The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1854-03-13

manufactures OF wool three rates on cotsons three
features of wood &c. &c These di1erent of duty
levied manufactures of the same material il the
of much labor causing doubt and controversy
protest against paying the higher rates Of duty on all
this description of goods and is the constant source Of
litigation Permit to give one or two illustrations OF
the fact Under the existing tariff all blankets
charged with the duty of twenty per centum broad
cloths pilot cloths petershams beaver cloths flushing
&C. Sc with thirty per centum duty To evade paying
thirty per centum most kinds of woolen goods in
tended for clothing and to save ten per cent, the mer
chant directs his agent in Europe to have the coarses
description of coatings-such beaver cloths, pilot
cloths, petershams, fushings duhls, &c-to be manu-
featured in pieces Of four and half yards with dividing
line black mark of half Of inch in width in the
centre, intended to represent pair Of blankets and in
voices them q Mackinaw blankets" and enters the
at twenty per cent, AT OF the ports these
goods have passed the Custom House at twenty cent
while at this port the appraisers have invariably made
their return on invoices of said goods as manufactures
OF wool, liable to thirty per cent duty
Against this decision of the appraisers the importers
protest. and in several instances have brought suits
against the for Of dutyat time
successful and again, in higher court unsuccessful
1t is and has BEEN and viii be long as the present
tariff exists, the fruitful source of litigation.
BY the existing tariff thread aces are made to pay 20
per cent cotton and silk laces 25 per cent and aces
embroidered with needle, 80 per cent and those
of levyng many rates of duty on one artcle-trm-
ming laces-has been the cause Of much unnecessary
controversy protest and litigation Since the passage Of
the present tariff law, machinery has been invented
whereby laces to initiate thread aces in
terial, quality and figure; and the importer claims to
enter them thread laces being invoced SUCH The
officers of the customs taking the ground that this article
not known in at the passage Of the tariff
act of 1885, subject the article to additional duty Of
per cent article manufactured of linen and cotton
The importer appeals protests and IN one instance has
court Thread laces, as you no doubt are aware are
made on cushion with needle, by hand.
great variety Of w0ollens are imported for ladies'
the lining for gentlemen's coaks, invoced
lannes printed in order to save the per cent duty
hannes being liable to only 70 per cent while w0oens
Cotton yelvets taxed 20 per cent veeeens 25 per
cent the consequence is the merchant enters all at the
lowest rate of duty and nearly the two allied in
quality and appearance in many instances that it is diff
ult to draw the line between them
Cotton gloves pay but 20 per cent, while all other
20 Per cent every dozen pair of gloves must be examine
to see if there be embroidery upon them, or silk
wristers mixed with any other material.
Manufactures of WOOL or of which wool shall be q
component material of chief value and manufactures of
metal or Of which metal shall be component material
also is the cause of much difficulty and the source Of
great diversity of practice at the various ports For in
composed of three and four materials viz cotton
silk WOOL and tnsel The difficulty consists in
tanning the material of chief value and matter Of
and cotton fancy vestng paying but twenty per
cent duty analysis has to be made to determine the
relative value and these materials differ in various
styles of vesng, matter of necessity diversity Of
practice will prevail at the different ports and cannot be
remedied except by adopting the bill proposed, or one
assimilating to it.
