ty-eight inches long and fourteen inches wide, and weighing from fourteen to thirty-four ounces the square foot; sheathing metal; specimens of natural history, mineralogy, or botany; trees, shrubs, bulbs, plants and roots, not otherwise provided for; wearing apparel in actual use, and other personal effects not merchandise; professional books, implements, instruments, and tools of trade, occupation, or employment of persons arriving in the United States: Provided, that this exemption shall not be construed to include machinery or other articles imported for use in any manufacturing establishment, or for sale. TARIFF OF 1842 AND 1846 COMPARED. The Washington Union compiles the following table, exhibiting in some of the more important particulars, the difference in duties between the tariff of 1842 and the present. ABSTRACT OF SUB-TREASURY LAW. The mints at Philadelphia and New Orleans shall be places of deposit. Places originally prepared for deposit in New York and Boston, St. Louis and Charleston, under the former Sub-Treasury Act, to be used under this act for the same purpose. Assistant Treasurers appointed to these last places. Treasurers of the mints to be Sub-Treasurers. Money to be kept by all persons receiving same without loaning, using depositing in banks or exchanging for other funds, except as allowed by the act. Treasurers, &c., to give bonds. Collectors and receivers to pay over money by direction of the Secretary of the Treasury, or Postmaster-General, once in each week. Secretary of the Treasury may transfer money from one depository to another, &c. Agents to examine books and accounts of Depositories, to be appointed by the Secretary of the Treasury, and to be allowed $6 per day and traveling expenses. UNITED STATES WAREHOUSING LAW. 204 Marshals, District Attorneys, &c., may make payment to the Treasurers of the United States Mints or Assistant Treasurers. All persons charged with keeping, transferring or disbursing public moneys, to keep an accurate entry of sums received and of each payment or transfer; not to be converted to their own use, invested, loaned, deposited in any bank, or exchanged for other funds-penalties of felony. Rooms to be provided where there are none. On the 1st of January, 1847, and thereafter, gold and silver only to be received and paid out, &c., &c. THE WAREHOUSING BILL. A Bill to amend an act entitled "An act to provide revenue from imports, and to change and modify existing laws imposing duties on imports, and for other purposes." Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, That the twelfth section of the act, entitled "An act to provide revenue from imports, and to change and modify existing laws imposing duties on imports, and for other purposes," approved the thirteenth day of August, one thousund eight hundred and forty-two, is hereby amended, so as hereafter to read as follows: SEC. 1. And be it further enacted, That on and after the day this act goes into operation, the duties on all imported goods, wares, or merchandise, shall be paid in cash: Provided, That in all cases of failure or neglect to pay the duties within the period allowed by law to the importer to make entry thereof, or whenever the owner, importer, or consignee shall make entry for warehousing the same in writing, in such form and supported by such proof, as shall be prescribed by the Secretary of the Treasury, the said goods, wares or merchandise shall be taken possession of by the collector, and deposited in the public stores, or in other stores, to be agreed on by the collector or chief revenue officer of the port and the importer, owner, or consignee, the said stores to be secured in the manner provided for by the first section of the act of the 20th day of April, one thousand eight hundred and eighteen, "An act providing for the deposit of wines and distilled spirits in public warehouses, and for other purposes," there to be kept with due and reasonable care, at the charge and risk of the owner, importer, consignee, or agent, and subject at all times to their order upon the payment of the proper duties and expenses, to be ascertained on due entry thereof for warehousing, and to be secured by a bond of the owner, importer, or consignee, with surety or sureties to the satisfaction of the collector, in double the amount of the said duties, and in such form as the Secretary of the Treasury shall prescribe: Provided, That no merchandise shall be withdrawn from any warehouse in which it may be deposited, in a less quantity than an entire package, bale, cask or box, unless in bulk, nor shall merchandise so imported in bulk be delivered, except in the whole quantity of each parcel, or in a quantity not less than one ton weight, unless by special authority of the Secretary of the Treasury. And in case the owner, importer, consignee or agent of any goods on which the duties have not been paid, shall give to the collector satisfactory security that the said goods shall be landed out of the jurisdiction of the United States, in the manner now required by existing laws relating to exportations for the benefit of drawback, the collector and naval officer, if any, on an entry to report the same, shall, upon payment of the appropriate expenses, permit the said goods, under the inspection of the proper officers, to be shipped without the payment of any duties thereon. And in case any goods, wares or merchandise, deposited as aforesaid, shall remain in the public store beyond one year, without payment of the duties and charges thereon, then said goods, wares, or merchandise shall be appraised by the appraisers of the United States, if there be any such port, and if none, then by two merchants to be designated and sworn by the collector for that purpose, and sold by the collector at public auction on due public notice thereof being first given, in the manner and for the time to be prescribed by a general regulation of the Treasury Department; and at said public sale distinct printed catalogues, descriptive of said goods, with the appraised value affixed thereto, shall be distributed among the persons present at said sale; and reasonable opportunity shall be given before such a sale, to