Alexandria gazette & daily advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1817-1822, 1818-07-14

tia amount in the produce oil il,at Island TO
any part OF the United States to when ne
can procure freight, giving him the ADDRESS
ofb;s correspondents in the dilferer: ports,
| In pursuance Of these orders, a caiso H.,
| Of fruit is shipped (by the hrst ana p on, y,
| vessel to be found) on account OF d. "
New. Orleans, consigned TO Z. al Boston.
The Consignee, on the arrival ot me YES
sci presents himself at the custom-house'
exbibi,s his invoice, and is told that the car.
oo must be sent to the custom-house Stores
and there rpain until he sends the orIsi-
nal invoice ID the owner at New-oreailS:
and produces the " oath and attestatIons
ordained by law. He represents that the
Goods are perishable and require an lmme-
date sale that the delay necessary 10
procure the attestations required, must IN
rolye a total loss OF the property. Inc
collector can make but one reply. my
Office is merely ministerial however hard
the case. tbe law orjains this procedure, y
the acquisitions Of the law must De cor
| piled with" II is asked what is 10 be the
Consequence il the original invoice, SO 20
transmitted, should be lost ? II the mail
in travelling to and from NewIOrieaans'
three thousand miles should be robbed =
{" At the expiration OF four months, the Sc
cretsry of the treasury will take your case
into consideration. In the mean time,
this cargo of fruit is ruined the whole Ca
pital. duties, freight and other charges are
lost. in consequence of law which could
not have been forcseen. and which contrary
TO usage. reason and justice, is carried IN
TO effect from the day of lis passing! Ma,
nv other cases equally oppressive, could
be adduced, where the operation CT the
law is no less visible 10 the most transient
observer.
The 9TH section orlaias, that NO good,
imported and subjec; to duty re-skiPped
and transported coGstuf@, from one DIS
trct TO another, in he original packages,
shall be admitted to an entry in such dis
lrict, unless they shall be accompanied ny
copy Of tie original invoice. sworn TO by
the importer and certified under the seal
of the collector with whom the entry was
first made, and that on their arrival at tie
port Of destination, they shall be subject to
the same inspection, as at tie tire IF tie o.
risinai importation.
1t would require more time than the wri-
ter of these remarks can bestow, to point
cut half the vexatious operations OF tins
ill-adyised law, to the importing merchant,
or the ilnpedieni il offers 20 the prosecution
of that most important branch OF our COM
merce, the trade which has hitherto been
carried on between district aud district,
state and state, and which has been the
great support Of our codStiag navigation
few remarks will suffice.
An importer having gone through all the
inquisitorial process, the sTear!ngs and
screenings enjoined by the 9Th, 9th and
9th sections, at the time Of his importatiors,
gets possession of his goods aud offers
them for sale. .
He disposes, for example, Of cargo o.
Calcutta, or China, or Russia goods, con-
sisting OF several thousand packages. The
purchasers find it more for their interest to
distribute them through the continent in
small parcels, than offer them for sale at
home: they are divided and shipped in
single packages, to Salem, Porismo.lth,
Plymouth, New-Bedford, New-Port, Pro-
violence, New;.York, PhIlade;lPhiia, Bait
more, Alexandra, Norfolk, North Caro!i-
ma, South Carolina, Savannah, New-or-
leans, &c.
In all these cases, (of hourly occurrence
the importer is dragged to the bar OF the
Customs, not only 10 repeat the oaths and
reservations which he had previc!I'i
made, but TO exhibit again and again his o.
riginal invoice, furnish copies to every ap-
plicant, detailing the cost at the. foreign
market, the names Of the shipper, the own
er and consignee-in short, noplace IN pos
session of every one who has occasion to
transport coastwise single package OF his
importations, a revelation OF his private
concerns to disclose the advantages
which. by his research and Intelligence, he
NAV have acquired with great labor and
expense, and TO lay omen TO those who /,
have not the same activity or address, the !
whole arcans OF bis foreign commerce. Ii ,
he is obliged to do this, he has no command |
of his own secret, he has no command OF
his own time-he becomes bond slave ,
he cannot leave the countIy-he cannot
leave the town--he cannot leave his count ,
ing house-he is subject to be called upon |
at every hour in the busiest part Of the
day (the only time when the custom-house !
is OPEN TO undergo the ordeal described !
by law; to make copies Of his invoices
to reiterate his oat:.s and perhaps his |
execrations on the authors OF his pcrsecu.
ton. Ii he refuses 10 comply with these
the whole coasting trade is i'm
peded 4; the goods cannot be transported
from one district 10 another without seizure;
they must be transported by land. or,
however unsuited to the market disposed |
OF al home.
The impositions on the party engaged
in the coastwise trade are no less burthen.
some. He must hunt up the. origin of eve
~ package he wishes 10 transport, trace
il through al! its winaings up to the i'm
porter, or in case be cannot do this, (Which
is often impracticable) he must be de-
prived Of the benefit Of snoth,, market.
Ii he succeeds in discovering the rane
Of the orginalimporter, he may find that
he MS left the cnnnirr hat. l,e is IN a