This difficulty SO far as where wool is the material Of
chief value has been settled by instructions from your
predecessor in Office under date of April H. 1852 by sub
ectng the article to the highest rate of duty chargeabe
either of its component parts whether of chief value
not under the existing provision of the goth section of
the tariff act of 1912 In circular instructions Of the
Treasury Department November 3d. 1853 under the head
of fabrcs metal must constitute the material Of chief
value in order to make the article pay 80 per cenum
and ought wool to be the material of chief value
80 per cent declared in the law of 1S48 and not by
being merely component part, under the goth section
Articles composed of linen and cotton not being spe
ciay provided for in the existing tariff arcsubeced to
the duty of 25 per cent? the duty being assessed the
material paying the highest rate of duty under the Goth
section of the tariff act of 1912 The importers protest
paying Is per cent duty stating in their protests that
the tariff act of 1885, section Sd levies duty Of 90 per
cent all goods not specially provided for and the
manufacture of linen and cotton when combined is not
provided for 20 per cent is all that be justly claimed
The effect of evying different rates of duty and
especially Of different rates Of duty on manufactures Of
the same material the same article, although diff
ferng in material is detrimental both to the int est Of
the and the honest conscientious chant
For instance importer has an invoice of ten cases of
lces he goes to the custom house and makes his entry
laces pays the lowest rate Of duty leaving the ques
ton to be determined by the appraisers they
thread cotton silk embroidered. As the law requires
but package of every invoice and package least
Of every ten packages of goods merchandise to
be sent to the stores for examination and ap
plaifemen the chances are that ahough the one pack
age designated for examination be found to be
recty charged with duty, the nine other package.
liable to twenty five thirty per cent duty. On the
other hand when goods found to be incorrectly enter
cd the merchant is subjected to delay and inconvenience
consequence of the change Of dnty in having to go
second time to the custom house and pay the additional
duty in order to get OF his goods The records
of this Office show that the rate Of duty changed by
the appraisers in three hundrc and eighteen instances
during the last past six months
The diversity Of opinion in relation to the true con-
structon of the law under the existing tariff relative
the proper rate of duty great variety of goods is
not confined to the local officers of the customs but is Of
Ia. lhnnar Nvorv
every change of the administration. Numerous in
stances could be cited where circular instructions have
been reversed-but will suffice, to wit Soon after
the passage of the present existing tariff collectors and
other officers of the customs instructed to charge
thirty per cent linen cambria handkerchefs when
hemstitchcd as heing made up in part by hand, and
twenty per cent when not hemmed embroidered. This
reversed by instructions under date of December 81
1S47, as follows SO Handkerchief pocket although
hcmmed otherwise prepared for USE being articles
carried and not worn, within the meaning of the law to
be entitled TO entry If not tamboured or embroidered at
the appropriate rate of duty according to the component
MATERIAL
Tie above was by instructions of January 49,
1885, follows "a question to the proper classihca
ton under the existing laws of pocket handkerchief
hsmmod or otherwise prepared for use having been re-
Gently submitted to this department it has been decided
after due examination that in view of the evident in
tenton of the law handkerchefs of all kinds to be
considered comprehended in the classification made in
sci edule of the tariff act of 30th July 1846 articles
worn by men, women and children, and consequent
ly liable to the duty of thirty per cent ad valorem"
rec0lcct in one instance Of the decision of the de-
parmen being reversed in the short period of twenty
days.
II is next to impossible TO produce uniformity at the
different ports the opinions of differing both to
the article its uses and to the construction given to the
law WELL even, in instances to the proper
struction of the treasury instructions In fact since
writing the above, two complaints have been made to
for charging greater duty here lace sleeves, so-
machers and cravats by ten per cent than charged in
New York.
To show how differ in opinion in constituting a
law, which TO my mind could not be made more clear
explicit definite and to the point will instance one
Under schedule of the tariff act of 1846 in
regard to embroidered goods the language used is fol-
lows Manufactures of cotton, linen, silk WOOL or
worsed IL embroidered tamboured in the loom 9TH
ervise by machinery with the needle other pro-
cess, thirty per conum ad valorem The local appras
took the ground that the law comprehended all tam
boured and embroidered goods whether manufactured in
the loom by machinery with the needle other process
The board Of general appraisers to whom the nvesiga
ton or the subject Of embroideres committed in the
year 1851 reported to the department that the terms
used in schedule G, amboured embroidered can
only be applied to those fabrics figured ornamened by
the employ mcnt OF needle and ali other tambourei