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St. Louis v. United Railways Co., 210 U.S. 266 (1908)
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General SummaryThis case is from a collection containing the full text of over 16,000 Supreme Court cases from 1793 to the present. The body of Supreme Court decisions are, effectively, the final interpretation of the Constitution. Only an amendment to the Constitution can permanently overturn an interpretation and this has happened only four times in American history.
St. Louis v. United Railways Co., 210 U.S. 266 (1908)
St. Louis v. United Railways Company No 193-195 Argued March 20, 23, 1908 Decided May 18, 1908 210 U.S. 266
APPEALS FROM THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE UNITED
STATES FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
Syllabus
While a state, or a municipal corporation acting under the authority of the state, may deprive itself by contract of its lawful power to impose certain taxes or license fees, such deprivation only follows the use of clear and unambiguous terms; any doubt in the interpretation of the alleged contract is fatal to the exemption.
The fact that a street railway company has agreed to pay for the use of the streets of a city for a given period does not, in the absence of unequivocal terms to that effect, create an inviolable contract within the meaning and protection of the contract clause of the federal Constitution which will prevent the exaction of a license tax within the acknowledged power of the city. New Orleans City and Lake Railway Co. v. New Orleans, 143 U.S. 192.
The ordinances of the City of St. Louis granting rights of construction and operation to street railways involved in this case do not contain any clearly expressed obligation on the part of the city to surrender its right to impose further license or taxes upon street railway cars which is within the meaning and protection of the contract clause of the federal Constitution
The facts are stated in the opinion.
Contents:
Chicago:
U.S. Supreme Court, "Syllabus," St. Louis v. United Railways Co., 210 U.S. 266 (1908) in 210 U.S. 266 210 U.S. 269. Original Sources, accessed July 1, 2025, http://www.originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=WYL2Y72MFRXMMYJ.
MLA:
U.S. Supreme Court. "Syllabus." St. Louis v. United Railways Co., 210 U.S. 266 (1908), in 210 U.S. 266, page 210 U.S. 269. Original Sources. 1 Jul. 2025. http://www.originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=WYL2Y72MFRXMMYJ.
Harvard:
U.S. Supreme Court, 'Syllabus' in St. Louis v. United Railways Co., 210 U.S. 266 (1908). cited in 1908, 210 U.S. 266, pp.210 U.S. 269. Original Sources, retrieved 1 July 2025, from http://www.originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=WYL2Y72MFRXMMYJ.
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