The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1842-12-28
nth the returns OF January, 1912 ;
X2.77l,979 2.50t,73G

appesrs from the report Of the Secretary Of the Trea
sury that with the view Of obtaining information in rela-
ton to the warehousing system, circular containing
vera questions sent 10 each Collector OF the Customs
These questions in substance follows:
LIST. Can warehouses be hired by the Governments
Will the storage pay the rents and expenses If there
IS deficiency in the small por will it be made up at the
required What would be the relative effect upon the
trade OF the ger and smaller ports Should the period
OF opposite be limited to one year or indefinite How
will the stem affect the during the first year
Communicate your views Of the system generally.
The these questions from all the ports bear
great similarity. They state warehouses be hired
aud that the storage will pay That additional
officers will be required at each portray from
thirty. That compared with the cash system would
improve trade That the limit for deposite should be
than year, and that in the large ports would de-
the for the first year for the that
cash duties required from all goods imported but
in warehousng large amount Of goods would remain in
first year. and the would be diminished
by the duties such goods The letters containing these
occupy sixty pages of the report. Now IL APP
pears that this hiring of warehouses has already become
matter of speculation among the merchants leading
merchant ofhis city, and ex-msmber Congress with
some friends, building large warehouses in
Brooklyn with the view of this government patronage
In accordance with this plan, the letter of E. Curtis
Esq the Collector of New York. contains the following
gratuitous advice:-
Ihave hesitation in answering this question in the
Affirmative but would suggest the expedency of leav
ing least for the present me the providing stores
private enterprise and allowing each proprietor col
ec from the deposition the amounts due for and labor
This would simplify the system and impose upon the re-
officers other duties than those Of supervision
We will suppose merchant have imported Zoe tons of
iron which he desires place warehouse he selects
any and applies to the Collector permission to
have that store placed upon the list of authorised ware
houses The Collector having ascertsned that it is
convenient situation and Of adequate security grants the
ali s to %
per officer who orderedto superntend the receiving Of
the iron.-
Under this modest proposal the collector would have
the sole authority to appoint the stores to be occupied
which, of course, would be those in which he and his
friends interested and who would charge and collect
such and expenses would unto them good
II the importer found cheaper storage elsewhere order
TO escape imposition the collector might decide that the
cheaper is not ofadequate security Again
merchants import 100 tons of iron EACH
house and the other does The collector decides that
both cargoes shall be ed in the warehouse OF one inn
porter What then will be the result The owner of
the warehouse will charge his rival in trade and
expenses enough to make his iron into market
per less The operation would be precisely
like charging importer, say so per cent duty his
iron, and another 55 per Such system would be
open the grosse voritism and the greatest abuses
memorial Of the New York Chamber of Commerce
recommends also the issuing Of warehouse warrants or
storage receipts basis of credit These dock war
rants, as they called in London far from having
favorable effect the Chamber imagnes, would afford
greater facilities for Cutting the markets with unsaleabe
goods. than did the auction paper system II is well
known fact that former years. when the paper system
was in full blast, and every person who called himself
obber could discounts to an, extent for the pur-
chase OF goods large amounts Of the surplus manuac-
lures Of Lancashire the sweepngs of the market after all
other countries had been supplied sent here and sold
at auction with very little regard to price, The auction
GERS and obber paper ground through the banks were
the instruments by which those goods were conver,ed
into cash In times Of disasters among the msnufacurr
that plan of raising money freely adopted If nov,
dock warrants should become available security ar
convertible into cash, the manufacturers could obtain
from the community, on these warrants, the same ad
vances unsaleable goods which they formerly did
through auconeers' paper OF the banks. This is not
desirable. lis true that importers small means would
receive assistance by making their goods thus available
before they actually sold for consumption bu, the
evils they would experience from the above cause would
more than counterbaance such an advantage.