Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-04-20
INCOME TAX REHEARING
Action on the Application is Expected Next
Monday.
Prevalence of n Belief That the Su-
preme Court VIII Refuse to
Grant the Notion.

The general expectation Is that the Su-
preme Court will not postpone it's decision
beyond Monday on the application Of
Messrs. Hyde and Pollock for a rehearing
on the income tax cases. This opinion is
expressed by those who are very near to
some of the members of the court. 1t is
understood that the court appreciates to
the utmost the Importance of having the
matter as fully settled as it can be at the
first opportunity, and especially before the
approaching adjournment for the summer
The situation is also devoid of complcating
features. which would cause delay. If
there should be a written opinion it would
necessarily be brief, and the chances are
that the decision will be bare announce
ment In case the decision is averse to the
petition the announcement will be made
through the clerk of the court and not
from the bench. The decision depends
upon whether any judge who concurred
In the former decision asks the rehearing
and not upon the taking of formal vote.
II none of the judges who voted to sus-
tain the law upon the first presentation Of
the cases suggest further consideration the
motion for new trial will be denied as
matter of course. On the other hand If
this request should be thus made it would
almost certainly be granted.
Indications of u Refusal.
The general opinion of the attorneys who
are most familiar with the practices of the
court is that the motion will not be grant
ed. They base this belief upon various
grounds. In the first place 1t is understood
that there Is no desire on the part of sit
ting members of the court to bring Justice
Jackson to Washington to sit in the case
and without his presence the case could not
be tried a second time at the present ses-
sion. The term Is so near its close that If
he were here and able to participate in the
A,,Id be 1,,f lttxI
for considering the question, and there are
other matters of greater or less Importance
demanding attention which would be crowd
ed out If the income tax question should
be again taken up. To grant a rehearing
and postpone 1t until next term would they
say leave the law In a more unsatisfactory
condition than 1t now Is, and would fail to
accomplish any desirable result, as there is
little doubt that by the beginning of the
October term there will be other cases
arising under the income tax law on which
all the questions can be taken up in case
there should then be full bench.
The Court Opposed to Rehcarihks.
Furthermore, 1t is understood that the
court has an aversion to granting rehear-
frgs, and it has in the past shown a dispo-
sition to resent efforts to secure them
Justice Bradley only short time before
his death said from the bench that such mo-
ticns were little short of nuisances to the
Souht' anu doueo tndt IL ought TO be un-
derstood, or at least believed, whether true
or not, that this court being a court of last
resort, gives great consideration to cases Of
Importance. and there ought to be a finality
somewhere" Still, there have been many
cases In which such petitions have been
favorably acted upon, notwithstanding the
prejudice against them, and there is a pos
sibility of the courts overruling itself to
the extent Of granting the motion in it's de-
sire to give the fullest possible opportunity
for the presentation Of all phases of the in
come tax question, and the fact that the
Attorney General has rather fallen in with
the proposition for rehearing may have
an influence in favor of the petition.