56 Kan. 272 | Kan. | 1896
The opinion of the court was delivered by
: The compensation of a county treasurer is determined by the number of inhabitants in the county for which he is elected, and as Leavenworth county has a population of over 25,000, the treasurer of that county is entitled to a salary of $4,000. This is the extreme limit of compensation that he can claim or retain for any official responsibility which he may assume, and for every official duty which he may perform. It is, as the statute says, “ In full for all services rendered by said treasurer or his deputies,” and he is required to report to the board of county commissioners all fees which he may receive for official services performed at the request of others, and the amount
Can the county recover the interest on the condem-- • nation moneys that were placed by him in the public depositories ? It is insisted on behalf of Spratley that no one other than the owners of these moneys can rightfully claim the interest which accrues on the samé, and that they are not public moneys within the meaning of the statute governing deposits. It provides that the
“treasurer shall deposit daily all public money in*278 some responsible bank, to be designated by the board of county commissioners, in the name of such treasurer as such officer, which bank shall pay such interest on average balances as may be agreed upon by the board of county commissioners ; and such bank shall credit the same monthly to the account of said treasurer ; and before making such deposits, the said board shall take from such bank a good and sufficient bond, in a sum equal to the largest approximate amount that may be deposited at any one time, conditioned that such deposit shall be promptly paid on the check or draft of the treasurer of said county; and such bank shall, on the first Monday of each month, file with the county clerk a statement of the amount of money on hand during the previous month, and the amount of interest accrued thereon to said date.” (Gen. Stat. 1889, ¶1716.)
It is true, as contended, that the funds deposited do not belong to the public. If the condemnation proceedings are regular, the money deposited belongs to the railroad company until the right of way passes to the company. If no appeal is taken from the award of the condemnation commissioners, the right of way passes to the railroad company, and the right to the money passes to the landowner. (Blackshire v. A. T. & S. F. Rld. Co., 13 Kan. 514; C. B. U. P. Rld. Co. v. A. T. & S. F. Rld. Co., 28 id. 453.) It does not appear that appeals were taken by any of the landowners, and if none were taken until the time for appeals expired, the deposits became the property of the landowners. Although-the condemnation money was not owned by the public, it nevertheless was public money within the meaning of the statute requiring "the placing of funds in the public depositories. It is money paid as the law requires in a public proceeding to secure the accomplishment of a public purpose. It is placed in the custody of a public officer, who keeps
The judgment of the district court will be affirmed.