David Josiah Brewer

“ This being the rule settled by this court, simply as to the right to receive the fruits of real estate, I do not perceive why, in view of the sweeping prohibitions of the act of Congress, the existence of a continued obligation to pay over the price of real estate to another person when sold does not amount to an agreement giving to such person, at least indirectly, an interest in the land itself. ”

“ Having said that, in my opinion, there was no ambiguity in the statute as applied to the contract, it seems to me unnecessary to consider the decided cases. But I refer briefly to them. True it is that there are rulings of state courts and of the Land Department, holding that an agreement to execute a mortgage upon pre-empted land is not within the prohibition of the statute. When the opinions so holding are analyzed it will be seen that they proceed upon the theory that the spirit of the statute does not embrace transactions of that character. ”

“ Rep. 673, the question was whether Congress could, in levying an income tax, include as part of the taxable income revenues derived from real estate. It was held that it could not be done, because substance was to control; and that to include rents in the income taxed was to impose a direct burden on the owner of the real estate. ”