The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1850-09-28
Frauds on tho Revenue.

The report which we published yesterday of
the Secretary of the Treasury demonstrates
that the Committee of Ways and Means acted
unadvisedly or improvidently in reporting that
it is inexpedient to legislate on the subject of
the Tariff. 1t is difficult to believe that they
should have been aware Of the frauds that are
so largely practised upon the revenue, in spite
of all the efforts of the Department, and still
refuse to adopt consider any measure of re-
medal legislation. 1t is not reasonable to sup
pose that the Locofoco members from Connec-
ticut, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and other States are
inclined to tolerate and acquiesce in these as
certained frauds, without making an effort to
arrest them; and yet such is distinctly the effect
of their votes. They say substantially, though
not in SO many words, that it is better that the
foreign imp orters should continue to defraud
the revenue, than that domestic industry should
be incidentally relieved by the requisite legis-
lation.
1t appears from the report Of Mr.. CoRwIN,
that from the first establishment of the new sys-
TEN, unusual apprehension was felt that, under
the change from specific duties to duties levied
upon the foreign value of imported merchandise,
there would be great temptation to the commits
sion of frauds by differentiation in invoices and
entries. On this ground the Treasury circular
of the 18th November, lS4S, was issued, adj
vising the officers of the customs TO guard espe-
cially against this description of fraud lest the
honest merchant and trader should be driven
from the business of importing. In previous
circulars attention had been called TO the pro-
vision of the I'd section of the Civil and Diplo-
matte Appropriation act of the 10th August,
1876, requiring that, in all cases where ad pai-
orem had been substituted for specific duties,
reference should be had to "invoices and values
of similar goods imported in the last fiscal
year, under such general and uniform regula-
tons for the prevention of fraud or undervalua-
ton as shall be prescribed by the Secretary Of
the Treasury"
These instructions were issued in advance
of the operation Of the act, which commenced
on the LIST of December, 1916. BY the 9TH of
July, lS47, it had been found necessary to issue
another circular, with rules and regulations in
regard TO dppraisepaents. 1t had been ascer-
tanned that in some Of the ports the merchant
appraisers estimated the value of the goods at
the date the purchase, however remote, and in
the other ports at the date of the shipment to
the United States. The last mode Mr.. WALK
Err declared to be in conformity with the law
This construction Mr.. WALKER derived from
the clear and emphatic terms Of the proviso of
the 10th section of the act of the Both of Au-
gust, 1912. He said that enormous frauds
would be the consequence Of any other con-
stuction, practised by means Of simulated, fc-
titious. and ante dated purchases, to suit the
period of lowest price. Under such system,
indeed, he said the whoIe importing business
would be thrown into the hands of the dis
honest and fraudulent, throwing the honest and
fair trader entirely out of the market. Such
had been the operation of the system at its very
commencement-the importer shipping in the
name of some remote prior purchaser who had
bought when the goods were much lower in
value, and who received some profit OF price on
the delivery here in compensation Mr.. WALK
Err enjoined the utmost vigilance upon all the
officers of the customs in detecting all who were
engaged in such fraudulent practices, Selling
and confscating the goods of the offenders, and
subiecting them to all the penalties prescribed
by law.
All these efforts were Intellectual TO prevent
the mischief, and fraudulent invoices continued
to multiply. Mr.. WALKER issued new circu-
lars, with more stringent instructions, in July
and December, l648. In the latter Of these,
he instructed the regular appraisers and the
merchant appraisers, whenever they found it
necessary to guard against fraud or underval-
uation, to carry into effect the provisions of the
I'd section of the act Of the 10th August, 1876,
as enforced by the circular instructions Of that