Williams v. Town of Roberts

Citations

• 88 Ill. 11

Syllabus

<p>1. Municipal subscription and bonds—requisites to validity. Where a municipality is empowered to subscribe to the capital stock of a railroad company, and issue its bonds in payment of the subscription, but it is also required that there shall first be an affirmative vote of a majority of the electors of the municipality to that effect, no power exists to make the subscription and issue the bonds until after such vote shall have been obtained, at an election held for that purpose, called by the authority prescribed by the law, and upon such notice of the time and place of holding the election as the law directs; and whoever deals in municipal bonds is chargeable with knowledge whether these precedent conditions to the existence of the power of making the subscription and issuing the bonds have been complied with.</p> <p>2. Same—of the call and, notice of town election. Where the law under which a town subscription was made and its bonds issued to a railway company, required there should first be an affirmative vote of a majority of the electors of the town authorizing the subscription, and that the election should be called upon the application of twenty legal voters and tax-payers of the town, and that notice of the election should be posted for at least twenty days, and the application for the election was signed by only twelve legal voters and tax-payers of the town, and the notice of the election was posted only ten days, it was held, that the election was a nullity, and gave no power to make the subscription and issue the bonds.</p> <p>3. Same—what municipalities may be authorized to subscribe without vote. County boards, such as boards of supervisors, county commissioners, and the municipal authorities of incorporated cities, towns and villages, may, when empowered so to do by proper legislation, subscribe for the capital stock of railroad corporations without first submitting the question to the electors of the municipality, they being considered as the re