Nix v. Hedden, , was a case in which the
United States Supreme CourtThe Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States, and leads the federal judiciary. It consists of the Chief Justice of the United States and eight Associate Justices, who are nominated by the President and confirmed with the "advice and consent" of the Senate...
addressed whether a
tomatoThe tomato is a herbaceous, usually sprawling plant in the Solanaceae or nightshade family that is typically cultivated for the purpose of harvesting its fruit for human consumption...
was classified as a
fruitThe term fruit has different meanings dependent on context, and the term is not synonymous in food preparation and biology. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants disseminate seeds, and the presence of seeds indicates that a structure is most likely a fruit, though not all seeds come from...
or a
vegetableA vegetable is an edible plant or part of a plant. However, the word is not scientific, and its meaning is largely based on culinary and cultural tradition. Therefore the application of the word is somewhat arbitrary and subjective. For example, some people consider mushrooms to be vegetables,...
under the
Tariff Act of March 3, 1883In United States tax law history, the Tariff of 1883 , also known as the Mongrel Tariff Act by its critics, reduced high tariff rates only marginally, and left in place fairly strong protectionist barriers....
, which required a tax to be paid on imported vegetables, but not fruit. The case was filed as an action by John Nix, John W. Nix, George W. Nix, and Frank W. Nix against Edward L. Hedden,
Collector of the Port of New YorkThe Collector of Customs at the Port of New York, mostly referred to as Collector of the Port of New York, sometimes also as Collector of Customs for the Port of New York or Collector of Customs for the District of New York, was a federal officer who was in charge of the collection of import...
, to recover back duties paid under protest.
BotanicallyBotany, plant science, phytology, or plant biology is a branch of biology and is the scientific study of plant life and development...
a tomato is a fruit. The court, however, unanimously ruled in favor of the defendant, that the Tariff Act used the ordinary meaning of the words "fruit" and "vegetable" – where a tomato is classified as a vegetable – not the technical botanical meaning.
At the trial the
plaintiffA plaintiff , also known as a claimant or complainant, is the party who initiates a lawsuit before a court...
s' counsel, after reading in
evidenceThe law of evidence governs the use of testimony and exhibits or other documentary material which is admissible in a judicial or administrative proceeding .-Relevance and social policy:Legal scholars of the...
definitions of the words 'fruit' and 'vegetables' from
Webster's DictionaryWebster's Dictionary is the name given to a common type of English language dictionary in the United States. The name is derived from lexicographer Noah Webster and has become a genericized trademark for this type of dictionary....
, Worcester's Dictionary, and the
Imperial DictionaryThe Imperial Dictionary of the English Language - A Complete Encyclopedic Lexicon, Literary, Scientific, and Technological, edited by Rev. John Ogilvie , was an expansion of the 1841 second edition of Noah Webster's American Dictionary. It was published by W. G...
, called two
witnessA witness is someone who has firsthand knowledge about a crime or dramatic event through their senses , and can help certify important considerations to the crime or event. A witness who has seen the event firsthand is known as an "eye-witness"...
es, who had been for 30 years in the business of selling fruit and vegetables, and asked them, after hearing these definitions, to say whether these words had "any special meaning in
tradeTrade is the voluntary exchange of goods, services, or both. Trade is also called commerce or transaction. A mechanism that allows trade is called a market. The original form of trade was barter, the direct exchange of goods and services. Later one side of the barter were the metals, precious...
or
commerceCommerce is a division of trade or production which deals with the exchange of goods and services from producer to final consumer. It comprises the trading of something of economic value such as goods, services, information, or money between two or more entities...
, different from those read."
During testimony, one witness testified that in regard to the dictionary definition:
- "[the dictionary] does not classify all things there, but they are correct as far as they go.
