The advocate and Topeka tribune., 1893-05-17
in this dispatch were correct, and the
following is the reply:
TREASURY DEPARTMENT,
OFEIoE OF THE COMMISSIONER OF In.
TERNAL REVENUE,

Topeka, KaS:
SIR-I am in receipt of your letter Of the
4th inst, in which you state that, according
TO advioes received on the 22d of April last,
the amount Of tax on bonded spirits held in
distilling warehouses on that date was $122.-
654, 630.7O; and that this Office has refused
to grant an extension of seven months in
which to pay this tax, contrary to it's usual
custom.
In reply to your inquiry as to the correct
ness of these statements, you are informed:
First-That the amount of tax above
stated is approximately correct. It should
be borne in mind, however, that the pay
ment of this tax extends over a period of
three years, and that portion only becomes
due and payable during the ensuing year.
Seoond-Thst this office has recently de-
olined to grant the extension of time above
referred to. The time of payment of suCh
tax is limited by law to three years from the
date Of entry of the spirits for deposit in
warehouse (section 4, sot Of May %, 1880,
21 statute 1857, and as no provision is made
for an extension of that time, this office had
no authority to grant the extension applied
for.
Third-Thst it has not heretofore been the
custom Of this Office TO grant such an extern
sion. Under the provisions of section 1890,
revised statutes, as amended, distilled spirits
remaining in distillery warehouses may be
removed therefrom for export without
payment of tax, under such regulations, and
upon the fling Of such entries, bonds, etc.,
as the commissioner Of internal revenue,
with the approval Of the secretary
Of the treasury, may prescribe. Pur-
suant to this authority, a regulation was
issued in 1885, and bond prescribed, in
which the time for the expectation of the
spirits was fixed at seven months.
Under existing regulations, which have
been in force since October, 1885, the time
is limited to thirty days, and as this time is
found to be amply sufficient in ordinary
cases, the department has also recently de-
Clined to extend the same.
Respectfully yours, G. w. WILSON,
Acting Commissioner.
1t will be seen from this reply that
the amount of tax stated in the dis
patch to be due was substantially
correct, but it will be further OBJ
served that the statement concerning
the custom of the department ito al
low seven months grace" upon the
payment of the tax was an error. In
fact, we inferred that this was an
error at the time the statement sp-
pesred, because the provisions of the
law are such that the distiller may
obtain all the extension he desires
without a grant from the commits
sioner. If the dlstillers are likely to
suffer inconvenience in consequence
of being required to pay this tax,
they have only to avail themselves of
the privilege mentioned in the fore
going letter, the benefits of which
privilege are more particularly set
forth in the following advertisement
of a wholesale liquor dealer:
In 1880 there was an overproduction Of
whiskies all over the United States. The
distillers and wholesale dealers were greatly
embarrassed, their product being permitted
by law to remain in bond only three years.
Congress, in order to relieve their distress
and remedy the difficulty, enacted a law,
permitting the expectation of whiskies TO