transfers of shares or certificates of stock in any association, company, or corporation, whether made upon or shown by the books of the association, company, or corporation, or by any assignment in blank, or by any delivery, or by any paper or agreement or memorandum or other evidence of transfer or sale, whether entitling the holder in any manner to the benefit of such stock, or to secure the future payment of money or for the future transfer of any stock, on each $100 of face value or fraction thereof, 2 cents: Provided, That it is not intended by this act to impose a tax upon an agreement evidencing a deposit of stock certificates as collateral security for money loaned thereon, which stock certificates are not actually sold, nor upon such stock certificates so deposited: Provided further, That in case of sale where the evidence of transfer is shown only by the books of the company the stamp shall be placed upon such books; and where the change of ownership is by transfer certificate the stamp shall be placed upon the certificate; and in cases of an agreement to sell or where the transfer is by delivery of the certificate assigned in blank there shall be made and delivered by the seller to the buyer a bill or memorandum of such sale, to which the stamp shall be affixed; and every bill or memorandum of sale or agreement to sell before mentioned shall show the date thereof, the name of the seller, the amount of the sale, and the matter or thing to which it refers. And any person or persons liable to pay the tax as herein provided, or anyone who acts in the matter as agent or broker for such person or persons, who shall make any such sale, or who shall in pursuance of any such sale deliver any such stock, or evidence of the sale of any such stock or bill or memorandum thereof, as herein required, without having the proper stamps affixed thereto, with intent to evade the foregoing provisions shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall pay a fine of not exceeding $1,000, or be imprisoned not more than six months, or both, at the discretion of the court.

Upon each sale, agreement of sale, or agreement to sell, any products or merchandise at any exchange, or board of trade, or other similar place, either for present or future delivery, for each $100 in value of said sale or agreement of sale or agreement to sell, 1 cent, and for each additional $100 or fractional part thereof in excess of $100, 1 cent: Provided, That on every sale or agreement of sale or agreement to sell as aforesaid there shall be made and delivered by the seller to the buyer a bill, memorandum, agreement, or other evidence of such sale, agreement of sale, or agreement to sell, to which there shall be affixed a lawful stamp or stamps in value equal to the amount of the tax on such sale. And every such bill, memorandum, or other evidence of sale or agreement to sell shall show the date thereof, the name of the seller, the amount of the sale, and the matter or thing to which it refers; and any person or persons liable to pay the tax as herein provided, or anyone who acts in the matter as agent or broker for such person or persons, who shall make any such sale or agreement of sale, or agreement to sell, or who shall, in pursuance of any such sale, agreement of sale, or agreement to sell, deliver any such products or merchandise without a bill, memorandum, or other evidence thereof as herein required, or who shall deliver such bill, memoran dum, or other evidence of sale, or agreement to sell, without having the proper stamps affixed thereto, with intent to evade the foregoing provisions, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof shall pay a fine of not exceeding $1,000, or be imprisoned not more than six months, or both, at the discretion of the court.

That no bill, memorandum, agreement, or other evidence of such sale, or agreement of sale, or agreement to sell, in case of products or merchandise actually delivered at the time of sale or while in vessel, boat, or car, and actually in course of transportation, shall be subject to this tax, provided such bill, memorandum, agreement, or other evidence of such sale, or agreement of sale, or agreement to sell shall be accompanied by bills of lading or vouchers showing that the said products are actually in course of transportation as aforesaid.

Promissory notes, except bank notes issued for circulation, and for each renewal of the same, for a sum not exceeding $100, 2 cents; and for each additional $100 or fractional part thereof in excess of $100, 2 cents.

Express and freight: It shall be the duty of every railroad or steamboat company, carrier, express company, or corporation or person whose occupation is to act as such, to issue to the shipper or consignor, or his agent, or person from whom any goods are accepted for transportation, where a charge exceeding 5 cents is made, a bill of lading, manifest, or other evidence of receipt and forwarding for each shipment received for carriage and transportation whether in bulk or in boxes, bales, packages, bundles, or not so inclosed or included; and such shipper, consignor, agent, or person shall duly attach and cancel, as is in this act provided, to each of said bills of lading, manifests, or other memorandum, a stamp of the value of 1 cent: Provided, That a consignment of newspapers to any one point or to different points by the same train or conveyance when inclosed in one general bundle at the point of shipment shall be considered as one shipment, and, in lieu of a bill of lading therefor, the publisher of such newspaper shall file on or before the fifteenth day of each month with the collector of internal revenue for the district in which such newspaper is published a report under oath showing the number of such shipments during the preceding month, to which report such publisher shall affix and cancel stamps equal in value to 1 cent for each shipment so reported: Provided further, That the report herein required shall not include shipments of newspapers delivered to points within the county in which the same are published. Any failure to issue such bill of lading, manifest, or other memorandum, as herein provided, shall subject such railroad or steamboat company, carrier, express company, or corporation or person to a penalty of $50 for each offense.

