The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1896-09-05
NEW SUGAR REGULATION
United States Treasury department
Issues New Order.
Relates 10 Determining Value Of Raw Sugars
al United States Custom
Houses.
TREASURY DEPARTMENT.
Office of the Secretar,

To Collectors and other Officers of the
Customs:
The attention of chief officers OF GUS
toms is hereby called to the following
decision of the United States Circuit
Court for the southern district of New
York, January Eth. 1896, in the trial of
the United States from the the decision
of the Board of General Appraisers,
July goth, 1895, regarding the CLASH
ication of certain sugars imported per
steamship Yumuri by the American
Sugar Refining Company:
This importation is of sugar, en-
tered on the invoice as Basis 81 deg
with memorandum attached, becom-
ing a part of the invoice, stating it as
Purchased at 114c. per Spanish pound
net, basis 81 deg. average, 1-32c. per
pound to be added for each degree
above 81 deg. test, or Lice. per pound
to be deducted for each degree below
81 deg. test, fractional of a degree pro
rata
This meant, and was understood at
the custom house to mean, a polari-
scopic test, such as in use there, and
that the price was to vary according
TO the quality as should be shown by
the test agreeably to the memorandum.
1t tested considerably above 81 deg,
and the appraised value was more than
10 per cent. above the price of 1 &c.
per pound and much less than that
above the price according to the test
and the memorandum. The Govern
ment claims that this is an underval-
uation of more than 10 per cent, and
CHI no
posed for it as such under section of
the Administrative Custom Act OF 1890.
Invoices must show the actual cost of
goods purchased for Importation, which
becomes the value declared in the entry,
if not raised by the importer, and the
additional duty is imposed only in cases
of 10 per cent. above this value.
The act does not require that the
actual cost be stated in any sums total,
nor prohibit stating it by reference to
prices of measurable quantities or quail
tiles, but only that it shall somehow be
stated. Now this actual cost, as sta
ted in the body of this invoice, was not
1Hc. per pound in quantity only, but
at 81 deg. in quality, as a basis, also.
The memorandum added the variation
in price by the quality. The price by
quality was as ascertainable as we'll as
aScertained as that by quantity; and
both together made the actual cost of
the purchase, without question as to
the correctness of either. This was
the entered value below which the col
lector would have had no right to go
if the appraised value had been less;
and above which the appraised value
must be reckoned to find the 10 per
cent. As the appraised value did not
reach 10 per cent. above this entered
value, no liability for any additional
duty on that account arose. "Judg-
ment affirmed"
.-Appraisement.-T above decis-
ion establishes the rule under which
appraisements of raw sugars and liqui-
dation of entries covering the same
shall hereafter be made.
lin conformity with section ID Of
the Administrative Act, the appraiser
shall ascertain, estimate, and appraise
the actual market value and wholesale
price of sugar, at the time of eXporta-
ton to the United States, in packed con-
dition, in the principal markets of the
country whence the same has been i'm
ported.
III.-The appraiser shall also de-
scribe the character of the sugar for
shall report to him the degree of polari-
scope test actually found by him on
appraisement and the market value OF
the sugar on such test.
IV.-The regulation as to the sam
pling and appraisement of sugars are
hereby extended to apply to all i'm
ported sugars on arrival. In case no
entry is made of sugars thus sampled
and appraised, careful record should be
kept of all the facts of each case, and
the return of the appraisement shall
be the basis of liquidation, should en-
try be made subsequently. Whenever |
any sugars shall have been entered |
for transportation to another port, |
either in bond or otherwise, a report of !
the facts found on appraisement shall
be transmitted to the collector at the |
port of destination.
V.-The additional sample" pro- |
vided for in paragraph SO of the regu- |
lations issued May 18th, 1895 Synopsis |
16O45) shall, without delay, be marked |
and kept in safe custody. In the case
of sugars of low grade. or those con- |
tanning sand, additional reserved sam |
pies should be kept, so as to provide |
for additional tests, should the ap-
praiser find them desirable, in order |
to arrive at an average test by which |
to determine the true grade of sac |
charine strength. The appraiser shall |
report to the importer the |
degree of saccharine strength which he !
finds on examination OF the first sam |
pie. Should the importer, within two
official days after such notice has been |
mailed to him by the appraiser, claim |
an error in the reported test and re
quest report of test on the reserved !
such test may be made, and |
the appraisers return may then be
made according to the result Of such |
second test. and his return shall, in
either case be held to be the date OF
appraisement. and the test returned by
the appraiser shall be held to be the