Venable v. School Committee of Pilot Mountain
| Decision Date | 19 November 1908 |
| Citation | 62 S.E. 902,149 N.C. 120 |
| Parties | VENABLE v. SCHOOL COMMITTEE OF PILOT MOUNTAIN. |
| Court | North Carolina Supreme Court |
Appeal from Superior Court, Surry County; E. B. Jones, Judge.
Action by S. H. Venable against the School Committee of Pilot Mountain. From a judgment for defendant, plaintiff appeals. Affirmed.
The fact that a member of the school committee purchasing a lot for a new school site, in consideration of a conveyance of the old site and the payment of a specified sum in cash donated by the citizens, contributed to the donated sum, does not invalidate the transaction; the old site being conveyed for full value, and the new site being purchased at its fair value.
L. M Swink, for appellant.
Lindsay Patterson, for appellee.
The school building at Pilot Mountain was burnt down. It stood on a four-acre lot on the edge of town. A large majority of the citizens (four-fifths) presented a petition to the defendant asking that the new building be erected near the center of the town, on a lot of one acre, which could be bought for $400. It was proposed to raise the $400 by popular subscription and convey the new lot to the school committee provided the latter would convey the old lot to the donors in exchange. The value of the old lot was estimated to be $300 the transaction being practically a contribution of $100 by those desiring a change of site. Those opposing the change of site procured a temporary restraining order, alleging that three of the defendant board were interested in having the exchange of lots made. On a motion to dissolve the restraining order, the motion was allowed; the court finding as facts: That the site of the school was changed, upon petition of about four-fifths of the citizens of Pilot Mountain, to the new lot near the center of the town, which was bought for $400, to be conveyed to the school committee in exchange for the old lot. That one member of the school committee contributed $20 to raising the $400 to buy the new lot. That no other member of the defendant committee contributed, though the brother of one of the others subscribed $75 towards the purchase of the new lot, and the brother of another member subscribed $30 and was owner of part of the new lot which is to be conveyed to the school committee upon payment for it out of the $400 fund to be raised by the citizens for that purpose. The court found as a fact that there was "no fraud or collusion on...
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