190 Iowa 731 | Iowa | 1921
— A plat, though not set out in the record, but made up therefrom, will explain the situation more quickly and more understandingly than an attempt to describe.
“When it is proposed to include in such school district a school corporation containing a city, town or village with a population of 200 or more inhabitants, the voters residing upon the territory outside the limits of the said school corporation shall vote separately upon the proposition to create such new district. The judges of said election shall provide separate ballot boxgs in which shall be deposited the votes cast by the qualified voters from their respective territory, and if a majority of the votes east by the qualified voters residing either within or without the limits of the aforesaid school corporation is against the proposition to form a consolidated independent corporation, then the proposed corporation shall not be formed.”
Appellants’ contention is that the statute is ambiguous, and that resort must be had to a construction of it. They say that the letter “a” before the words “school corporation” in the second line of the statute above quoted should be omitted, and ±hat the words “school corporation” in the three places where it occurs should be “school corporations,” so as to read that, when it is proposed to include in such school district, school corporations containing a city, town, etc., the voters residing upon the territory outside the limits of the said school corporations shall vote separately, and if a majority of the votes east by the voters residing either within or without the limits of the aforesaid school corporations, and so on. The thought is that the town, being partly in Polk No. 4 and partly iii Polk No. 9, is within those two school corporations, and that, this being so, the statute should be construed as plaintiffs contend, to meet the situation presented under the circumstancés of this case.
“When it is proposed to include in such district a city, or town or village, the voters residing upon the territory outside the incorporated limits of such city, town or village, shall vote separately upon the proposition for the creation of such new district. The judges of said election shall provide separate ballot boxes in which shall be deposited the votes cast by the voters from their respective territory, and if a majority oí the votes cast by the electors residing either within or without the limits of such city, town or village, is against the proposition to form a consolidated independent corporation, then the proposed corporation shall not be formed.” Code Supplement, 1913, Section 2794-a.
Appellants’ contention is that the interests of the rural voters and the interests of those living in a town are antagonistic, and that the concentrated vote in a town would vote taxes upon the voters residing outside the town. It is not claimed that the interests ought to be any different, so far as the general subject of education is concerned. The argument for appellant is that it was the intention of the legislature that those residing in a town and those outside should vote separately. That is precisely what the statute provided, before the later amendments, as shown by the quotation above set out from Code Supplement, 1913, Section 2794-a. But this was changed by the amendment enacted by the thirty-eighth general assembly, and as it now stands. The legislature had the power to make
We are of opinion that the trial court properly sustained the demurrer, and the ruling is — Affirmed.