[Download] "Wilmington Railroad v. Reid" by United States Supreme Court " Book PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Wilmington Railroad v. Reid
- Author : United States Supreme Court
- Release Date : January 01, 1871
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 58 KB
Description
Mr. W. H. Battle, in support of the ruling below: In the Binghamton Bridge Case,1 it is said by this court 'that all rights which are asserted against the State must be clearly defined, and not raised by inference or presumption; and if the charter is silent about a power, it does not exist.' The reason for such a doctrine is obvious. It is that the taxing power is one of the highest and most important attributes of sovereignty; essential to the establishment and continued existence of the government. No government can divest itself altogether of such a power. Concede, that it may, by a contract for an adequate consideration, bind itself for a longer or a shorter period, not to exercise its taxing power at all, or not beyond a certain extent, upon certain persons or things. Still this is a dangerous restriction upon its power, because the necessities of the government cannot always be foreseen. In the changes and chances of things, those who have charge of the administration may have need of all the possible resources of the country to save it from great disaster, if not from ruin.2