The Washington times. (Washington [D.C.]) 1901-1902, 1901-08-18
NO DUTY ON EXPORTED COFFEE.
As a Porto Ricnn Import 1t Is Not
Subject to the Special Tax.

subject to the Special Tax.
F. A. Reeve. Acting Solicitor for the
Treasury Department, in deciding the con-
tention raised by Frederick Degetau.
Resident Commissioner of Porto Rico. who
claimed in brief filed with the Secretary
of the Treasury that the special duty of
cents pound upon coffee shipped from
the United States into Porto Rico should
prevail. held yesterday that Mr.. Degetau's
point was not well taken. Mr. Reeve in
an exhaustive opinion on the case said
that the act of Congress abolishing tariff
duties on all merchandise imported into
Porto Rico from the United States also
applied to coffee.
In passing upon the case. Mr. Reeve
said, in part:
BY section 2 of the Foraker act it is
provided that the duties on goods import
ed into Porto Rico from ports other than
those of the United States shall be the
same as those upon goods imported into
the United States from foreign countries,
provided that on all coffee in the bean or
ground, imported into Porto Rico. there
shall be levied and collected a duty of
cents per pound, any law or part of law
to the contrary, Notwithstanding
Coffee being upon the free LIST in the
United States" said Mr.. Reeve the OBJ
ject of this exemption was, of course, to
protect the coffee industry in Porto Rico.
Section of the same act imposes. upon
goods going into Porto Rico from the
United States a duty of Is per cent OF
the duties upon like goods imported from
foreign countries. provided that all arti
Giles on the free list in the United States.
except coffee should be admitted into
Porto Rico free of duty. when imported
from the United States The effect sof
this exception was. of course. TO make
coffee going into Porto Rico subject to
duty, though imported from the United
States.
Thus the law was to remain until the
Legislative Assembly of Porto Rico
should provide a system of local taxation
TO meet the necessities of the local gov.
eminent. and proclamation thereof made
by the President.
1T is evident from the care with which
coffee was excluded from the free list in
respect to importattons from foreign
countries. and in respect to importations
from the United States during the exist
ence of the Is per cent duty system, that
1t was the intention of Congress to recog-
nize and protect the coffee industry In
Porto Rico. 1t can hardly be doubted,
also, that it was not the purpose and In
tention Of Congress that such protection
should cease upon the enactment and in
stallation of local system of taxation in
Porto Rico. The duty OF cents per
pound on coffee was, L think distinctly
a protective measure.
But 1 regret to say that see no es-
cape from the conclusion that the broad
and unrestricted provision of section g.
abolishing all tariff duties on merchan-
disc and articles going into Porto Rico
from the United States upon the enact
ment of a local system of taxation, etc,
embraces the duty on coffee well as
the duty on any other article of mer-
chandise.
II have read with much care and in
terest the able and ingenious paper pre-
scented by the Hon. F. Degetau Resident
Commissioner of Porto Rico. in which ne
contends that the duty on coffee. being
special protective duty, Is not embraced
by the words tariff duties in the clause
aboiishing tariff duties on merchandise
going into Porto Rico from the United
States, but | am unable to acquiesce in his
Interpretation of those words. and in the
distinction which he draws between
tariff duty and "a special protection
duty
The case seems to me to be one of
mere iuadvertence on the part or Con-
gress. 1t merely neglected to make
the exception of coffee from the free list
applicable well after the adoption of
the new system of taxation as during the
existence of the 10 per centum duty sys-
TEN. This might have been done by in
serting the words except coffee in the
act Immediately after the words
tariff duties all merchandise going
into Porto Rico from the United States
AS the matter now stands. 1 see no
way in which the duty can be held to be
in force, since the proclamation OF the
President, other than by reading the
words except coffee into the statute in
the manner indicated above. This 1 think
cannot be done by the department
Neither the courts nor the executive de-
partments can supply inadvertences or
omissions In an act of Congress, no mat
ter how plainly they may appear
The foregoing observations apply only
to the case Of shipments of cofree into
Porto Rico from the United States AS
to shipments into Porto Rico from for
eign countries, it would seem that the
duty OF cents per pound still exists"