Cleveland County v. Pearce

287 S.W. 593, 171 Ark. 1145, 1926 Ark. LEXIS 591
Supreme Court of Arkansas·Decided November 8, 1926·Published·Cited by 3 cases

Opinion

Wood, J.

On October 22, 1924, the quorum court of Cleveland County, the Honorable N. A. McKinney presiding, met in regular session, and, among other proceedings, a motion was made and seconded to appropriate $1,000 for home demonstration work. The motion was lost. There being no further business, the court adjourned. Thereafter, the court called a special session of the county court, which was convened on November 18, ,1924. This court, in special session, voted to appropriate. $1,500 for farm demonstration work and $1,000, for home demonstration work. This court made other appropriations which exceeded the amount authorized by law. On December 15, 1924, the county court found, that the levying court, in a recalled session held for the purpose of levying taxes and making appropriation, on the 18th of November, 1924, made appropriations exceeding the amounts prescribed by law, and that, by reason thereof, the normal progress and activities of the county would be greatly hindered, and the court thereupon declared that an emergency existed, and ordered that the quorum court be called in special session on December 18, 1924, for the purpose of rectifying the appropriations and readjusting the entire appropriations, to the end that the same may be brought within the legal limit, and that the appropriations made be legally sufficient, and that the progress and prosperity of the county be not hindered. The court, in its order, directed the sheriff to serve notice on the several justices of the peace and summon them to appear on the day mentioned. The court met in special session, pursuant to the order, on the 18th day of December, 1924, a majority of the justices being present, and, by a majority vote, the court appropriated $1,500 for farm demonstration work and $1,000 for home demonstration work.' The court also adjusted all of the appropriations so that they did not exceed the amount which might be legally appropriated.

On December 19, 1924, N. A. McKinney, county judge, entered into a contract with the dean and director of agriculture of the University of .Arkansas, by which Joe Pearce was employed as county farm demonstration agent for Cleveland County and Miss Clytice Ross was employed as home demonstration agent for Cleveland County. They performed services under the contract. The amount due Pearce was between $750 and $800, and the.amount ¡due Miss Ross was $500.

On or before December 6,1925, the Honorable R. F. Poster, then county' judge, notified Pearce and Miss Ross and the party at headquarters having charge of the farm and home demonstration work that he would-not cooperate with them, and he instructed the sheriff to. tell them, and entered an order to that effect. The county judge did not notify the sheriff to inform them of the order, but he had notified them himself several times before. An order of the court was entered on February 12, 1925, directing notice to be given Pearce and Miss Ross that the county court would not cooperate with them in any way for the year 1925. Notice was served on Pearce and Miss Ross by the sheriff on February 12, 1925. The notice of the call for the November and December special sessions of the quorum court was served on the justices by written notice through the mail and by the sheriff - over the telephone. On May 14, 1925, the county court entered an order which recites, among other things, that the court finds: First, that no legal valid appropriation has been made by the levying court of this county from which to pay for home and farm demonstration work. Second, said home demonstration work and farm demonstration work, as - heretofore operated, would entail upon the county an expenditure of funds which is not justified by the results to accrue and by the funds available. The court thereupon entered a judgment discharging any and all persons assuming to act under the pretended contract, and declaring such contract void.

Separate actions were begun by Pearce and Miss Eoss, presenting their verified claims in the usual form to the county court of Cleveland County, which that court disallowed. They appealed to the circuit court. In the circuit court the claims were, by consent of parties, consolidated and tried by the court sitting as a jury. The trial court found as follows: “The court finds that the proclamation convening the quorum court on the 18th of December, 1924, by the county judge was legal, and sufficiently broad in its scope to cover the question in controversy, viz., the question of an appropriation for farm and home demonstration work, and that they did make an appropriation on that date, and that the then county judge, McKinney, entered into a valid and binding contract with Miss Clytice Eoss and Joe Pearce, and that the present county judge, Foster, who succeeded him, the said McKinney, on the first day of January, 1925, has no authority to repudiate it.” From a judgment entered by the court in favor of Pearce and Miss Eoss, the county duly prosecutes this appeal.

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Cleveland County v. Pearce, 287 S.W. 593, 171 Ark. 1145, 1926 Ark. LEXIS 591 (Ark. 1926).

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