Papers Of Abraham Lincoln

THIRTIETH CONGRESS—FIRST SESSION.
H. R. 294.
[Report No. 321.]
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
March 7, 1848.
Read twice, and committed to a Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union.
Mr. Hunt, from the Committee on Commerce, reported the following bill:
A BILL
To remit the duties upon certain goods destroyed by fire in the city of New York.

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12 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Repre-
sentatives of the United States of America in Congress
assembled, That the collector of the customs for the port
of New York, the naval officer of the said port, and the
district attorney for the southern district of the state of
New-York, be, and they are hereby, constituted and commis-
sion to ascertain the amount of duties paid upon all goods,
wares and merchandise destroyed, in unbroken and origi-
nal packages as imported, on the nineteenth day of July,
in the year eighteen hundred and forty-five; and the name
or names, and places of residence, of the several persons
entitled as owners of the said goods, or otherwise, to re

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15 ceive or have remitted to them, the amount of the duties
so paid, upon the several parcels and packages of goods
so destroyed, pursuant to the provisions of this act.

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22 Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That the said
commissioners shall meet at such time and place in the
city of New York, as shall be appointed by the Secretary
of the Treasury, by a notice for that purpose, to be pub-
lished in at least five of the public newspapers printed in
the said city, for the period of at least ten days before the
time appointed for the said meeting; and when so con-
vened, shall proceed to take testimony in relation to the
goods so destroyed, and the amount of duties paid to the
United States thereupon, and to the persons entitled to
receive or have remitted to them the amount of such
duties; and shall continue the examination and investiga-
tion, as constantly as their other official duties will permit,
until all the claims presented to them for the remission or
refunding of duties provided for by this act, which may be
presented to them, shall be examined to their satisfaction;
but no claim shall be received which shall not be presented
within four months from the time appointed by the Secre-
tary for the first meeting of the commissioners; and each
of the said commissioners shall, and is hereby, authorized
to administer the necessary oaths to all persons^2 Sheet^ who are
to give testimony in the premises; and all the testimony

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31 presented to, or taken before the said commission, shall be
committed to writing, and signed by the respective wit-
nesses giving the same; and any wilful false swearing
before the said commission, or in any affidavit or deposi-
tion taken before any one of the said commissioners, shall
subject the person guilty of the offence, upon conviction
before any court of competent jurisdiction, to the punish-
ment prescribed by the laws of the United States for wil-
ful perjury.

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16 Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That as soon as
the said commissioners shall have finally closed the taking
of testimony in relation to any one or more claims, they
shall cause to be made a full and perfect statement of the
goods, wares and merchandize, proved in said claim or
claims, to their satisfaction, to have been destroyed at the
conflagration aforesaid, in the unbroken and original packa-
ges in which the same were imported, designating in such
statement the number of packages, the rate and amount of
duty on each, and the name of the person or persons enti-
tled to receive or have remitted to him or them, the duties
paid upon each package. And the said commissioners
shall cause three fair copies of such statement to be made
and certified by themselves, to be the true and correct
results of their investigations, one of which copies they
shall file with the collector of the customs for the port of

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20 New York, another with the naval officer of the said port,
and the third, together with the testimony taken before the
said commission, they shall transmit to the Secretary of
the Treasury, to be by him kept on file in his department.

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21 Sec. 4. And be it further enacted, That it shall be
the duty of the Secretary of the Treasury, with as little
delay as practicable, to examine the testimony taken before
the said commission, from time to time, as the same shall
be returned to him, to compare the same with the said
statement and adjudications of the said commissioners, and
to signify to them his approval or disapproval as to each
claim; and as soon as the determination of the Secretary
shall be officially communicated to the said commissioners,
as to any one or more of the said claims, they shall forth-
with execute and deliver to each claimant whose claim has
received the approval of the Secretary, a certificate signed
by them, and stating the amount of duties which the claim-
ant has paid, and is entitled to have refunded to him; after
deducting therefrom two and a-half per cent thereon, which
shall be retained in the Treasury of the United States:
Provided, That no such certificate shall be delivered to
any claimant, his agent or attorney, or to his order, until
he or some person on his behalf, shall have executed ^3 Sheet^ and
delivered to the collector of the customs for the port of
New York, a bond with sureties to the satisfaction of the

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29 said collector, in a penalty of double the sums to be refun-
ded, as shown by the said certificate, and conditioned for
the repayment to the United States of the whole amount
refunded to such claimant, with interest from the date of
said bond, in case it shall thereafter be made to appear
that the goods upon which the duties so refunded, were
chargeable, were not in fact destroyed at the conflagration
aforesaid.