Telegraph and telephone messages: It shall be the duty of every person, firm, or corporation owning or operating any telegraph or telephone line or lines to make within thirty days after the expiration of each month a sworn statement to the collector of internal revenue in each of their respective districts, stating the number of dispatches, messages, or conversations originated at each of their respective exchanges, toll stations, or offices, and transmitted thence over their lines during the preceding month for which a charge of 15 cents or more was imposed, and for each of such messages or conversations the said person, firm, or corporation shall collect from the person paying for the message or conversation a tax of 1 cent in addition to the regular charges for the message or conversation, which tax the said person, firm, or corporation shall in turn pay to the said collector of internal revenue of their respective districts: Provided, That only one payment of said tax shall be required, notwithstanding the lines of one or more persons, firms, or corporations shall be used for the transmission of each of said messages or conversations: Provided further, That the messages or dispatches of the officers and employees of any telegraph or telephone company concerning the affairs and service of the company, and like messages or dispatches of the officials and employees of railroad companies sent over the wires on their respective railroads shall be exempt from this requirement: And provided further, That messages of officers and employees of the Government on official business shall be exempt from the taxes herein imposed upon telegraphic and telephonic messages.

Bond: For indemnifying any person or persons, firm, or corporation who shall have become bound or engaged as surety for the payment of any sum of money, or for the due execution or performance of the duties of any office or position, and to account for money received by virtue thereof, and all other bonds of any description, except such as may be required in legal proceedings, not otherwise provided for in this schedule, 50 cents.

Certificate of profits, or any certificate or memorandum showing an interest in the property or accumulations of any association, company, or corporation, and on all transfers thereof, on each $100 of face value or fraction thereof, 2 cents.

Certificate: Any certificate of damage, or otherwise, and all other certificates or documents issued by any port warden, marine surveyor, or other person, acting as such, 25 cents.

Certificate of any description required by law not otherwise specified in this act, 10 cents.

Contract: Broker's note, or memorandum of sale of any goods or merchandise, stocks, bonds, exchange, notes of hand, real estate, or property of any kind or description issued by brokers or persons acting as such, for each note or memorandum of sale, not otherwise provided for in this act, 10 cents.

Conveyance: Deed, instrument, or writing, whereby any lands, tenements, or other realty sold shall be granted, assigned, transferred, or otherwise conveyed to, or vested in, the purchaser or purchasers, or any other person or persons, by his, her, or their direction, when the consideration or value of the interest or property conveyed, exclusive of the value of any lien or encumbrance thereon, exceeds $100 and does not exceed $500, 50 cents; and for each additional $500 or fractional part thereof in excess of $500, 50 cents: Provided, That nothing contained in this paragraph shall be so construed as to impose a tax upon any instrument or writing given to secure a debt. Entry of any goods, wares, or merchandise at any customhouse, either for consumption or warehousing, not exceeding $100 in value, 25 cents; exceeding $100 and not exceeding $500 in value, 50 cents; exceeding $500 in value, $1.

Entry for the withdrawal of any goods or merchandise from customs bonded warehouse, 50 cents.

Insurance: Each policy of insurance or other instrument, by whatever name the same shall be called, by which insurance shall be made or renewed upon property of any description (including rents or profits), whether against peril by sea or on inland waters, or by fire or lightning, or other peril, made by any person, association, or corporation, upon the amount of premium charged, one-half of 1 cent on each dollar or fractional part thereof: Provided, That purely cooperative or mutual fire insurance companies or associations carried on by the members thereof solely for the protection of their own property and not for profit shall be exempted from the tax herein provided: And provided further, That policies of reinsurance shall be exempt from the tax herein imposed by this paragraph.

Each policy of insurance, or bond, or obligation of the nature of indemnity for loss, damage, or liability issued, or executed, or renewed by any person, association, company, or corporation, transacting the business of fidelity, employer's liability, plate glass, steam boiler, burglary, elevator, automatic sprinkler, or other branch of insurance (except life, personal accident, and health insurance, and insurance described and taxed or exempted in the preceding paragraph and excepting also workmen's compensation insurance carried on by the members thereof solely for their own protection and not for profit), and each bond undertaking or recognizance, conditioned for the performance of the duties of any office or position, or for the doing or not doing of anything therein specified, or other obligation of the nature of indemnity, and each contract or obligation guaranteeing the validity or legality of bonds or other obligations issued by any State, county, municipal, or other public body or organization, or guaranteeing titles to real estate or mercantile credits executed or guaranteed by any liability, fidelity, guarantee, or surety company upon the amount of premium charged, one-half of 1 cent on each dollar or fractional part thereof: Provided, That policies of reinsurance shall be exempt from the tax herein imposed by this paragraph.

Passage ticket, for each passenger, sold in the United States for passage by any vessel to a foreign port or place, if costing not exceeding $30, $1; costing more than $30 and not exceeding $60, $3; costing more than $60, $5: Provided, That such passage tickets, costing $10 or less, shall be exempt from taxation.

