Max B. Heim Corp. v. United States

28 Cust. Ct. 62, 1952 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 5
CourtUnited States Customs Court
DecidedFebruary 15, 1952
DocketC. D. 1389
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 28 Cust. Ct. 62 (Max B. Heim Corp. 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
Max B. Heim Corp. v. United States, 28 Cust. Ct. 62, 1952 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 5 (cusc 1952).

Opinion

Oliver, Chief Judge:

The merchandise involved in this case, conceded to be spangles in chief value of gelatin, was assessed with duty at the rate of 27K per centum ad valorem under paragraph 1503 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (as modified by the President’s proclamation, T. D. 51898), as spangles, not specially provided for. The plaintiff claims these spangles properly dutiable at the rate of 15 per centum ad valo-rem under paragraph 41 of the same act (as modified by the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, T. D. 51802), as “ * * * manufactures, wholly or in chief value of gelatin * *

A sample of these spangles is before us (plaintiff’s exhibit 1). A chemical analysis in evidence (plaintiff’s exhibit 2) describes the merchandise as follows: “The sample consists of a string of beads or spangles made of hardened gelatine (99.7%) and coated with a lacquer of cellulose nitrate compound (0.3%).”

The pertinent parts, of the tariff paragraphs in question are as follows:

Par. 1503. Spangles and beads, including bugles, not specially provided for, 35 per centum ad valorem * * *. [The rate on spangles was reduced to 27% per centum ad valorem by virtue of Presidential proclamation, T. D. 51898.]
Par. 41. * * * and manufactures, wholly or in chief value of gelatin * * * 25 per centum ad valorem. [By virtue of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, T. D. 51802, this rate of duty was reduced to 15 per centum ad valorem.]

The issue herein is one of law; whether the imported spangles, con-cededly in chief value of gelatin, are properly dutiable as “Spangles * * * not specially provided for” (paragraph 1503), as assessed, or as “manufactures, wholly or in chief value of gelatin” (paragraph 41), as claimed.

The plaintiff contends that the legislative history of the spangle paragraphs in the various tariff acts indicates an intent on the part of Congress to exclude from the present spangle paragraph (paragraph 1503), such spangles as are composed of gelatin and to relegate such spangles to the provision of paragraph 41 of the present act which provides for manufactures, wholly or in chief value of gelatin.

Plaintiff maintains that this legislative intent is indicated by changes in the language of the present and predecessor tariff acts with respect to the provisions therein for spangles and beads, and articles composed of spangles and beads.

[64]*64Paragraph 333 of the Tariff Act of 1913 reads:

Beads and spangles of all kinds, including imitation pearl beads * * * 35 per centum ad valorem; * * * articles * * * not specially provided for in this section, composed wholly or in chief value of beads or spangles made of * * * gelatin * * * 50 per centum ad valorem.

In the 1922 act, the above wording was changed to read:

Par. 1403. Spangles and beads, including bugles, but not including beads of ivory or imitation pearl beads and beads in imitation of precious or semiprecious stones, 35 per centum ad valorem; beads of ivory, 45 per centum ad valorem; fabrics and articles * * * composed wholly or in chief value of beads or spangles other than imitation pearl beads and beads in imitation of precious or semiprecious stones, 60 per centum ad valorem; imitation pearl beads * * * 60 per centum ad valorem; all other beads in imitation of precious or semiprecious stones * * * 45 per centum ad valorem * * *.

In the 1930 act, further modification was made in the wording, the present act reading:

Par. 1503. Spangles and beads, including bugles, not specially provided for, 35 per centum ad valorem; beads of ivory, 45 per centum ad valorem; fabrics and articles * * * composed wholly or in chief value of beads or spangles (other than imitation pearl beads, beads in imitation of precious or semiprecious stones, and beads in chief value of synthetic resin), 60 per centum ad valorem; hollow or filled imitation pearl beads * * * 60 per centum ad valorem; imitation, solid pearl beads * * *; iridescent imitation solid pearl beads * * *; beads composed in chief value of synthetic resin * * *; all other beads in imitation of precious or semiprecious stones * * * 45 per centum ad valorem * * *.

From the above, it appears that the Tariff Act of 1922 eliminated the provision for “articles * * * composed wholly or in chief value of * * * spangles made of * * * gelatin” and also eliminated the phrase “of all kinds” after the provision for “Spangles and beads” in paragraph 1403 of the 1922 act, which provisions had appeared in paragraph 333 of the Tariff Act of 1913. Furthermore, the phrase “not specially provided for” after the designation for “Spangles and beads” was added in paragraph 1503 of the 1930 act.

The Government contends that the above changes do not indicate a congressional intent to take out of the eo nomine provision for spangles in the present act such as are composed wholly or in chief value of gelatin. It further maintains that the provision in the present act for “Spangles * * * not specially provided for,” (paragraph 1503) is more specific than the general provision for “manufactures * * * of gelatin” contained in paragraph 41.

We find nothing in the legislative history of the paragraphs in question to indicate that it was the intent of Congress to transfer gelatin spangles from the spangle paragraph (paragraph 1503) to the provision for manufactures of gelatin (paragraph 41), Tariff Act of 1930.

[65]*65With respect to the elimination in the Tariff Act of 1922 of the provision for “* * * articles * * * not specially provided for * * * composed wholly or in chief value of * * * spangles made of * * * gelatin,” (which provision had appeared in paragraph 333, Tariff Act of 1913), paragraph 1403 of the Tariff Act of 1922 provided for articles composed wholly or in chief value of spangles, without any limitation as to the material of which they were composed. It would appear that the absence of any limitation in that respect indicated an intent on the part of Congress to have all articles composed wholly or in chief value of spangles dutiable under paragraph 1403 of that act, irrespective of the material of which they were composed.

We further find no particular significance in the dropping from paragraph 1403 of the Tariff Act of 1922 the phrase “of all kinds” with reference to spangles and beads, which phrase had appeared in the 1913 act. In paragraph 333 of the Tariff Act of 1913, Congress had provided for “Beads and spangles of all kinds,” including imitation pearl beads, at 35 per centum ad valorem. In dropping the phrase “of all kinds” from paragraph 1403 of the Tariff Act of 1922, Congress provided for spangles and beads, including bugles, but not including beads of ivory or imitation pearl beads and beads in imitation of precious or semiprecious stones, at the same rate of duty, viz, 35 per centum ad valorem. It then specifically provided for these latter types of beads at higher rates of duty. We are of opinion that the dropping of the phrase “of all kinds” from the Tariff Act of 1922 (paragraph 1403) was to indicate that spangles and beads, including bugles, were to be classified at the 35 per centum rate of duty, but that such rate was not to include beads of ivory, or imitation pearl beads and beads in imitation of precious or semiprecious stones, which were specifically provided for in paragraph 1403 of the Tariff Act of 1922 at higher rates.

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Bluebook (online)
28 Cust. Ct. 62, 1952 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 5, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/max-b-heim-corp-v-united-states-cusc-1952.