Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

“ But in the case of a house or shop the value is not in the right to destroy and the destruction is only an undesired, gradual and subordinate incident of the use. The diminution in the value of a mine to the lessee is conspicuous, necessary, and intended, and is the very source of the gross income of the lessee from which it is deducted, whereas the wear and tear of a house or shop in any given year may be only recognizable by theory and, as has happened in this case, may cost the lessee nothing while the premises are in his hands. ”

“ A stockholder does not pay for accumulated profits of his corporation unless he receives a dividend. That is the general principle upon which these laws go. It is true that they allow for obsolescence of buildings, etc., where the loss is of materials not of money, but there as elsewhere the loss must be actual and present, not merely contemplated as more or less sure to occur in the future. If the taxpayer owns the property the loss actually has taken place. But with Wiener it had not, and it might never fall on him, as was pointed out by the District Judge. ”

“ It may be taken for the purposes of decision that Wiener undertook to keep the buildings up to their present condition, to pay rent even if the buildings were destroyed and that his obligations were sanctioned by a liability to forfeiture. It is argued with much elaboration that not only covenants but economic necessity required the respondent to keep the buildings up to the mark and that the amount needed for this purpose should be allowed.
The income tax laws do not profess to embody perfect economic theory. ”