The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-08-15


parties interested in the question in
volved in section % of the new tariff
act
Some days ago the secretary of the
treasury received information from the
collector of customs at Chicago that q
large invoice of teas and other goods
from japan had been received at thai
port over a Canadian road, and asking
whether the 10 per cent discriminating
duty provided for in section % applied
to these goods.
The question was at once referred to
the attorney general for an opinion.
At the request of the Boston & Maine
Railroad company, however, the attor-
ney general decided to give hearing
! today. Former Secretary Carlisle ap-
| peared for the Boston & Maine railroad
and former Assistant Secretary Ham
| lin represented the Associated Board
of Trade and the Merchants associa-
ton of Boston. Mr.. Hamlin was the first
speaker.
THE QUESTION.
The question, he said. was whether
goods shipped from China or Japan to
points in the United States through
Canada were importations from Canada
within the meaning of the statute. In
! the case Of a transaction, for instance,
said he, of the sale of goods in China
to a merchant in Boston. there was no
! intermediary The transit of the goods,
| though they might come in through
Canada, was never interrupted. The
goods, he insisted, could not fairly be
said to be exportatiorS from Canada
Mr.. Hamlin cited a great many rulings
both of the treasury department and
the department of justice, to support
his contention. In the case of goods
going through United States territory
in bond from a point IN Canada, the So
licitor of the treasury in an exhaustive
ruling, has decided that such entry of
goods did not constitute an importation
within the meaning of the statute. He
commended. therefore, that conversely
goods coming into the United States
through Canada in transit from another
country, were not exportations from
Canada.
THE DEFINITION.
The decision Of the above question,
Mr.. Haniin says, hinged upon the con-
struction to be placed upon these words
of the statute: Coming into the Unit
ed States from contiguous countries"
He submitted that the words did not
apply to goods in transit. The Century
Dictionary defined from as express
ing departure" from a point. These
goods took their departure from China
or Japan, not from Canada AS well.
he said, might it be contended that
man travelling from. New York to
Washington through Baltimore, de-
parted from Baltimore. The goods did
not appear in the Canadian reports of
exports from Canada. nor in our re-
ports as imports from Canada. He cited
as an analogous statutefthe law requlr-
ing the departure of Cinnamon ito the
country from whence they came. Con-
STRUNG that statute, the attorney gen
eral has decided that the words from
whence, he, came meant his ultimate
country of departure (China), unless
the Chinaman had been naturalized by
the Dominion government. 1t would be
strange, indeed said Mr.. Hamlin, if the
country through which he came should
be considered the country from whence
he came And so with goods in bond.
1t was their place of shipment, not a
point en- route, which must be consid-
cred. He spoke Of the contract labor
law as offering another analogy. La
borers unlawfully coming to the United
States must be deported by the carriers
to the places from whence they came"
THE OBJECT.
Mr.. Hamlin also devoted some at
tention to the Cape of Good Hope stat
ute, to show that the object of these
discriminating duties was TO compel dl-
rect trade with the United States. and
eliminate the profits OF the middle man.
Mr.. Hamlin argued that the statute. as
shown by its history, related only to
vessels, and ventured the assertion that
it had been placed in the statute at the
instisaticn of vessel owners. To this.
however, the attorney general de-
murred saying he understood that
Senator Elkins was its author. And II
vessels only were meant, why, he asked,
was contiguous territory mentioned?
CARLISLE INTERRUPTS.
Mr.. Carlisle at this point interrupted
to urge that the word vessels
whether for our ports or those of con-
tiguous territory, qualified the whole
section. In conclusion Mr. Hamlln
spoke of the vast Importance Of the
construction of the statute. It'would
require an hour, he said, for him TO
begin to tell of the interests which
would be affected by an adverse ruling. |
And though such a ruling might ult1-
mately be reversed by the courts the
ruling itself would do an immense I
amount of injury. The west, north
west, north and northeast. he said,
were just beginning to wake up TO a
acter OF this question. He asked that !
those opposed 10 this suggested taxa
ton be given the benefit Of any doubt
Joseph Nimmo, of New York, who |
is connected with the bureau Of statis- I
tics. asked to be heard and went into /
a lengthy review of the subject. 1t had !
been a war of the transportation in /
this of the United States and Canada |
since 1S4S, Canada had, he said, de-
" a a
ment, but also as a railroad and a |
canal corporation. To the craftiness in
politics she had added the tricks of |
business She had built the Canadian |
Pacific at cost of S215,O00.000 to divert /
American commerce from American
ships and American railroads. He con-
tossed he did not know how this con-
Lroverted clause had got into the
statute, but he thought it was cum
ningly devised to stop the present evil.
CAME INTO"
Mr.. Carlisle, who had been called into
The case only last night, in closing the
argument said that if section % did
aot apply only TO the vessels, he
agreed with Mr.. Hamlin that the words
came into" meant imported. But he
,ontended that the whole statute re-
ated only to goods imported in
vessels of the United States" The old
statute did not meet all the require
nents. While it imposed the discrimi-
lating duties on cargoes in vessels not
IF the United States Except where the
reaty StpulationS exempted them),
coming directly to the United States
ports, it did not touch goods brought IN
such vessels to contiguous territory
ind then shipped to the United States.
lie argued that the clause had been
y, md