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12 Sec. 5. And be it further enacted, That upon the
presentation by any person to the collector of New York,
of any certificate so issued by the said commissioners, the
said collector shall receive such certificate in lieu of money
for the payment of duties, at all times endorsing upon the
certificate the amount of duties thus cancelled by its pre-
sentation; and as fast as the said certificate shall be thus
fully cancelled, the said collector shall retain and transmit
them to the Secretary of the Treasury, to be by him
placed upon the files of the department, with the statement
from which they were issued and the testimony upon
which the duties are refunded,

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4 Sec. 6. And be it further enacted, That in all
cases where any article or package, as imported, shall
have been partially and not entirely destroyed by the said
conflagration, the remission or refunding of duties upon

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11 such article or package, shall be in proportion to the
destruction by the said fire, as that proportion shall be
ascertained and certified to the said commissioners by the
appraisers for the port of New York; but this section
shall not be so construed as to extend to any merchandize
destroyed or damaged other than in the original an-
broken packages as imported.

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⋄Sec 7. And be it further enacted,
That the bonds now in force which were given for the payment of duties on goods imported and destroyed as aforesaid shall be cancelled and discharged upon due proof being made, in the manner provided by this act, that said goods destroyed in unbroken packages as imported, by the said fire in the city of New York on the nineteenth day of July eighteen hundred and forty five.
Sec 8. And be it further enacted,
That the said commissioners may employ a clerk who shall be paid for his services such reasonable sum as the Secretary of the Treasury may approve⋄

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7 treasury, such reasonable compensation as the Secretary
of the Treasury shall allow, which payment the said sec-
retary is hereby authorized to make, not to exceed the
rate of fifteen hundred dollars per annum.

[ docketing ]
H R, 803
A Bill to remit the duties on certain goods destroyed by fire in the city of New York

[ docketing ]
M
Com. on Commerce
M^r Hunt

[ docketing ]
69 H R
p. q.
Ficklin to [lie?]
p. q. 2^d Engrossed
[H R?]. [?]

[ docketing ]
p. q on pass, 2^d, Passed, Nicholl ^Hunt^ to [recomnd?] and lie.

