159 Mo. 520 | Mo. | 1901
This action was begun by plaintiff filing an account with the county court of Nodaway county, for expenses incident to the administration of the office of the probate judge of said county. Part of the amount was allowed by the county court, but the items for postage stamps furnished by the probate judge and certified by the probate judge for payment because necessary and actually used in his office from December 19, 1896, to March 3, 1897, were rejected and disallowed, and from said action of the county court an appeal was duly taken to the circuit court, when upon a trial there the case was again decided against the appellant herein, Joseph H. Sayler, the then judge of the probate court of Nodaway county. In the trial of the case in the circuit court it was agreed that the stamps amounted in the aggregate to $4 and were used by the plaintiff in the discharges of the
But one question is raised on this appeal, and that is as to whether stamps used in the discharge of the official business of a probate judge is included within the words “and other necessaries,” as the same are used in section 1162, Revised Statutes 1899, said section reading as follows:
“Every probate court shall have a seal of office, of some suitable device, the expense of which, and the necessary expense incurred by said court for books, stationery, furniture, fuel and other necessaries, shall be paid by the county.”
Under a statute applicable to circuit clerks, quite similar to the present in its wording, this court in its early history was twice called upon to determine what furnishings by the clerk were to be included within the meaning of the term “other necessaries.”
In the first case, County of Boone v. Todd, 3 Mo. 140, it appeared that the county of Boone had not then provided a place for the office of the circuit clerk, but that the clerk had furnished his own house for that purpose for several years, and finally presented his account for the value of the rent thereof, to the circuit court for approval, and that court allowed to him one hundred and twenty dollars on this account, and directed the county court to allow and make an order upon the county treasurer to pay the same. The county court refused to make its order upon the treasurer, or to allow to the circuit clerk anything upon his account, whereupon the clerk applied to the circuit court for a conditional mandamus, to which the county court answered, that under the statute the
In a similar proceeding, St. Louis County Court v. Ruland, reported in 5 Mo. 268, the question as to whether fuel
By the same rule of interpretation the judgment of the circuit court herein must be reversed, for in this case it was agreed at the trial, that the stamps, for which the probate judge presented his bill to the county court for allowance, were used in the discharge .of the official business of his office and that they were necessarily required in the performance of his official duty. While everything that an official may use to facilitate him in the accomplishment of the work he is directed by law to perform, may not be said to fall within the meaning of the term “all other necessaries,” as used in section 1726, supra, certainly everything that he is directed to use, or that must necessarily be used in the performance .of a designated act or acts required to be performed by him, should be held to be included within the meaning of that term, unless something previously or subsequently used in the section or act so providing, should clearly indicate a contrary intention.
To suggest that an officer is oftentimes called upon, and
The judgment of the circuit court will therefore be reversed and remanded with directions to enter judgment for plaintiff for the sum of four dollars, together with all the costs of this suit.