112 Ky. 527 | Ky. Ct. App. | 1902
Opinion of the court by
Affirming.
By virtue of a provision of tlie charter of the Paducah' & Tennessee Railroad Company, civil district No. 6, in Marshall county, which embraces the city of Benton and a small contiguous territory outside of the city, subscribed for 150 shares of the capital stock of the railroad company, and issued bonds in payment thereof. The railroad charter provided that, if any civil district in any county should subscribe to the capital stock of the railroad company, the county court in which such subscription was made by any civil district should make an annual levy on the taxpayers of the district, and on all property
We will first consider the last defense. Both of the cases referred to were decided under section 978 of the Kentucky Statutes, which provides that “from all judgments and orders of the county court in the settlement of the accounts of personal representatives, assignees, guardians, trustees, curators and other fiduciaries, appeals may be taken to the circuit court.” This section has no application to the settlements made by sheriffs. They are regulated by the provisions of section 4146, and this section is materially different from section 978. It pro-, vides that the report of settlements made with sheriffs by the commissioner of the court “shall be filed in the county court clerk’s office and be subjected to exceptions by the sheriff or county attorney, who shall represent the Commonwealth and county, and the county' court shall try and determine such exceptions. An appeal may be prosecuted by either party, from the judgment of the county court in the same manner as provided by law in appeals from judgments of the quarterly court. Or actions may be instituted in any court of competent jurisdiction to correct the settlement.” Under this statute, nobody can file exceptions to the settlements made by sheriffs, except the sheriff or the county attorney; but the statute provides that even if the county attorney shall file such ex-
Wé will now consider the other ground of defence relied on. “The sheriff by virtue of his office is the collector of all State, county and district taxes, unless the payment thereof is by law specially directed to be imade to some other officer.” See section 4129 of the statutes. It has been frequently decided by this court that all tax levied by the county constitute one fund, and must be taken in the aggregate in estimating the commission due a sheriff. This includes taxes levied to pay the subscription of a district in a county in aid of a railroad. See Anderson v. Thompson, 73 Ky., 132; County Court v. Chenault (20 R. 704) 47 S. W., 457; Pendleton Co. v. McMillin (104 Ky., 816, 20 R., 1017) 48 S. W., 154. It follows that appellant was only entitled to a commission of 10 per cent, upon the first $5,000 of the gross county taxes collected by him, including that levied by the county court to pay the railroad tax due by the district. The trial court has very properly apportioned the 10 per cent, commission upon the first $5,000 between the taxes collected by appellant from the whole county and that collected from district No. 6.
Perceiving no error in the judgment appealed from, it must be affirmed.
As the purchasers of the property are not before us on this appeal, the court declines to pass on their rights, or to determine whether the sale was void, or merely voidable. Petition overruled.