The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1886-04-22
MERCANTILE LICENSES

The committee on commerce of tn,
house of representatives have agreed t.
report favorably on bill which provide.
that the merchants of each state may so
licit orders within other states ''withou
payment of any license or mercantile tax. ;
This seems to be pretty broad stretch
OF the powers delegated by the states to
the federal government to an instrument
that was at one time known as the consti.
tuition of the United States. 1t is
true that merchants of other states
might do this, if the states all agreed to 1t,
but unless they did, the solicitor of orders
without state license would have a pretty
rough time of 1T in any state where the
laws happened to require such license.
If this were true principle, it would be
best for all merchants to be non-residents.
III order that they might avoid a tax.
The constitution gives the general gov
eminent the right to regulate commerce
between the states but no constitutional
lawyer ever held that the federal govern
eminent had any right to give a
merchant of another state advantages
over the merchant doing business in a
particular state. If this was a proper
construction of the clause of the constitu
ton giving the federal government the
power to regulate commerce between the
states, merchant might buy stock of
goods in New York, ship them to st. Louis
and sell out by sample to Texas and Kan
Sas without paying any tax at all.
This would be unfair to the merchants
of Texas and Kansas. Each of these
states derive revenue for the support of
state government from taxes in the shane
OF license on merchants selling goods
within their borders, or the borders of
each state. If merchant of st. Louis |
can come in and sell goods in Texas with
out the payment of license, then the
foreign merchant has just that much ad-
vantage over the Texas merchant, who is
compelled by the laws of the state to paw
A license. If St. Louis or Chicago
merchant can sell goods in Texas by sam
pie without license, then such merchants
rs the Bremopds, of Austin, had better
lose shop, the other, or foreign merchant,
AN sell goods just that much cheaper
han they can. No discrimination can be
made by state in favor of her own mer-
hants, but it is just as true that no power
xists III the federal government to dis :
in behalf of foreign merchants '
5 against resident merchants.
The clause in the constitution in regard '
D Interstate commerce, has a special l.
leaning, which has just been indicated. |,
superficial reader of that clause might {
onclude, with the committee on com
lerce, that such a law might be in ac- a
Drdance with it., but it is rather i
that members of congress, n
no are supposed to know something y
bout the operation of the a
rinciples of that instrument, should, for
moment entertain the idea that their "
overs were so vast 4
Such principle put into operation f,
ould at once disorganize commerce L
nd trade, and break up all local whole -
he business. At once, the whole mer- d
'ntile business would be transacted from Y
ew York by sample, all over
lie country. A few ports on the sea
BARD would share this trade with New FC
ork, but it would dismantle every whole ,
lie mercantile house in the interior. Wv
1t would be well for these members do
congress to attend course of lectures lr
constitutional law at any school of the q
nd or, for convenience any law school
the country might spare students in the NJ
Nor term to deliver alternately series pr
lectures in the house of representatives ty
this subject. Governor Roberts. of I'd
e university of Texas, could name a r,
zen juniors in his class that would lee Or
re to congress on this subject much to tn
e enlightenment ana edifcation of the lie
embers of congress, especially those
10 belong to the committee on com. "a
cree. T,
l.
THE LONG LOST BROTHER" nc