Chap. 317.—An ACT to regulate the business of itinerant venders and itin-
erant auctioneers, prescribing a specific license therefor and providing
penalties for a violation thereof. [H B 330]

Approved March 16, 1918.

Whereas, certain evil disposed and irresponsible persons have been
in the habit of engaging in business in this State as itinerant venders
and acutioneers of goods, wares and merchandise, and by fraudulent
and deceptive practices in advertising and conducting their business
have greatly defrauded and damaged the people of the State;
therefore,

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That
no person, co-partnership or corporation shall engage in the busi-
ness or trade of an itinerant vender or itinerant auctioneer without
first obtaining a specific license so to do from the commissioner of
the revenue of the county or citv in which such business is to be con-
ducted; and the said commissioner of the revenue shall not issue a
license to any such itinerant vender or itinerant auctioneer until he
is satisfied that neither fraud or deception of any kind is contem-
plated or will be practiced, and that neither the sale, the reasons
therefor nor the goods to be sold have not already been or will not
thereafter be fraudulently or falsely advertised or in any wise
whatsoever misrepresented.

9. The sums to be paid by itinerant venders or itinerant
auctioneers shall be for such privilege, a specific tax of two hundred
dollars per month or fraction thereof and to be granted for a period
of time of not less than one month nor more than three months,
which shall be assessed and collected as other license taxes; but shall
not be in lieu of the merchants’ licenses on purchases or county, city
or town license taxes or levies. Said license to be renewed monthly
during the continuance of said sale. but. not exceeding three months,
and shall be a personal privilege and shall not be transferable nor
shall there be any abatement in any instance of the tax upon such
license by reason of the fact that such person or persons so licensed
shall have exercised such license for any period of time less than
for which it was granted. The license shall at all times be kept
publicly exposed by the licensee on his business premises.

8. The application for such license shall in writing and
verified by oath of the applicant and shall state the name of the
applicant, residence, street and number of the proposed place of
sale, and shall set forth in detail the goods to be sold and what
statements or representations are to be made or advertised as to
the same, and the length of time for which the license is desired,
and if previously engaged in a like or similar business to designate
all the places a the same was conducted within the preceding
twelve months, and shall furnish to said commissioner, if demanded,
such further evidence as shall be by him deemed necessary to establish
the truth of the statements made in the said application.

4. That no specific license as herein provided shall be required
for the sale at auction of any wagon, carriage, automobile, mechanics’
tools, used farming implements, live stock, poultry (dressed or un-
dressed), sea food, vegetables, fruits, melons, berries, flowers, leaf
tobacco, or for the sale of used household furniture and used house-
hold effects when being sold at the residence of the housekeeper
desiring to dispose of the same.

5. No itinerant vender or itinerant auctioneer shall advertise,
represent or hold forth any sale as an insurance, bankrupt, insolvent,
assignee, trustee, estate, executor, administrator, receiver, wholesale
or manufacturer’s or closing-out sale. or as a sale of any goods
damaged by smoke, fire, wreck, water or otherwise, or in any similar
form, unless he shall, before so doing, state under oath to the com-
missioner of the revenue either in the original application for a
license or in a supplementary application subsequently filed and
copied on the license, all the facts relating to the reasons and
character of such special sale so advertised or represented, including
a statement of the names of the persons from whom the goods, wares
and merchandise were obtained, the date of delivery to the person
applying for the license, and the place from which said goods, wares
and merchandise were last taken, and all details necessary to exactly
locate and fully identify all goods, wares and merchandise to be so
sold.
6. Any false statement in an application, either original or
supplementary, for a license, and any failure on the part of any
license to comply with all the requirements of the last preceding
section, shall subject said itinerant vender or itinerant auctioneer to
the same penalty as if he had no license, and to the further and
additional penalty of a fine of two hundred dollars, one-half to be
paid to the person first filing complaint therefor with the proper
prosecuting officer.

7. That no person licensed as hereinbefore provided shall sell at
auction as herein provided, from the first day of April until the
thirtieth day of September, both inclusive, between the hours of
seven o’clock in the evening and eight o’clock the following morn-
ing, nor from the first day of October until the thirtieth day of
March, both inclusive, between the hours of six o’clock in the
evening and eight o’clock in the morning, any jewelry, diamond, or
other precious stone, watch, clock, gold and silver ware, gold and
silver-plated ware, rugs, curtains, carpets, tapestries, statuary, porce-
lains, china ware, pictures, paintings, bric-a-brac, or articles of virtu.

8. That any person selling or offering for sale property under
the provisions of this act shall, in describing the same, be truthful
with respect to the kind, quality, and description of the same and
which, for the purposes hereof, shall be considered as warranties,
and any breach of the same shall be sufficient to vitiate such sale,
and the person making such false representation shall be liable to a
fine as hereinafter provided.

9. Itinerant vender or itinerant auctioneer within the mean-
ing of this act, is a person, firm or corporation who shall engage in,
do or transact any temporary or transient business in this State,
either in one locality or in traveling from place to place in the sale
of goods, wares and merchandise, and who for the purpose of carry-
ing on:'such business shall hire, lease, use or occupy any building or
structure, tent, car, boat or public room or any part thereof. includ-
ing rooms in hotels, lodging houses, or houses of private entertain-
ment, or in any street, alley or other public place in any city or
town, or in any public road in any county, for the exhibition of or
sale of such goods, wares or merchandise. This act shall apply to
and include principals and their agents and employes and persons
forming a co-partnership. But no person shall be exempt from the
provisions of this act by reason of associating temporarily with any
local merchant, dealer, trader or auctioneer, or by reason of conduct-
ing such temporary or transient business in connection with or as a
part of the business in the name of any local merchant, dealer, trader
or auctioneer.

10. That nothing herein shall be construed to excuse or release
any person, firm, or corporation, or property from the payment. of
any occupational or property tax, or any other tax imposed or levied
by law. Neither shall anything herein be construed to obviate the
application of any frudulent or false advertisement statute of the
State of Virginia to any person who may violate the same; nor shall
anything herein be construed to prevent any prosecution for fraud,
deceit, or larceny by trick; nor to in any way estop or hinder any
remedy at law or in cquity or the right to cancel or estop any uncon-
scionable bargain or fraudulent transaction.

11. Nothing in this act shall be held or construed to affect sales
made to dealers by commercial travelers or selling agent of regularly
established merchants or of manyfacturers selling to the trade by
sample for future delivery from their established place of business;
nor to any person selling products raised upon lands leased or
owned by him; nor to individuals handling vegetables, fruits or
other farm products, nor to hawkers on the streets.

12. Any person, and the several officers and employes of any
corporation, who shall violate any of the provisions of this act shall
be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be
punishable by a fine of not less than twenty-five nor more than five
hundred dollars ($500), or by imprisonment of not more than six
(6) months, or by both such fine and imprisonment in the discretion
of the court.

13. This act shall not be construed to prohibit the sale of any
goods by an assignee, trustee, executor, fiduciary, officer in bank-
ruptcy or other officer appointea by any court of this Common-
wealth or of the United States.

Section 14. Nothing in this act shall apply to venders of medi-
cine, salves, liniments, etc., the licenses for whom are provided for
by sections one hundred and nineteen and one hundred and twenty
of the tax laws, nor to apply to peddlers, the licenses for whom are
provided for in sections fift , fifty-one and fifty-one-a of the tax
aws.