Nix v. Hedden, , was a case in which the
United States Supreme CourtThe Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States, and leads the federal judiciary. It consists of the Chief Justice of the United States and eight Associate Justices, who are nominated by the President and confirmed with the "advice and consent" of the Senate...
addressed whether a
tomatoThe tomato is a herbaceous, usually sprawling plant in the Solanaceae or nightshade family that is typically cultivated for the purpose of harvesting its fruit for human consumption...
was classified as a
fruitThe term fruit has different meanings dependent on context, and the term is not synonymous in food preparation and biology. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants disseminate seeds, and the presence of seeds indicates that a structure is most likely a fruit, though not all seeds come from...
or a
vegetableA vegetable is an edible plant or part of a plant. However, the word is not scientific, and its meaning is largely based on culinary and cultural tradition. Therefore the application of the word is somewhat arbitrary and subjective. For example, some people consider mushrooms to be vegetables,...
under the
Tariff Act of March 3, 1883In United States tax law history, the Tariff of 1883 , also known as the Mongrel Tariff Act by its critics, reduced high tariff rates only marginally, and left in place fairly strong protectionist barriers....
, which required a tax to be paid on imported vegetables, but not fruit. The case was filed as an action by John Nix, John W. Nix, George W. Nix, and Frank W. Nix against Edward L. Hedden,
Collector of the Port of New YorkThe Collector of Customs at the Port of New York, mostly referred to as Collector of the Port of New York, sometimes also as Collector of Customs for the Port of New York or Collector of Customs for the District of New York, was a federal officer who was in charge of the collection of import...
, to recover back duties paid under protest.
BotanicallyBotany, plant science, phytology, or plant biology is a branch of biology and is the scientific study of plant life and development...
a tomato is a fruit. The court, however, unanimously ruled in favor of the defendant, that the Tariff Act used the ordinary meaning of the words "fruit" and "vegetable" – where a tomato is classified as a vegetable – not the technical botanical meaning.
The case
At the trial the
plaintiffA plaintiff , also known as a claimant or complainant, is the party who initiates a lawsuit before a court...
s' counsel, after reading in
evidenceThe law of evidence governs the use of testimony and exhibits or other documentary material which is admissible in a judicial or administrative proceeding .-Relevance and social policy:Legal scholars of the...
definitions of the words 'fruit' and 'vegetables' from
Webster's DictionaryWebster's Dictionary is the name given to a common type of English language dictionary in the United States. The name is derived from lexicographer Noah Webster and has become a genericized trademark for this type of dictionary....
, Worcester's Dictionary, and the
Imperial DictionaryThe Imperial Dictionary of the English Language - A Complete Encyclopedic Lexicon, Literary, Scientific, and Technological, edited by Rev. John Ogilvie , was an expansion of the 1841 second edition of Noah Webster's American Dictionary. It was published by W. G...
, called two
witnessA witness is someone who has firsthand knowledge about a crime or dramatic event through their senses , and can help certify important considerations to the crime or event. A witness who has seen the event firsthand is known as an "eye-witness"...
es, who had been for 30 years in the business of selling fruit and vegetables, and asked them, after hearing these definitions, to say whether these words had "any special meaning in
tradeTrade is the voluntary exchange of goods, services, or both. Trade is also called commerce or transaction. A mechanism that allows trade is called a market. The original form of trade was barter, the direct exchange of goods and services. Later one side of the barter were the metals, precious...
or
commerceCommerce is a division of trade or production which deals with the exchange of goods and services from producer to final consumer. It comprises the trading of something of economic value such as goods, services, information, or money between two or more entities...
, different from those read."
During testimony, one witness testified that in regard to the dictionary definition:
- "[the dictionary] does not classify all things there, but they are correct as far as they go. It does not take all kinds of fruit or vegetables; it takes a portion of them. I think the words 'fruit' and 'vegetable' have the same meaning in trade today that they had on March 1, 1883. I understand that the term 'fruit' is applied in trade only to such plants or parts of plants as contain the seeds. There are more vegetables than those in the enumeration given in Webster's Dictionary under the term 'vegetable,' as 'cabbage, cauliflower, turnips, potatoes, peas, beans, and the like,' probably covered by the words 'and the like.'"
