Los Angeles daily herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1884-1890, 1889-10-19
LEAD ORE DECISION.
ArgentiferOus Lead Ores to Rem a I
ON the Free List.

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ON the Free List.
WASHINGTON, October 18.-Secretary
Window tonight made known his long
expected lead-ore decision, ia which he
sustains the present classification that
admits argentiferous lead ores imported
from Mexico, free of duty. The Secre-
tary in letter promulgating his de-
cision, which was sent to the customs
officers today, after reciting the uniform
decisions and practice of the Department
with respect to the classification Of these
ores since 1880, says: "The dutiable or
non-dutiable character of these ores was
the subject of an investigation by the
Judiciary Committee of the S,nate, who
reported on the 5th OF July, 1888,
in effect that ores of the char
acter mentioned, namely, ores con-
tanning more lead in weight than
either gold oc silver, but more gold or
silver than lead in value, are not in the
opinion of the committee subject to duty
under the existing law. If the question
presented were new one, and had not
struction, fortified by the opinion of the
Judiciary Committee of the Senate, l
would feel at liberty to give greater con-
sideration to weighty arguments which
have been adduced. tending to establish
the dutiable character of all ores of this
description containing lead in appreci-
able or considerable quantities; more SO
if it had been satisfactorily demonstrated
that these ores are not known nor en-
titled to be known commercially as ores
of silver.
ut not having been 80 demonstrated,
and it being fact that since the original
decision of 1880 on this subject, Congress
has re-enacted the pre-existing provisions
of tariff with regard to lead ores and
silver ores, respectively, do not feel at
liberty to set aside the existing classifi-
cation. 1t must be assumed that the
rulings and practice of the Department
were known to Congress when it passed
the tariff act of 1888. II must be held
that the designation of lead ore and
silver ore in the tariff laws, in the absence
of legislative definition, was that
of the existing decisions, that Congress
intended that the classification of such
ores should turn on the question of value
and not of quantity. 1t is therefore con.
sidered that this Department is without
authority to change the departmental
and Congressional definition of these
ores, and in faith Of which large bust
ness interests have been established.
"Thst Congress did not intend to i'm
pose duty upon lead which might be
found in different ores, but only upon
such ores as we're then recognized under
the decisions of the Department as lead
ores, is gathered from other parts of the
tariff act, for in Paragraph 1856, copper is
made dutiable whenever found in ore,
and in Paragraph 1911, nickel is also
made dutiable whenever found in ore or
in other crude forms. In those cases it
is clearly the metal contained IN the ore
which is made subject to the duty, and
had the same form of expression been
used in reference to lead, that metal
would have been dutiable at the rate
prescribed whenever found in ore.
According to we'll settled rules of
statutory construction, this difference in
form of expression must be deemed to
indicate different legislative intent, and
to limit the authority of the Department
to impose duty in such cases to the ore
itself under the existing rules Of classifi-
cation. l consider, therefore, that
the present classification has attained
the force of Congressional enactment,
and that a change, if desired, must be
sought in Congressional Intervention.
If, however, ores of this description are
imported which are distinciively known
as lead ores in the legal and commercial
sense, they would as such be dutiable.
ut is deemed advisable in this con-
nection to enjoin upon the customs off,
GERS strict enforcement of the regula
tions OF this Department intended to
correct the abuses which formerly existed
in the methods of entry, sampling and
classification of ores of the character
mentioned ~