• Chart of the current Part I of Subchapter N (and regulations).

• Chart of the predecessor to Part I (and regulations).

• Questions and Exhibits of "Operation Honest Inquiry."

Despite "common knowledge" to the contrary, the income of most Americans is not subject to the United States federal income tax. The strict limits on federal power imposed by the Constitution prohibited Congress from imposing a tax on the income of U.S. citizens who live and work exclusively within the 50 states, and the federal statutes and regulations themselves demonstrate that Congress did not impose such a tax. This was not due to an oversight or to some technical imperfection in the legislative process. Congress never attempted to impose such a tax. Instead, Congress imposed a far more limited income tax, applicable primarily to income derived from certain international and foreign commerce. However, that law was written in such a way that if the reader did not know where to look in the law, he was likely to get the incorrect impression that his income was taxable. However, other sections show that only income derived from "specific sources," which are all related to international or foreign commerce, is subject to the tax.

While following the proof of this may require concentration, it does not require any "leap of faith," or any questionable "interpretation" of the law. The legal system of the United States is a system of written law, and the words in the law must inform individuals of exactly what the law requires. Therefore, an accurate determination of what the law requires can be accomplished only by an examination of the relevant legal documents themselves, without regard for preconceived assumptions about what the law says. Despite the enormous, complex maze of federal statutes and regulations built up by government lawyers over the years, written in what is virtually a foreign language to most (sometimes called "legalese"), the truth is still quite provable, as will be shown below.

Though many have complained about and/or resisted the federal income tax, the truth is that most Americans have no reason at all to "protest" the tax. The federal income tax is neither invalid nor unconstitutional. What does warrant protest and demand for correction is how the tax has been (and continues to be) grossly misrepresented to the American people and misapplied by federal employees. Many citizens have been harassed, robbed, and unjustly imprisoned, and the few in government who knew the truth did nothing to stop it. Political power has long been associated with dishonesty and deception, but the misrepresentation of the federal income tax (referred to below as "the Great Deception") constitutes the most massive financial fraud in the history of mankind. (It is more a conspiracy of ignorance than a conspiracy of secrecy, meaning that most IRS employees and tax professionals are guilty of incompetence and ignorance, rather than intentional deceit.) Following the main report are included the three questions of "Operation Honest Inquiry" regarding the specific wording of the regulations under Section 861, along with related exhibits, which have baffled government officials and tax professionals alike. [All underline emphasis and non-italicized comments (in brackets) within a citation in this report are additions by the author, and do not appear in the text itself.]

The laws enacted by Congress through the legislative process are compiled into statutes of the United States Code. Each of the 50 "titles" of the United States Code deals with a category of federal law, with Title 26 being the federal tax title, also called the "Internal Revenue Code." Federal agencies are empowered (by Congressional statute) to implement and enforce the statutes by writing and publishing regulations, which explain the agencies’ interpretation of the statutes, as well as setting the rules which govern how the agency will enforce the statutes.

"Sec. 7805. Rules and regulations

(a) Authorization - … the Secretary [of the Treasury] shall prescribe all needful rules and regulations for the enforcement of this title [meaning Title 26]…" [26 USC § 7805] (The citation "26 USC § 7805" refers to Section 7805 of the statutes of Title 26, with "USC" meaning "United States Code." The symbol "§" means "section." Citations of regulations are similar, but contain "CFR" instead, meaning "Code of Federal Regulations.")

Section 1 of the Title 26 statutes imposes the "income tax" on five categories of individuals (unmarried people, married people filing jointly, etc.). In each case, the wording reads, "there is hereby imposed on the taxable income of…" The law generally defines "taxable income" in the following section of the statutes:

"Sec. 63. Taxable income defined

(a) In general - …the term "taxable income" means gross income minus the deductions allowed by this chapter…" [26 USC § 63]

In other words, when someone determines his "gross income," and subtracts the allowable deductions, the remainder is "taxable income." So for income to be "taxable income" it must first be "gross income." The statues generally define "gross income" as follows:

"Sec. 61. Gross income defined

(1) Compensation for services...;
(2) Gross income derived from business;
(3) Gains derived from dealings in property;
(4) Interest;... [more items listed]" [26 USC § 61]

This is the point at which many tax "experts" err, either by assuming that the "items" of income listed constitute "sources" of income, or by assuming that "from whatever source derived" means that all of the "items" of income listed, regardless of where they come from, are subject to the tax. Both of these assumptions are provably incorrect. (The difference and relationship between "items" and "sources" will be explained below.)

