Worcester morning daily spy., 1898-02-09
ABOUT HACKS,
City Solicitor Rugg Says License
Board Cannot Remove Them.
Revocation of All Licenses Rests With
AIdermen-Roston and Albany Railroad
VIII Have to Petition to the Board
to Get Rid of Those About
Union Depot.

Some time ago the Boston and Albany
road petitioned the newly-appointed IL
cense board to remove the hacks about
tine outer line of the property owned by
the road at Union station. For some
time past the board has been deliberat-
Ing ON the question, but, being unable
to decide fully as to their authority, the
matter was referred to the city solicitor.
His opinion, received Tuesday, goes on
to say that the board has no right to
order the removal of hacks. Its power
is simply to grant licenses. Those in
existence must be annulled by the board
of aldermen
The question is not disposed of by any
means. The question will now arise as
to whether the aldermen have right to
grant licenses to men to block traffic in
a public square for that is precisely the
situation. The presence of the hacks
often makes it great inconvenience
to unload their burdens.
The city solicitors opinion is as fol-
lows:
Mr.. w. Henry Towne Clerk of Lii
cense Board of the City of Worcester
Dear Sir: Your favor Of Jan. 49, 1898,
requesting the opinion of the city solic-
itor as to the authority Of the license
board to grant licenses for hacks to
stand in the public streets and for the
removal of those now occupying streets,
is at hand. The authority to grant such
licenses IS contained in sec. 1, chap. 20 of
the revised ordinances of 1895, which is
based upon sec. %, chap. % OF the pub
lie statutes. 1t seems to me that under
the provisions of the ordinances Great
ing the license board it has all authori-
ty to grant licenses as to the use of
hackney carriages which was previous
j. vested in the board of aldermen by
the section Of the revised ordinances
above referred to.
Ordinances of this sort have existed
from very early times in Worcester and
in the commonwealth of Massachusetts,
and have been upheld as reasonable po-
lice regulations in the various cases by
the supreme court. See Com. VS.. Page,
l55 Mass, 227, and cases cited.
You inquire also as to the authority
of the license board to order the re-
moval of these carriages. 1t does not
seem to me that this board has any au-
tnority in that direction, nor has it any
authority to order the removal of any
Shade, awning. sign board, inscription or
advertising device, as the power to re-
yoke or to deal in any way with these
me to be vested entirely in the board of
aldermen, under section of the or
dinances establishing this board. Sec
ton of this ordinance, which pre-
scribes the jurisdiction of this board,
simply covers the granting of licenses,
but does not refer to any revocation Of
them, While the language of section 2
taken by itself might possibly be con-
strued to cover the entire subject, If
there were nothing else in the ordinan-
ces concerning the question, the provis-
ions of section are to be considered in
connection with those of section as a
distinct division of the authority be-
tween the board of aldermen and the
license board with reference to these
two subjects. The license board alone
in the first instance grants all licenses.
It's jurisdiction then ends, and if it is
desired to revoke, annul or modify such
licenses when once granted petition
must be made to the board of aldermen,
Yours truly,
Arthur p Rugg,
City Solicitor.
The two sections of the ordinance re
ferred to in the opinion are as follows:
Section 2-Said license board shall
have original jurisdiction Of the grant
ing of all licenses now vested in the
board of aldermen, provided that any
applicant who is refused license may,
within ten days after such refusal, APP
peal to the board of aldermen, who shall
thereupon confirm, revise or reverse
the decision of said license board.
Section 5-The board of aldermen, on
petition of any person, upon such notice
to the persons interested as it may di-
rect, and after a hearing, may revoke,
for sufficient cause, any license granted
by said license board, which shall be in
addition to the general penalty provided
for violation of the city ordinances.