The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-12-03
SECOND DOOLEY CASE.
1t Is Decided in Favor of the Govern
ment's Contention.

ment's Contention.
WASHINGTON, Dec. 2-The second of
the Dooley cases involved the constitution
ality Of the law of April r. providing fer
the collection Of duty on articles shipped
from the United States into Porto Rico.
The decision was rendered by Justice
Brown. The chief justice and Justices
Harlan, Brewer and Peckham united in a
dissenting opinion. which was handed down
by the chief justice. They held that the
duty imposed was export in character, and
the fact that it was levied for the benefit
of Porto Rico did not change its character.
Justice Browns opinion held that as Por-
to Rico is not foreign territory the goods
shipped to Porto Rico are not exports. but
whether exports or imports the wide range
Of Congress in the matter OF taxation was
sufficient for contingency of this charac-
ter At best, he said, the duty was a tenn
porary expedient. and as it was explicitly
provided I'm the Foraker act that the Porto
Rican Legislature could change the Charac-
ter OF the enactment II was held that the
Foraker act was merely legislation in the
interest Of Porto Rico. The Foraker act
sustained on the grounds laid down in
the Downs case, another Of the insular
cases decided at the last term. The de-
clsiOn of the lower court was affirmed. Jus
Ilce Brown eApDclIlN SAID InaI the opinion
was not TO be construed as a justification
of export duties. Justice White cOncurred
in the result, but delivered an independent
decision.
This case grows out of the imposition Of
tariff duties on goods shipped from New
York to Porto Rico May l. 1900, TO Oct %
of the same year under the act of April u,
1900 providing revenues and civil govern
ment for Porto Rico. the sum involved be-
ing Slab. This money was collected at
Porto Rico on goods shipped to that port
lDOOlpV x a agent
was I'm San Juan. The collections were i'm
posed under that portion Of the law in
question which provides that all merchan-
disc coming into Porto Rico from the United
States shall be entered at the several ports
of entry upon payment of 10 per cent. of
the duties which are required to be levied
collected and paid upon like articles of mer-
chandise imported from foreign countries
into the United States under the Dingley
tariff law.
Dooley, Smith & Co. brought suit in the
Circuit Court OF the United States for the
Southern district of New York to recover
the money paid by them which they de-
Clared had been wrOngfully collected at
San Juan To their petition the United
States demurred on the ground that the
court had no jurisdiction of the subject of
the action and on the further ground that
the complaint did not state facts sufficient
TO constitute a cause or action. Judge
Iacombe, of the New York court, sustained
the demurrer upon the second point. The
case was carried from his court TO the SUI
preme Court. The contention on the part
or DOOley 8 COunSel was tldt Congress ndQ
not the power under the Constitution to
impose taxes or duties such levied
under the act Of April II, upon articles
taken into Porto Rico ports from other
parts Of the United States, Porto Rico be-
ing an integral portion of the Nation.
Justice Brown said that the duties levied
were attacked on the ground that they vio-
lated the clause of the Constitution declar-
ing that mo tax or duty shall be laid on
articles exported from any State" The
court, he said in the case of Woodruff VS..
RI "a hall 10 INN
I'm connection with the provisions of the
Constitution that no State shall levy
impOsts or duties on imports or exports,
applied only to articles imported from for
eign countries into the United States. In
that case Justice Miller, who delivered the
opinion of the court, said: 1T is not too
much to say, so far as research has ex-
tended. neither the words export or i'm
uOrt' or imposts' are 10 be found in the
discussion of this subject. as they have
come down to us from that time, in refer
ence to any other than foreign commerce,
without some special form of words to
show that foreign commerce IS not meant
Whether look. then. to the terms Of the
clause Of the Constitution in question, or
its relations To other parts Of that instru-
ment, or TO the history of its formation
and adoption, or 10 the comments of the
eminent men who took part in those trans
actions, we are forced TO the conclusion
that no intention existed to prohibit by
this clause" This definition of the word
impOsts had afterward been approved in
the case Of Brown VS.. Houston.
Rico be no longer a foreign country under
the Dingley act, as was held by a majority
o. the court in De Lima vs.. Bidwell, fl is
impossible To say that goods carried from
New York 10 Porto Rico can be consid-
cred as exported from New York within
the meaning of that clause of the Consti-
tuition If they are neither exports nor i'm
ports they are still liable TO be taxed by
Congress under the ample and comprehen-
sive authority conferred by the COnstitu-
ton "tO lay and collect taxes, duties. i'm
posts and taxes"
The question whether duty laid by Con-
gress upon goods arriving at Porto Rico
from New York is a duty upon an export
from New York or upon an import TO
Porto Rico, he said. was not free from
doubt, the manner in which and the place
at which the tax is levied. being Of minor
consequence. "One thing, however" ne
added. lis entirely clear. The tax imposed
is goods imported into Porto Rico since
il was exacted by the collector of the port
of San Juan after the arrival of the goods
within the limits of that port. From this
UOment the duties became payable as upon
imported merchandise. Now while an inn
pert into one port almost necessarily in
wolves a prior export from another still
IN determining the character of the tax inn
posed IL Is important 10 consider whether
the duty be laid for the purpose of adding
10 the revenues OF the country from which
the export takes place. or for the benefit OF
the territory into which they imported.
BY the third section of the Foraker act
imposing duties upon merchandise coming
into Porto Rico from the United States II
Is declared that whenever the legislative
assembly of Porto Rico shall have enacted
and put into operation a system of local
taxation 10 meet the necessities OF the
government OF Porto Rico by this act es-
tablished. and shall by resolution duly
passed so notify the President. he shall
make proclamation thereof and thereupon
all tariff duties on merchandise and articles
going into Porto Rico shall cease and
from and after that date al such mer-