THE TARIFF BOARD 30% 
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 