persons desirous of purchasing, to inspect the quality of such goods; and the proceeds of said sales, after deducting the usual rate of storage at the port in question, with all other charges and expenses, including duties, shall be paid over to the owner, importer, consignee or agent, and proper receipts taken for the same: Provided, That the overplus, if any there be, of the proceeds of such sale, after the payment of storage, charges, expenses, and duties as aforesaid, remaining unclaimed for the space of ten days after such sales, shall be paid by the collector into the treasury of the United States; and the said collector shail transmit to the Treasury Department, with the said overplus, a copy of the inventory, appraisement, and account of sales, specifying the marks, numbers and descriptions of the packages sold, their contents, and appraised value, the name of the vessel and master in which, and of the port or place whence they were imported, and the time when, and the name of the person or persons to who.n said goods were consigned in the manifest, and the duties and charges to which the several consignments were respectively subject; and the receipt or certificate of the collector shall exonerate the master or person having charge or command of any ship or vessel, in which said goods, wares or merchandise were imported, from all claim of the owner or owners thereof, who shall nevertheless, on due proof of their interest, be entitled to receive from the treasury, the amount of any overplus paid into the same under the provisions of this act: Provided, That so much of the fifty-sixth section of the general collection law of the second March seventeen hundred and ninety-nine, and the thirteenth section of the act of the thirteenth of August, eighteen hundred and forty-two, to provide revenue from imports, and to change and modify existing laws imposing duties on imports, and for other purposes, as conflicts with the provisions of this act, shall be, and is hereby repealed, excepting that nothing contained in this act shall be construed to extend the time now prescribed by law for selling unclaimed goods: Provided, also, That all goods, of a perishable nature, and all gunpowder, fire-crackers, and explosive substances, deposited as aforesaid, shall be sold forthwith. SEC. 2. And be it further enacted, That any goods, when deposited in the public stores in the manner provided for in the foregoing section, may be withdrawn therefrom, and transported to any other port of entry, under the restriction provided for in the act of the 2d March, 1799, in respect to the transportation of goods, wares and merchandise, from one collection district to another, to be exported with the benefit of drawback; and the owner of such goods so to be withdrawn for transportation shall give his bond with sufficient sureties, in double the amount of the duties chargeable on them, for the deposit of such goods in store in the port of entry to which they shall be destined, such bond to be canceled when the goods shall be re-deposited in store in the collection district to which they shall be transported: Provided, That nothing contained in this section shall be construed to extend the time during which goods may be kept in store after their original importation and entry beyond the term of one year. SEC. 3. And be it further enacted, That if any warehouse goods shall be fraudnlently concealed in, or removed from any public or private warehouse, the same shall be forfeited to the United States; and all persons convicted of fraudulently concealing or removing such goods, or of aiding or abetting such concealment or removal, shall be liable to the same penalties which are now imposed for the fraudulent introduction of goods into the United States; and if any importer or proprietor of any warehouse goods, or any person in his employ, shall by any contrivance fraudulently open the warehouse, or shall gain access to the goods, except in the presence of the proper officer of the customs acting in the execu tion of his duty, such importer or proprietor shall forfeit and pay for every such offence, one thousand dollars. And any person convicted of altering, defacing, or obliterating any mark or marks which have been placed by any officer of the service on any package or packages of warehoused goods, shall forfeit for every such offence, five hundred dollars. SEC. 4. And be it further enacted, That the collectors of the several ports of the United States shall make quarterly reports to the Secretary of the Treasury, according to such general instructions as the said secretary may give, of all goods which remain in the warehouses of their respective ports, specifying the quantity and description of the same; which returns, or tables formed thereon, the Secretary of the Treasury shall forthwith cause to be published in the principal papers of the city of Washington. SEC. 5. And be it further enacted, That the Secretary of the Treasury be, and he is hereby authorized to make, from time to time, such regulations, not inconsistent with the laws of the United States, as may be necessary to give full effect to the PILOT SYSTEM OF NEW ORLEANS. 208 provisions of this act, and secure a just accountability under the same; and it shall be the duty of the secretary to report such regulations each succeeding session of Congress. MERCANTILE MISCELLANIES. 