The Birmingham age-herald., 1916-03-05
Judge Sharpe May Not An nOunce His Decision on the
 Question for Several Days
TO RESUME HEARING
 TOMORROW MORNING
Attorneys Admit That Appeal Is to Be Taken to the Supreme Court No Matter What Decis-
 ion May Be

After listening for hours to argu-
 ments of counsel for and against the con- stitutionality of the liquor inspection or
 dinance recently enacted by the city commission. Judge H. A. Sharpe of the
 city court adjourned the hearing last
 night at 6:20 o'clock until 10 o'clock to-
 morrow morning.
 Tomorrow morning some amendments to the original injunction petition filed
 by D. H. Markstein will be made by his
 attorneys, Percy, Benners & Burr, and
 City Attorney Ullman will also file ad-
 ditional affidavits. It is stated the case will be taken under advisement by Judge Sharpe and a decision will not be an-
 nounced for several days.
 The bill of injunction filed by D. H.
 Markstein came up for hearing at Il
 O clock yesterday morning in Judge
 Sharpe's division of the city court The constitutionalty of the liquor ordinance
 was to be presented to Judge Sharpe on
 its merits. but owing to a disagreement of opposing counsel spirited legal tilt
 was precipitated when City Attorney
 Ullman offered a demurrer that there
 was no equity in the bill presented by
 D. H. Markstein against George B.
 Ward ct al of the city commission.
 ARGUES FOR THREE HOURS
 MT. Ullman. with the permission of court, then proceeded to defend the con-
 stitutionality of the action of the city commission in passing the liquor inspec-
 tion ordinance. He argued for three hours that the omnibus bill passed by the
 last legislature gave the city of Bir-
 mingham undoubted powers to inflict
 such a police regulation as the liquor in
 spection law He also averred that all
 the fees collected from the inspection
 were used to maintain the system of in-
 spection.
 At o'clock in the afternoon, after MT.
 Ullman concluded his opening argument,
 Augustus Benners started the attack on
 the law in question. He sketched the
 proposed line of attack wherein the
 liquor inspection ordinance was at va
 riance with the present state prohibition laws and the United States constitution,
 Judge J. J. Lynch of the firm of Allison,
 Lynch & Phillips of Chattanooga, fol- lowed up the arguments of Mr. Benners. Walker Percy closed with the main ar gument in favor of enjoining the city of Birmingham from enforcing the liquor inspection law.
 Tt is an expensive and vexatious sys- tenn of espionage, said MT. Percy "A unique inspection where a city-paid en- ploye stamps a bottle of whisky and thereby makes a public record that it is a quart bottle-not of whisky-but just 8 quart bottle, as the inspection does not contemplate the opening of the bot ties to see whether it Is whisky or vim egar that it contains
 CALLS IT ABSURD
 And then again." continued MT. Percy the inspection ordinance orders the in- dividual after receiving his legal allot- ment of liquors to step up to an inspec- ton office and there show to the inspec- tor the two quarts of whisky and then pay 50 cents because he has the two quarts of whisky in his possession, wher the state law explicitly says that one can have such an amount of liquors in his possession Suppose person had three quarts of whisky, which under the pres ent law is illegal? Then he must step tc the civic inspector and admit his guilt pay the inspection fee and then pay a fine and go to jail for having violated the law In other words, one must pay to in. criminate himself.
 Why not have an inspection law pa sseo which would compel all citizens to stet up to the sheriff and have their hin pockets examined to see whether the, carry pistol, and then charge a req sonable fee for the inspection? Such an inspection would be as sound as the pres ent liquor inspection ordinance of the city of Birmingham. It is absurd This liquor inspection law also vio. ] lates all the principles of the prohibition party declared the speaker. sThe car.
 dinal principles of the prohibitionists is that no revenue shall be derived from liquors. It contemplates the utter aboli- tion of the liquor traffic. This liquor in, | spection law alleged to be prohibitory 1. | merely an ingenious taxation, whereby the city hopes to reha bilitate it's finances It has no inspection and contemplates nc 1 inspection in the sense of that word, ex | cept to stick a stamp on bottle ana | then make record that quart bottle has been stamped The city has passed an ordinance whereby it says a ouar bottle is a quart bottle-50 cents. please l In answer to the attacks of Attorney, Benners, Lynch and Percy, Assistant ] City Attorney W. A. Jenkins got tn, floor about 5:3o o'clock and, confinine | himself merely to the law in the case
 read several decisions showing the in consistency of the allegations of tn, I plaintiff in the case. He was followed b,
 City Attorney Ullman, who returned tt