The Brookhaven leader., 1889-10-24
IMPORTANT RULING.
Secretary wIndom Will Not Interfere with
the Present Importation of Mexican Ores
Congress Must Decide the Matter.


Secretary Window Will Not Interfere with
the Present Importation of Mexican Ores
Congress Must Decide the Matter.
WASHINGTON, Oct 19.-Secretary Win
dom last n ght made public the long-ex-
recied lead ore d, c sion, in which he sus-
tanned the present classification, that ad-
mi ted argentiferous lead ores imported
rom Mexico free of duty.
The S cretaIy, after rsciting the uni
form doci SONS and prsctice of the DEPART
ment with resuett to The classification Of
these ores since leS', says: THE Cu.iable
or nom dutiable charLc er of thcs, ores
was the subject of an investiga-
tion by the judiciary Committee OF
the Senate, who reported on July
5, 1873 in effect that ores OF
the character mentioned. namely: ores
containing more lead in weight than
either gold and silver. but more gold or
silver than lead in value-are not in the
opinion Of the committee sui ] ct to duty
under existing law. IL the question pre-
sented were a new one aud had not been
the subject of adm 'nistrative construc-
tion fortified by the opinion of the Ju-
dietary Committee of the Senate. l would
feel at liberty 10 give greater considera-
lion to the weighty arguments which
have been adGuced, tending to estab-
lish the dutiabe character of all
ores of this description containing
lead in app eciable or considerable guam
tity, the more so il it had been satisfac-
torily demonstrated tIat these ores are
not known nor entitled to be known COM
mere ally as ores of silver. 1t not havin 2
been so demonstrated, and it being the
fact that since the original decision ct
1880 on this subject Congress hes re-en.
acted the pre-exsting provisions of the
tariff with reg ard TO lead ores and silver
ores res peciively. i do not feel at liberty
to set aside the existing C assifcation. Ii
must be assumed that The rulings and
pract cs of the department were known
to Congress when it passed the tariff act
of 1883
Il must be held that the designation OF
leai ore and silver ore in the tariff in the
absence of legislative d-finition was thai
of existing decisions that Co ngress in
tended the classification should turn or
the gu ,stion of value and not of quantity
1t is therefore cons idered that this depart
ment is without authority to change the
depar mental and Congressional defini
tion of these ores, and in ia i;h of which
large business interests have been es abb
li,hed.
"rhat Congress did not intend to impose
duty upon the lead which might be found
in the different ores hut only upon suct
ores as were then recognized under tht
decisions of the d apartment as lead ores,
is gathered from the other parts OF the
tariff acts, for in paragraph 1S6 copper
is made dutiable whenever found in ore
and in paragraph 1Jl nickel is also ma de-
dutiable whenever f. und in ore or Other
crude forms In those cases it is clearly
the metal con ntained in the ore which /:
made subject to duty and had the same
form of x2rossion been used in reference
to lie I'd that metal would have been duti.
able at the rate prescribed whenever
found in ore.
Acc cording to we'll settled rules oi
statutory construction this difference IN
the form of expression must be deemed tc
Indicate d fferent legislative intent and
10 limit the authority of the department
TO impose duty in such cases to the ore
itself under existing rules of classified
tion. l consider. therefore. that the pres
ent classification has attained the force
of Congressional enactment, and that
change, If desired, mu be
sought in Congressional Intervention.
If. however, ores of this description
are i'm ported, which are distinctly known
as lead ores in the legal and commercial
sense they would as such be du'iable. 1t
is deemed advisable in this connection to
enjoin upon customs Off :eis a sE.ct en-
forcement of the regulations Of this de-
partment intended to correct abuses which
formerly existed in the methods If entry,
sampling and classification of ores of the
character mentoneip