In our system of written law, Congress may use a term to mean almost anything, as long as the law itself defines that meaning. When the written law explains the meaning of a term used in the law Standard English usage becomes irrelevant. For example, by the definition in 26 USC § 7701(a)(1), the term "person" includes estates, companies and corporations (in addition to individuals). While no one would call WalMart a "person" in everyday conversation, WalMart is a "person" under federal tax law. The legal use of a term is often quite different from basic English, and therefore reading one section of the law alone can be very misleading.

For example, 26 USC § 5841 states that "[t]he Secretary [of the Treasury] shall maintain a central registry of all firearms in the United States which are not in the possession or under the control of the United States." But this law has a far more limited application than this section by itself would seem to imply. In 26 USC § 5845(a) it is made clear that the term "firearm" in these sections does not include the majority of rifles and handguns (while the term "firearm" in basic English obviously would), but does include poison gas, silencers and land mines.

The average citizen reading the law will naturally tend to assume that he already knows what the words in the law mean, and may have difficulty accepting that the legal meaning of the words used in the law may bear little resemblance to the meaning that those words have in common English. Reading the phrase "all firearms" in Section 5841 in a way that excludes most rifles and handguns is contrary to instinctive reading comprehension, but any lawyer reviewing Sections 5841 and 5845 would confirm that such a reading would be absolutely correct. Reading one section of the law without being aware of the legal definitions of the words being used can give an entirely incorrect impression about the application of the law.

As demonstrated, sometimes the apparent meaning of a simple phrase in the law is very different from the legal meaning. The "income tax" is imposed on "income from whatever source derived." If the law did not explain what constitutes "sources of income," then the law would be interpreted using basic English. However, the law does explain what the term means, and therefore standard English usage is irrelevant.

To review, the "income tax" is imposed on "taxable income," which means "gross income" minus deductions. "Gross income" is defined in 26 USC § 61 as "all income from whatever source derived." The phrase "from whatever source derived" may initially appear all encompassing, but for the specifics about "income from sources," the reader of the law is repeatedly referred to Section 861 and following (of the statutes) and the related regulations. For example, in all three major printings of Title 26 (the "United States Code," the "United States Code Annotated," and the "United States Code Service"), Section 61 itself has cross references similar to the following:

Within the United States, see section 861 of this title.
Without the United States, see section 862 of this title."

So the section which generally defines "gross income" to mean "all income from whatever source derived" specifically refers to 26 USC § 861 regarding income from "sources" within the United States (and refers to 26 USC § 862 regarding income sources outside of the United States). A similar reference is also found in the indexes of the United States Code, which (although they vary somewhat in the exact wording) have entries such as:

"Income tax

Within the U.S., 26 § 861"

Again, income from "sources" within the United States is specifically dealt with by Section 861, and "determination" of sources of income is also dealt with by Section 861 and the following sections.  (It should be mentioned that neither the cross-references nor the indexes are technically the law, but they are indications of how the law works. Unless someone wants to claim that they are incorrect, they are still useful indicators. And, as will be shown, they are not necessary for proving the relevance of 26 USC § 861 anyway.)

Numerous sections of the law (e.g. 79, 105, 410, 414, 505) identify Section 861 as the section which determines what constitutes "income from sources within the United States," and Section 306 even uses the phrase: "part I of subchapter N (sec. 861 and following, relating to determination of sources of income)."

Clearly 26 USC § 861 and following (which make up Part I of Subchapter N of the Code) are very relevant to determining what is considered a "source of income," and Section 861 in particular deals within income from "sources" within the United States. (Section 862 deals within from "without" (outside) the United States.) Not surprisingly, Section 861 is entitled "Income from sources within the United States," and the first two subsections are entitled "Gross income from sources within United States" and "Taxable income from sources within United States." Section 861 is also the first section of Subchapter N of the Code, which is entitled "Tax based on income from sources within or without the United States." Clearly this is relevant to a tax on "income from whatever source derived."

