Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1907-04-27
TO RETURN LIQUOR FEES
W THE SUPREME COURT DECIDES
AGAINST RULING.
Tax Commissioner White Explains
Working Of New Liquor Law and
Tells the Remedy.

Tells the Remedy.
Parkersburg, April 24.--Ex- Governor
Albert b. White, state tax commission.
er was before the county court and he
explained to them the workings of the
new license laws as he understood
them. The plan of the tax commits
sioner as he explained seems to be
the most feasible one and will likely
be carried out Mr. White stated that
this county was practically the only
one in which there has been any
trouble in this connection. Every
place else the saloonists were advised
by their counsel TO do as the state tax
commissioners directed
The present status of the license
question which perhaps is not fully un.
derstood by everyone is about as fol-
lows: The old license law provided
that salonists pay five hundred dollars
year license. The last legislature
passed Jaw providing for a fee, OF
six hundred dollars year for Ii
censes. The new law was to go into
effect ninety days after it's passage
which will be May p. In the senate
the majority of the members were in
favor of the law taking effect at once
in order that there could be no cues.
ton about a six hundred dollar fee
being put into execution this year but
by one vote the house of delegates
turned this down making the law op-
erative ninety days after passage.
The proposition made by Tax Com
missioner White is this-let the sa.
loonists when they take out a license
take it out for the entire year and let
them pay for the license up to May
% under the old rate and beginning
on that date at the rate OF six hun
dred dollars year. If they did this
they would pay s5S3.50 for the license
for the year The saloon keepers. or
rather their attorneys here, contend
that they should have the license for
the whole year at $500 for the reason
that new law cannot be anticipated
when it does not go into effect until
later:
In his statement to the county
court, Tax Commissioners White said
that If the saloonists were given a II,
cense under the five hundred dollar
law by the court on the 22nd day of
May he would send the sheriff around
to collect the remaining license due
the state and if IL were not paid he
would see that the saloon men were
prosecuted for selling liquor without II.
cense as they would undoubtedly be
guilty of a technical violation of the
law. For the reasons that this coIlec-
ton will be made on May %. Collector
White is of the opinion that it would
save lot of trouble if it were paid
now. He said that the members of the
bar at Wheeling and other places had
o5iCCu lldL illS NdS the DTOp6E LIluS
to do and there had been no trouble
there.
On the other hand Governor White
said that if the saloon keepers were
not satisfied with this arrangement,
let them carry the matter to the SUI,
preme court in a friendly suit with the
state and allow the decision Of the
court to cover all of the cases. He
said that he would be the first ono
to desire to pay back fees that were
declared by the supreme court to
have been Illegally collected. The opin.
ion OF the tax commissioner given to
the county court is an important one
as there has been considerable specu.
lation all over the state as to what his
stand upon the license matter would
be.