Halsey v. Gillett

BEATTY, C. J.

This is a petition for a writ of mandate.

Omitting merely formal allegations the facts alleged in the petition are the following:—

“That at the thirty-fifth session of the legislature of the state of California there was duly enacted by said legislature an act entitled ‘An act to provide for the issuance and sale of state bonds to create a fund for the construction by the board of state harbor commissioners of a sea-wall and appurtenances in the city and county of San Francisco; to create a sinking fund for the payment of said bonds, and providing for the submission of this act to a vote of the people,’ which said act was duly approved by the governor on the 20th day of March, 1903. That said act was thereafter submitted to the people of the state of California for their ratification by the proclamation of the governor of said state of California calling for a general election by the people of said state to be held in the month of November in the year 1904, in which proclamation the said governor included the submission of said act of the legislature, and said act was duly ratified at said general election by receiving a majority of all the votes cast for and against it at said election; and ever since the said election said act, commonly known as ‘The San Francisco Sea-wall Act’ has been and is in full force and effect.

“That in said month of November, 1904, after and pursuant to said election and in accordance with section 10 of said act, the governor of California made due proclamation that said act had been so ratified and was in full force and effect, and thereupon, in accordance with the provisions of section 1 of said act Truman Reeves, who was then state treasurer of the state of California, did prepare as such state treasurer two thousand suitable bonds in the form prescribed by said act; the said several bonds being numbered consecutively from 1 to 2000 inclusive; and the said bonds were then in or about the month of December, 1904, signed by George C. Pardee as governor of said state, and were countersigned by E. P. Colgan as controller of the state of California, and were indorsed by Truman Reeves as state treasurer of the state

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of California, and each bond then had the seal of the state of California stamped thereon; and to each of said bonds when so signed in the year 1904 were attached interest coupons in accordance with said act, which coupons were consecutively numbered on each bond, and were each signed by Truman Reeves as the state treasurer of the state of California. That each of said bonds bore date of the 2nd day of January, 1905, and in said month of December, 1904, and on said second day of January, 1905, the said George C. Pardee was the governor of the state of California; and the said E. P. Colgan was the controller of said state, and the said Truman Reeves was the state treasurer of said state; but none of said persons is the holder of any of said offices at the present time, or did hold the same at any time since January, 1909.