Board of Directors v. Beecher

200 P. 88, 116 Wash. 440, 1921 Wash. LEXIS 966
CourtWashington Supreme Court
DecidedJuly 28, 1921
DocketNo. 16339
StatusPublished

This text of 200 P. 88 (Board of Directors v. Beecher) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Washington Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Board of Directors v. Beecher, 200 P. 88, 116 Wash. 440, 1921 Wash. LEXIS 966 (Wash. 1921).

Opinion

Parker, C. J.

This is a special proceeding commenced in the superior court for Chelan county by the board of directors of the Peshastin Irrigation District, in that county, under §§ 6489-6493, Rem. Code, as amended by chapter 162, Laws of 1917, p. 723, seeking a decree confirming the proceedings for the organization of the district and the proceedings for the issuance of bonds of the district in pursuance of an election held for that purpose. S. P. Beecher and wife, owners of land within the district, filed their answer resisting confirmation of the proceeding as petitioned for by the hoard of directors of the district. Thus, as provided by § 6492, Rem. Code, there arose this controversy, in which the hoard of directors became the plaintiff and Beecher and wife the defendants. A trial upon the [442]*442merits in the superior court, as between these parties, resulted in findings and a decree confirming the organization of the district and the proceedings therefor, and also confirming the proceedings for the issuance of the bonds of the district. From this disposition of the cause in the superior court, the defendants Beecher and wife have appealed to this court.

By the provisions of § 6417, Bern. Code, it is required, in the proceedings for the organization of an irrigation district, that two notices be published; a notice of the hearing before the county commissioners upon the petition of the owners of land within the proposed district, at which hearing the boundaries of the proposed district' are finally determined and an election ordered by the county commissioners upon the question of whether or not the district shall be organized ; and a notice of the election so ordered. These required notices were published in the Cashmere Valley Record, a weekly newspaper published at Cashmere, very near the proposed district and of general circulation in that neighborhood, and were not published in the newspaper which had been designated generally by the county commissioners as the official newspaper of the county; that newspaper being published at Wenatchee, several miles distant from the district. The publication of these notices in a newspaper other than the general official county newspaper, it is contended in appellants ’ behalf, constitutes a fatal defect in the proceedings, rendering the organization of the district void. We cannot agree with this contention. The concluding language of § 6417, Rem. Code, which section requires the publication of such notices, reads:

. . . where in this act publication is required to be made in a newspaper of any county, the same may be made in any newspaper of general circu[443]*443lation in any such county, selected by the person or body charged with making the publication and such newspaper shall be the official paper for such purpose. ”

We do not find in the record before us any specific order or direction made by the county commissioners that these notices were to be published in any specified newspaper. We think we may assume, therefore, that, since they are to he given by the county auditor, they were published in the Cashmere Valley Record by direction of that officer; and we note that recitals in the subsequent proceedings by the county commissioners plainly indicate that such publication was approved by that body; indeed, there is a strong inference that that body directed these notices to be published in the Cashmere Valley Record, though, as we have noticed, there séems to have been no specific order made of record to that effect. We are of the opinion that, in view of the concluding language of § 6417, Rem. Code, above quoted, the notices were lawfully published in the Cashmere Valley Record. It is not claimed that the notices were not fairly given, or failed to furnish ample opportunity for all interested persons to be heard before the county commissioners and vote at the election. Indeed, the location of the publication of the Cashmere Valley Record in the immediate neighborhood of the district strongly suggests that that paper was a more appropriate paper for the publication of these notices than the general official paper of the county would have been.

It is further contended in behalf of appellants that the description of the boundaries of the district in the petition of the landowners, the notice of election and the order of the county commissioners finally establishing its boundaries, is fatally defective. The boundary description of the district found in these documents [444]*444commences at a specified point with reference to a section corner of a specified township and range in that county, and proceeds therefrom by courses and distances to designated points and finally to the place of beginning. One of these points is designated as “the most northerly point of lot 3, Peshastin Orchard, Chelan county, Washington,” and another as “the northwest corner of lot 6, Springdale Orchards, Chelan county, Washington.” An engineer and surveyor of long experience in surveying and tracing boundaries in Chelan county, testified in substance that the boundary description of the district as set forth in the petition and order could be traced and located upon the ground, providing “that the points given as corners of lots of orchards are a matter of record.” The county auditor testified without objection that there were upon record in his office official plats designated as “Peshastin Orchards” and “Springdale Orchards,” but that he was unable to say, not having the records before him at the trial, in what section, township or range such orchard plats were located. The argument of counsel for appellants is directed only to the supposed uncertainty of location upon the ground of these two designated points in Peshastin and Springdale orchards, and is in substance that these points are rendered uncertain because of the fact that the county auditor was unable to say in what township or range they are located, but manifestly the other language of the description of the boundary of the district renders it sufficiently fixed and certain upon the ground to put them in a section, township and range that will make them fit the balance of the boundary description. We are quite convinced that the evidence at least makes a sufficient prima facie showing to warrant the conclusion that these questioned points are capable of being located upon the [445]*445ground with sufficient certainty to satisfy the statute as to description of the boundary of the district. Our decision in In re Wenatchee Reclamation District, 91 Wash. 60, 157 Pac. 38, lends support to this conclusion.

It is further contended in behalf of appellants that the initial petition filed in the superior court in this proceeding by the directors of the district fails to show that a certified copy of the order of the county commissioners finally establishing the district was filed with the county clerk of Chelan county as required by § 6418, Eem. Code, as amended by ch. 162, Laws of 1917. The answer to this contention is found in the fact that § 6490, Eem. Code, as amended by ch. 162, Laws of 1917, p. 723, specifying what shall be alleged in the petition, does not require any such allegation, but only that the petition “shall state generally that the irrigation district was duly organized. ” It is plain from the record before us that a certified copy of the order of the county commissioners, finally establishing the district, was timely filed with the county clerk; though that fact does not appear in the petition.

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Bluebook (online)
200 P. 88, 116 Wash. 440, 1921 Wash. LEXIS 966, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/board-of-directors-v-beecher-wash-1921.