Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

“ These are policies of life insurance, and, according to the statement of the plaintiff in error, are kept alive and renewed to residents of Pennsylvania by payments from year to year. The fact that the state could not prevent the contracts, so far as that may be true, has little bearing upon its right to consider the benefit thus annually extended into Pennsylvania in measuring the value of the privileges that it does grant. We may add that the state profits the company equally by protecting the lives insured, wherever the premiums are paid. The tax is a tax upon a privilege actually used. ”

“ Without going into any preliminary matters that might be debated it is enough for us to say that we agree with the supreme court of the state in its line of reasoning, applying it to the claim of constitutional rights which that court did not discuss. ”

“ Obviously the limit in that regard is a different matter from the inquiry whether the residence of a policy holder would of itself give jurisdiction over the company. The argument of the state court is that the company is protecting its insured in Pennsylvania equally whether they pay their premiums to the company's agent in Philadelphia or by mail or in person to another in New York. ”