As mentioned before, the statutes passed by Congress are interpreted and implemented by regulations published in the Code of Federal Regulations ("CFR") by the Secretary of the Treasury. While the Index of the statutes (USC) is not technically the law (as mentioned above), the law does require that a "general index to the entire Code of Federal Regulations shall be separately printed and bound" (44 USC § 1510). The courts have stated that publishing a regulation in the Federal Register "makes it effective against the world," but added that without the "retrieval mechanism provided by an adequate index," individuals might not be able to find the rules which apply to them, so Congress required the index. The purpose for this requirement was to "eliminate secret law" (580 F.2d 1166 (3rd Cir., 1978)).

The reason this is important is that the Index of the CFR, under "Income taxes," has an entry that reads "Income from sources inside or outside U.S., determination of sources of income, 26 CFR 1 (1.861-1--1.864-8T)." This is the only entry in the Index relating to income from sources within the United States. The Code of Federal Regulations, including the Index, is the official notification to the public of what the law requires. Regarding "determination of sources of income," and "income from sources inside or outside U.S.," the Index refers the reader to 26 CFR § 1.861-1 and following, which are the regulations corresponding to Section 861 of the statutes. These regulations fall under the heading "Determination of sources of income." The following is how these regulations begin:

"Sec. 1.861-1 Income from sources within the United States.

(a) Categories of income. Part I (section 861 and following), subchapter N, chapter 1 of the Code, and the regulations thereunder determine the sources of income for purposes of the income tax." [26 CFR § 1.861-1]

The "income tax" is imposed on "income from whatever source derived," and Section 861 and following, and the related regulations, determine what is considered a "source" of income "for purposes of the income tax." The first sentence of the regulations under 26 USC § 861 has stated this since 1954, when Section 861 first came into existence. Note that these define "the" sources of income subject to the tax, meaning there are no others. Therefore, the meaning of "income from whatever source derived" (the general definition of "gross income" in Section 61) is limited by Section 861 and following sections, and the related regulations. The meaning of the phrase "whatever source" depends completely on the meaning of the word "source." The word "whatever" does not expand the meaning of "source" any more than the phrase "all firearms" (in the example above) expands the legal meaning of the word "firearm." (In "26 CFR § 1.861-1" the "26" refers to Title 26, the "1" after "CFR" refers to Part 1 of the regulations ("Income Taxes"), and the ".861" refers to Section 861 of the statutes.) The above quote from the regulations (26 CFR § 1.861-1) also refutes the common but incorrect position that the "items" of income listed in Section 61 are "sources," since Section 61 obviously does not "determine the sources of income for purposes of the income tax." (There is a chart at the end of this report which outlines Part I of Subchapter N and related regulations, and shows the location and context of many of the citations used in this report.)

While the significance of Section 861 and the related regulations may be obvious, the point needs to be thoroughly proven, since most tax professionals concede that Section 861 and the related regulations are not about the income of United States citizens living and working exclusively within the United States.

5) Determining Taxable Income

In addition to the fact that Section 861 and following, and related regulations, determine what is considered a "source" of income subject to the income tax, the regulations also repeatedly state that these are also the specific sections to be used to determine "gross income" and "taxable income" from sources within and/or without the United States.

"Rules are prescribed for determination of gross income and taxable income derived from sources within and without the United States, and for the allocation of income derived partly from sources within the United States and partly without the United States or within United States possessions. §§ 1.861-1 through 1.864. (Secs. 861- 864; ’54 Code.)" [Treasury Decision 6258]

The sections which are specifically for determining taxable income from sources within the United States are 26 USC § 861(b) of the statutes, and the corresponding regulations found at 26 CFR § 1.861-8. (The regulations under Section 63, the section defining "taxable income," do not explain how to determine taxable income.) While the relevance of these sections may quickly become obvious, the repeated documentation is important since most tax professionals are already aware that these sections are not about the income of most Americans.

Section 861(b) (as mentioned above) is entitled "Taxable income from sources within United States." This section states that taxable income from sources within the United States is the gross income described in 861(a) minus allowable deductions. The regulations under Section 861 state (in the first paragraph):

"The statute provides for the following three categories of income:

(1) Within the United States. The gross income from sources within the United States… See Secs. 1.861-2 to 1.861-7, inclusive, and Sec. 1.863-1. The taxable income from sources within the United States… shall be determined by deducting therefrom, in accordance with sections 861(b) and 863(a), [allowable deductions]. See Secs. 1.861-8 and 1.863-1." [26 CFR § 1.861-1(a)(1)]

(The other two categories of income are income from "without" (outside of) the United States, dealt with by Section 862 and related regulations, and income from sources partly within and partly without the U.S., dealt with by Section 863 and related regulations.)

