The Twin Falls times. [volume] (Twin Falls, Idaho) 1905-1916, 1916-02-01
INCOME TAX UPHELD
BY SUPREME COURT
All Objections TO COnstitutiOnality OF
Act Swept Aside. Settles Fifty Year
Dispute.

WASHINGTON-The supreme court
upheld the cOnsttutionality of the in
come tax law in a decision given out
Monday. Chief Justice White gave the
courts decision, sweeping aside all
the many objections to its constitu
tionality in whole or in part.
For nearly fifty years the fight for
and against a federal income tax has
been somewhere in the courts. The
income tax imposed during the civil
war and the years Immediately fol-
lowing was not attacked with the SER
iousness of later cases. 1t was not
until the Cleveland administration
placed an income tax in the Wilson
tariff act that the fight became Sc
rious.
The contest over the validity of the
tax in 1894 and 1895 before the SUI
preme court was one of the most bit
ter ever fought out before that court.
One of the lawyers, James c. Carter,
warned the court against setting up
its judgment to thwart the will be Co.
900, 900 people Joseph H. Choate, OPP
posing. called upon the court to ex-
ercise its judicial power regardless OF
any popular or populistic propaganda
AZ llISl lllt court utCiQtu llldL lllt
tax was unconstitutional as to rents
from land, because it was a direct tax
not apportioned according to popula-
ton, and was unconstitutional as tC
interest on municipal bonds. Only
eight judges participated and they
were evenly divided as to the validity
of other features of the law. A re-
hearing was granted and Justice Jack
.l.~tv. l. III. 81, ia
bench to listen to the last argument:
in his lifetime. Justice Jackson voted
to sustain the law. Justice Harlan
created sensation by announcing
from the bench that another justice
had changed his mind overnight OF
the question, and the entire tax, boil
as to realty and as to income from
personally, was set aside on the
ground that it was a direct tax ant
not apportioned according to popula
ton, as was required by the cOnsti
tuition of direct taxes.
An agitation for an amendment t
. the constitution then began. 1t cam'
to nothing until President Taft re
commended the enactment of an ex
else tax on corporations to be mea
b sured by their income, and an amend
UenL 10 the constitution 10 permit III
levying of an income tax on all in
comes. The amendment was submit
led to the states at once and was pro
claimed as the sixteenth amendment
to the constitution on March l, 1913
1t provided
THE congress shall have power t
lay and collect taxes on incomes from
whatever source derived without APP
portiOnment among the several states
and without regard to any census o.
enumeration"
Congress awaited itself of the frs
opportunity to exercise the new now
er, by Incorporating into the tariff &C
which became effective October IL
1913, the present income tax Fiv,
suits, all challenging the validity o
certain features of the tax, wer
brought. nnt-us
In each instance the lower cour
p held the tax constitutional and tn
case was brought to the suprem
court on appeal. The cases were ad
vanced for early hearing and wer
submitted to the court for decision Of
October Is, 1915, twenty years afte
the first great income tax decisions