The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1889-04-18

marty paving the tax a receipt therefor,
sneoifying name of the person paying
the tax, the occupation paid for, the time
snch occu patton is to be pursued, and the
amount collected for the state and for the
cuunty. Upon presentation OF such
recriot to the county clerk, he Is required
IN issue license in the name OF the state
or comfy, or both, in accordance with
the tax paid, to the person paying the tax
authorizing him to pursue tns oo
cupatlon named in such receipt curing
the time for which he has PAID the
tax. Article 945, Revised Statutes Inc
clerk is required to make monthly Reports
of such licenses, one of the licenses lssueo
on taxes paid to the state, to be forwarded
to the comptroller, and the other OF IL
oenses issued on taxes paid to the county
to be filed in his Office, and he ID also re-
ouIred to keep an account with the collec-
tor in which he is to charge him 1.-THE col
lector) with all licenses issued for the
county. Revised Statutes 947, 94S and
949. =,
By the ninth section of the act of April
%, 1879 Sixteenth legislature, p. 143),
"the collector whenever collecting any
occupation tax, shall fill in the blanks IN
the receipt and stub by writing thereon
the time for which he collects and the
name of the license and shall sign the
receipt and stub officially; and no person
shall pursue any occupation unless he mas
a receipt signed as herein provided by the
comptroller and collector; and every per
SOB, firm and corporation, keeping an
office or having local place of business
shall keep posted up IN a
cons picuous place his or their licenses,
This act prescribes more fully than article
944 of the Revised Statutes the form and
requisites of the receipt for occupation
taxes to be given by the collector, and
would seem to lend some force to the
claim that such receipt is sufficient
license for pursuing the occupation fol-
which it was issued.
Under article 10, Penal Code, any per
son pun suing any occupation taxed by Ia"
without first procuring license therefor
is subject to indictment and upon convlc'
ton to pay a fine in any sum not less thar
the amount of the taxes so due and not
more than double that sum.
Article Ill, Penal Code, as originally
enacted, in its latter clause made the ta2
receipt of the proper officer for the tax
sufficient license to follow the occupation
for which the tax was paid, ant
the next succeeding article of the Cod
gavs to any person prosecuted unde
article 10, the right at any time befor
conviction to have such proseou
ton dismissed upon the paymen
of the taxes and all costs o
the prosecution; and the latter article fur
Their provided that no prosecution shout
be commenced against any person afte
the payment of the taxes, not
withstanding he may have foj
lowed the occupation befor
paying the taxes. By act of March Il
1881 seventeenth litigation, p. "a
articles Ill end 112 of tn
Penal Code were amended, tn
former so as to strike out the clause mai
ing the tax receipt of the proper officer
sufficient license, and the latter SO as t
make the right to dismissal of the pros
eoution for a violation of article ITO, d.
pendent upon payment of the tax and a
costs of the prosecution and procuring
the license to pursue the occupation, TO
the pursuing of which, without license tn
prosecution was instituted. Under tn
amendment to article 112 no prosecutio
is to be commenced against any perso
after he procures, NOTWITHSTANDING
he may have followed tn
occupation before procuring i
Provision is also made for the payment c
a fee to the clerk for issuing the liceEs'
Our court of appeals, at the late Ga
weston term, in case appealed to the
court from a conviction for failure TO oil
tain license to follow the occupation {
a retail license dealer, held that the pre-
curing of the license was sine qua mol
and that the liquor dealer, for followin
his occupation without such license, WE
indictable under article 10, notwithstant
ing the fact that all the taxes had bee
paid. The case referred to is Davis
} Carroll VS.. State, and is not yet reporte,
The words taxes SO due, as used in artic
J 10, are construed to mean Is
levied" or 80 imposed" and serN
as criterion in determining the amour
of the fue. While, as before stated, SCI
tion 8 of the act of April %, 1879, woul
seem inferentially to lend force to tt
claim that the receipt of the proper Office
is a sufficient license to follow the occupi
ton for which the tax is paid, such is nc
} it's effect when construed with the otht
legislation upon the same subject an
J herein cited. The amendments of article
Ill and 112 harmonic the Penal Coo
with the Civil Statutes, which require tt
} county clerk to issue licenses and to keep Q
, account thereof with the collector of take
By following this construction the mann,
of keeping the accounts of IL
county is completely systematized an
full effect is given to the law requirin
the clerk to keep finance ledger.
: After mature consideration of the ma
ter you are respectfully advised that it
the duty of every person pursuing an o.
: cupation tax by law to obtain fro
: the county clerk a licen
9 authorizing him to do so, al
0 for failure to do so he is indictabl
g Notwithstanding he may have paid G
3 taxes. Very respectfully,
JOHN L. CRADDoCK,
Office Assistant Attorney general