The Oakes times. [volume] (Oakes, N.D.) 1906-current, 1922-07-13
BONUS SALE IS
HELD INVALID

HELD INVALID
Legislation Will Have to Be Passed
Next Winter II Payment is to
Be 6peeded Up
PRESENT LAW NOT ADEQUATE
Now Up to Legion to Get After House
and Senate Members
cision made last Friday, held that the
contract between the state industrial
commission, the adjutant general and
the Minnesota Loan and Trust COM
pany and other financial houses for
the purchase Of unpaid soldier bonus
claims in North Dakota was invalid,
on the ground that express power Of
the commission to make a contract
was lacking. The decision holds the
commission and the adjutant general
have no authority to bargain away
the discretionary power lodged by the
legislature, to advance claims Of needy
soldiers.
The court declares "that the de-
fects existing in the present law,
which does not provide method Of
financing the present payment Of
soldiers claims, is q matter to be
addressed to the legislature, and that
it is not a matter wherein the exec
utive authority may assume legis-
lative power, nor the courts, by ju-
dicial fiat, create a legislative pow
err" !.
Under the proposed tentative con-
tract the financial houses agreed to
purchase all unpaid returned soldiers
certificates, estimated to be about
$6,500,000, at 18 per cent discount,
this discount being figured al the av-
erage amount Of interest upon the full
value Of the claims until they would
be paid. The plan had been approved
at the American Legion convention at
Devils Lake. 49,
The supreme court, affirming Judge
Nuessle Of district cour1 in the test
case brought to thresh out the legal
points involved, decided that the case
was not analogous to the hail war
rant case in which similar procedure
was gone through before the sale was
contaminated. In that case, the court
held, there was authority conferred by
statute for the making of an agree
nent, while such authority was lack
; ing in the present case.
i The case was brought by Harvey
Bauernfeind Of Mandan to restrain
the industrial commission and adju-
tant general from entering into the
} agreement. Judge Bronson wrote the
opinion while Judge Grace did not sit
because he has son eligible to claim
the state bonus.
II The industrial commission, it fur
ther holds, has no power to pledge the
states credit in such an agreement.
The law provides the money shall be
disbursed within the state of North
Dakota, Judge Bronson held, while
under the terms of the contract at
least 18 per cent Of the money would
necessarily be paid outside Of the
state, in New York, at the place Of
payment of the certificates the finan-
cial houses would issue.
The constitutionality Of the act was
not decided although Justice Robinson
in a specially concurring opinion said
that another reason for holding the
contract invalid was "that the consti-
tutional validity Of such bonus acts
is not clear beyond question and some
courts hold against such acts on the
ground that the legislature may not
take the property Of one citizen and
give it to another person, or class of
persons, however deserving they may
be-"
4 "The purposes Of the proposed con-
tract may, indeed, be highly laud-
able" said Judge Bronson. "The at
tempt to secure expeditions payment
of the moneys to returned soldiers is
deserving Of commendation. Indeed,
the returned soldiers, each and every
one Of them, should receive one hum
dred cents on the dollar awarded by
statute to them. Clearly the purpose
Of this act is to secure compensation
and disbursement Of compensation,
one hundred cents on the dollar"
| j. F. Sullivan Of Mandan, one Of
the attorneys who aided the financial
house representatives to devise
method Of sale Of the soldiers bonus
claims, said that until he had had an
opportunity to study closely the opin-
ion Of the supreme court he could not
give an opinion as to whether some
Il other method could be undertaken To
purchase the claims. Two or three
methods had been under consideration,
he said.
Mrs. Lizzie Craig and daughters,
Hattie, Alice and Eleanor, returned