As the above citation states, "gross income" from sources within the U.S. are dealt with by 861(a) of the statutes and 1.861-2 through 1.861-7 of the regulations. Taxable income is determined by 861(b) of the statutes, and the corresponding regulations in 1.861-8. These regulations are predictably entitled "Computation of taxable income from sources within the United States and from other sources and activities," and begin by saying the following:

"Sections 861(b) and 863(a) state in general terms how to determine taxable income of a taxpayer from sources within the United States after gross income from sources within the United States has been determined. Sections 862(b) and 863(a) state in general terms how to determine taxable income of a taxpayer from sources without the United States after gross income from sources without the United States has been determined."

"The taxpayer's taxable income from sources within or without the United States will be determined under the rules of Secs. 1.861-8 through 1.861-14T for determining taxable income from sources within the United States." [26 CFR § 1.863-1(c)]

(The vast majority of tax professionals do not use these sections to determine taxable income from sources within the United States. At this point, the average citizen reading this report may guess that there must be some "context" or some other section, or something somewhere which would justify the tax professionals blatantly disregarding and disobeying the clear language used in the citations shown above. There is not.)

Note that sections 1.861-8 and following of the regulations are identified as the sections "for determining taxable income from sources within the United States," as well as being the sections to be used whether the income is from sources within or without the United States. A similar structure occurs in the regulations under Section 862:

"(b) Taxable income. The taxable income from sources without the United States… shall be determined on the same basis as that used in Sec. 1.861-8 for determining the taxable income from sources within the United States." [26 CFR § 1.862-1]

Section 1.863-6 of the regulations (dealing with income from foreign countries or federal possessions) also identifies sections 1.861-1 through 1.863-5 as applying "[t]he principles… for determining the gross and the taxable income from sources within and without the United States." Over and over again it is shown that 26 USC § 861(b) of the statutes and 26 CFR §1.861-8 of the regulations are to be used to determine taxable domestic income.

"Sec. 861. Income from sources within the United States (a) Gross income from sources within United States

Compensation for labor or personal services performed in the United States; except... [other items listed]" (26 USC § 861(a))

As with Section 61, it is easy to falsely conclude that these items are always taxable, but the regulations related to Section 861 prove this to be incorrect. (And, as will be shown later, the older regulations and statutes make the correct application of the law crystal clear.) The regulations in Section 1.861-8 begin by saying that Section 861(b) of the statutes describes "in general terms" how to determine taxable income from sources within the United States. However, these same regulations show that the general "within"/"without" rules found in the statutes of Section 861 and following are about income derived from "specific sources."

"(ii) Relationship of sections 861, 862, 863(a), and 863(b). Sections 861, 862, 863(a), and 863(b) are the four provisions applicable in determining taxable income from specific sources." [26 CFR § 1.861-8(f)(3)(ii)]

In the first paragraph of Section 1.861-8 of the regulations (the section "for determining taxable income from sources within the United States"), it is again made clear that the section applies only to the listed "items" of income when derived from "specific sources."

"The rules contained in this section apply in determining taxable income of the taxpayer from specific sources and activities…" [26 CFR § 1.861-8(a)]

Again, a few paragraphs later, in defining the term "statutory grouping," these regulations again state that taxable income must come from a "specific source."

"[T]he term ‘statutory grouping’ means the gross income from a specific source or activity which must first be determined in order to arrive at ‘taxable income’ from which specific source or activity…" [26 CFR § 1.861-8(a)(4)]

In 26 CFR § 1.861-8(f)(1) it is again made clear that Section 1.861-8 (the section "for determining taxable income from sources within the United States") is applicable only to income derived from "specific sources."

"[T]he determination of taxable income of the taxpayer from specific sources or activities and which gives rise to statutory groupings [see previous citation] to which this section is applicable…" [26 CFR § 1.861-8(f)(1)]

From these it is clear that the phrase "whatever source" as used in Sections 61 does not simply mean any activity from which income is derived. (If it did, there would be no need for Section 861 and following, and related regulations, to "determine the sources of income for purposes of the income tax.") The following citations show that Section 1.861-8(f)(1) lists the "specific sources" of income subject to the income tax.

