Nix v. Hedden Supreme Court of the United States Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Decided May 10, 1893 Full case name: Nix et al. v. Hedden, Collector. Citations: 159 U.S. 417 (1895); 156 U.S. 601 (1895); 151 U.S. 171 (1894); 149 U.S. 304 (1893) Prior history: Subsequent history: Holding That a tomato is legally a vegetable, not a fruit. Court membership Chief Justice: Melville Weston Fuller Associate Justices: Samuel Blatchford, David J. Brewer, Henry B. Brown, Stephen J. Field, Horace Gray, John M. Harlan, Howell E. Jackson, George Shiras, Jr. Case opinions Majority by: Stevens Joined by: Blatchford, Brewer, Brown, Field, Fuller, Harlan, Jackson, Shiras Dissent: None. Laws applied Tariff act of 1883

Nix v. Hedden, Court citation: 149 U.S. 304 (1893), was a case decided by the United States Supreme Court to address the issue whether a tomato was classified as a fruit or a vegetable under the tariff act of 1883. 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 York, to recover back duties paid under protest. Botanically a tomato is a fruit. However, the court unanimously ruled 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. May 10 is the 130th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (131st in leap years). ... 1893 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Melville Weston Fuller (February 11, 1833–July 4, 1910) was the Chief Justice of the United States between 1888 and 1910. ... Samuel Blatchford (March 9, 1820–July 7, 1893) was an associate justice of the United States Supreme Court from April 3, 1882 until his death. ... David Josiah Brewer (January 20, 1837-March 28, 1910), was an American jurist. ... Henry Billings Brown (born South Lee, Massachusetts March 2, 1836 - died Bronxville, New York September 4, 1913) was a Republican United States Supreme Court justice from January 5, 1891 to May 28, 1906. ... Stephen Johnson Field (November 4, 1816 – April 9, 1899) was an associate justice of the United States Supreme Court from May 20, 1863, to December 1, 1897. ... Horace Gray (March 24, 1828-September 15, 1902) was an American jurist. ... John Marshall Harlan John Marshall Harlan (June 1, 1833 – October 14, 1911) was an American Supreme Court associate justice. ... Howell Edmunds Jackson (April 8, 1832–August 8, 1895) was an American jurist and politician. ... Categories: People stubs | U.S. Supreme Court justices | American lawyers | 1832 births | 1924 deaths ... Court citation is a standard system used in common law countries such as the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia to uniquely identify the location of past court cases in special series of books called reporters. ... 1893 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Seal of the Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest federal court in the United States of America. ... Binomial name Solanum lycopersicum L. The tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is a plant in the Solanaceae or nightshade family, native to South, Central America and Mexico. ... Fruit stall in Barcelona, Spain. ... Vegetables in a market Vegetable is a nutritional and culinary term denoting any part of a plant that is commonly consumed by humans as food, but is not regarded as a culinary fruit, nut, herb, or spice. ... A tariff is a tax placed on imported and/or exported goods, sometimes called a customs duty. ... State nickname: Empire State Other U.S. States Capital Albany Largest city New York Governor George Pataki (R) Official languages None (English is de facto) Area 141,205 km² (27th)  - Land 122,409 km²  - Water 18,795 km² (13. ... Botany is the scientific study of plant life. ...

The case

At the trial the plaintiff's counsel, after reading in evidence definitions of the words 'fruit' and 'vegetables' from Webster's Dictionary, Worcester's Dictionary, and the Imperial Dictionary, called two witnesses, 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 trade or commerce, different from those read." A plaintiff, also known as a claimant, or a complainant is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an action) before a court. ... The law of evidence governs the use of testimony (eg. ... 1888 advertisement for Websters Dictionary Websters Dictionary is a common title given to English language dictionaries in the United States, deriving its name from American lexicographer Noah Webster. ... The Imperial Dictionary of the English Language - A Complete Encyclopedic Lexicon, Literary, Scientific, and Technological, edited by John Ogilvie (1797-1867), was an expansion of the 1841 edition of Noah Websters American Dictionary. ... This article is about witnesses in law courts. ... A fruit stand at a market. ... This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ...

In their testimony, one witness testified that in regards to the dictionary definition that "[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." March 1 is the 60th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (61st in leap years). ... 1883 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ...