Another witness testified that "I don't think the term 'fruit' or the term 'vegetables' had, in March 1883, and prior thereto, any special meaning in trade and commerce in this country different from that which I have read here from the dictionaries."
Both the plaintiffs' counsel and the defendant's counsel made use of the dictionaries. The plaintiffs' counsel read in evidence from the same dictionaries the definitions of the word tomato, while the defendant's counsel then read in evidence from Webster's Dictionary the definitions of the words
peaA pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the legume Pisum sativum. Each pod contains several peas. Although it is botanically a fruit, it is treated as a vegetable in cooking...
, egg plant,
cucumberThe cucumber is a widely cultivated plant in the gourd family Cucurbitaceae, which includes squash, and in the same genus as the muskmelon.- Botany :...
, squash, and
pepperCapsicum is a genus of plants from the nightshade family native to the Americas, where it was cultivated for thousands of years by the people of the tropical Americas, and is now cultivated worldwide. Some of the members of Capsicum are used as spices, vegetables, and medicines...
. Countering this, the plaintiff then read in evidence from Webster's and Worcester's dictionaries the definitions of
potatoThe potato is a starchy, tuberous crop from the perennial Solanum tuberosum of the Solanaceae family . The word potato may refer to the plant itself as well. In the region of the Andes, there are some other closely related cultivated potato species. Potatoes are the world's fourth largest food...
,
turnipThe turnip or white turnip is a root vegetable commonly grown in temperate climates worldwide for its white, bulbous taproot...
,
parsnipThe parsnip is a root vegetable related to the carrot. Parsnips resemble carrots, but are paler than most of them and have a stronger flavor. Like carrots, parsnips are native to Eurasia and have been eaten there since ancient times...
,
cauliflowerCauliflower is one of several vegetables in the species Brassica oleracea, in the family Brassicaceae. It is an annual plant that reproduces by seed. Typically, only the head is eaten while the stalk and surrounding thick, green leaves are used in vegetable broth or discarded...
,
cabbageThe cabbage is a popular cultivar of the species Brassica oleracea Linne of the Family Brassicaceae , and is used as a leafy green vegetable...
,
carrotThe carrot is a root vegetable, usually orange, purple, red, white, or yellow in colour, with a crisp texture when fresh. The edible part of a carrot is a taproot...
and
beanBean is a common name for large plant seeds of several genera of the family Fabaceae used for human food or animal feed....
.
The Court's decision
The court unanimously decided in favor of the defense and found that the tomato was classified as a vegetable, based on the ways in which it is used, and the popular perception to this end. Justice
Horace GrayHorace Gray was an American jurist who ultimately served on the United States Supreme Court. He was an active in public service and a great philanthropist to the City of Boston.-Early life:...
, writing the opinion for the Court, stated that:
"The passages cited from the dictionaries define the word 'fruit' as the seed of plants, or that part of plants which contains the seed, and especially the juicy, pulpy products of certain plants, covering and containing the seed. These definitions have no tendency to show that tomatoes are 'fruit,' as distinguished from 'vegetables,' in common speech, or within the meaning of the tariffA tariff is a duty imposed on goods when they are moved across a political boundary.-History:...
act."
Justice Gray cited several different Supreme Court cases (Brown v. Piper,
91 U.S. 37, 42, and Jones v. U.S., 137 U.S. 202, 216) and stated that when words have acquired any special meaning in trade or commerce the ordinary meaning must be used by the court. In this case dictionaries cannot be admitted as evidence, but only as aids to the memory and understanding of the court. Gray acknowledged that,
botanicallyBotany, plant science, phytology, or plant biology is a branch of biology and is the scientific study of plant life and development...
, tomatoes are classified as a "fruit of the
vineThe term vine may refer to a climbing or trailing plant. The word, derived from Latin vīnea, in the original sense referred to the grapevines . The modern extended sense is mostly restricted to North American English, which uses "grapevine" to refer to the grape-bearing Vitis species...
