The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-02-02
Again Reduces Railway Tax
 from S2375 to S2000
INSURANCE TAX REDUCED
Postmaster Clayton Addresses Council on Importance of Numbering Houses and Posting Streets, Looking
 to Free Mail Delivery.

l
 company to pay license tax for the year
 1906 of 5000.
 The tax is lower than that recommended by the miscellaneous and judiciary com mittees which made a report on the in-
 vestigation of several complaints against l license taxes at joint meeting held Tuesday night
 | The Birmingham Railway. Light and Power company notified Mayor Scott and the members of the committee today that
 1t would not pay the license Of s2S75 as
 would be recommended by the joint com
 mittee and new ordinance was preparea ] by direction of the city attorney. The
 ordinance carries a regular graded sehed- ule on the various branches of business
 conducted by the railway company in
 this city and It Is claimed by the city attorney and the members of the city council who carefully studied its fram- ing that 1t will stand test of the courts The Southern Bell Telephone and Tele- graph company agreed to tax of Sl5O
 which was accepted by the committee this l afternoon and ratified by the council in
 regular session tonight. This is $50 less
  joint committee last Tuesday night. Insurance License Reduced. After the opening of the session by the 1 reading of the minutes of the last meeting | the regular order of business was dis
 pensed with to allow number of gente-
 men present with petitions an opportunity
 to make their wishes known to the coun-
 oil.
 l The council was asked by a number of life insurance representatives to reduce the license against insurance companies from $50 to s25. After some discussion the petition was granted and the license
 reduced.
 Dr. E. T. Fields appeared before the
 council. representing the physicians and 1 druggists of the city, and protested
 against the granting of license to a negro. Gordon, on Seventeenth street. for the
 practice of medicine or the selling of
 drugs. Dr. Field stated that the matter
 had already been brought before the coun-
 cil and that a eimmittee had recommend
 ed that no license be granted Gordon,
 and that Gordon had secured license for
 the operation of an inirmary and that in
 this way he had continued business as be-
 fore.
 The city attorney explained that the
 city council could not refuse to grant l license for the operation of an infirmary | but he explained to Dr. Fields and the
 council that if Gordon was practlcing
 medicines of any kind he could be ar-
 rested, prosecuted and driven from the
 town by those methods but that the coun- ell could take no action until Gordon
 had been convicted of some transgres-
 sion against the laws of the state or city l motion was adopted putting the mat ter up to the chief of police, who was
 instructed to investigate the practice of
 the said Dr. Gordon and have him ar-
 rested if he persisted in methods con-
 trary to the laws of the city. Clayton Recommendation l Postmaster J. w. Clayton was present
 and addressed the council on the im- portance of numbering the houses of the | city and also posting the various streets | and avenues of the city. He said: "We now have the assurance of the postofice department at Washington that we will
 be given free mall delivery at the end of the present fiscal year provided all the
 necessary requirements are complied with I numbering of the houses of the city and posting the streets and avenues. "The present fiscal year ends March 31, and when l make my report at that time I want to be able to report this work accomplished and Ensley ready in every particular for the installation of the free delivery service.
 Another requirement of the department is good sidewalks, but I can say for our Loft hot x4fa IsaUn Q cst1 any town the size of Ensley in the state "I am proud to state to you, gentlemen, that the Ensley postoffice will be- at the end of the present quarter or fiscal year. about seventh in rank in Alabama q would like to state further that some of the business men of Ensley do not seem to fully appreciate the importance and value of the free mail delivery. Aside from the convenience of the system it will give more mails per day give employ ment to four or six carriers besides three or four extra clerks in the postoffice These people will be permanent citizens of our town. and will add to the material worth of the city. And aside from all this. the system will lend prestige to Ensley that hardly anything else can bring
 q am proud to announce that free mail delivery Is now assured during the next fiscal year, as I feel sure that you gentle men will see to it that the necessary re- quirements are compiled with" The matter of numbering the houses and posting the names of the streets and avenues was referred to the street com mittee, which was given power to ad- vertise for bids and award the contract for the work.
 Merchants Tax Reduced. A petition from four or five small mer- chants in the west end of the city ask Ing that their license tax be reduced from $69 to $40 was read. It was stated that
 these merchants were so situated geo.
 graphically that they had no protection from peddlers and merchants on the out side of the city limits. and it was shown
 that they had no recourse against such opposition.
 The reduction asked in the petition was granted.
 Reports of officers for the month of January were read and referred. A feature of the report of the chief of the firedepartment was the fact that out Of seven fires that had been handled by the department during the month of Jan uary only a total loss of s was record ed. Mention was made in the report of the fire at the nall nlll in the plant of the Southern Steel company's plant last Sunday. though this fire was not in the city limits and was not handled by the department. It was reported that the wagons could not reach the fire on account Of the railroad tracks. which l were blocked with cars but that the
 members responded and lent efficient
 help in saving adjoining buildings. Preparing to Build. Workmen are now engaged fin removing the rubbish and clearing the ground for the rebuilding of the nall mill in the