Again, the first paragraph of 26 CFR § 1.861-8 states the following (the meaning of "operative section" will be explained below):

"The rules contained in this section apply in determining taxable income of the taxpayer from specific sources and activities under other sections of the Code, referred to in this section as operative sections. See paragraph (f)(1) of this section for a list and description of operative sections." [26 CFR § 1.861-8(a)(1)]

The definition of "statutory grouping" (mentioned above) also refers to "paragraph (f)(1)" as the list of "specific sources."

"[T]he term ‘statutory grouping’ means the gross income from a specific source or activity which must first be determined in order to arrive at ‘taxable income’ from which specific source or activity under an operative section. (See paragraph (f)(1) of this section.)" [26 CFR § 1.861-8(a)(4)]

The regulations twice identify "paragraph (f)(1) of this section" (26 CFR § 1.861-8(f)(1)) as the list of specific sources. Paragraph (f)(1) itself confirms this again, and then lists the "specific sources" subject to the income tax:

"The operative sections of the Code which require the determination of taxable income of the taxpayer from specific sources or activities and which gives rise to statutory groupings to which this section is applicable include the sections described below.

(iii) DISC and FSC taxable income… [international and foreign sales corporations]

(E) The tax base for citizens entitled to the benefits of section 931 and the section 936 tax credit of a domestic corporation which has an election in effect under section 936 [this involves American individuals and companies receiving most of their income from within federal possessions];

(G) [deals with Virgin Island tax credits]

(J) [deals with foreign corporations]

(K) [deals with insurance income of foreign corporations]

(M) [deals with the Merchant Marine Act of 1936]." [26 CFR § 1.861-8(f)(1)]

None of these "sources" apply to United States citizens who live and work exclusively within the United States. (Federal "possessions," such as Guam, Puerto Rico, etc., are considered to be outside of the United States for income tax purposes.) This is the list of "specific sources" to which Part I of Subchapter N applies, and Part I and its regulations "determine the sources of income for purposes of the income tax" (26 CFR § 1.861-1).

The next subsection (1.861-8(g)) gives examples about how 26 CFR § 1.861-8 works, and states that "[i]n each example, unless otherwise specified, the operative section which is applied and gives rise to the statutory grouping of gross income is the overall limitation to the foreign tax credit under section 904(a)," again showing that there must be some "operative section" (describing some "specific source") in order for there to be taxable income.

So, to review, the sections which "determine the sources of income for purposes of the income tax" (namely, 861 and following and related regulations) only show income to be taxable when it derives from the "specific sources" listed in 26 CFR § 1.861-8(f)(1). Most people do not receive income from these "sources of income for purposes of the income tax," and most people do not, therefore, receive "income from whatever source derived" (the general definition of "gross income"), and do not receive "taxable income from sources within the United States."

The earlier sections of Title 26 (namely 26 USC § 61 and following) deal with "items" of income that may be taxable (such as compensation for services). However, these sections do not specify where the transaction is taking place, or who is receiving the income. Obviously not everyone on earth who receives "compensation for services" is taxable under U.S. law. A separate part of the law, found in Subchapter N, deals with what types of commerce generate taxable income.

Subchapter N is entitled "Tax based on income from sources within or without the United States." As the title suggests, this subchapter explains when income from inside or outside the United States is subject to the income tax. The titles of the five "Parts" of Subchapter N are "Determination of sources of income*" (Part I), "Nonresident aliens and foreign corporations" (Part II), "Income from sources without the United States" (Part III), "Domestic international sales corporations" (Part IV), and "International boycott determinations" (Part V). (* See page 88 for more about the title of Part I of Subchapter N.) Parts II through V are obviously not about U.S. citizens who live and work exclusively within the states. The statutes of Part I of Subchapter N (beginning with 26 USC § 861) give general rules about determining taxable income from "within" (Section 861) and "without" (Section 862) the U.S., but the regulations thereunder make it clear that these rules apply only to income derived from the activities described throughout the other "Parts" of Subchapter N.

