Evening star., 1937-04-21
CITY HEADS OFFER
BILL TO BAR SALE
OF FL|QU0RPERM|TS
Another Measure Sent to
Congress Would Reduce
Number of Cabs.
INCREASE IN MINIMUM
MARRIAGE AGE PUSHED
All Recommendations Are Given
Endorsement of Acting Budget
Director Bell.

Bills to forbid the sale or transfer
Of liquor licenses in the District and
to authorize the Public Utilities Com
mission to reduce the number of taxi
cabs were forwarded to Congress today
by the Commissioners with recon-
mendations for their passage.
At the same time they urged enact
ment of bill already before Congress
to raise the age of consent for mar
riage in the District to l8 for males
and Is for females.
The recommendations on these and
other proposed measures all had the
Endorsement of Acting Budget Director
Daniel w. Bell.
Request for a bill to ban the sale
Of beverage permits was laid before
the Commissioners recently by the
Alcoholic Beverage Control Board,
which held that the practice of selling
permits to engage in the liquor busi-
ness should be broken up. 1t declared
the practice was approaching a
racket"
License Sale Asset.
The Commissioners wrote to Speaker
Bankhead and to Chairman King of
the Senate District Committee: This
proposed legislation is designed and
intended to obviate an undesirab BILE
practice. which seems to be INDUCED
in at the present time, of ostensibly
selling a business which, in reality,
has little or no stock, good will, etc,
the only asset being the license. 1t
appears there is traf1ic in licenses"
The bill provides that no license
may be sold or transferred or pledged
or deposited as collateral security for
any loan. Meeting one of the obiec-
tions raised against the plan, the bill
provides that the board shall have
authority to issue new license to any
one who has purchased the business
Of another who previously had held a
license.
Urging adoption of the taxicab
limitation bill, the Commissioners
said they believed the number of cabs
should be greatly reduced. but not
to point which would permit crea-
ton of monopoly. They said the
reduction could be accomplished
without hardship on present opera
tors by bringing the number down as
permits are voluntarily surrendered
or as they are revoked for violations.
Streets Seriously Burdened.
They recalled that the Public Utili-
ties Commission had urged such legis-
lation after holding hearings disclos-
ing that the taxicab industry in the
District is overcrowded, with the re-
suits that the streets have become
seriously burdened with an excessive
number of cabs. operating and cruis-
ing and seriously affecting vehicular
and pedestrian traffic" They added
that the Utilities Commission and
others believed reduction in the num-
Der would not only aid traffic condi-
tlons, but also tend to increase the
daily earnings of the remaining driv-
ers and better conditions generally. "
Present District law permits mar
riage at Is for grooms and IA for
brides. Health Officer George c.
Rutland found the proposed higher
age limits would be reasonable. The
Commissioners told Congress DR.. Ruh-
land had reported the maternal NOR
tality rate for the United States
to be 631 for each 10000 babies born
Of mothers under the age of 20 He
said this was quite the highest for
any of the various groups of child
bearing age"
New regulations in adoption pro-
ceedings in the District are proposed
in another bill sponsored by the Ju-
venile Protective Association. This
also was sent to Congress by the
Commissioners with a request for
passage. 1t provides for an investi-
CATION by the Board of Public We'll
fare in all cases of adoption. 1t dis
penses with the consent Of parents
who are permanently deprived of GUS
tody of their child, or who cannot be
located after required court notice
1t also prescribes that no final decree
of adoption shall be entered unless
the child shall have lived with the
adaptive parents for at least six
months.
Liquor Act Change Asked.
The Commissioners also proposed
an amendment to the District liquor
act to increase the license fee for
liquor solicitors representing out-of-
town manufacturers and wholesalers
to $500; to make the fee 500 for
solicitors for out-of-town manufac-
turers and wholesalers who sell only
to District wholesalers; and to make
the fee for solicitors who represent
only District wholesalers or manu-
facturers $25.
Disapproval of Senate bill to
grant two days off duty each week
to members of the District Fire De-
partment and to grant day off for
each day worked on a legal holiday
was voiced in a report to Senator
King. The city heads said the bill
would require an increase of about
207 firemen and cost $413,000 the first
year and $4,000 additional for the
next five years.