Permanent improvements on lands allotted to Indians in severalty cannot be taxed by a state as personal property ; II. S. v. Rickert, 188 U. S. 432, 23 Sup. Ct. 478, 47 L. Ed. 532 ; proceeds of the sale of allotted lands by In dian heirs of allottees are exempt ; U. S. v. Thurston Co., 143 Fed.. 287, 74 C. C. A. 425.
A state may not impose a tax which is in any way a burden on interstate commerce; and a tax on telegraphic messages sent out of the state is unconstitutional; Western Un ion Tel. Co. v. Texas, 105 U. S. 460, 26 L. Ed. 1067; see Leloup v. Port of Mobile, 127 Ti. S. 640, 8 Sup. Ct. 1383, 32 L. Ed. 311; so is a state tax on freight transported from state to state ; Philadelphia & R. R. Co. v. Pennsylvania, 15 Wall. (U. S.) 232, 21 L. Ed. 146 ; but a state may impose a privilege tax upon corporations engaged in interstate com merce for carrying on that part of their busi ness which is wholly within the taxing state. This rule does not permit the taxing of Pull man cars running through a state, but those operated wholly within a state may be taxed; Allen v. Car Co., 191 II. S. 171, 24 Sup. Ct. 39, 48 L. Ed. 134.
state may tax personal property employ ed in interstate or foreign commerce, like other personal property within its jurisdic tion ; Pullman's P. C. Co. v. Pennsylvania, 141_ U. S. 15, 11 Sup. Ct. 876, 35 L. Ed. 613 ; followed in Old Dominion S. S. Co. v. Vir ginia, 198 U. S. 305, 25 Sup. Ct. 686, 49 L. Ed. 1059, 3 Ann. Cas. 1100. A state may tax property (here of an unincorporated express company) within a state, although used in in terstate commerce, and may measure its val ue by the gross receipts and impose a tax on such value, if the same is in lieu of all taxes upon the property ; U. S. Express Co. v. Minnesota, 223 U. S. 335, 32 Sup. Ct. 211, 56 L. Ed. 459. A. statute taxing a telegraph company upon its property within the state, at such a proportion of the whole value of its capital stock as the length of its lines within the state bears to the length of all its lines everywhere, deducting the value of its real estate and machinery subject to local taxa tion within the state, is constitutional; West ern U. Tel. Co. v. Taggart, 163 U. S. 1, 16 Sup. Ct. 1054, 41 L. Ed. 49.
While interstate commerce cannot itself be taxed, the receipts of property or capital em ployed therein may be taken as the measure of a lawful state tax, and where a foreign corporation carries on a purely local business, the state may impose an excise tax upon it for the privilege of carrying on such business and measure the same by the authorized capi tal of the corporation ; Baltic MM. Co. v. Massachusetts, 231 U. S. 68, 34 Sup. Ct. 15, 58 L. Ed. ---, distinguishing Western U. Tel. Co. v. Kansas, 216 U. S. 1, 30 Sup. Ct. 190, 54 L. Ed. 355, and Southern Ry. Co. v. Greene, 216 U. S. 400, 30 Sup. Ct. 287, 54 L. Ed. 536, 17 Ann. Cas. 1247.
An ordinance imposing an annual license fee on poles and wires of telegraph, tele phone and electric light companies is not ob noxious to the commerce clause; Western U. Tel. Co. v. New Hope, 187 U. S. 419, 23 Sup. Ct. 204, 47 L. Ed. 240.
While a state may not directly tax import ed goods or the right to sell them, or impose license fees on importers for the privilege of selling, so long as the goods remain in the original packages and are unincorporated in to the general property, yet when mingled with the other property in the state, , such goods are subject to the taxing power of the state ; New York v. Wells, 208 U. S. 14, 28 Sup. Ct. 193, 52 L. Ed. 370; Norfolk & W. Ry. Co. v. Sims, 191 U. S. 441, 24 Sup. Ct. 151, 48 L. Ed. 254; American S. & W. Co. v. Speed, 192 U. S. 500, 24 Sup. Ct. 365, 48 L. Ed. 538.
Where a foreign manufacturer has a per manent place of business in this country for the sale of imported articles, although the bulk of the proceeds may be sent abroad, such proceeds as cash in bank and notes receiva ble, retained here and used in the business, become capital in business in the state and are subject to state taxation ; New York v. Wells, 208 U. S. 14, 28 Sup. Ct. 193, 52 L. Ed. 370.
Grain was shipped from Western to East ern points under through bills of lading which allowed warehousing in Chicago for inspection and testing ; Illinois taxed the in warehouse as personal property and such tax was held constitutional; Bacon v. Illinois, 227 U. S. 504, 33 Sup. Ct. 299, 57 L. Ed. 615.