19 Wash. 447 | Wash. | 1898
The opinion of the court was delivered by
It is conceded in this case that there are outstanding warrants of the city of Spokane, which were drawn at various times on the different funds of the city, aggregating, with interest, the sum of $300,000, and that the city council, having determined to issue bonds for these outstanding warrants in the manner provided by law, duly passed an ordinance authorizing the sinking-fund commission of the city to enter into a contract with the firm of Morris & Whitehead, bankers, wherein and whereby the city was to agree to deliver the bonds to said Morris
The only question presented for our determination is-whether or not the facts stated in respondents’ answer constitute a defense to this action. That they do has been repeatedly held by this court, after careful consideration of the subject. In State ex rel. Barton v. Hopkins, 14 Wash. 59 (44 Pac. 134, 550), substantially every phase of this case was presented, and determined in accordance with the ruling of the court below in this cause. And in Mullen v. Sackett, 14 Wash. 100 (44 Pac. 136), which was an action to compel the auditor of Ohehalis county to issue warrants upon the county treasurer in favor of the plaintiff for the amount of certain allowed claims against the county, this court said:
“ In State ex rel. Barton v. Hopkins, ante, p. 59, it was held that the amount of indebtedness, within the meaning of the constitutional prohibition, was the total amount of indebtedness, less the amount of such unpaid taxes. It follows that the facts stated in the answer were not sufficient to justify the action of the auditor in refusing to issue the warrants if there were any taxes remaining uncollected on any of the assessment rolls of the county. If there were such taxes remaining unpaid, it was the duty of the auditor to have shown the amount thereof, and that after such amount had been deducted from the total indebtedness the balance exceeded the one and one-half per cent.”
These cases were approved and followed in Rands v. Clarke County, 15 Wash. 697 (46 Pac. 1119) and Kelley v. Pierce County, 15 Wash. 697 (46 Pac. 253). As we have before intimated, this case falls squarely within the rule announced in the cases above mentioned, and notwith
Gordon and Dunbar, JJ., concur.
I think the case of State v. Hopkins, supra, is determinate of the controversy involved here; and the rule has become settled by adherence to that decision, and contracts have been made with reference to the rule so established. The reasoning and conclusions in the case of State v. Hopkins do not, however, as a principle of original constitutional construction, meet my approval.