Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

“ It is that unless the party setting up the unconstitutionality of the state law belongs to the class for whose sake the constitutional protection is given, or the class primarily protected, this court does not listen to his objections, and will not go into imaginary cases, notwithstanding the seeming logic of the position that it must do so, because if, for any reason, or as against any class embraced, the law is unconstitutional, it is void as to all. ”

“ It is urged further that a tax on sales is really a tax on property, and that therefore the act, as applied to the shares of a foreign corporation owned by nonresidents, is a taking of property without due process of law. ”

“ The facts that the property sold is outside of the state, and the seller and buyer foreigners, are not enough to make a sale commerce with foreign nations or among the several states, and that is all that there is here. ”

“ The immediate object of sale was the certificate of stock present in New York. That document was more than evidence, it was a constituent of title. No doubt, in a more remote sense, the object was the membership or share which the certificate conferred or made attainable. More remotely still it was an interest in the property of the corporation, which might be in other states than either the corporation or the certificate of stock. But we perceive no relevancy in the analysis. ”

“ Valuation is not the only thing to be considered. As was pointed out by the court of appeals, the familiar stamp tax of 2 cents on checks, irrespective of amount, the poll tax of a fixed sum, irrespective of income or earning capacity, and many others, illustrate the necessity and practice of sometimes substituting count for weight. ”

“ A tax on foreign bills of lading may be held equivalent to a tax on exports as against article 1, § 9; a license tax on importers of foreign goods may be held an unauthorized interference with commerce ”

“ Rep. 648, and intervening cases, to new applications, and farther than they properly can be made to go. Whether we are to distinguish or to identify taxes on sales and taxes on goods depends on the scope of the constitutional provision concerned. ”