The San Francisco call., 1895-10-10
OBJECT TO THE LICENSE,
CyCIerieS Making a Hard Fight
to Have the Figures Re-
duCed.
Arguments Made by Wheelmen
Before the License Com
mittee.

The Wheelmen's Protective Association
is making hard fight for reduction of
the quarterly licenses for cycleries. A. s.
Field, owner of a Geary- street cyclery,
was arrested yesterday in order to make a
test case. Field did not like to take the
action, and be told the officers so who held
the warrant for his arrest because he re-
fused to pay his license.
'rve good mind to pay the $5," he
said, "and let the matter slide.'
One officer told him that it was too late,
as he was there to serve the warrant.
Field telephoned to President Backus of
the association, and asked his advice in
the matter.
Backus replied that he had better pay the
license. Field did so later on. His case
will be pushed, however, to see if there is
any flaw in the ordinance.
When the matter OF licensing cyclerie 8
was first broached the big owners were
eager and persistent in having the license
made as high as possible, so as "to drive
the little fellows out OF the field" OF
course, the 'littIe fellows" protested. On
| the showing made all around, the License
Committee of the Board of Supervisors
fixed the license at SIS per quarter. Later
on the protests began to rain in on the
reduced to $40, then to S.. These figures
are on little fellows" The big ones pay
] bigger tax. The ordinance as it stands
| at present is as follows:
Owners or agents of oycleries engaged in
furnishing bicycles or tricycles for hire, or en-
when not in use by the owners thereof, shall
pay license on the amount of business done
as follows:
Those whose gross receipts are $4,000 and
| ni1p nor OJIQ hos xul.n
gross receipts are $4,000 and less than $4,000
| per quarter, $25 per quarter; those whose gross
receipts are $1,000 and less than $1,000 pei
quarter. $15 per quarter; those whose gross re
ceipts are $500 and less than $1,000 per quar-
ter, $40 per quarter; those whose gross receipt!
ere less than $500 per quarter, SIS per quarter
Yesterday Messrs. Garrity, Dennis and
Morrill, appeared before the License Com
mittee of the Board of Supervisors ano
stoutly protested against the S. license
They declared it was too high quarterly
tariff on cycleries thatdo not average more
than 81 a day in receipts. They urged
| that the wheeling season was about over
and that business had almost fallen te
nothing.
Chairman Wagner told them that they
would have to present petition for re
| ducing the license IN regular form. He
added that the wheelmen must also make
a showing in figures that the license was
too big tax on their receipts.
The wheelmen promised to bring
petition and financial statements from tRei
| books to the next meeting.
A. 8. FEEDER, 1908 Geary street, was ar
rested on a warrant yesterday charging
| him with running a cyclery without
license. Feder's will be made test case
with the object of coming to an under
standing as to what the license fee shoult
be. 1t was formerly SIS per quarter, bu
now it is on graduated scale of s. up
ward. The Cyclery Association contend
fee was drawn up under a misconception
and therefore it is desired to have every
ing put right.