The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1896-07-23
OAKLAND'S TOWN CHARTER.
The Decision and Order of the Cour
In Full.

inc LSCtSlOIl anu O1QGT OF the Court
In Full.
In our last issue we made note of
the fact that the judges of the Cir
cult Court had rendered their
decision in the town charter case
and that in this issue we would
publish the decision in full. 1t is
as follows:
Prior to the meeting of the Gen
eral Assembly of Maryland for the
session of 1896, the inhabitants of
the town of Oakland, in Garrett
county, were incorporated as mu-
nicipality under the name of the
"Mayor and Town Council of Oak
land" By the act of 1892, Chap
ter 343, the entire charter of this
municipality as contained in the
public local code of Maryland arti-
Gle -, sections 1917 to 1876, were
repealed and reenacted with amend
ments and an additional section
relating to the printing of ordinan-
ces was added thereto. During its
session Of 1896, the General Assem-
bly, passed an act which is to be
found in the laws Of 1896, designa-
ted as chapter 1913, purporting to
repeal all previous legislation in
regard to the charter of Oakland
and substituting in lieu Of it the
PROVISIONS of that act as the charter
Of the town. BY the proceedings in
this cause a question has been
raised as to the validity Of this last
named act of the Assembly.
Section 1G5H of this act provides
that the "Mayor and Town Council
shall pass all such ordinances as
may be necessary to impose a license
tax upon each and every saloon and
hotel or other place where spiritu-
GUS and fermented liquors are sold
with view to profit. which license
tax shall be collected at the date of
the granting of the said license.
The proceeds of said tax shall be
paid into the treasury of the town
as any other tax. The SAID license
tax shall be in each and every wear
the sum of one hundred and fifty
dollars; said license to be applied
Tor and granted by the Mayor and
Town Council of the town of Oak
land, to be dated from the first
Monday in May Of each year; and
for any portion of year to be reg
ulated by ordinance, in the discre-
ton of the Mayor and Town Coun-
ell, and further, the said saloons,
hotels or other places where spirit
uous and fermanted liquors are sold
with view to profit, shall be
closed at 1870 o'clock p. m. and
opened at 5 o'clock a. m. each day;
and the said Mayor and Town
Council shall provide by ordinance
nowIn full force and operation in
said town, shall remain and be in
full force until regularly repealed;
provided that nothing herein con-
tanned shall be construed to prevent
the compromising or sale of any such
liquors by regular pharmacist or
druggist haylng a license for such
BUSINESS under the laws of this state
upon bona fide prescription of a
regular practlcing physician of said
district or county whose name shall
be signed thereto"
The bill of complaint in this case
sets out that the complainant, Ed
ward |. West, Is the proprietor of a
frst-class hotel in the town of Oak
land, which is summer resort and
to which a large number of persons
from the cities come during the
summer season; that the Mayor
and Town Council, acting under
the authority of section 195H, above
cited, have passed the following
ordinance:
"Section l. Be 1T enacted and
ordained by the Mayor and Town
Council of Oakland that in accor-
dance with the authority conferred
upon them by section 1851 of
Chapter 1913, Of the acts of the Gen
eral Assembly of Maryland. 1896,
that license tax is hereby imposed
upon each and every saloon and
hotel keeper or other place where
spirituous and fermented liquors
are sold with view to profit,
within the town of Oakland, which
license is hereby authorized to be
issued by the clerk of the Town
Council of Oakland IN the same
form in substance as the license
granted to circuses and other per-
formances in said town, which said
license shall be dated from the LIST
day of May, 1896, and for not less
than a year from SAID date, and for
the granting of the same to any
such parties, the said clerk shall
collect for the same the sum of one
hundred and fifty dollars. the re-
eeipt Of which shall be endorsed on
said license and signed by said clerk