72 Mo. 220 | Mo. | 1880
The principal point in this case is, whether the city of Cape Girardeau had power to pass an ordinance numbered 208, by which the defendant, who was a merchant, was condemned to pay an ad valorem tax upon $6,000 of merchandise, ascertained under the general law of the State, which provides for licenses to merchants. 'The suit •was upon a bond given by the defendant, as principal, and J. S. Riley, as security, for the payment on the 1st day of November, 1871, to the collector of the city, of all taxes then due from said defendant for the twelve months ending said 1st day of November, 1.871, on his license as vendor of goods, wares and merchandise, and in default of such payment to pay all damages and costs. The petition then recites the ordinances, and- among other ordinances 208, in which it was provided that merchants should pay an ad valorem tax equal to that levied upon real estate, on the highest amount of goods which they may have in their , possession or under their control, whether owned or not, between the first Monday in March and first Monday in-June, and asserts that Riley, the defendant, had in his possession between these dates $6,000 worth of goods, and consequently was obliged to pay $180, and refused to pay, etc. The answer denies that the city had power to pass this ordinance, and further asserts that said Riley was only the owner of $1,000 worth of personal property, and that this city had no power to make an ordinance providing for the collection of a railroad tax on personal property in possession of defendant but not owned by him. The only
The question is, whether those statutes are inconsistent, and if so, which must govern in this case. For myself, I incline to the opinion that there was nothing in the general law in regard to railroad subscriptions materially different from that in the law ascertaining the tax upon a merchant’s license. The language is different, but no mode was pointed out by which the actual capital invested by the merchant could be ascertained. But waiving this, there is no question that the Cape Girardeau charter authorized an ad valorem tax, to be ascertained under the State gen