice provided for in section 1910, or
upon a refusal to grant such request
the petitioners may present their pc
tition to the circuit court of the coun-
ty in which such city = or the
greater portion Of it is situated, by
filing such petition with the clerk of
said court. \ T : The hearing on the
petition may be held at a regular or
a special term of the circuit court, or
by the court in vacation.
1912. If upon the hearing the court
shall find that the request of the pc
titioners ought to be granted and can
be SO granted without Injustice to
the inhabitants or persons Interested,
the court shall 30 order. If the court
shall find against the petitioners, the
petition shall be dismissed at the
cost of the petitioners.
Proceeding under said section 1909,
certain legal voters and property own
ers of the city of Watertown present
ed to the commissioners of said city
a petition seeking to have certain ter
ritory situate in such city, disconnect-
ed and excluded from such city. The
petition was proper in form and prop
notice given. The commissioners
took no action upon the petition. and
thereafter the petitioners presented
their petition to the circuit court in.
and for CodingtDn county, it being the
county wherein the said city of Wa
tertown is situated. A hearing upon
said petition was had+in said cour..,
and the court found that a part Of
the territory described in said pe.i
ton shn,,ld be disconnected and *
from such city and that the
retained, and it rendered a judgment
in ACCORDANCE / Herewith. From such
Judgment the city aIpealed and, upyn|
such appeal Tesents numerous as
Of error.
Among other things appellant con
tends that the circuit court had no
JURISDICTION to grant the petition in
part and reject the same in part; that
under the provisions of our statute,
The tract described in the petition
must be treated as indiyisible and
such a petition must either be granted
to the whole tract described or
Else must be refused as to the whole
such tract. In this contention we
.hink it clear that appellant is cor
'ect. The power TO create municipal
corporations, and to add to or take
rom their territory is a power purely
political in its nature and is vested in
he legislature, which must determined
he circumstances authorizing the
;reation Of such corporations and the
charging or diminishing OF their teri
tory. But the legislature may dele-
ate, to such body or tribunal as it'll
fit, the determination Of the ex-
stence OF such circumstances, and
nay prescribe the method by which
he question of creating a corporationi