The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1880-10-25
THEINsuRAxoE ooMPAAIEs.
Issued for Nearly All Foreign
Insurance Companies IN This city-Ths
ordinance Of Last Nay win Now be

Warrants Issued for Nearly all Foreign
Insurance Companies In This oity-The
Ordnance Of Last Nay VIII Now be
Tssted.
At the meeting of Council las. May an
ordinance was introduced and passed
which had for its object the imposition Of
q tax Of $50 upon each foreign insurance
company, Of which there are large num-
Der in this city. The passage Of this ordi-
nance was resisted by all the insurance
agents with all the fertility Of resource at
command, but 1t nevertheless passed both
branches and became q law, and some Of
the foreign agents paid the tax.
Subsequently an effort was made to
moderate the tax somewhat, and an ordi.
nance Was drafted changing the tax from
SO to so. This ordinance passed the
second Branch, but suffered defeat in the
First Branch. Again there was change
made from $50 to SO and the First Branch
laid out this alienation also.
The matter since that time has been
living dormant until the action OF Major
Sweeney last Saturday, when he served q
large number Of foreign agents with mo-
ticss to appear at Police Court this morn
ing and answer for repeated violations OF
the ordinance.
The action Of the Chief Of Police did not
End the insurance men altogether uupre-
pared however. They have been quietly
at work consulting counsel, and they have
more than once asked the City Solicitor
TO arrange for an agreed case, by which the
validity OF the ordinance could be tested.
Their counsel, Daniel Lamb, z. G. Barr
and Attorney General White, are Of the
opinion that the ordinance is not constitu.
tional, and hence advised their clients 70
refuse payment Of the tar. Among those
whose names appear upon the sergeants
list are A. q. Beach, ]. V. L. Rodgers, W,
F. Peterson, @. q. Collier, @. N. Coen, ],
W. Doddridge, Hoge & Brother and John
Schilling.
An ISTELLIGEScER reporter had short
conversation with one OF the above named
gentlemen last night upon the subject o.
the tax, and he, the agent, took occasion
to censure the Sunday papers upon their
manner OF presenting the matter to the
public.
1--WE do not wish to appear in the atti.
tude OF 'bulldozers' in this matter at all.
We think the tar an onerous and unjust
one, and through the advice Of the very
best legal talent in the city We agreed 70
test It's validity. We have. through our
counsel, asked for an agreed case, but this
was not conceded, and now that the issue
has come we propose testing the matter.
Our principals, 10 the number Of forty,
have instructed us 10 stay with 1t until the
validity has been decided upon and we
will"
The insurance agents also claim that
home companies do not pretend to assume
all risks, that is they will not write policy
in any large amount but take the risk and
place 1t, or large proportion Of 1t, in a
foreign company having good capital.
Others OF the agents claim that the ordi.
nance was the outgrowth Of the pique that
some home companies felt toward their
more prosperous foreign competitors.
The matter will come up under the or.
dinAnce before Judge Cranmer, at the
Police Court, this morning, but It is likely
a postponement will be had until later
date.