New-York tribune., 1903-06-28
COLLECTOR OF THE PORT.
Has Onerous and Important Duties
an This City.

the tariff act s his compass, he guide the
course Of trade. firmly and justly; should he fail.
disaster follows. while his success means pros
perity.
This is strong statement. but when it is real
lied that the value of the merchandise entered
through this port is th4n 10 per cent of the
entire importations of the nation, being upward of
S56oocoooo, and that the amount of revenue col
lected upon the same approximates the enormous
sum of S2o0OeoOOO fully one-third of the total in
come of the general government from all sources
1t cannot be gainsaid.
The duties incumbent upon the Collector at New
York are not all expressed in the act under which
he is appointed 1t is true that he does not have
to run revenue cutter automobile. he
even go out for luncheon without asking permis-
sion, ana many persons regard his office as d sine
cure; still. there are certain burdens
The force employed in the several branches of
the New-York customs service exceeds 300 men,
and more than 5000 importers do business at this
port One-haf of this number at least have some
favor TO ask or complaint to make TO the Collector
during the year. All questions which arise relative
to the customs service be determined by the
Collector. There matters of emigration and
immigration: Of precedent and innovations of rule
and OF custom; OF valuation and of classifcation;
CT veracity and of falsehood; of justice and of
equity; of law and of fact. Questions new and old;
Of the individual and the corporation; of care and
of carelessness; Of law in al styles. civil
rine, mercantile, revenue. customs criminal; of
statutes from 1893 1903 and of Treasury regula-
tOns numbering tens of thousands; departmental
rulings and the Board of General Appraisers de-
cisions; questions OF worldwide interest of right
wrong; questions simple, complex, actual, hypo-
thetical; questions OF honest men and rogues; of
wise men and fools; of enemies 10 the law and
friends All these, each differing one from the
other, the Collector for solution. They
come quickly and Unexpectedly, even an auto on
the French highway, and even as ir such an event,
the answer must be instant and it must be right
right that it stand the test Of criticism from
the importer. the people, the Treasury Department
and the courts.
All complaints fall to the lot Of the Collector and
he must listen and decide. There complaints
regarding the steamers, the docks and the long
shoremen: the inspectors. the weighers. the gaug-
ers the clerks. the acting deputy collectors and
the deputy cOlleCtors-cOmpatnts of the pubic
store carmen and the bonded warehousemen; Of
this one and that one. and the other one who has
done or has failed to do VINO will do or Will not
do who should do should not do something
seemingly right or positively wrong-all these the
collector must take under consideration and equi-
table determine.
He must pass upon all matters of administration
and reform. To do this he must know the service
from the special deputy and the private secretary
the solicitor and the cashier, auditor and
the messenger; from his own office and the Custom
House proper TO the Barge Office and the public
stores; to the last line Of docks the North and
the East rivers: from the warehouses along the
Hoboken and Brooklyn wharves, in the Erie Basin
and down Black Tom. of the Jersey City shore
He be responsible for the proper perform
of all duties correct all errors, eradicate
abuses strangle fraud, discover and punish graft
It must be done quickly and surely before the
public can suffer. it must be done non-poitically
that no murmur may arise and that Civil Service
be content; be done justly. that the guilty
only shall be punished and that the innocent may
escape.
And with all the Collector is the servant Of the
people. His must be open to suggestion, in
formation. Improvement. He must give hearings
ad libftum upon subjects ad nauseam. He must re-
ceive, read and reply all tiois, depu-
tations must be greeted, listened to and Consoled
requests and suggestions met and passed upon
without prejudice or error, rules and regulations
enforced with equity and fairmindedness
Incidentally the Collecto~ must account daily for
the receipt and transfer the Sub Treasury of the
United States of nearly $4,000, ne must accept
custody Of gems Of enormous value and preserve
them for appraisement and final delivery to thei"
owners; he must safeguard all merchandise while
in government control, he must prevent any loss
in public store bonded warehouse, in carman's
hands or on steamers docks; he must be ready to
explain why appraisas are regarded as high
duties excessive and why delays occur; why fines
are imposed from Washington, why passengers
have trouble at the docks, why rebates are not
paid why deliveries slow, why one of tea
thousand things occurs that does occur to the dis
satisfa cton Of the traveller the importer or the
citizen.
As dsbursing officer the collector IS responsible
for the payment of all government expenses at this
port including salaries. claims. duties refunded
and cost Of public buildings This mat
Ter of from $4,000 900 to $15.00OO00 annually and
the collectors bond 100000 is largely to secure
the performance of this duty. He is. in a word,
the manager Of the revenue clearing house at New
York: and it may be said that during the last six
years every dollar received and paid out by the
collector Of this port has been fully and accu-
rateIy accounted for, a sum in gross of more than
81 1.O0o 100000
During the year the collector is asked simply as
courtesy" to permit hundreds of persons to go
down the Bay and board incoming steamers, IN
direct violation of all regulations; 70 pass dutaDe
baggage without examination 10 diloW 10 De
made while papers missing. 10 accept brokers'
as attorneys when they have power on file TO
receive irregular bonds signed by men ne never
heard Of to extend general orders that goods
may be to the Public Stores, TO issue per
Of the regular course. to accept promises:
take pledges do faForS, ana assume rlsks OF
Not least of all the collector is interviewed by
Service examinations and for whom he can do moth
ing: and by friends Of friends and he Is Hooded
with letters Of Endorsement and recommendation.
He is presented with urgent claims by men already
in the service for promotion and increase of salary.
notUf hstandng he has no such powers to exercise.
He is especially urged DN ponticlahs 10 look ouI
for their particular men Notwithstanding the Civil
Service rules which bind his hands in precisely such
matters and he is scoWled upon when he obeys the
In 2 word the Collector of the Port of New-York
be collector, deputy, clerk and inspector; ne
must know how the wonderful machine should go
and see that it goes must know every wheel.
and see that cog is broken: keep 1T oiled:
He must daily read and sign hundreds of letters
with general knowledge OF what is in them daily
meet scores of men, daily act upon questions of far
reaching Importance. ana with II All remain uf-
ruied in temper smiling in countenance courteous
and diplomatic in manner gentleman III all cir
these are few of the reasons why the Collector
shin of the Port of New York may properly be re-
garded as of the most important as Wen as one
f the most onerous offices taside from the Cabinet