New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1871-06-10
Liability Of Brewers IN Tax

| The Commissioner of Internal Revenue
General Alfred Pleasonton, calls the atten
ton of assessors and collectors to the rul
ings at that office relative to the liability O
brewers to special tax, and the tax to be
assessed and collected on fermented liquors
Paragraph seventeen, section seventy
nine, act of June 80, 1864, as amended by
section nine, act of July l3, 1866, provide,
that brewers shall pay 500. Every person
firm, or corporation, who manufactures fer.
mented liquors OF any name or description
for sale, from malt, wholly or in part, or
from any substitute therefor, shall be
deemed brewer; provided, that any per-
son, firm, or corporation who manufactures
less than five hundred barrels per year shall
pay the sum of $50. 1t is believed that all
termented liquors manufactured in this
country for sale are made from malt, or from
some substitute therefor, and it is therefore
held that every person making fermented
liquors of any nature or description is liable
to pay special tax as brewer, and must be
so assessed, whether the liquor produced by
him is subject to tax or not.
Any person claiming exemption from this
| tax by reason OF not using malt or any sub
stitute therefor in making his fermented
liquor, may appeal from the assessment, by
application to this Office to abate the same,
when the question of bis liability will be
carefully examined. Section AZ, act of
July IL, 1866 as amended March 2, 1867,
provides that there shall be paid on ali
beer, lager beer, ale, porter. and other
similar fermented liquors, by whatever
name such liquors may be called, tax of
one dollar for every barrel containing not
more than thirty-one gallons; and at like
rate for any other quantity, or for any
fractional part of a barrel, which shall be
brewed or manufactured and sold, or re-
moved for consumption or sale, within the
United States" All fermented liquors manu-
featured in tins country, so far as known to
this office, are similar termented liquors to
beer, lager beer, ale and porter, and there
fore all fermented liquors brewed or manu-
featured and sold, or removed for consump-
ton or sale, are held to be subject to this
tax, except such as are included in the ex-
emption contained in the act of March 2.
1867, exempting root beer and other small
beer"
This exemption is held to apply only to
such fermented liquors as contain not to ex-
coed two and half per cent alcohol as
root beer, and those beers ordinarily known
as small beer, do not contain exceeding this
percentage of alcohol. Fermented liquors
containing not to exceed two and half per
cent alcohol are not susceptible of being
marketed in large packages, but are neces-
sarily put up In bottles, SO that on open
ing, the quantity exposed 10 the action OF
the air will be consumed before becoming
spoiled. Stronger liquors, susceptible of |
being marketed in casks, are ordinarily |
marketed in that way because of the greater |
expense of bottling. 1t is generally true, |
therefore, that fermented liquors marketed |
In bottles are of less alcoholic strength |
than two and half per cent, and uniformly |
true that that which is marketed in casks |
contains greater percentage of alcohol |
than two and half, and should be subject |
to tax. 1t is possible, of course to put up |
the stronger liquors in bottles for the mar
ket, but an examination of the quality. |
compared with beer known to come within |
the class OF small beers, will enable fine
officer to determine whether it is subject to
tax or not.
All fermented liquors containing more
than two and half per cent alcohol
brewed or manufactured, and sold or re-
moved for consumption or sale, within the
United States, must be put up and stamped
as required by the act of July IL, 1866 and
any person feeling himself aggrieved by
such taxation may make application to this
office to have the same refunded. In this
you are referred to a letter from
this office to Guy r. PeltOn, published in
the Internal Re1enue Record of July %,
1870 tvol. II, page 29), and to letter of
Aprll u, 1871, to +. ID. Sewall, published in
the Record of April %, 1871 (vol. l3, page