The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1851-07-24

To the Collectors and other Omcers OF the
Customs
TaEAsURY DEPAarMENr, july l6. ISL.


imported into the United States shall be verified
by the oath Of the owner thereof. Where the goods
are owned by parties residing in the United States,
this oath is taken before the collector the time of
entryj and where they wholly belong to person
or persons not residing at the time in the United
States, the invoice is required to be verified by the
path of the owner. to be administered by a consul
or commercial agent Of the United States, or by
some public officer duly authorized 10 administer
oaths in the country where the goods are pur-
chased; in the latter case, the certificate Of the
public officer who administered the oath must be
authenticated by consul or commercial agent of
the United States in the port from which the goods
are imported. If there be no consul or CONNER
cial agent of the United Staes in the country from
whence the goods may be imported, the authenti-
cation OF the invoices may be executed by con-
sui Of nation at the time in amity with the Uni
ted States il there be any such residing there II
there be no such consul, then the Authorization
may be made by two respectable merchants re-
siding at the port from whence the goods are i'm.
ported.
In addition to the fact that SO great a number of
the invoices of goods shipped the United States
by or for account Of non resident merchants ira
ders, and manufacturers, come forward unaccom-
panied by the needfu consular certificates re-
quired by law, the Department has positive infor
nation which leads TO the belief that this is reg
ular system with many of the foreign owners, with
view the better to enable them TO have their goods
entered, and the duties assessed, on an underyalued
invoice, which ID sworn to by their agents in the
United States, who are really ignorant of the true
cost. The parties thus also avoid the risk which
would follow from allowing the reduced value at
which the goods may be invoiccd to be known to
~ at he s III A
cases, would at once the fraud, and whose duty
it would be to put his guard the collector at the
port of destination.
Heretofore all the cases, where the consular
certificate has been accidentally or designcdly
omitted with the invoices for foreign account, have
been referred to the Department, which has, as a
matter of course, admitted them to entry upon Civ
ing the usual bond for the production of said
tifcate within certain limited PERIOD according
to the defiance of the port of shipment. The De-
partment has ascertained that in some of the prIn-
cpal ports of entry these bonds have been consid-
cred too much as a mere form; and, except where
the parties have voluntarily produced the certif-
Gates at those ports, no demand has been made up
on them, and the bonds remain on file uncan-
celled This has, OF course, induced those foreign
owners who have habtually sent forward their
goods without the needfu certificates, to continue
the prac tce, until the evil has become 90 general
and extensive as to render il necessary TO adopt
vigorous measures to check and destroy it,
In the circular from this Department of 7th
April, 1851, to American Consuls and Commercial
Agents, which has been generally published in the
public journals of the United States and which the
consuls abroad were instructed to make public of
the places of their respective residences notice was
given Of the intended change Of action by the De-
partment on this subject after a reasonable delay
The time for this change, the Department thinks,
has now arrived, and the collectors are therefore
requested and instructed to observe and enforce the
following rules on the subject:
In all future importations of merchandise for ac-
count Of n-residcnt owners, where the invoices
are not accompanied by the consular certificates
required by law, the goods must be sent to the pub
lie stcreRi there to remain at the expense and risk
of the until the certificate shall be produced;
and no bonds will be taken, as heretofore, for the
production of such certificates
When, however, any such goods are Of a perish.
able nature, what called fancy or s.seasona-
bao'' goods, where the aale would be materially
injured by delay, the Department, unIess there is
obvious evidence of intended fraud, on report of
the facts by the importer, certified to by the COL
lcctor, will admit them to entry on such terms as
the facts and circumstances Of each case respective
ly may render necessary and proper.
Some Of the foreign shippers and manufacturers
in the habit of sending a consular certificate
attached to a general invoice of goods, part of
which only come in the vessel with the certificate,
and the balance being intended for future ship
mont by subsequent vessel or vessels; and in many
instances, as the Department ia advised, such
goods are not even manufactured at the time the
invoice is dated and the certificate granted In
future, no such certificate is to be respected, ex-
cept for the goods which actually accompany il;
and any other portion of the invoice which may
come by other subsequent vessels will be treated
being without consular certificates, unless there
be a distinct and separate one for the goods by
each vessel.
In all cases where bonds heretofore given for the
production of consular certificates remain uncan-
cel!ed, and the time for producing them has ex-
pired, the parties are to be notified, in writing, TO
pay the amount of such uncancelled bonds; and ,
failure to do SO within thirty days after
such notice, they will be Immediately put into
suit.
Should there be any Of theec cases where the
collector thinks, from peculiar circumstances, fur
Their time should b. granted for the production of
the certificate, the Department, on a presentation
Of the facts of the case, will take such cases into
CONSIDERATION, ana, II the circumstances Will war
rant it, will grant the additionatime required, I'M
der such terms nd conditions as it may think adj
visable and just to exact.
You will use every diligence to prevent the en-
try of merchandise the property of residents
where it may be for foreign account, and whenever
you may detect deception fraud in entering
goods without the oath of the real owners, you will
enforce the utmost penalty of the law against the
offending parties.
The consuls and commercial agents will be re-
qucsted hereafter either to make their certificate
upon the invoice itself, to give such details
where it is attached as separate document, as to
the names of the shippers consgnees, vessels, and
captains, the nature of the merchandise, and the
total amount, as will fully identify the invoice
ncxed; instead of giving, as heretofore their cert
fcates in such general terms to admit of the de-
ception, which the Department is informed has
been practised, of substituting another invoice in
place of the one for which the certificate was orr
ginally issued.
BY the habit, which has generally prevailed,
of virtually dispensing with the oath of the nom
resident of foreign merchandise, these latter
have possessed an undue advantage over the resi-
dent importers of the United States. just regard