The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1919-07-13
Opposition is Filed BY Group
of Local Citizens With
John c. Thompson, New
York Buyer.
INJUNCTION MAY
BE FILED LATER
Claim of Invalidity by Op-
ponents Based on Grounds
of Illegality of Diversion
Election.

Signed by a group Of prominent
citizens a protest against the sale OF
$4,000 worth of municipal improve
ment bonds which the board of COM
missioners will sell to the highest bid
der tomorrow afternoon, was forward
ed last night to John c. Thompson.
New York bond authority. Mr.. Thomp-
son now has the legality of the bond
issue under investigation and time
warrants will be bid in subject to his
approval.
The movement started last week to
enjoin the city commissioners from
conducting the sale has been held up
pending Mr. Thompson's reply to the
communication.
The complaint voiced by the protes-
tors says:
THE city election recently held in
Pensacola to float the $4,000 bonds
under provisions of the recent act of
the legislature of Florida we are ad
Vised by several attorneys is void
far as ii relates to authorizing the sale
of those bonds. On the grounds that
all qualified voters for the regular
election were allowed and did vote in
this bond election, Notwithstanding
many paid no taxes on real or personal
property.
place states: In all elections to deter
mine the expenditure of money for the
assumption of dept only those shall be
qualified to vote who pay taxes on
property real or personal in the city
of Pensacola, and who have paid their
taxes for the year preceding the year
in which the election is held and are
legally qualified voters in said city.
I'VE call your attention to this as
the city commissioners are arranging
to sell these bonds on Monday the 14th,
and they should be advised not to. We
had contemplated enjoining the com
missioners but preferred to advise you
of the conditions. Please acknowledge
receipt.
Yankee 1 awver Caopof Deterpipe
Question Says Board.
'All of the Yankee lawyers that can
be crowded in between Cape Cod and
hades" cannot determine the question
as to the validity of the election, is
the way John S. Beard sums up the
situation.
When asked yesterday if it were
true that he had been retained by a
number of tax payers of the city TO
enjoin the sale of the municipal bond
issue voted at the recent election he
said that he had not.
Z was consulted and the matter was
discussed" Mr.. Beard continued but
have not been retained and do not
know if injunction proceedings will be
instituted or not" Asked if he knew
whether Mr. John G.. Thompson of New
York had advised that the bond issue
is legal he replied: No; / do not know
If Mr.. Thompson has given any opin-
ion. While Mr.. Thompson's opinion
may be valuable as influencing nom
perfectly immaterial as affecting the
legality of the issue. That is a local
question to be determined, if IL is de-
termined judicially. by the courts of
the state of Florida, regardless of all
of the opinions of all of the Yankee
lawyers that can be crowded in be-
tween Cape Cod and hades." Asked
If he would give his opinion as to the
legality of the election, he replied
The law, in my opinion, is unconsti-
tutional as the subject of the act is
not expressed in the title.
The title An act relating to the
issuance of certain improvement bonds
of the city of Pensacola certainly does
not indicate that the proceeds arising
from the sale of bonds voted by the
tax payers of Pensacola are, by this
act, to be diverted from the purposes
municipal purposes the board of
commissioners of said city may by
resolution determine
Even II the act were constitutional,
the election is invalid as the voting
was not confined TO an electorate pos
sessing the requisite qualifications in
such an election" Asked if il was true
as stated by some that the law fixes
the bond to be given If the injunction
were granted at double the amount
involved, which would be S180,000, he
replied NO; the law does not fix
the bond at all. The amount of the
bond, If any, is entirely in the descre-
ton of the chancellor. Five hundred
dollars would be an excessive bond in
such a case"