The daily gazette., 1875-04-01
From the Philadelphia Times.
The SDtmgOlers of Philddeiphia.
HOW TRADE AND THE GOVERN
MEN L ARE DEFRAUDED.

THE SMUGGLING OF CLOTHING FROM
EURopE-ANNUAL REVENUE FRAUD
OF 100000. ...
When one of our most prominent
citizens was detected recently in eva
ding the revenue laws, he is said to
have excused his attempts at petty
smuggling by saying that Everybody
did it," Perhaps the remark was truer
than even he suspected. The snug
Cling carried on in respectable "
way by the wealthier classes of our
population is something that, being
now simply estimated, is of alarming
proportions, and, accurately known,
would be astounding. We propose to
show, as an illustration of the manner
in which the Government is defrauded
of certain class of customs duties
and our merchants robbed of trade
which belongs to them by every prin-
ciple of justice and honesty, the ex-
tent to which smuggling is carried on
in single branch of business, and the
class of citizens by whom it is practised.
For a number of years past the mer-
chant tailors of Philadelphia have COM
planned of uniform decrease in the
patronage of their most wealthy Gus
toners. The decline was not attribu-
table to any peculiar condition of trade
in general, the stringency of the money
market or differences in tailors' prices,
forsthose upon whom the trade depend
ed most for support were least likely
to be affected by these causes. And
yet economy was really the main mo-
tive fhatr onnaoroA
well-dressed as hitherto, though wear
ing nothing of American workman
ship. The solution of the matter was
and is simply this, that they had trans
ferred to English tallors the trade which
formerly was bestowed at home. They
did not seek London establishments be
Ecausc of their finer workmanship or
better material The work of our own
tailors has always been unsurpassed by
anything of European Manufacture,
aud our importations have been in
every respect the best fabrics that
foreign mills could produce. More
than this, the best work of London
tailors had frequently to be altered by
our own cutters. The reason, if not
then easy of discovery, is perfectly
clear now. By eluding the vigilance
of the customs officers it is possible to
purchase clothing at about fifty per
cent. less in England than Philadelphia
tailors can afford to sell it, The fact
is worthy of elaboration. A fine suit
of clothes cannot be made to order by
any first class Philadelphia tailor for
less than seventy or eighty dollars
The same suit would cost, in London
or Paris, not more than forty dollars
Welding, at the same time, q larger
profit to the maker. Theis difference
is made up in the following way, it
being remembered that, in the most re-
cent revision of the tariff laws, the du-
ties on clothes intending to he the
most prohibitory: Ad valorem 30 per
en- t.; per pound, so cents; consul fees,
insurance, transportation to Liverpool,
ocean freightage, brokerage, carriage,
aggregating rs to 100 per cent. The
duties on ready-made clothing, togeth-
er with other charges attendant upon
its importation, very nearly equal
those upon the raw material, so that
it would be impossible for private
citizen to purchase his clothing from
an English tailor, by order, to any ad
vantage. But the methods Of evading
tno payment Oh uutleS oh Soou Vi Ihie
character are numerous and easy oil
adoption. ...
A prominent Chestnut street mer-
chant states that one of his customers
gentleman widely known in this city
and Stete, and generally esteemed
the recipient recently Of an offer from a
famous London house to fill his orders
and deliver clothing in this city at pre-
cisely the same rates which. they charg:
ed in England, and similar proposal
from Montreal (Canada) firm To dc
this, recourse must be had to smuggling
This, as wo have said, may be accomp
lished in many ways; but the most fash
ionable is that ,practised by the Europe