United States v. Burroughs-Wellcome Co.

43 C.C.P.A. 142
CourtCourt of Customs and Patent Appeals
DecidedJune 20, 1956
DocketNo. 4862
StatusPublished

This text of 43 C.C.P.A. 142 (United States v. Burroughs-Wellcome Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Customs and Patent Appeals primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
United States v. Burroughs-Wellcome Co., 43 C.C.P.A. 142 (ccpa 1956).

Opinion

Cole, Judge,

delivered the opinion of the court:

This case involves the question of whether the dried leaf of the plant Digitalis Lanata is “digitalis” within the meaning of the Tariff Act of 1930.

The involved merchandise was entered as “Dried Digitalis Lanata Leaves,” and was assessed with duty as “digitalis” under paragraph 36 of the Tariff Act of 1930, which reads as follows:

Par. 36. Coca leaves, 10 cents per pound; digitalis, 20 per centum ad valorem.

" Importer protested this classification, claiming that the merchandise was dutiable at 5 per centum under paragraph 34 of the Tariff Act, as modified, as a drug, advanced in value or condition, or, alternatively, that it was free of duty as a crude drug under paragraph 1669. The United States Customs Court, First Division, one judge [143]*143dissenting, sustained tbe protest bolding the merchandise properly classifiable under paragraph 34 (C. D. 1738). The United States appeals from that decision.

Since the importer has not appealed from the denial of its alternative claim under paragraph 1669, the question of the applicability of that paragraph is not before us. The only question before this court is whether or not the involved merchandise is “digitalis” under paragraph 36. If it is not, it seems to be conceded that the decision of the lower court was correct.

The issues in this case can best be understood by briefly commenting upon the meaning of the word “digitalis” as it appears in recognized authorities.1 Two distinct meanings of the word are recognized: capitalized, “Digitalis” is the name of a genus of plants in botany; not capitalized, “digitalis” is a drug consisting of some form of the dried leaves of the plant Digitalis purpurea.

Thus, two main issues are raised. (1) Does the Tariff Act use the word “digitalis” in its botanical or its pharmaceutical meaning, or both? (2) If the pharmaceutical meaning was intended, is that meaning limited to the leaves of the plant Digitalis purpurea alone, or is it broad enough to include the leaves of the plant Digitalis lanata?

With respect to the first issue, it would seem rather obvious that the word “digitalis” is not used in its botanical meaning in paragraph 36. In the first place, a “genus” is not a tangible thing; a “genus” could not be imported. In the second place, even if the word could be construed broadly enough to include individual plants of the Digitalis genus, and parts thereof, the context and legislative history clearly show that the word “digitalis” is not so used in the Tariff Act, but is used in a pharmaceutical sense. Eo nomine provision for digitalis was first made in the Tariff Act of 1922. The Summary of Tariff Information,-1921 states as follows at pages 99-100:

BELLADONNA, DIGITALIS, HENBANE, AND STRAMONIUM.
Description and uses. — The herbs belladonna, digitalis, henbane, and stra-tnonium are natural exotic drugs which are gathered because of the valuable medicinal properties due to the alkaloids which they contain. * * * Digitalis, or “foxglove,” is used chiefly as a heart tonic. All of these products are official in the United States Pharmacopoeia.
% ¡k % ‡ * #
Important changes in classification. — These drugs are given specific mention for the first time. Under the act of 1913 (par. 477) they are exempt from duty when not advanced. [Emphasis supplied.]

The foregoing excerpt, particularly in its reference to the United States Pharmacopoeia, clearly shows that the drug digitalis was [144]*144intended to be covered by tbe new provision. See also H. Rep. 248, pt. 1, 67th. Cong., Ist Sess., p. 4.

The Summary of Tariff Information, 1929 has similar statements:

DIGITALIS
Description and uses. — Digitalis is a leaf drug which is chiefly used in certain diseases of the heart. It is considered an indispensable drug.

Thus we conclude that “digitalis” as used in the tariff acts is not used broadly to cover every plant of the Digitalis genus, and every part of such a plant, but that it is used in its pharmaceutical meaning as the name of a specific drug.

We turn now to the second issue, whether the word “digitalis” as the name of a drug includes the leaves of the plant Digitalis lanata, or whether it is limited to the leaves of the plant Digitalis purpurea.

There is little question but that at the time of the passage of the Tariff Acts of 1922 and 1930 the drug digitalis included only preparations from the species Digitalis purpurea. The ninth decennial revision of the United States Pharmacopoeia, which was effective at the time of the reference thereto in the 1921 Summary, defines “digitalis” as follows:

The carefully dried leaves of Digitalis purpurea Linne’ (Fam. Scrophulariaceae), without the presence of admixture of more than 2 per cent, of stems, flowers or other foreign matter. * * *

The tenth decennial revision of the Pharmacopoeia, effective at the time of passage of the Tariff Act of 1930, defines “digitalis” as follows:

Digitalis is the dried leaf of Digitalis purpurea Linne’ (Fam. Scrophulariaceae).

Furthermore, the Summary of Tariff Information, 1929 clearly states that Digitalis purpurea is the source of the drug digitalis.

If the product known as digitalis in 1922 and 1930 were to be the controlling factor, it is clear that only the leaves of the plant Digitalis purpurea could be classified as “digitalis.” However, appellant states in its brief that “Tariff statutes are made for the future as well as for the present,” citing United States v. L. A. Salomon & Bro., 22 C. C. P. A. (Customs) 490, T. D. 47483, and argues to the effect that even if “digitalis” at the time of the passage of the tariff act referred only to the leaves of the plant Digitalis purpurea, if it later referred as well to products obtained from other plants of the Digitalis genus, that they also would be incorporated under the eo nomine provision.

We may assume the correctness of the Government’s argument. Certainly, if parts of plants other than Digitalis purpurea were discovered having the same composition as the “digitalis” from Digitalis purpurea, and were recognized as being completely substitutable therefor, and referred to as “digitalis” in the trade, then such new products would be properly classified as “digitalis” for tariff purposes.

[145]*145Such, however, is not the case which has been proved here. In the first place, the leaves of Digitalis lanata are not recognized as “digitalis” in any of the authorities that we have examined. The fourteenth revision of the United States Pharmacopoeia (official from November 1, 1950) defines digitalis thusly:

Digitalis is the dried leaf of Digitalis purpurea Linne’ (Fam. Scrophulariaceae),

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Bluebook (online)
43 C.C.P.A. 142, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-burroughs-wellcome-co-ccpa-1956.