The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1813-08-06
LETTER.
TREASURY DEPARTMENT..

SIR, ,i
The inquiry which forms the basis of
your letter vi the 20th, can only be answer
ed b. the conflict of opinion between the
Secretary OF the Treasury in his letter OF
the eth OF December last. to the honorable
Chairman OF tic committee Of ways and
means, and the person now acting in that
c capacity task OF no ordinary kind.
and which undertake with great defer
Ieuce.
The data for ascerta.nipg the amount Of
duties en- prize goods captured by private
armed vessels since the declar alton of war,
is as imperfect as was then stated, the a.
mount OF duties on prize goods captured by
public rs well as private armed vessels ha-
wing been blended together.
There is, however, satisfactory ground 20
irfer that the amount of duties on prize
goods captured by private armed vessels,
mas rapidly declined aud is certainly at this
time wy inconsi;ierable.
The causes whieh have produced this de
cline p,ay also be subject Of controversy,
in which. though / feel that have the bet
ter cause, apprchend the weaker argu.
ment. 49,
The positions assumed by lha Secretary
| is. that "no part, of the duties on prize
goods. ultimately falls on the captors. The
iduties Oh importatioh35are paid by tue con-
Sumers. whether the merchandise be cap
tured by privateers, or regularly imported
by merchants" To this may answer,
that the inaxim derives more weight irum
the felicity or argument and command
Ing character of The great author Of the
Wealth If Nations" than from the uni
versatility Of the principle.
| 1t IS undoubtedly true in the abstract, but
my experience as merchant has taught
ne TO know the practical value of q max
in derived from an author Of lighter
least
! What is the worth of any thing,
! g But so much money as twin bring ?''
If an article from whatever cause will net
sell tor the amount of duties added to the
cost and other charges whether the impor
tation be made regularly by a merchant in
the usual way, CT in the cost of co. d, ing &
maintaining privateer, the d.ife, ence or
loss will not fall upon he consumer, but IN
ON the importer. This is no uucon m on
case indeed instances are frequent in which
imported artic IS sell for less Ian the prime
cost and charges, exclusive Of the duties -
Who pays the duties in this case The
Iconsumer No !, is paid by the upfortu
nate importer. Were ii otherwise, there
would be no bankruptcies your merch anrs
would have 6Ht ore SIDE to. their profit and
floss account. So These are the accidental
fexceptlons arising from suchsa superaband
anes og q pa+ticUiaT article as i'll sink it
below the prime Cose and cbarres :" and
! this has actually been the case with many
prize importations. Indeed it is said, and
bsleVe with truth, shat i'll some of the
southern ports, the duties aud the charges
OF sale have absorbed nearly the whole. Il
not the whole proceeds
! " The price for expectation IN which ca se
4 NO duty mad ~ fnrnps hut \
exception in chis case, for when you have
little or no export of foreign products, the
benefit Of drawback is lost.
\ Abe Secretary has said, that ga reduc-
fion OF duties will be of no use 10 the priva
teers unless the merchandise -nlinues to
be sold at the same price as If the duties
had not been reduced This is not strictly
the fact. It is we'll known in the ackuck
market that coffee, for inst ance, subj CT TO
rem cents per pound duty and entitled to
drawback, seldom sells for more than four
cents over the price for Consumption, and
this must continue until the excess is very
great or the expectation free, which is not
likely TO be the Case during the war. The
equality Of price approximates as the OBJ
stacles to expectation increase /; and If X
portalion was prohibited, or completely 30
Structed, the equality of price between the
same kind of merchandise. entitled 10 draw
back, or sold for consumption would be ab
solute.
The lower the price of the Asticle. the
lgFsaler The consumption. The American
people, enjoying toe means, indulge their
taste for variety, and habituate themselves
to every kind OF iuxury.--1his produces an
accommodation of taste which chances w,tI,
great facility from the use Of coffee to tea
from brandy to- rum, &c. &c. as abun,
dance or scarcity and price, shall .ndi
| cate.
| The question is rot NOV simply wheth
or II be necessary and pr per to pay fro,,
ti'e Treasury to the privateers bounty
eqoai TO the aeionat OF the reduction OF d1
ties on prize goods :" for there is Ji,erail,-
| now very trlhng amount of duties cotIec
ted on prize goods, and therefore an encour-
agement OF this nature given by government
to private armed vessels, will, If any prjzes
art5ve. bring money into instead OF extract
ING II from the Treasury; aud therefore 50
Tar from the payment Is bounty FOR The
purpose Of encouraging privateers, the 90.
I Veinment will receive an amount Of duties
on prize goods which otherwise would no,
be brought into our ports.
ne SecretarY observes, that elf the ar.
tcie be not worth sending into port after
capture, it must be altogether iupossisle
FOR the importing merchant to pay i,s prime
cost, freight and insurance, and with those
I charges TO import such an article wi.ha,,,
considerable loss" An article NAV not be
worth sending in after capture, in oonse