", nevertheless they are seen as vegetables because they were usually eaten as a main course instead of being eaten as a
dessertDessert is a course that typically comes at the end of a meal, usually consisting of sweet food but sometimes of a strongly-flavored one, such as some cheeses...
. In making his decision, Justice Gray mentioned another case where it had been claimed that beans were
seedsSEEDS is a voluntary organisation registered under the Societies Act of India....
— Justice
BradleyJoseph P. Bradley was an American jurist best known for his service on the United States Supreme Court, and on the Electoral Commission that decided the disputed 1876 presidential election.-Early life:...
, in Robertson v. Salomon,
130 U.S. 412, 414, similarly found that though a bean is botanically a seed, in common parlanceAn idiom is an expression, word, or phrase that has figurative meaning — its implication comprehended only through common use; whereas the literal definition of the idiom, itself, does not communicate its meaning as a figurative usage.In linguistics, idioms are usually presumed to be figures of...
a bean is seen as a vegetable. While on the subject, Gray clarified the status of the cucumberThe cucumber is a widely cultivated plant in the gourd family Cucurbitaceae, which includes squash, and in the same genus as the muskmelon.- Botany :...
, squash, peaA pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the legume Pisum sativum. Each pod contains several peas. Although it is botanically a fruit, it is treated as a vegetable in cooking...
, and beanBean is a common name for large plant seeds of several genera of the family Fabaceae used for human food or animal feed....
.
Subsequent history
Nix
has been cited in three Supreme Court decisions as a precedent for court interpretation of common meanings, especially dictionary definitions. (Sonn v. Maggone,
; Saltonstall v. Wiebusch & Hilger,
; and Cadwalder v. Zeh,
). Additionally, in JSG Trading Corp. v. Tray-Wrap, Inc.,
917 F.2d 75 (2d Cir. 1990), a case unrelated to Nix
aside from the shared focus on tomatoes, a judge wrote the following paragraph citing the case:
- "In common parlance tomatoes are vegetables, as the Supreme Court observed long ago, see
Nix v. Hedden
149 U.S. 304, 307, 13 S.Ct. 881, 882, 37 L.Ed. 745 (1893), although botanically speaking they are actually a fruit. 26 Encyclopedia Americana
832 (Int'l. ed. 1981). Regardless of classification, people have been enjoying tomatoes for centuries, even Mr. Pickwick, as DickensCharles John Huffam Dickens FRSA , pen-name "Boz", was the most popular English novelist of the Victorian era and one of the most popular of all time. He created some of literature's most memorable characters. His novels and short stories have never gone out of print...
relates, ate his chops in 'tomata' sauce."
In 2005, supporters in the New Jersey legislature cited Nix
as a basis for a bill designating the tomato as the official state vegetable.
See also
- Carrot
The carrot is a root vegetable, usually orange, purple, red, white, or yellow in colour, with a crisp texture when fresh. The edible part of a carrot is a taproot...
– defined to be a fruit in European Community law, for the purpose of jam classification
Toy Biz v. United StatesToy Biz v. United States was a 2003 decision in the Court of International Trade that determined that for purposes of tariffs, Toy Biz's action figures were toys, not dolls, because they represented "nonhuman creatures." This decision effectively reduced the tariff rate by a factor of...
– decided that action figures of certain superheroA superhero is "a fictional character of unprecedented powers dedicated to acts of derring-do in the public interest"...
es are legally toyA toy is an object used in play. Toys are usually associated with children and pets, but it is not unusual for adult humans and some non-domesticated animals to play with toys. Many items are manufactured to serve as toys, but goods, or services produced for other purposes can also be used as toys...
s, not dollA doll is an object that represents a baby or other human being. Dolls have been around since the dawn of human civilization, and have been fashioned from a vast array of materials, ranging from stone, clay, wood, bone, cloth and paper, to porcelain, china, rubber and plastic.While dolls have...
s
List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 149
External links
Rocknel Fastener, Inc. v. United States – 34 page PDF covering a similar case hinging on the difference between screws and bolts. The difference is outlined in a 21 page PDF
Distinguishing Bolts From Screws.