The Savannah morning news., 1903-07-23
POOL ROOM WINS OUT
COUNCIL REFUNDS AMOUNT OF TAX
FOR SIX MONTHS.
THE MAYOR OPPOSED 1T.
SAID IT WOULD ESTABLISH DAN
GEROUS PRECEDENT.

! Alderman Thomas Agreed with Him
and Voted Against Report of FL
nance COmmittee-Seven Aldermen
Favored It-SimiInr Request from
Merchant Was Turned Down.
Aldermen Were Not Unanimous
and in Park and Tree Commission
Appropriation There Was "a Split.
Mayor Myers Won His Point by
Casting Deciding Vote.
Although Mayor Myers opposed it
! and Alderman Thomas voted with him.
Council yesterday decided to refund to
r. O. Mcbride one-half of the sum
that he paid into the city treasury
for the privilege of operating a pool
room in Savannah during 1903.
The petition of Mcbride showed that
he had been required to pay a license
for maintaining and operating a pool
| room and that he had done so. A re-
| cent decision of the Supreme Court,
however, made it plain that his bust
ness was illegal and upon the advice
| of his counsel he closed up shop.
Under the circumstances Mcbride
thought the city should refund him
the money he paid for the last six
months of the year, inasmuch as he
| could not legally conduct the bust
ness for which he had secured the Ii
| cense. The Finance Committee
agreed with the petitioner and the pc
tition was approved.
When the report of the committee
was read the Mayor announced that
he was opposed to its adoption. He
said that it esta blished a bad precedent
and that taxes and licenses were new
er RENTED when business firms burn
| ed out or moved from the city dur
ing the first half of the year. The
Mayor declared that he would go on
record as being against the adoption
| of the Finance Committees report
| When the question was called for, AL
derman Thomas voted in the negative
and the other seven aldermen stood
| by the recommendation.
The Mayor smiled.
Immediately afterwards an adverse
report from the same committee was
read upon a petition from M. Boley
asking that he be given back half OF
the sum he paid for doing business, in
asmuch as he has retired.
Mayor Myers smiled as he read the
/ adverse report and Alderman Dixon
saw him. The chairman of the FL
nance Committee stated that in the
face of the fact that this had been
done for Mcbride he would be willing
TO have it done for Boley.
Alderman Thomas said that the cases
were not at all alike for the reason
! that Mcbride had been put out of bust
hess by a Supreme Court decision
which said that he was conducting an
! illegal business. This ended the dis
cussion and the adverse report was
unanimously adopted.
Mayor Won Fight.
There was another difference of
| oDiniOn however, when Mayor Myers
carried his point by casting the de-
| Gliding vote. Upon a petition of the
Park and Tree Commission asking tot
| an appropriation of $500 to be eX-
pended in making necessary repairs to
the house of the keeper of Laurel
Grove Cemetery there was an adverse
report from the committee to which 1t
! had been referred.
The Mayor started out with the
statement that he would oppose the
adverse report for the reason that ne
! believed the work should be done ana
because he was certain the commission
| did not have the funds with which to
make the repairs. The Mayor said ne
had made an investigation ana learned
that the house requires new coat CT
paint and that certain repairs are
! badly needed.
Thomas with Mayor.
Alderman Thomas announced that
under ordinary circumstances he would
vote for the adoption of the adverse
report. He believed that every depart
ment of the city should keep within
it's appropriation, but he felt that the
case in question was an unusual one.
There was no way, he said for the
! Park and Tree Commission to tell
when it's estimate was submitted that
any thing would have to be done to
the house of the cemetery keeper.
! Under the circumstances he said
that he would vote against the adop-
ton of the report. He called for the
ayes and nays. Aldermen Dixon, Cold
in, Garfunkel and Grayson voted for
! the adoption of the adverse report
and Aldermen Thomas, CAVITY, Har-
mon and Schroeder voted against it
making the vote to 4. The Mayor
voted against the adoption of the re-
port
Alderman Dixon reminded the Mayor
| that another vote would have to be
! taken on a motion to appropriate $500
to the commission for the purpose
named and called for the votes. A
poll of the board resulted as in the first
case and again the Mayor cast the de-
! propriated