The independent. [volume] (Elizabeth City, N.C.) 1908-1936, 1927-08-26
MECHANICS INDIGNANT
OVER NEW LICENSE TAX
Will Hold Mass Meeting Monday Night, Re-
solved To Go To Jail Rather Than To
Submit To Such Form of Taxation

Declaring that they will 90
to Jail before they will pay the
license tax OF $500 a year i'm
posed upon them by the city.
effective. Sept. |. 1927, car
.pentcrS. painters and brick
maSonS OF Elizabeth CITY will
hold all Indignation meeting at
the Court House Monday night,
august 20. at s o'clock.
II. L. Barco. local carpenter
voiced the sentiments nf Il group of
fellow wurkmcn this week when he
said: I'll gn to Jail before I'll pay
the tax and | have an idea that they
will have To build Il Jail aS biz aS
the Carolina Bank Building To hold
all the boys who feel just us feel
about il.
Il don't known why they should
pick ON U.s., SAYS {. VI .livCrman.
~ ship carpenter employed at tn"
Elizabeth City Iron Works \ Sup
ply CO.. when he is employed 1T all.
"Machini>tS draw more money than
carpenters: they put 10 tax on ma-
chini<t<. They tell me there are
preachers in town getting salaries
of S1.Nu To Si.OGO ii year. | haven't
heard { any tax on them. haven't
heard Of any license tax on doctors.
lawyers or bank clerks. | don't see
why they should pick oh me.
W. W. Smith. another ship car
pcntrr declares he will Z" 10 Jail
with his fellows before he'll stand
for The tax. And ~ il looks a> ii
Elizabeth City will have Il real labor
disturbance un its hands. and I'LL
because of Il five dollar license tax.
Five dollars doesn't look like
much to some folk. hut it mcan> Il
LOT tn a mechanic" says Albert q.
Bell. foreman in the ship building
planr of the Elizabeth city Iron
Works X Supply Go. whose SYM
uathipS are with the workmen and
who will he one of the >p"keSmcn at
Monday nights meeting.
Work i not steady for carpcn-
NJ
trrS in Elizabeth city. says MI.
Bell. In our OWN works we some
time give employment To a> many aS
~ men. Right 1T this time we
haven't Il single carpenter AT work
and haven't had work for carpeh-
, trr< i'm several days. There are days
and weeks ut Il time when car
rrntrr is out of work AMI drawing
no pay. When w"rkin" he %et'
Gn cents an hour if he Is Il first
class carpenter. or ~ cents If not
considered first class. y five dollar
! hill means something To him.
There are probably 100 carpenters
in Elizabeth City and only IL few
uniuIrr> and brick ma>on> and thc!
have no organization. In fact
,hrre DOESN'T seem tn hc head ur tall
aS vrt to the mretin" to he held Ill
Tho courthouse Monday night. hut
rho men have been meeting III IttH
rr,upS all week and discussing the
tax and they are determined L"
mite and take action.
( IF they succeed i'll making TINS
fax stick on u> it will only ne II
,,,nstiou nf time before they VIII he
,,yiu- every worker in the building
trades i'm Elizabeth City, says
I Harry ONc:l.
/ While the meeting Monday nlsh'
i being sponsored hy the carprh-
/ tcrS, paintrr< and brick maS"liS' the
! ynrkiu. rla<S generally Is expected
70 ioiu in the protest and it Is prop
! .,hlr that fhe court house VIII NOT
Leain 10 hold the crowds that WIFI
assemble.
Tho mpctin. Monday night prom
i..s IN br nm intcrrStin. dcm"n>tra-
,inu As MANY a> Il score ot WORK
iuymcn have approached the editor
,f fbiS newspaper this week ah"
voiced their resentment ot the ne"
,,,d r,itbnrtn uuhcard of license TAX.