Walton v. McPhetridge

McFARLAND, J. This is an. appeal from a judgment in favor of the defendant rendered in the court below upon' a proceeding in mandamus to compel the defendant, as auditor of Sutter county, to draw his warrant upon the county treasurer in favor of plaintiff for the sum of five hundred dollars, upon a claim which had been presented to and allowed by the board of supervisors. At the trial the plaintiff introduced the written claim for said five hundred dollars to the board of supervisors, with indorsements thereon which showed that it had been al[441]lowed and ordered paid by the board, and then rested. Thereupon the defendant moved for a nonsuit, which the court granted; and judgment was thereupon rendered for the defendant.

The appellant contends that the presentation of this claim to and its allowance by the board of supervisors made a prima facie case; and that the claim having been regularly approved and allowed by the board of supervisors, it was a duty imposed by law upon the auditor to draw his warrant for the amount of the claim, and that he had no lawful authority to question the validity of the claim thus allowed. This contention is based upon the case of McFarland v. McCowan, 98 Cal. 329, and one or two other cases of similar import. But that case merely involved the question of the value of certain services rendered by the respondent therein, there being ho contention that the amount due him for whatever services he did render was not a legal charge against the county; and the court merely held that the board of supervisors were the final arbiters of the questions of faét, arising upon the evidence, as to the amount and value of said services. The court there say: “The claim of respondent for fees in payment for services as constable was one which the board of supervisors had jurisdiction to hear and determine”; and in answer to the contention of appellant the court said: “This simply amounts to the charge that the board decided the case wrong.” But in the same case the court also said: “It is the privilege and duty of the auditor to refuse to draw his warrant upon the treasurer for claims which, although sanctioned and ordered paid by the board of supervisors, are void upon their face for want of jurisdiction in the board of supervisors, or showing an excess of jurisdiction, or other plain and palpable violation of law.”

In the case at bar, the complaint clearly enough shows the nature of appellant’s demand against the county; and that its allowance was an excess of jurisdiction of the board, and such a violation of law as justified the auditor in examining into its validity. It appears from the complaint that there had been submitted to the electors of the county, at an election held for that purpose, the question of establishing a high school in the county; and that the majority of the votes cast were in favor of the