The Washington herald., 1913-10-18
MERCHANDISE TO
FLOOD country
Many Goods We're Held IN
Washington, Awaiting the
Tariff Bill Action.
TO BE BROUGHT In NOW
Total Value Of the consignmsnb in
Storage on June 80 Amounted !.
to $lo6,ooo,ooo

Now that the tariff bin. formulated and
passed by the Democrats. has become
law. the country probably viii be deluged
with vast amount of valuable merchan-
disc which has been held in bonded ware
houses for many months awaiting the
event.
The Underwood Simmons tarif bill has
made such cuts in the rates OF duty i'm
posed upon foreign produced merchandise
that the owners Of large shipments OF all
sorts of commodities have thought II bet
ter to hold them in storage pending the
enactment OF the measure
For instance, there have been in cold
storage along the Canadian border huge
consignments OF butter, which now will be
sent into the market. The difference be-
tween the Payne-Aldrich and the Under
wood-Simmons tariff laws Is 50 great that
the saving on these consignments Of but
ter win amount 10 8. 900 a carload, II Is
estimated. Whether the drop In prices on
this side win be so great as to counteract
the advantage to be derived from the
lowering of the duties remains to be
seen.
YaIue of Merchandise.
On June 30. 1918. the end Of the fiscal
year. merchandise remaining in bonded
warehouses showed a larger value than
ever before The total value OF this mer-
chandise, including commodities of all
descriptions, amounted, to s1o6. 900. 900, as
compared with y72,0oo,ooo on the CORES
ponding date last year. These figures
were compiled at the close Of the fiscal
year by the Bureau Of Foreign and Do
mestic Commerce Of the Department Of
Commerce. By the date OF the passage
OF the tariff bill the amount OF mer-
chandise had measurably increased Now
all Of this merchandise is to be brought
in at the lower rates prescribed by the
new bill The loss to the government in
duties will be heavy, but the importers
and the consumers are expected to profit
In proportion.
The bonded warehouse is the storage
place provided by the Customs Service for
goods landed, but not technically import
ed. In these warehouses the goods rs-
pose until the duty is paid and oficial
entry into the country Is made.
There has been throughout the entire
history of the United States a duty on
sugar. In anticipation Of the removal of
this tax 57S, 10000 pounds of sugar have
been placed in bonded warehouses. This
Is valued at 81, sc, 900, and should be COM
pared with the 2o5. .0o0. 900 pounds, valued
at less than @ooo,oOo in the bonded ware
houses a year ago. Fifty-two million
pounds Of leaf tobacco. valued at SIS ooo.-
900, also are stored in bonded warehouses.
while last years figures showed q. 600
pounds valued at Hs.ooo.ooo
Large Amount of Raw Wool.
There are 7S,0oooOo pounds Of raw wool,
valued at SIG. 10000. compared to IS, 500, 900
pounds, vnIled at $1,000 90 last year. in
this storage, and among the other ar
ticles- SO stored are found listed manu-
factures of fiber, chiefly burlaps and lin
ems. IS. 500 900; manufactures OF wool, "a. s33,-
333; manufactures of cotton. $500 900;
chemicals, 5000 900; manufactures OF iron
and steel, 81 500 900; in ALL $105, ,92S Ss4 worth
compared with 81, 246,S7s worth last year.
Under the Payne-Aldrich tariff all of this
81, 500. 900 worth was dutiable, the rates
On some commodities to as high as % per
cent on others.
Nearly all of this vast quantity of mer-
chandise is in the bonded warehouses Of
New York City, Philadelphia, and Boston.
Amendments were offered in both
Houses Of Congress during the tendency
OF the tariff bill either to compel the
goods In bonded warehouses to enter the
at once or to make the OLD duties
applicable to goods in storage even after
the bill passed, thus eving only such mer-
as reached the country after the
of the bill the privilege Of en-
try at reduced rates.
But these proposals were rejected by the
Democratic majority as being repugnant
to the principles on which the tariff was
lowered.