The age-herald., 1899-04-22
HAS CITY RIGHT TO
 REVOKE LICENSE
Question Comes Up Over Case of
 Negro Saloon
NINETEENTH STREET
Board Ordered License Revoked and Mayor Rendered Owners Money
 Case Held by Petition From
 Majority of Aldermen.

Whether the city has right to revoke a liquor license after once granted is a ques- ton now disturbing the mayor and board of aldermen.
 Some weeks ago Slayton & Mauldin, two negroes, began preparations for putting in bar room in the Davidson building in Nineteenth street between Third and Fourth avenues A numerously signed pe- tition was gotten up at the time asking the city not to grant them license.
 The petition was never presented to the city council. The agitation of the question stopped and the license was granted. The saloon was opened ten days ago. and it is said that 1t has been run in perfectly orderly manner.
 No more was heard of the matter until the last meeting of the city council when Alderman Kerr. member of the judiciary committee. offered resolution providing that the license be revoked. He said that 1t was done at the request of parties resid- ing and doing business near the saloon. He based the resolution upon the following clause from the new city charter:
 City Charter Clause
 '
 1tu tHe DOdfu snail nave tho power V to revoke and cancel any license issued |" for the sale of spirituous vinous, or malt @ liquors, or the license for any house or place of public entertainment when in : the opinion of the board, the public safe : ty, peace, good order or decency may re- "quire.' . |
 Mayor Evans explained that he had seen a petition asking that the license be not iSSue0 hnf ha did fbat ho. had any authority to deny the license.
 Alderman Mcknight argued that the may or did have the right to stop the license under resolution passed by the, board several years ago. This resolution pro- vided that no saloon could get license without action of the board unless it had had license the year previous.
 Alderman Hentschel said he did not be- lieve in denying the license because the par ties were negroes.
 The negroes had an attorney at the meet ing to represent them, but he was out of place when the vote came and the resolu- tion was passed without a hearing of their side of the question.
 The attorney came in after he heard what had been done and asked that the board reconsider the matter so that the negroes could be heard The board went along any way and instructed the mayor to have the license revoked
 Refused the Money
 Yesterday morning Mayor Evans rendered the negroes the money they had paid for doing business. They refused to accept 1t. Mayor Evans was taking steps to have them arrested when Attorney Abernathy patched up a truce by agreeing to take a petition around and get a majority of the aldermen to sign it, asking that the case be held up until the next meeting of the board. The attorney bounced into cab and was off. At o'clock in the afternoon he return ed with eleven aldermanic signatures to the petition. Mayor Evans agreed to defer acI tion and filed the documents. Among those who signed 1t were Lynaugh, Rainbow, Hentschel, Gray, Williams, Moore and T. F. Parker.
 After the signature of Dr. Williams were the words, with no change of heart'
 Attorney Abernathy said that he would make a fight before the board to prevent the license from being revoked. It Is ar- gued that it cannot be revoked under the clause referred to in the city charter by Alderman Kerr because the place has been conducted in orderly manner.