Joy Manufacturing Co. v. United States

8 Cust. Ct. 360, 1942 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 66
CourtUnited States Customs Court
DecidedJune 3, 1942
DocketC. D. 641
StatusPublished

This text of 8 Cust. Ct. 360 (Joy Manufacturing Co. v. United States) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering United States Customs Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Joy Manufacturing Co. v. United States, 8 Cust. Ct. 360, 1942 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 66 (cusc 1942).

Opinion

Dallinger, Judge:

These are suits against the United States, arising at the port of New York, brought to recover certain customs duties alleged to have been improperly exacted on particular importations of coal cutter machines and parts thereof. Duty was levied thereon at the rate of 35 per centum ad valorem under paragraph 353 of the Tariff Act of 1930 as articles having as an essential feature an electrical element or device, and parts thereof. It is claimed that said merchandise is properly dutiable at but 27per centum ad valo-rem under paragraph 372 of said act as machines and parts thereof not specially provided for.

A leaflet containing photographs of one of said machines and diagrams of the same was admitted in evidence as exhibit 1, and pages 16 and 17 of a booklet entitled “M & C Arcwall & Shearing Coal-cutters & Joy Loaders, Booklet No. 5b,” published by the foreign manufacturer, were admitted in evidence as collective exhibit A.

In addition to said exhibits, the plaintiff, at the first hearing held at Pittsburgh, Pa., on December 2, ,1940 before Brown, Judge, offered in evidence the testimony of a single witness, John Merck, chief engineer of the plaintiff-corporation, who testified in part as follows:

Q. Am I correct in my understanding that as limited, the protests now relate exclusively to these parts of either the coal cutting machine, number 4712, or the other coal cutting machine, number 4784; is that right? — A. Yes.
Q. How large are these machines, or how heavy? — A. They weigh about 10 tons.
Q. And about how large are they? — A- They are about 45 inches wide, and about 15 feet long, including the cutting bar.
Q. What is their function? What do they do? — A. To undercut and shear coal in coal mines.
Q. Have you installed or supervised the installation of these machines in your factory? — A. Yes, I have.
Q. Are you familiar with their construction and their parts? — A. Yes.
* * * * * * *
Q. Have you a picture or illustration of these coal cutting machines? — A. Yes.
Q. Does this picture which you now hand me, which one, if either of those machines does this picture represent?- — A. This is the electric type.
Q. That is number what? — A. That is number 4712.
Q. How, if at all, does the 4784 differ from the 4712? — A. Only in the electric motor.
Q. How does the electric motor which came with 4784 differ from the electric motor which was with 4712? — A. 4712 is d. c., and 4784 is a. c. electric current. ****** *
By Mr. FitzGibbon.
Q. What is on the back of it; fust another picture of the same machine? — A Yes, it is the machine in its low position.
Q. One for undercutting, and one for overcutting? — A. Yes.
* * * ■ * Me Me M=
Q. And the picture on the reverse side is in bottom cutting position? — A, Correct.
Me Me Me Me Me Me Me
[362]*362By Mr. Tompkins.
Q. By what power or powers can these machines be operated? — A. Either by electric motors or air turbines.
Q. Have you ever seen them operated or tested by the air turbine motors? — A. Yes, I have.
Q. Have you any pamphlet or illustration to corroborate what you say that these machines may be operated either by electric motors or by air turbine motors? — A. Yes, I have.
Q. Please produce it. — A. (Witness produces pamphlet. Collective Illustrative Exhibit A, page 16 of which illustrates a. c. electric motor and page 17 a compressed air turbine.)
* * * * * * *
By Mr. FitzGibbon.
Q. There is no picture of a d. c. motor here? — A. There is no picture of a d. c. here.
Q. Just a picture of an a. c. electric motor, and a picture of an air compressor motor?' — A. Yes.
*******
By Mr. Tompkins.
Q. Are there any electrical elements or devices in either one of these machines required for their operation, other than the .electrical motors and their controls?— A. No.
*******

On cross-examination the witness testified in part as follows:

X Q. There are two types of these cqal cutting machines; one an electric type, and one an air type? — A. Yes, in the electric type you have two, the a. c. and the d. c.
X Q. And in the air compressor type you only have one? — A. That is right.
X Q. And these imported were the electric type? — A. Yes.
X Q. And they were imported, one with an a. c. motor, and one with a d. c. motor? — A. Yes.
X Q. And no complete turbine motor came with it? — A. No.

On redirect examination the witness testified in part as follows:

R Q. Assuming that you desire to change your motor power from electric, either d. c. or a. e., to the air turbine power, what changes, if any, would you make in these machines? — A. Remove the electric motors and put the air turbine in its place.
R Q. Otherwise, are the mechanical parts of these machines identical? — A. They are interchangeable.

At the close of the first hearing, the case was submitted by both sides and time allowed counsel for both sides for the filing of briefs. But subsequently, on March 27, 1941, the submission was set aside and the case restored to the Pittsburgh docket.

At the second hearing, held at Pittsburgh, on May 8, 1941, the plaintiff’s witness, John Merck, was recalled and testified in part as follows:

Q. Do you know precisely what has to be. done to change the motive power in the imported coal cutting machines involved in this suit from electricity to compressed air? — A. Yes.
* * * * * * *
[363]*363Q. And you say you observed, several times, the interchange of a turbine motor for compressed air in. place of an electric motor? — A. Yes.
Q. Please explain just how that change of motive power from the electric motor to turbine motor for compressed air is accomplished? — A. All that is required is to remove the electric motor and put the compressed air turbine in its place.
* * * * • * * *
Q. Are these two motors, Mr. Merck, identical in size? — A. They are identical in size inasmuch as they fit into the same place and space.
Q. In these machines? — A. Yes.
By Judge Dallingee.
Q. Do I understand that you simply put one in place of the other? — A.

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8 Cust. Ct. 360, 1942 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 66, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/joy-manufacturing-co-v-united-states-cusc-1942.