TOMATOES ON TRIAL

An 1893 Supreme Court case established whether a tomato was a fruit or a vegetable.

In 1886, Jon Nix, “the produce king of New York,” thought he’d get rich selling tomatoes from Bermuda until a New York Custom House collector demanded a 10% vegetable tax when his goods arrived at the port. Nix argued that tomatoes were fruits (they have seeds and grow from flowers) and therefore weren’t taxable. The collector wasn’t convinced, and Nix had to pay, so he went to court, hoping to change the law—in particular, the Tariff Act of 1883, which taxed goods from other countries that attempted to compete with homegrown items. Metcalf humorously introduces the legal process, describing the proceedings as a “food fight”—a showdown between lawyers on “team vegetable” (the defendants) and “team fruit” (the plaintiffs). Evidence and rebuttals abound, drolly illustrated by Fotheringham in blotted line and color wash. Playful typefaces for onomatopoeia (“SQUISH!” “WHOMP!”) add emphasis as the major figures seek answers to vexing questions: “What makes edibles vegetable?” Do people eat tomatoes as a meal or a dessert? Metcalf overdoes the food-based puns but includes excellent backmatter to help young debaters learn to develop an argument.

An entertaining, lucid look at the judicial process.