The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1894-01-03
INCOME TAXES ARE CONSTITUTIONAL

IlOn open 10 Inem
INCOME TAXES ARE CONSTITUTIONAL
An interesting question has been
sprung in connection with the proposed
income tax as to the constitutionality
Of such a measure 1t is urged that an
income tax is a direct tax" and that
by the constitution direct taxes must
be apportioned TO the states in proper
ton to population. This position is
taken by the New York Sun, or at least
it indicates that such is its position by
quoting with approval the following ex-
tract from the report for 1856 Of Daniel
Manning, secretary of the treasury:
Direct taxes must be apportioned
among the several states according to
their population. Our experience Of the
difficulties and inequalities of the direct
tax. when applied 10 land, of which
square foot in one place is costlier than
one hundred square miles in another
place; or. when applied to individual in
comes Ghe most direct tax conceivable,
for when paid il cannot be shifted; il
has no repercussion, which is the only
common feature of the taxes held to be
direct before war and had disturbed the
vision of courts and legislatures) under
the prescribed rule of appOrtiOnment to
the states according to population, con-
fines their utility to state purposes, and
excludes them from the first purview of
federal taxation.
This may seem very conclusive. but as
matter of fact it is altogether erro-
neous. The expression direct taxes" in
the national constitution is one that has
given rise 10 much discussion. and there
has never been any specific decision of
what it does mean. The supreme court,
however. has at various times decided
that it does not mean certain things, as
that it does not mean a tax on carriages,
or a tax on succession to realty, or
tax on circulation of banks. or a tax
on the gross receipts of railroads, or a
tax on the receipts Of insurance COM
panies, or a tax on the incomes of in
dividuals The court has several times
intimated that this provision applies
only to poll taxes and taxes on land.
There are also some limitations as 10 "A
distinction between natural persons and
provision can be said to have any APP
plication whatever to corporations. be
cause the provision is linked TO that
concerning representation, and the basis
of apportionment is restricted to natural
persons. If anyone were to say that the
apportionment for representation should
be in any way based on the number of
corporations the absurdity of the propo-
the apportionment for direct taxes by
the first article of the constitution is
precisely the same. If corporations are
necessarily excluded from the meaning
OF the words for one purpose they must
be excluded for all purposes, and there
fore the words would have no applica-
ton whatever to taxes on corporations.
Moreover. it is not at all clear that
there is any restriction in the constitu-
ton as to the method of apportioning
direct taxes. True. the second section
Of the first article provides:
Representatives and direct taxes shall
be apportioned among the several states
which may be included within this union
according to their respective numbers,
which shall be determined by adding to
the whole number of free persons in
term of years, and excluding Indians,
not taxed three-fifths of all other per-
sons.
But this section has been amended and
the amendatory clause reads:
among the several states according to
their respective numbers. counting the
whole number Of persons in each state,
excluding Indians not taxed.
1t will be observed that this provision
Of the fourteenth amendment omits "di-
rect taxes and ordinarily this would
constitute a repeal by implication as to
them. The inference is the stronger in
this case because If not repealed they
must rest on the old apportionment ba-
sis Of free persons and "all other per-
sons thus holding in the constitution
the old recognition of slavery, which it
was the purpose of the fourteenth
amendment to expunge. We believe that
the supreme court would hold this to be
repeal of the old constitutional re-
strietion as to direct taxes. And it is
good thing it is repealed. Hamilton
expressed regret that so vague a term
was put in the constitution, and the con-
troversy as to it's meaning has justified
his regret. Furthermore, it is practic-
ally impossible to administer direct tax
alton in strict accordance with the pro-
vision. Even a poll tax. which is the
one clear and undisputed form of direct
tax, cannot be so levied. for the num-
Der of adult males subject to poll taxes
in the several states does not bear the
same relation to total population in the
several states, but is usually larger in
the more recently settled portions
TWO VILLAGE MAIDENs.
The two pretty Greenfield girls who