Power of attorney or proxy for voting at any election for officers of any incorporated company or association, except religious, charitable, or literary societies, or public cemeteries, 10 cents.

Power of attorney to sell and convey real estate, or to rent or lease the same, to receive or collect rent, to sell or transfer any stock, bonds, scrip, or for the collection of any dividends or interest thereon, or to perform any and all other acts not hereinbefore specified, 25 cents: Provided, That no stamps shall be required upon any papers necessary to be used for the collection of claims from the United States for pensions, back pay, bounty, or for property lost in the military or naval service.

Protest: Upon the protest of every note, bill of exchange, acceptance, check, or draft, or any marine protest, wh、ther protested by a notary public or by any other officer who may be authorized by the law of any State or States to make such protests, 25 cents.

Every seat sold in a palace or parlor car and every berth sold in a sleeping car, 1 cent, to be paid by the company selling the same.

Conveyances.

The tax under section 5 on a deed executed by a referee appointed in an action to foreclose a mortgage is not a tax on the State's exercise of its governmental functions, as the tax is on the business transaction involved in the purchase of the land and its transfer to the purchaser, and the transfer is in its nature the same as any transfer from one individual to another. (Home Title Ins. Co. of New York v. Keith, 230 Fed. 905, 1916.)

Revenue stamps of the proper amount must be attached to a deed executed by a master in chancery or other court officer empowered by a Federal court to make a sale of land and execute a conveyance, as a master appointed for such purpose performs no judicial function, and the tax is not imposed on a proceeding by the court but on the litigants. (Crawford v. New South Farm & Home Co., 231 Fed. 999, 1915.)

Powers of attorney.

While this section does not apply to a warrant of attorney authorizing an attorney at law to appear in an action on behalf of the maker, it does apply to powers of attorney generally, distinguished from warrants of attorney, in that they authorize laymen to act as attorneys in fact; and hence a general letter of attorney, authorizing the appointee to act for the signer in bankruptcy proceedings must be stamped.

The imposition of a stamp tax on certificates of any description required by law, not otherwise specified in the act does not render a certificate which is required to enable some officer of the court to exercise his functions, or to do some act connected with the administration of the government liable to tax, but certificates required of such officers by private persons are liable to such tax; and hence a referee in bankruptcy properly refused to certify an order approving the bond of the trustee, unless an internal revenue stamp was attached thereto. (In re Hawley 220 Fed. 372, 1915.)

Powers or letters of attorney authorizing attorneys to represent creditors in bankruptcy proceedings, vote for a trustee, etc., must bear an internal-revenue stamp, and, even if such powers or letters of attorney are unnecessary, when they are executed and presented, they are not exempt from the stamp tax. (In re Capitol Trading Co., Inc., 229 Fed. 806, 1916.)

Insurance policies.

A mutual fire insurance company, organized under the law of Ohio, without capital stock, and insuring property only of its members, is within the exemption of the act of October 22, 1914, and not subject to the stamp tax on its policies imposed thereby, although under the State statute it may and does charge a cash premium in advance, and maintains a reserve, on which it incidentally earns interest. (Niles v. Central Manufacturers' Mutual Ins. Co. and Same v. Ohio Underwriters' Mutual Fire Ins. Co., 252 Fed. 564, 1918.) Sales on exchange.

Where offers were made to sell grain subject to deferred acceptance, only a small percentage of which developed into sales and on which the brokers received only $10 for each 10,000 bushels sold, the tax is based on the total price for which the seller agrees to sell, not merely on the basis of what the broker is to receive, since on the latter basis no tax would be due on the great majority of the offers and only a small amount on the largest of them, and, if that basis. were to apply to offers, it should apply also to sales and agreements of sale which would lead to an absurdity.

This section imposes a tax on each sale or agreement to sell any grain, though during the day several separate sales are made of the same lot of grain or parts thereof and at the close of the day the only memorandum made shows the transfer from the original seller to the last buyer or buyers, since to hold otherwise would be to permit the parties by their own action to relieve themselves from liability for the tax after it had accrued. (Calkins v. Smietanka, 240 Fed. 138, 1917.)

SECTION 22, SCHEDULE B-PROPRIETARY STAMP TAX.

SCHEDULE B.

Perfumery and cosmetics and other similar articles: For and upon every packet, box, bottle, pot, phial, or other inclosure containing any essence, extract, toilet water, cosmetic, vaseline, petrolatum, hair oil, pomade, hair dressing, hair restorative, hair dye, tooth wash, dentifrice, tooth paste, aromatic cachous, or any similar substance or article, by whatsoever name the same heretofore have been, now are, or may hereafter be called, known, or distinguished, used, or applied as perfumes or as cosmetics, and sold or removed for consumption and sale in the United States, where such packet, box, bottle, pot, phial, or other inclosure, with its contents, shall not exceed at the retail price or value the sum of 5 cents, one-eighth of 1 cent.