According to the opinion of Chief Justice Salmon Chase in Veazie Bank v. Fenno, 1869:
The question before the Supreme Court in this case was the constitutional validity of an act of Congress in 1866 imposing a 10 percent tax on the issuance of circulating bank notes by nationally chartered banks or by state chartered banks. ...
Chief Justice Salmon Chase delivered the opinion of the Court. The Court held the tax to be constitutional. ...
Chief Justice Chase turned to the historical record.
He pointed out that Congress had enacted taxes that were acknowledged to be direct. Those taxes were enacted in 1798, 1813, 1815, 1816, and 1861. In each instance the sums collected were apportioned among the states. The subjects of those taxes were, variously, lands, improvements, dwelling-houses, and slaves. Chief Justice Chase pointed out that Congress never considered taxes on personal property, contracts, or occupations to be direct taxes. He observed that slaves were not an exception because, even though many of the slave states had considered slaves to be real property, slaves were, of course, persons and subject to a capitation, which was direct.
Therefore, Chief Justice Chase concluded, Congress understood direct taxes to be limited to taxes on land and improvements, and capitations.
-- Alan O. Dixler, 2006 (here)