"(ii) Relationship of sections 861, 862, 863(a), and 863(b). Sections 861, 862, 863(a), and 863(b) are the four provisions applicable in determining taxable income from specific sources." [26 CFR § 1.861-8(f)(3)(ii)]

This term "specific sources" is used in three other places in the regulations, every one of which specifically refers to taxable activities described in the "operative sections" of the statutes throughout Subchapter N (which are listed in 1.861-8(f)(1) of the regulations). In other words, while the regulations list the taxable activities all in one place (26 CFR § 1.861-8(f)(1)), the statutes describe those taxable activities in various sections throughout Subchapter N. The "specific sources" listed in the regulations each refer specifically to sections of the statutes (called "operative sections") describing those activities. For example, item "(iv)" on the list in 1.861-8(f)(1) specifically refers to sections 871(b)(1) and 882(a)(1) of the statutes, which state the following:

"A nonresident alien individual engaged in trade or business within the United States… shall be taxable as provided in section 1…" [26 USC § 871(b)(1)]

"A foreign corporation engaged in trade or business within the United States… shall be taxable as provided in section 11[*]…" [26 USC § 882(a)(1)]

Here the statutes state that these specific activities (or "sources") may produce taxable income. If an "item" of income (such as compensation for services) derives from the activity described in this "operative section," that income is subject to the income tax. The "shall be taxable" phrase would be entirely unnecessary if "from whatever source derived" had the broad meaning that the usual (and incorrect) interpretation of the law gives it.

There is no such "shall be taxable" phrase or any "operative section" for United States citizen living and working exclusively within the 50 states, and the regulations under Section 861 make it clear that the "items" of income must derive from a taxable source or activity described in an "operative section" of the statutes in order to be taxable.

In this example, there would be two distinct aspects of the term "Zonko": whether an item is a taxable "toy," and whether it comes from a taxable "store." Both criteria would have to be met for it to legally constitute a "Zonko." For example, a baby bottle bought at ToyWorld would not be a "Zonko" (even though it came from a "store"), if baby bottles are not within the legal definition of "toys." Also, a doll bought from "Chuck’s Bargain Basement" also would not be a "Zonko" (even though it is a "toy"), as it did not come from something within the legal meaning of "store." A yoyo from Toyworld would be a "Zonko" as it is both a "toy" and comes from a "store."

(Note that the definition of "gross income" includes both criteria: "all income from whatever source derived.")

• 26 USC § 1 imposes the income tax on "taxable income."

• 26 USC § 63 defines "taxable income" generally as "gross income" minus deductions.

• 26 USC § 61 defines "gross income" generally as income "from whatever source derived."

• 26 USC §§ 861 - 865 and related regulations determine the taxable "sources of income."

• 26 CFR § 1.861-8 (together with the various statutes of Subchapter N) shows that the taxable "sources of income" apply only to those engaged in international or foreign commerce (including commerce within federal possessions).

While the current statutes and regulations document the limited application of the federal income tax, it is important to explain the reason why such a limit exists. Without an explanation of why the law is as it is, the conclusion may be unbelievable to some (regardless of the actual evidence). Certainly the limitation was not due to Congress not wanting to tax all income. Without some limit to Congress’ power, the tax which most people now believe exists (a tax on the income of most Americans) would certainly have been imposed. According to the Supreme Court, the broad and general wording which Congress used to define "gross income" was intended to tax all income within their power to tax.

"This Court has frequently stated that this language [defining "gross income"] was used by Congress to exert in this field ‘the full measure of its taxing power.’" [Commissioner v. Glenshaw Class Co., 348 U.S. 426 (1955)]

This ruling is speaking specifically of Section 22(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1939, which is the predecessor to the current 26 USC § 61. Congress has stated that the scope of "gross income" did not change when the law was rearranged and reworded in 1954. (It should be mentioned that the current tax code is basically just the income tax of 1913, but with many amendments over the years adding, removing, rewording, and renumbering various sections. The fundamental nature of the tax remains the same.)

"It is elementary law that every statute is to be read in the light of the constitution.

However broad and general its language, it cannot be interpreted as extending beyond those matters which it was within the constitutional power of the legislature to reach." [McCullough v. Com. Of Virginia, 172 U.S. 102 (1898)]  (Notice that this is not some radical decision, but is considered "elementary law.") In other words, a statute may be more restricted than its general wording suggests. The above case goes on to say that Constitutional restrictions are to be assumed when reading a statute (state or federal), even though they are not stated.

"So, although general language was introduced into the statute of 1871, it is not to be read as reaching to matters in respect to which the legislature had no constitutional power, but only as to those matters within its control. And, if there were, as it seems there were, certain special taxes and dues, which, under the existing provisions of the state constitution, could not be affected by legislative action, the