State v. Township Committee of Manchester Tp.

• Decision Date: 07 June 1898
• Parties: STATE ex rel. SCHULTZE v. TOWNSHIP COMMITTEE OF MANCHESTER TP., OCEAN COUNTY, et al.
• Court: New Jersey Supreme Court

40 A. 589

61 N.J.L. 513

STATE ex rel. SCHULTZE

v. TOWNSHIP COMMITTEE OF MANCHESTER TP., OCEAN COUNTY, et al.

Supreme Court of New Jersey.

June 7, 1898.

(Syllabus by the Court.)

Application for an alternative or peremptory writ of mandamus by the state, on the relation of John S. Schultze, against the township committee of Manchester township, in the county of Ocean, and others. Rule to show cause why writ should not issue. Application denied.

Argued November term, 1897, before GARRISON and LIPPINCOTT, JJ.

Henry H. Dawson, for relator.

I. W. Carmichael, for respondents.

LIPPINCOTT, J. This is an application for an alternative or peremptory writ of mandamus to compel the township committee of the township of Manchester, in the county of Ocean, to issue the bonds of said township, in an amount Dot exceeding $5,000, in compliance with the result of a special meeting and election of such township held on February 25, 1897, agreeably to a resolution of said township committee adopted at a meeting of the township committee held on February 18, 1897, and commanding and en joining the chairman of such township committee to sign, and the treasurer thereof to countersign, number, and register, said bonds, pursuant to the statute in such case made and provided.

The statute under which the resolution of the township committee was adopted, and such special township meeting or election was held, is entitled "An act relating to roads and streets in townships, and authorizing the inhabitants of townships to place all roads and streets within the township under the management of the township committee, and to raise money by bonds for grading, macadamizing and improving the same," approved March 23, 1888 (P. L. 1888, p. 240; 3 Gen. St. p. 2920). By the fourth section of the act it is provided that the inhabitants of any township shall have power at their annual or other meeting, duly called for that purpose, by voting upon a resolution submitted by the township committee, to direct the issuing of bonds for the purpose of raising money for the purpose of improving the streets and roads of said township, by grading and macadamizing the same, and building culverts and drains; also providing, in case bonds are issued, for the manner of signing and registering the same. The statute in the same fourth section also enacts as follows: "Provided, however, that before any such bond shall be made or issued the following conditions shall have been complied with and observed: A petition requesting the committee to issue such bonds, specifying the amount to be issued and the purpose for which they are to be used, shall be presented to said committee signed by the taxpayers of the said township (not including such persons as pay a poll tax only) representing not less than one-third in number of the taxpayers of the said township: provided, however, that said one-third in number of said taxpayers shall represent two-thirds in amount of taxable property of said township, which petition shall be verified by the oath of the assessor of said township that it is so signed; and before the issuing of the bonds as hereinafter provided such petition and affidavit shall be recorded by the township clerk and filed in the office of the county clerk, and such petition and affidavits or a certified copy thereof shall be competent evidence of the facts therein set forth in any court of this state; the said committee shall, on receiving such petition, cause a resolution to issue such bonds to be submitted to the legal voters of said township by causing such resolution to be printed or written on ballots, underneath which shall be written the words, 'For the above resolution,' or 'Against the above resolution,' which vote may be taken either at the annual town meeting or at a special township meeting to be called by the said committee for that purpose: and provided also that bonds shall not be issued for the above purposes to an amount which shall cause the entire indebtedness of any township for all purposes to exceed ten per centum of the assessed valuation of property, as shown on the duplicate of assessment for the preceding year."

A petition purporting to be under this statute was presented to the township committee of the township of Manchester on the 18th day of February, 1897. This petition, after reciting the importance of its presentation, requests as follows, to wit: "Now, therefore, we beg your prompt consideration of this our petition to issue bonds of the township not exceeding five thousand dollars, and to dispose of them, or such portion of them, as may be deemed necessary to prepare and gravel about ten miles of roads, as follows: [Naming the roads to be improved]."

On the same day, at the same meeting, the township committee, in accordance with the statute, adopted the following resolution, to wit: "Resolved, that a special township election be held on Thursday, February 25th, for the purpose of voting on an issue of bonds for roads. Resolution to be printed on ballots. Resolved, that the township committee be authorized to issue bonds to an amount not exceeding five thousand ($5,000) dollars for the purpose of preparing and graveling the following roads, to wit [naming the roads], as duly set forth in a petition duly received and recorded with the clerk of the township of Manchester."

The special election was called for the date named in the resolution, and the resolution was adopted by a majority of the voters voting at such election. No further reference need be made to the proceedings of the township authorities, and, for the purposes of the determination of this matter, it is assumed that the election was held according to the formalities provided by the statute.

The respondents contend that...