The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1915-05-06
MORE
INTEREST SUITS
ATTORNEY GENERAL EXPECTS
BETTER RESULTS IN ACTIONS
AGAINST COLLINS AND
CASSILL.

Pierre, 8. D.--That the suit insti-
tuted against the estate Of the late
Kirk c.. Phillips, former treasurer,
for recovery of interest, alleged to
have been collected by Philips On
state funds, fell under the provisions
of the statute OF limitation. is given
by Acknowledgement Caldwell as his
reason for asking for dismissal of the
suit when it was called in Lawrence
,ounty court.
He holds, though. that this does
not in any way affect action against
other former ~treasurars, his holding
being that the limitation certainly
does not apply to the cases against
C. B. Collins and Charles Cassill. with
a question in his mind evidently as
to whether or not the cases against
John Schamber come within the lin
it. 1t appears that no seal was ever
attached to the Schamber bond, but
was to the Collins and Cassill bonds.
which makes a difference in their
cases.
Half Million Asked.
NDeadwood, S. D.--That the state
Of South Dakota entertains hopes of
N4lllluS ouIy III VI ~ sulLo Will
menced against former state treas
was the declaration of Attorney Gen
eral G. c. Caldwell here following
the outcome of the initial test in
court in which the state lost it's suits
against the estate of the late Kirk
G. Phillips of this city and his twenty
bondsmen. The state in all has
c,,nJ fou o,n~ , hale ,,i11;1,, oroirrf
the various eX-treasuTers and accord
ing to the attorney general, investi-
cation indicates that only the suit
against former treasurer Cassil's
bondsmen may lie. He declared that
in numerous instances he found that
the bonds furnished for the treasur-
.ers We're faulty, most of them having
no seal. In one instance he said the
bond was not ever signed by the
treasurer yet it had been approved
by the governor Of that time, said
to have been Former U. S. Senator
Crawford. In this connection local
attorneys look for interesting revela-
tons in the issue which caused a
bitter fight in the last legislature
when Governor Byrne attempted to
force the legislature TO appropriate
funds sufficient to prosecute the
cases but the senate declined to
Weld.
In an interview after the circuit
court here had signed an order sus-
tanning the demurrer of the defend
ants in the Phillips case, which in
effect disposed of these cases in
which the state sought to collect
nearly $4,000 from the Phillips es-
tate and Its bondsmen, Attorney
General Caldwell admitted that the
numerous legal technicalities which
he had found in the several cases
brought by the state against the ey-
t%reasurers and their bondsmen, left
him little hope of waging a ucces
full fight. He declared that he had
but Just come to this conclusion and
had not had time to confer with Gov
ernor Byrne under whose authority
he was acting in trying the cases, and
that he proposed urging the COVER
nor to dismiss the other cases with
the possible exception noted above.
Attorneys here have taken the
failure of the state to make a case
against the Phillips estate and its
bondsmen as a sure indication that
the state will not attempt further
prosecution of the former t%reasurers
for retention of interest ON deposits
of state funds.