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1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12	Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Repre- sentatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That the collector of the customs for the port of New York, the naval officer of the said port, and the district attorney for the southern district of the state of New-York, be, and they are hereby, constituted and commis- sion to ascertain the amount of duties paid upon all goods, wares and merchandise destroyed, in unbroken and origi- nal packages as imported, on the nineteenth day of July, in the year eighteen hundred and forty-five; and the name or names, and places of residence, of the several persons entitled as owners of the said goods, or otherwise, to re
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13 14 15	ceive or have remitted to them, the amount of the duties so paid, upon the several parcels and packages of goods so destroyed, pursuant to the provisions of this act.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22	Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That the said commissioners shall meet at such time and place in the city of New York, as shall be appointed by the Secretary of the Treasury, by a notice for that purpose, to be pub- lished in at least five of the public newspapers printed in the said city, for the period of at least ten days before the time appointed for the said meeting; and when so con- vened, shall proceed to take testimony in relation to the goods so destroyed, and the amount of duties paid to the United States thereupon, and to the persons entitled to receive or have remitted to them the amount of such duties; and shall continue the examination and investiga- tion, as constantly as their other official duties will permit, until all the claims presented to them for the remission or refunding of duties provided for by this act, which may be presented to them, shall be examined to their satisfaction; but no claim shall be received which shall not be presented within four months from the time appointed by the Secre- tary for the first meeting of the commissioners; and each of the said commissioners shall, and is hereby, authorized to administer the necessary oaths to all persons^2 Sheet^ who are to give testimony in the premises; and all the testimony
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23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31	presented to, or taken before the said commission, shall be committed to writing, and signed by the respective wit- nesses giving the same; and any wilful false swearing before the said commission, or in any affidavit or deposi- tion taken before any one of the said commissioners, shall subject the person guilty of the offence, upon conviction before any court of competent jurisdiction, to the punish- ment prescribed by the laws of the United States for wil- ful perjury.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16	Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That as soon as the said commissioners shall have finally closed the taking of testimony in relation to any one or more claims, they shall cause to be made a full and perfect statement of the goods, wares and merchandize, proved in said claim or claims, to their satisfaction, to have been destroyed at the conflagration aforesaid, in the unbroken and original packa- ges in which the same were imported, designating in such statement the number of packages, the rate and amount of duty on each, and the name of the person or persons enti- tled to receive or have remitted to him or them, the duties paid upon each package. And the said commissioners shall cause three fair copies of such statement to be made and certified by themselves, to be the true and correct results of their investigations, one of which copies they shall file with the collector of the customs for the port of
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17 18 19 20	New York, another with the naval officer of the said port, and the third, together with the testimony taken before the said commission, they shall transmit to the Secretary of the Treasury, to be by him kept on file in his department.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21	Sec. 4. And be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of the Secretary of the Treasury, with as little delay as practicable, to examine the testimony taken before the said commission, from time to time, as the same shall be returned to him, to compare the same with the said statement and adjudications of the said commissioners, and to signify to them his approval or disapproval as to each claim; and as soon as the determination of the Secretary shall be officially communicated to the said commissioners, as to any one or more of the said claims, they shall forth- with execute and deliver to each claimant whose claim has received the approval of the Secretary, a certificate signed by them, and stating the amount of duties which the claim- ant has paid, and is entitled to have refunded to him; after deducting therefrom two and a-half per cent thereon, which shall be retained in the Treasury of the United States: Provided, That no such certificate shall be delivered to any claimant, his agent or attorney, or to his order, until he or some person on his behalf, shall have executed ^3 Sheet^ and delivered to the collector of the customs for the port of New York, a bond with sureties to the satisfaction of the
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22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29	said collector, in a penalty of double the sums to be refun- ded, as shown by the said certificate, and conditioned for the repayment to the United States of the whole amount refunded to such claimant, with interest from the date of said bond, in case it shall thereafter be made to appear that the goods upon which the duties so refunded, were chargeable, were not in fact destroyed at the conflagration aforesaid.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12	Sec. 5. And be it further enacted, That upon the presentation by any person to the collector of New York, of any certificate so issued by the said commissioners, the said collector shall receive such certificate in lieu of money for the payment of duties, at all times endorsing upon the certificate the amount of duties thus cancelled by its pre- sentation; and as fast as the said certificate shall be thus fully cancelled, the said collector shall retain and transmit them to the Secretary of the Treasury, to be by him placed upon the files of the department, with the statement from which they were issued and the testimony upon which the duties are refunded,
1 2 3 4	Sec. 6. And be it further enacted, That in all cases where any article or package, as imported, shall have been partially and not entirely destroyed by the said conflagration, the remission or refunding of duties upon
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5 6 7 8 9 10 11	such article or package, shall be in proportion to the destruction by the said fire, as that proportion shall be ascertained and certified to the said commissioners by the appraisers for the port of New York; but this section shall not be so construed as to extend to any merchandize destroyed or damaged other than in the original an- broken packages as imported.
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	⋄Sec 7. And be it further enacted, That the bonds now in force which were given for the payment of duties on goods imported and destroyed as aforesaid shall be cancelled and discharged upon due proof being made, in the manner provided by this act, that said goods destroyed in unbroken packages as imported, by the said fire in the city of New York on the nineteenth day of July eighteen hundred and forty five. Sec 8. And be it further enacted, That the said commissioners may employ a clerk who shall be paid for his services such reasonable sum as the Secretary of the Treasury may approve⋄
4 5 6 7	treasury, such reasonable compensation as the Secretary of the Treasury shall allow, which payment the said sec- retary is hereby authorized to make, not to exceed the rate of fifteen hundred dollars per annum.