Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1884-02-22

is not t" " feet or ai'riy to any ex-
listing private or local ..ws upon the
subject OF license i'll any county i'll
:his Territory exec; King county"
Now what Was the effect Of that pro-
vision i'll regard to King county :?
OF course it repealed the local law
ri thai county and left it to be gov
erned entirely by the provisions of
the genera law. And strange
enough the local law thus repealed
fixed the maXimum 10 he charged for
liquor licenses in King county at
5000 per annum and the minimum
at $500 at the discretion of the
County Commissioners. See Ses-
sion Laws of 1869, page AS
Ii there is any inference upon the
subject to he drawn from this fact, it
is that the Legislature of 1873 in
tended to limit and narrow rather
than to extend the discretion of the
local authorities in fixing the rate to
be charged for liquor licenses.
But, TO pursue the matter O little
further, we find that this very ses-
sion of 1873 had but few days be-
fore the passage of this general law
passed the act heretofore alluded to
expressly giving the town of Olym-
pia "power to license persons to
keep drinking houses or saloons
within the corporate limits of the
town of Olympia, i'll conformity with
the requirements of the general law
regulating the Issue of such sicense,"
and vesling the Board of Trustees
With the saline power W.T. uch
limits rs is conferred by tile general
law upon the County Commission
ers, i. e., to fix the rate of sucn IL
censes at any sum not more than
$500 nor less than 500 per apnum.
This law was approved November
IL, 1883. The general law was
approved November IL, 1873, and
its proviso "that this act shall
not affect or apply to any pri-
vate or local laws upon the subject
OF license in any county in this Ter
ritory," was, so far as it concerned
Thurston county, simply declara-
ton that it was not the intention of
said general law to repeal the local
law previously passed, as it might
be construed to do without some
such saving clause, or in other words,
it was declaration by the Legisla-
ture which enacted both laws that it
was their true meaning that the
town of Olympia should have the
same powers and discretion in grant
ing liquor licenses within its limits
as were conferred upon the County
Commissioners by the general law.
This construction has been acqui-
esced in up to the present time, and if
the city authorities now possess differ
ent and greater powers in the matter
of licenses it must be because the
charter of 1888 expressly and clearly
gives it to them in terms to be found
in that instrument itself-in terms
which admit Of no doubt that the
Legislature Of 1883 intended to give
them power to elk the rate" of IL
censes without regard to the limita-
tons of the general law already SO
often referred to.
The subject of licenses is by our
laws treated throughout as matter
of revenue, and in general when
they have given power to local au-
thorities such as County Commits
sioners, Schoo! Directors and town
corporations to levy taxes, limit is
placed upon the amount which they
may levy. The direct tax which tho
Board may levy under the new ehar
ter is limited to five mills, within
which limit they m"y undoubtedly
FIR he amount thereof.