Wiggin v. City of Lewiston

69 P. 286, 8 Idaho 527, 1902 Ida. LEXIS 36
Idaho Supreme Court·Decided June 12, 1902·Published·Cited by 16 cases

Opinion

STOCKSLAG-EE, J.

— This ease comes here on appeal from an order of Hon. Edgar C. Steele, district judge of the second judicial district, made at chambers at Mt. Idaho, Idaho county, on the sixth day of May, 1902, refusing to grant a temporary injunction on application of plaintiff.

The complaint is a voluminous one, occupying folios 1 to 125, inclusive, in the record. The statement of the case in the brief of appellant is conceded to be a fair one by counsel for respondent, and we adopt it as a correct statement of the case. This is an action brought by appellant, praying that the respondent be restrained from issuing or selling certain municipal coupon bonds of the city of Lewiston, and from purchasing or negotiating the purchase of the water system of the Lewiston Water and Light Company, John P. Vollmer, and Frank W. Eettenbach. The complaint alleges: That, among other things, the city of Lewiston is a municipal corporation, organized and existing under and by virtue of an act of the legislature of Idaho territory (now state), and that the above-named respond[530] ents constitute the duly elected, qualified, and acting mayor and aldermen of said city of Lewiston; that the appellant is a resident taxpayer and qualified elector of the city of Lewiston; that on the seventh day of October, 1901, the common council of the city of Lewiston duly and regularly passed ordinance No. 322, which was an ordinance providing for the holding of a special election in the city of Lewiston, Nez Perees' county, state of Idaho, for the purpose of submitting to the electors of said city the question of issuing municipal coupon bonds of said city of Lewiston, in the amount of $80,000, to be used for the purpose of erecting, constructing, operating, and maintaining a system of waterworks, to be the property of the city of Lewiston, Nez Perees county, Idaho; that said ordinance No. 322 was thereafter duly and regularly recorded in a book kept foT that purpose, and authenticated by the signatures of the proper officers; that on the seventeenth day of October, under and by direction of the mayor and common council of the city of Lewiston, the city clerk of said city of Lewiston gave notice of the time, place, and manner of holding said special election; that said special election was held on the nineteenth day of November, 1901, from 12 o'clock M. till 6 o'clock P. M. of said day; and that in all the wards of said city there were two hundred and eighty-four votes cast, two hundred and thirty-four of which were in favor of issuing said bonds and fifty against the issuing of said bonds; that on the twenty-fifth day of November, 1901, the mayor and common council of the city oí Lewiston met for the purpose of canvassing the votes of said special election, and did canvass the same; that on the twelfth day of December, 1901, the common council of the city of Lewiston passed a resolution directing the clerk of said city to publish a notice of said city’s intention to issue negotiable city bonds and invite buyers therefor; that thereafter the city clerk of said city of Lewiston did publish a notice of said city’s intention to sell said bonds; that thereafter the Lewiston Water and Light Company, a corporation, John P. Yollmer, and F. W. Ivettenbaeh submitted a proposition to the city of Lewiston to sell to the said city of Lewiston the systems of waterworks owned by the said Lewiston Water and Light Company and said [531] • John P. Yollmer and Prank W. Kettenbach; that on the tenth day of March, 1902, the common council of the city of Lewis-ton duly and regularly passed an ordinance accepting the proposition made by the said Lewiston Water and Light Company, John P. Yollmer, and F. W. Kettenbach; that said ordinance was thereafter duly recorded in a ¡book kept for that purpose, authenticated by the signatures of the proper officers, and was thereafter published in the “Lewiston Morning Tribune”; that said city of Lewiston has complied with the conditions mentioned in said ordinance, accepting the proposition of the Lewis-ton Water and Light Company, John P. Yollmer, and Frank W. Kettenbach, in so fax as the repeal of the ordinance therein mentioned, the dismissal of said action, and the entering into the stipulation therein provided; that on the twelfth day of March, 1902, the common council of the said city of Lewiston duly and regularly passed ordinance No. 335, providing for the holding of a special election in the city of Lewiston, Idaho, for the purpose of submitting to the qualified electors of said city the question of authorizing the said city of Lewiston to purchase the system of waterworks and water plants of the said Lewiston Water and Light Company, and John P. Yollmer and Frank W. Kettenbach, and to pay therefor the sum of $70,000, which said sum is to be paid out of the proceeds of the sale of bonds heretofore authorized; that said ordinance was thereafter duly and regularly recorded in a book kept for that purpose, authenticated by the signatures of the proper officers, and published in the “Lewiston Morning Tribune”; that on the twenty-second day of March, 1902, in accordance with the terms and provisions of said ordinance No. 335, under and by direction of said mayor and common council of said city of Lewis-ton, the city clerk of said city posted and published notices of said special election; that on the twenty-fourth day of April, 1902, in accordance with the terms and provisions set out in said notices and ordinance No. 335, an election was held in said city of Lewiston, from 12 o’clock M. to 6 o’clock P. M., and that there were cast at said election, at all of the polling-places, one hundred and thirty-nine votes, one hundred and twenty-six of which were in favor of the purchase of said systems of water[532] works, and thirteen against the purchase of said systems of waterworks; that on the twenty-ninth day of April, 1902, the mayor and common council of said city of Lewiston met for the purpose of canvassing the vote of said last special election, and did canvass the same; that neither of said special elections or notices of said special elections was legal or valid, for the reason that they specify and provide that the questions to be submitted were to be submitted to the qualified electors of said city, “who were taxpayers of said city”; that both of said ordinances and notices of election were in violation of the constitution -of the state of Idaho, for the reason that they required the electors of said elections to be taxpayers; that no person was allowed to vote at either of said special elections unless he was a qualified elector and taxpayer of said city; that no elector, other than a taxpayer of said city, voted or was permitted to vote; that under the provisions of article 8, section 3, of the constitution of Idaho, any qualified elector of said city was entitled to vote; that the act under which said election was held is unconstitutional and void, and contravenes the terms and provisions of article 8, section 3, of the constitution of the state of Idaho; that said act is further null and void and unconstitutional for the reason that it contravenes the terms and provisions of article 3, section 19, of the constitution of Idaho, which provides that the legislature shall not pass local or special laws providing for, and conducting the elections, or designating the place of voting; that said elections were illegal and invalid for the reason that the common council of the said city of Lewiston did not follow or carry out the provisions of the act of the legislature of the state of Idaho entitled, “An act to provide for the issuance and sale of municipal coupon bonds, by incorporated cities and towns, for the application

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Wiggin v. City of Lewiston, 69 P. 286, 8 Idaho 527, 1902 Ida. LEXIS 36 (Idaho 1902).

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