Riley

Plaintiff is engaged in the manufacture and sale of industrial alcohol, including ethyl alcohol which may be thereafter denatured and rendered unfit for beverage purposes, but which prior thereto, can be used for beverage purposes. In November, 1935, plaintiff sold a manufacturer of flavoring extracts 54 gallons of ethyl alcohol in a steel drum. The purchaser intends to use it solely for the. manufacture of flavoring extracts unfit for beverage use and is not licensed to manufacture or deal in alcoholic beverages. At the time of this sale, defendants, representing the state board of equalization, demanded that the plaintiff pay an excise tax of 80 cents per gallon on the alcohol in said drum, claiming that the same was due under the provisions of the Alcoholic Beverage Control Act. Defendants threatened to seize the drum and destroy the alcohol if payment were not made. Plaintiff then brought- this action to restrain the seizure. Defendants’ demurrer was overruled, and the court granted a temporary injunction, afterwards made permanent, restraining the defendants from attempting to collect the tax or to seize the alcohol. Defendants appealed.

The question raised by this appeal is…