New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1870-12-30
IN BONDED WAREHOUSE.
The Ten Per Cenrum Additional ON Goods
in Warehouse More Than One Year
Letter from Secretary Boutwell, and

The Ten Per Centum Additional ON Goods
in Warehouse More Than One Year
Letter from Secretary Boutwell, and
His Reply.
WASHINGTON, December a29.-The follow
ing correspondence has just been made
public:
SIR-My attention has been called to your
letter of November ~, 1870, addressed to
Thomas Murphy, Esq, Collector Of the Port
of New York. in which yOu place cor
struction on the twenty-sixth section of the
act of July "a. 1870, to the effect that
nothing in said section Of said act repea]s
the provision Of the first section Of the act
of March Ia. 1866. imposing an additional
duty of ten PER centum Oh the amount Of
duties and charges. to which goods i'll
bonded warehouses were liable under the
act of March Il. 1866, when such goods re-
mained in warehouse after the expiration OF
one yeat from the date OF importation. In
the behalf Of importers. now owners OF
large G4,antities OF Alerchandise III the
United States bonded warehouses at the
port Of New York, l respectfully sub
nit this paper for your consideration.
in the hope that your letter of November
29, 1870. addressed 10 Thomas Murphy, Col
lector, may he revoked; and that your final
decision, and consequent instructions +"
customhOuse officials on the subject. shall
emboly the view SO generally entertained,
viz: That section tWenty-six OF the act OF
July IA, 1870, repcals all duties on merchan-
disc IL bonded warehouse. save the like
duties which the provisions OF the act Of
| July IA, 1870. enacts as liable on all mer-
| chandise imported after said act shall take
| effect. BY an act Of Congress of August y,
| 1916, entitled an act establishing ware
! housing system. etc, it was provided that
goods. wares and merchandise could be de-
| posted. for the period of one year, in
| bonded warehouses before payment OF du-
| ties thereon.
| Section nineteen OF the act OF June 50.
1864, provides:
.tAll goods. wares and merchandise which
NAV be in public stores or bonded ware
| houses on the day and year this act shall
| take effect. shall he subjected to 40. other
| dnty upon the entry thereof for cOnsump-
ton than if the same were imported re-
spcctively after that day
! The act OF March IA. 1866. extended the
| time for the withdrawal of goods from
bonded warehouses for consumption to
| three years, provided that in additional
! duty OF ten per centum Of the amount OF
| assessed duties on the orig fnal entry should
| be paid, with charges, and ten per centum
also on charges on goods that might remain
| in warehouse more than one year from date
OF importation.
| his provision }Of lL.S tNdctlOU u sAU
ditional duty of ten per centum seems to
| have been made as {; consideration due 10
| the government for its continued safe GUS
todv of the goods. but it should also be
| recognized as provision, enacted on "A
tariff o. excessive duties, and at n period
| when commercial interests. affected by ull-
settled finances, gladly seized upon the re-
lief it afforded in the extension OF time with
| in which the duties then fixed by the law
| 1. J, 81 Of I'll L
| 1870, we have to contemplate a readiusted
| schedule of tariff duties, a revised tariff
| and in section twenty-siN OF this revised
tariff act we ind the following explicit
language:
And be it further enacted. That all i'm
| ported goods, wares and merchandise which
may be in the public stores OF bonded
1 warehouses on tie day and year this ac:
shall take effect, shall be subjected to nc
other duty upon the entry thereof for con
sumption than i the same were imported
respectively after that date.
| This it will be observed, is the language
of the act OF June 30. 1864, before quoted;
and no doubt it's trainers intended it to pro
duce a like result. We also find the follow.
ing as the concluding paragraph of section
twentv-six of the act of July IA, 1870:
and all goods, wares and merchandise
remaining in bonded warehouses on the day
and year this act shah take effect, and upon
which the duties shall have been paid, shall
be entitled to refund of the difference he.
tween the amount of duties paid and the
amount of duties said goods, wares and
merchandise would be subject to if the same
were imported respectively after that day.
Now suppose A had paid on the first day
of December 1870. the duties on a case OF
goods, the date of importation OF which We
! will say was December l, 1867. 1t had re
1 in
The duties assessed on the original entry
amounted to $l0O, the charges $40; total
| $40; additional ten per cent on duties and
| charges under the act Of March Ia, 1866
sll; grand total, sl2i. A, however, allows
his case of goods to remain in bonded ware
houses until after the act of July "a, 1870
goes into effect. He then applies for and
obtains, under the provisions of the para
| graph Just quoted. the difference between
the amount of duties his case of goods is
subjected to under the act Of July IA, 1879
and the amount he has paid. Say that. in
stead of the assessed duty, amounting tC
$780, the duty nnder the act of July IA
1870, amounts Ia only $50. A would be en-
titled to q refund of $fl, less the aotua
charges for storage. etc. imported q case
OF goods. duplicate Of As, in December
1868. He does not want TO- or can not, paI
the duties OF his case and leave it in bonde,
warehouse as A has, but leaves it il
bond, duties unpaid, until February /
1871. Under the construction OF th'
department, on section twenty-six Of I'll,
act of July II, 1870, az containe,
in the letter Of November %, 1879, Il
Thomas Murphy, ESD. Collector, II mus
not only pay the eighty dollars duty, fn
which his goods are liable, under the ac, o
July ii, 1870, and charges for storage, etc,
but also ten per centum additional On sait
duties and charges under the act Of Marcel
~, 1866 Ii would seem that the expiici
language in the first paragraph of sectior
twenty-six Of the act of july Ii, 1870, car
only be construed to mean what it so clearlv
states, viz, that all goods in bond the da,
the act goes into effect shall be subjected
Oh withdrawal for consumption, to no othe
duty than if the same were imported Oh tn.
day after the act shall go into effect. IL
other words, it is virtual repeal of tn,
provision of the act Of March IA, 1866. re
lating to the ten per centum duty on goods
in bonded warehouses on the day the act o
July Ii, 1870, shall go into effect.
Trusting that q reconsideration of tht
question submitted will incline the honor
able secretary to reach the conclusion here
| presented, am, very respectfully,
| CHARLES X. CORNWELL.
Hon. George s. Boutwell,. Secretary Of tn
| Treasury.
| TREASURY DEPARTMENT.
| Washington, D. c., December 20, 1870