Both the plaintiff's counsel and the defendant's counsel made use of the dictionaries. The plaintiff's 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 pea, egg plant, cucumber, squash, and pepper. Countering this, the plaintiff then read in evidence from Webster's and Worcester's dictionaries the definitions of potato, turnip, parsnip, cauliflower, cabbage, carrot and bean. Binomial name Pisum sativum L. A pea is the small, edible round green bean which grows in a pod on the leguminous vine Pisum sativum. ... Binomial name Solanum melongena Solanum esculentum An eggplant or aubergine is either of two species of nightshade, Solanum melongena and , bearing large pendulous purple or white fruit. ... Binomial name Cucumis sativus L. Ref: ITIS 22364 The cucumber is the edible fruit of the cucumber plant Cucumis sativus, which belongs to the gourd family Cucurbitaceae, as do melons and squash. ... Look up Squash in Wiktionary, the free dictionary Squash may refer to: Squash, the fruit of vines of the genus Cucurbita. ... Look up Pepper in Wiktionary, the free dictionary There are several completely different plants referred to by the name of pepper; most are used in food for the hot sensation that the chemical piperine or capsaicin induces on the tongue. ... Binomial name Solanum tuberosum L. The potato (Solanum tuberosum) is a perennial plant of the Solanaceae, or nightshade, family, grown for its starchy tuber. ... Turnip can refer to two vegetables, which are described under the articles Turnip (brassica rapa) and Rutabaga. ... Binomial name Pastinaca sativa L. The parsnip is a root vegetable related to the carrot, which it resembles, although it has a paler color and a stronger flavor. ... Cultivar Group Brassica oleracea Botrytis Group Cauliflower is a variety (Botrytis Group) of Brassica oleracea in the family Brassicaceae. ... Cultivar Group Brassica oleracea Capitata Group The cabbage (Brassica oleracea Capitata Group) is an edible plant of the Family Brassicaceae (or Cruciferae). ... Binomial name Daucus carota L. The carrot is a root vegetable, typically orange or white in color with a woody texture. ... Green beans Bean is a common name for large plant seeds of several genera of Fabaceae (formerly Leguminosae) used for food or feed. ...

The decision

Botanically, a tomato is a fruit. However, in common parlance it is seen as a vegetable, hence the United States Supreme Court ruled that legally, a tomato is a vegetable.

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 Gray in his decision stated that: Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1712x1368, 457 KB)Tomato image from [1]. By 5602 a. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1712x1368, 457 KB)Tomato image from [1]. By 5602 a. ...

"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 tariff 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, botanically, tomatoes are classified as a "fruit of the vine", nevertheless they are seen as vegetables because they were usually eaten as a main course instead of being eaten as a dessert. In making his decision, Justice Gray mentioned another case where it had been claimed that beans were seeds — Justice Bradley, in Robertson v. Salomon, 130 U.S. 412, 414, similarly found that though a bean is botanically a seed, in common parlance a bean is seen as a vegetable. The term vine was originally a term for the plant on which grapes grew, from the word for wine (Greek oinos), for which grapes were grown. ... WINKY DESSERTS!!!!!! ... This article is on the plant. ... This writeup is about biological seeds; for other meanings see Seed (disambiguation). ... Joseph Philo Bradley (March 14, 1813 – January 22, 1892), 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. ...

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, 159 U.S. 417 (1895); Saltonstall v. Weibusch & Hilger, 156 U.S. 601 (1895); and Cadwalder v. Zeh, 151 U.S. 171 (1894)). 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 Dickens relates, ate his chops in 'tomata' sauce."

The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, better known as The Pickwick Papers, is the first novel by Charles Dickens. ... Charles Dickens used his rich imagination, sense of humour and detailed memories, particularly of his childhood, to enliven his fiction. ...

See also

• Carrot – defined to be a fruit in European Community law, for the purpose of jam classification
• Toy Biz v. United States – decided that action figures of certain superheroes are legally toys, not dolls
• List of United States Supreme Court cases

Binomial name Daucus carota L. The carrot is a root vegetable, typically orange or white in color with a woody texture. ... The European Union is unique among international organizations in having a complex and highly developed system of internal law which has direct effect within the legal systems of its member states. ... Jam from berries Jam is a type of fruit preserve made by boiling fruit with sugar to make an unfiltered jelly. ... Toy Biz v. ... Superman (left) and Batman, two of the most recognizable and influential superheroes. ... Green Razor Scooter This article is about things that people play with. ... A doll is a model of a human (often a baby), a humanoid (like Bert and Ernie), an animal or a fictional character (like a Troll or a Smurf), usually made of cloth or plastic. ... This is a chronological list of notable cases decided by the Supreme Court of the United States. ...

References

Wikisource has original text related to this article:

Nix v. Hedden

• Wu, Steven. Legal Ramblings: Random cases--amusing legal tidbits. December 6, 2002.