Mackay Estate v. United States

28 Cust. Ct. 73, 1952 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 7
United States Customs Court·Decided February 19, 1952·No. C. D. 1391·Published·Cited by 4 cases

Opinion

JohNson, Judge;

This action, arising at the port of Noyes, Minn., was brought against the collector’s assessment of duty on frozen beef lungs imported from Canada. Two entries are involved. Entry 2589-A imported for the account of John Morrell & Co. of Ottumwa, Iowa, consists of 205 molds of “Frozen Beef Lungs.” Entry 4846-A, imported for the account of the Rival Packing Co. of Chicago, Ill., consists of 409 molds “Eroz. Inedible Beef Lungs.” To entry 2589-A is attached a certificate from the Dominion of Canada to the effect that “the meat or meat food products herein described were derived from animals which received ante-mortem and post-mortem veterinary inspection at the time of slaughter, and that said meat and meat food products are sound, healthful, wholesome and otherwise fit for human food,” etc.

Duty was assessed upon both shipments of beef lungs at the rate of 6 cents per pound under paragraph 706 of the Tariff Act of. 1930 providing as follows:

Pab. 706. Meats, fresh, chilled, frozen, prepared, or preserved, not specially provided for, 6 cents per pound, but not less than 20 per centum ad valorem.

Various claims are made in the protest by the plaintiff, but the one relied upon at the trial is that the beef lungs in question are properly dutiable at 10 per centum ad valorem under paragraph 1558, as non-enumerated unmanufactured articles, providing as follows;

Pab. 1558. That there shall be levied, collected, and paid on the importation of all raw or unmanufactured articles not enumerated or provided for, a duty of 10 per centum ad valorem * * *.

At the trial eight witnesses testified on behalf of the plaintiff. The Government had five witnesses, and then the plaintiff called two witnesses in rebuttal. The plaintiff’s witnesses were variously qualified to testify as to the common and trade understanding of the term [75] “meat.” Paul C. Johnson had 30 years’ experience in the retail meat business. Val E. Ness had been a retail meat dealer for 38 years and was the vice president of the National Association of Meat Dealers. Leonard Force was the plant superintendent for the Canadian Packers, Ltd., the shipper, and had been associated with that firm for 32 years. Dr. Edward Czarnetzky was the chief biologist for more than 12 years in the research and technical department of Wilson & Co., meat packer. William V. Cavanaugh had been with the Rival Packing Co., a manufacturer of dog and cat food, for a period of 10 years, and for 20 years in that type of business. Earl Paxson had been in the meat-packing business for 40 years and was an employee of John Morrell & Co. That company is a meat packer and the manufacturer of Red Heart dog food. L. H. Davenport was in charge of the “variety meat division” of Swift & Co., with whom he had been associated for 26 years, and in the course of his employment had visited retail stores in all sections of the United States. C. E. Sheehy' was the general manager of the Armour & Co. plant at South St. Paul for 21 years and had had 30 years’ experience in the meat-packing business.

John J. An tus, the Government counsel, testified on behalf of the Government. Later, upon restoration of the case to the docket at the port of New York, Isadore Frank, a butcher since 1895; Dr. Leon Abrevaya, a veterinarian for the Department of Health, city of New York, for 21 years, who inspects meats and meat products consumed in the city of New York; Paul Coder, investigator for the United States Meat Inspection Service for 20 years; and Anna Hornick, a housewife, were called to the stand by the Government. In rebuttal, the plaintiff called Paul Henkel, for 23 years the president of the Society of Restaurateurs, and a hotel and restaurant operator; and Joseph Eschelbacher, secretary of the New York State Association of Retail Meat Dealers, Inc., for 8 years, and for 20 years secretary of his particular branch of such association, the New York-Bronx Retail Meat & Food Dealers, Inc.

The United States Department of Agriculture Regulations governing meat inspection, particularly as to § 1.1 (u), (v), and (w), were admitted in evidence on behalf of the plaintiff as exhibit 1. Counsel for the Government, with consent of plaintiff’s counsel, indicated § 10.17 (a) and (b) of exhibit 1, as a Government exhibit. A menu of the Kimberly Restaurant in New York, indicating therein “Lungen stew with kasha” was admitted in evidence on behalf of the Government as exhibit 2. The plaintiff supplied a luncheon and a dinner menu of Hans Jaeger’s restaurants, not showing that lungen stew was served among the entrees thereof, as exhibits 3 and 4, respectively.

The evidence produced by the foregoing witnesses concerning the use of beef lungs as an item of food for human consumption is substantially as follows: Dr. Czarnetzky, plaintiff’s witness, had seen beef [76] lungs served in a restaurant on one occasion. Mr. Antus had eaten beef lungs for 30 years beginning at his home in Pennsylvania, but had not eaten them in his home since his marriage. He had seen beef lungs in butcher shops in the poorer neighborhoods in New York City and had seen beef lungs served in the form of lungen stew in restaurants around Times Square. He found the beef lungs in such stew to be tender and rather porous. He significantly stated, however, that—

* * * I know of some people who feel squeamish about eating them, but if they thought enough about it, they would eat them. I have been initiated into eating that dish before I thought of certain phases of it. I suppose it is very clean and they are edible.

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Mackay Estate v. United States, 28 Cust. Ct. 73, 1952 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 7 (cusc 1952).

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