THE TARIFF BOARD 391 



appraisers to " proceed by all reasonable ways and means in their power 

 to ascertain, estimate and determine the dutiable value of the imported 

 merchandise, and in so doing they may exercise both judicial and in- 

 quisitorial functions." This, however, only applies to articles which 

 are subject to an ad valorem duty or to a duty based upon or regulated 

 in some manner by the value thereof. In such cases the act distinctly 

 provides that the duty shall be assessed upon the actual market value 

 or wholesale price thereof, at the time of exportation to the United 

 States, in the principal markets of the country whence the goods are 

 exported; and that such actual market value shall be held to be the 

 price at which such merchandise is freely offered for sale to all pur- 

 chasers in said markets, in the usual wholesale quantities, and the price 

 which the manufacturers or owners would have received, and was will- 

 ing to receive, for such merchandise when sold in the ordinary course of 

 trade in the usual wholesale quantities. In order to determine with 

 any degree of accuracy, the appraisers, the board of appraisers, and on 

 appeal the government's counsel, must be in possession of the facts in 

 detail to properly know and present the government's side of the case. 

 When one reflects that some 300 to 400 millions of dollars are expected 

 to be annually collected as revenue from the tariff, one realizes that 

 there are sure to be strong tendencies, acting on the exporters of foreign 

 countries and the importers here, to keep the valuations down to the 

 lowest possible sum. The importers are allowed to produce witnesses 

 and try out their cases in very much the same manner as prevails in 

 ordinary cases before the courts of justice, with the additional authority 

 in the board of appraisers that they have inquisitorial powers. 



The tariff board can clearly be of great assistance to our various 

 customs officers if it should continually keep informed and have in its 

 possession facts and figures relative to the cost of foreign products, as 

 incidental to their true value and as indicative of the price which the 

 foreign manufacturer or owner would have received and was willing to 

 receive, when sold in the ordinary course of trade, in the usual whole- 

 sale quantities, in the principal markets of the country, whence the 

 goods may be exported. Such assistance would be increased when the 

 publications of the tariff board by virtue of their accuracy, complete- 

 ness and truth come to be regarded as authoritative and are accepted 

 as such both here and in foreign countries. A condition like this 

 would lead to better trade relations between this country and the other 

 powers of the world. 



The president has repeatedly stated that he will construe the act as 

 empowering the board to find out the facts at home and abroad so as 

 to assist him in his administration of the maximum and minimum sec- 

 tion, and to assist in the administration of the customs laws in general 

 by the officers of the government. With this end in view he has directed 