1. THE PILOT SYSTEM OF NEW ORLEANS. NIA THERE has been much written and said of late upon this subject. The Chamber of Commerce presented, at the last session of the Legislature, a memorial against the whole pilot laws of the city, as being hostile to the commercial interests and creative of an injurious and oppressive monopoly. A committee of the legislature, after a diligent and laborious examination of the subject, reported against the memorial, and deemed any interference with the law as now existing unadvisable and impolitic. We shall not undertake to pronounce an opinion where such authorities disagree; but if any one will furnish us a clear and dispassionate discussion of the whole matter, we promise him an early place in our journal. As the report of the Legislative committee is upon the table before us, we shall make a few brief extracts from it, without compromising ourselves either way. In relation to the history and operations of the pilot system of New Orleans the committee remark: "At the cession of the province of Louisiana, the pilotage was in the hands of a single individual, named Ronquile, who was appointed sole branch pilot under the Spanish crown. He was succeeded by Johnson and Bradish, who bought out his establishment shortly after the cession. They conducted the business for some years and retired rich, as has been said. It was the custom in those days for the branch pilots to perform their duties by deputies: these deputies were such sailors as could be picked up for the service. The fees of pilotage were two dollars per foot for all vessels going in or out, and certain perquisites, such as detention money," &c. By the act of 31st March, 1805, section 7, the Governor was empowered to appoint "two or more sufficient persons to be branch pilots." By this act the pilotage was thrown open to unlimited competition, and under its provisions, it seems, the number of branch pilots was increased as occasion required, and good and sufficient men were found willing to engage in the business. Laws were passed, from time to time, explaining, modifying and remodeling the act of 1805; the master and wardens of the port of New Orleans were made a board to examine into the qualifications of pilots, and were moreover invested with the authority to make rules for the governance of the pilots, and invested with the right of supervising and controlling them in certain matters of discipline and duty. Under the various laws in force, between the cession of Louisiana and the act of 1837, many schemes were devised to give character and respectability to the business, and infuse activity and watchfulness in the service. From a close monopoly to a competition, supported by private capital, and stimulated by individual ambition, even animosities-a competition pushed to extremes by rival houses established at the Balize-the pilotage business seems to have undergone every phase of change, and only acquired a fixed and stable condition in the provisions of the act now sought to be repealed. Your committee have ascertained to their entire satisfaction, that every system that had ever been in force in this State, from the cession of Louisiana to the passage of the act of March 13th, 1837, had proved a total failure. Whether as regards the interest of commerce, the advancement of social order, or the behests of morals and civilization, they had one and all fallen short of the ends and purposes of their creation. On this point your committee have taken ample and unbroken testimony, without a dissenting voice. The whole evidence shows that, from the existence of the State as a portion of the confederacy, up to the year 1837, the pilot service was negligently performed, and more especially were the persons engaged in it, as a body, a desperate, worthless, reckless class of men. The Balize, during that period, was a scene of barbarous strife and drunken debauch. Your Committee have been informed, by witnesses of unblemished character, who have resided at the Balize both before and after the passage of the act of 1837, that anterior to that law it was a mere mud bank, whose natural loathsomeness was made more intolerable by the beastly scenes enacted there. Riots and broils were daily exhibitions, and low revelry and debauches the pastimes of the night. It was a place dangerous to visit: the savageness of man invested the desolation of nature with appalling attributes. The Balize is located upon the margin of the Mississippi, a short distance above the North-east Pass; in front the river flows sullenly; all around is a prairie overgrown with the rank luxuriance of the tropics; the waters of the gulf in daily tides cover the face of the earth round about, many miles; there is not a tree, nor a mound, nor a monument of any sort, unless placed there by the hand of man, to relieve a monotony that oppressed the beholder. The land itself is but a recent acquisition from the ocean, wrenched thence by the great father of rivers. This dreary and inhospitable vision was the first that greeted the stranger approaching our shores from the seaward; and it is appalling to reflect, that the character of the people who dwelt there and held appointments from the State, was yet more savage than the scene that surrounded them, and impressed the mind with ideas of our national qualities, as gloomy as the opinions such a spectacle might inspire of the natural features of our country. In relation to the profits of pilotage and the objection of monopoly, we have the following: By an examination of the books kept at the Balize, the following facts appeared, which were vouched upon the oath of the clerk of the association: Receipts for pilotage, for the year commencing 1st September, 1840, and ending 31st August, 1841... Expenses of the service for the same period... Profits for the year.... Leaving the distributive share of each pilot, $1,410. Receipts for pilotage, for the year commencing 1st September, 1841, and ending 31st August, 1842... Expenses of the service for the same period... Profits for the year Distributable share of each pilot, $1,259 20. Receipts for pilotage, for the year commencing 1st September, 1842, and ending 31st August, 1843..... $147,595 37 Expenses of the service for the same period. 43,788 22 Profits for the year 104,007 15 Making the distributable share of each pilot, $2,080. Receipts for pilotage, for the year commencing 1st September, 1843, and ending 31st August, 1844..... $125,278 76 Expenses of the service for the same period... 40,055 97 Profits for the year........... 84,222 79 Making the distributable share of each pilot, 1,704 44. Receipts for pilotage, for the year commencing 1st September, 1844, and ending 31st August, 1845.... $130,701 15 Expenses of the service for the same period... 43,671 06 Profits for the year..... 87,030 09 Making the distributable share of each pilot, $1,704 44. Receipts for pilotage for the six months commencing 1st September, 1845, and ending 1st March, 1846.... |