The Bennington banner. [volume] (Bennington, Vt.) 1858-1894, 1889-08-01
DUTY ON CANADIAN CARS.


A Decision by the Treasury Depart
menI That Will Cause EmbRrTass
A,nenI to Vermont Railroads, II Bn'
gced.
Nv York Herald had despatch
hington, Saturday, which, al
enied, we give as showing a
ituation 1.-THE decision will
he opinion rendered by the
OF the Treasury that these cars
Iay duty, except when transport
hadian goods into this country.
IN 20 back into Canada loaded. or
they seek to enter this country empty
4 to obtain return freights, they will be
Asubject to duties.
They will probably be classed as car,
rIsges and charged at the rate Of thirty
five Der cent. ad udloren. New treasury
regulations will probably be made to
prevent loaded cars which enter this
country free Of duty from being de-
tanned here for use in domestic traffic,
This decision will be far-reaching in its
effects upon international traffic and
especially upon the business Of New
England. or course no Canadian cars
will pay the duty of thirty-five per cent.
Il would be many times the cost Of the
freight charges, amounting in the case
Of freight car costing $1,000 to $3.50,
and on passenger car costing $4,000
to $500. II there is no retaliation on
the part Of the Canadian Government
the difficulty can be partly met by using
cars OF American build in international
traffic. They can go and come at will
go long as the Daminion authorities are
disposed to permit it.
THE decision, which will be applied
10 passenger coaches as we'll as freight
cars, will cause embarrassment to Amer
leans visiting Canada and to shippers OF
freight into Canada and from New Eng
land ~ the West by way Of the Canada
Southern and Grand Trunk railways"
Later advices say there have been diff
ferent reports from Washington relative
to the decision upon imposing a duty
upon Canadian cars. The New York
Herald states that such duty is to be
imposed. A dispatch from Ottawa, Ont,
states that Mr.. Bowtell, Minister OF Gus
toms, when shown the New York Her
AIDS special from Washington regarding
duty to be imposed on Canadian cars en-
terIng the United States, said that he
did not believe there was one word OF
truth in the statement as given. he
said that there had been for long time
an understanding by which Canadian
cars, loaded, could enter the United
States and return direct to Canada, and
uicc Versa as regards American cars 10
Canada, but that the regulations which
governed this reciprocal arrangement
had been exceeded on both sides the line
by allowing foreign cars to do local car.
rying from one Canadian point to anoth'
er or, as regards Canadian cars, from
one United States point to another. Ii
the United States Government contem-
plated taking any action in the direction
OF imposing duty on Canadian cars, he
believed it would only be with view to
preventing the cars Of one country en-
teriDg into the local carrying trade OF
the other. This privilege, he says, has
been enjoyed equally by both Canada
and the United States. To apply the
principle of imposing duty on freight
and passenger cars entering the United
States from Canada, as outlined in the
Herdld'S report, Mr.. Bowtell says, would
be tantamount to preventing or termI
mating commercial intercourse between
the two countries, except by tranship-
ping on the border. The Minister de-
clined to give an opinion as to what &C.
ton the Government would take if the
United States Government adopted the
policy outlined in the dispatches.