Winne v. United States

72 Cust. Ct. 62, 1974 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 3069
CourtUnited States Customs Court
DecidedMarch 21, 1974
DocketC.D. 4505; Court No. 63/22868
StatusPublished

This text of 72 Cust. Ct. 62 (Winne 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
Winne v. United States, 72 Cust. Ct. 62, 1974 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 3069 (cusc 1974).

Opinion

Mauetz, Judge:

This case involves the proper tariff classification of a shipment of sisal twine that was imported in 1963 from Mexico [63]*63into the United States via the port of Philadelphia. The twine was assessed with duty at the rate of 15 percent ad valorem under the provisions for cords and twine in paragraph 1005(b) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as modified, T.D. 51802. Plaintiff claims that the twine in controversy is entitled to entry free of duty as binding twine under the provisions.of paragraph 1622 of the above act, as amended by Public Law 219,65 Stat. 655 (1951) ,1

The relevant statutory provisions are:

Paragraph 1005 (b), sufra:
Cords and twines (whether or not composed of three or more strands, each strand composed of two or more yarns), tarred or - untarred, single or plied, wholly or in chief value of manila ( abaca), sisal, hene-quén, or other hard fiber_ 15% ad val.
Paragraph 1622, sufra:
All binding twine, and twine chiefly used for baling hay, straw, and other fodder and bedding materials, manufactured from New Zealand hemp, henequen, manila, istle or Tampico fiber, sisal grass, or sunn, or a mixture of any two or more of them, of single ply and measuring not exceeding seven hundred and fifty feet to ■ the pound__1_sJ Free,

I

The record establishes that the imported merchandise consists of one-ply, unoiled, Mexican sisal twine which measures less than 750 feet' per pound, and is chiefly used for industrial wrapping and tying purposes and not for agricultural purposes or for baling hay, straw, or other fodder or bedding materials.2 In this context, the issue is whether the term “binding twine” as used in paragraph 1622, as amended, includes twine that is chiefly used for industrial wrapping and tying purposes or whether the term “binding twine” is limited tb twine that is chiefly used for agricultural purposes.

[64]*64II

Examination of the record in greater detail shows that the following types of twine have the quality and characteristics listed below:

Binder twine is a one-ply twine made of hard henequen or sisal fiber which is oiled and treated with insect repellent to resist rot, rodents and insects. It is manufactured to a length of 500 or more feet to the pound and is put up in either 8-pound tubes, 6 tubes to the bale, or in 5-pound balls, 10 balls to the bale. Twine of this type is chiefly used on the farm for binding and tying grains and is distributed through farm machinery and equipment dealers, farm and feed dealers, and farm cooperatives. Because it is oiled and treated with insect and rodent repellents, it cannot be used as wrapping or tying twine.

Baler twine is made of a one-ply material and ranges between 200 to 257 feet per pound; it is oiled 'and treated with insect repellent to resist rot, rodents and insects. Such twine is manufactured in 20-pound balls, with two balls to the bale; is much thicker, heavier and stronger than binder twine; and is chiefly used on the farm in hay balers to tie and bind bales of hay, straw and fodder crops. As in the case of binder twine, baler twine is distributed through farm machinery and equipment dealers, farm and feed dealers, and farm cooperatives. Also like binder twine, it cannot be used as wrapping or tying because of its oiled and repellent-treated condition.

Wrapping twine and tying twine are one and the same and are sometimes referred to as sisal twine. Twine of this type consists of a piece of string manufactured from fiber. It is stainless, i.e., unoiled, and is made in various put-ups, such as 10- or 20-pound balls or 50-pound reels or tubes, and also in different size bales according to customer specifications. It is white in color (although different colors may be specially ordered); is treated with a softening material; and comes in one, two or three plies in lengths of 200 and 300 or 400 feet. Wrapping and tying twine is not sold in the same channels of distribution as binder or baler twine; it is usually stronger than binder or baler twine; and it is not used for agricultural purposes but rather is chiefly used for such industrial purposes as wrapping or tying of packages; bundles, newspapers, etc.

The record further shows that the term “binding twine” is rarely used in the United States; that in the trade, agricultural twines are specifically referred to either as binder twine or baler twine, while wrapping or tying twines are referred to as such and also as sisal twines; that plaintiff’s own catalogues refer to merchandise such as that involved here as wrapping or tying twine; that only in the most infrequent cases is wrapping or tying twine ordered under the name [65]*65of binding twine; that the term “'binding twine” has never appeared in trade literature in connection with either binder twine or wrapping or tying twine; and that binder twine is not commercially interchangeable with wrapping or tying twine.

It is to be added that plaintiff’s witnesses in the present case3 testified that in their opinion the term “binding twine” covered both binder twine and wrapping and tying twine. This opinion, they testified, was based on the definition of the verb “bind” and the adjective “binding” as set out in Webster’s TM/rd, New International Dictionary (1965 ed.). In that dictionary, the verb “bind” is defined as follows:

bind, v.t.; 1. to make secure by tying (as with a cord) (they bound his hands) ... 4. to tie together (as stalks of wheat) (binding the reaped wheat into sheaves) ***

The adjective “binding” is defined in this dictionary as follows:

1. that binds or causes to bind: tending to bind.

Defendant’s witness, on the other hand, when asked what in his opinion the term “binding twine” connoted, replied (R.131) :

Well, I think it is a play on words, a matter of semantics. We have had occasion to have the word referred to in the dictionary and as far as the dictionary is concerned, it would appear that binding things together can be accomplished with twine, but as far as the domestic twine industry is concerned, the only reference to the word binding is in connection with binding grain in shocks, as would be accomplished with binder twine.

Ill

With the foregoing considerations in mind, plaintiff points out that in 1951, paragraph 1622 of the Tariff Act of 1930 was amended by Public Law 219 by inserting after the words “binding twine” a comma and the words “and twine chiefly used for baling hay, straw, and other fodder and bedding materials.” To understand more fully the import of this change, it is helpful again to quote paragraph 1622 — this time underscoring the new matter added by the 1951 amendment:

Par. 1622. All binding twine, and twine chiefly used for baling hay, straw, and other fodder and bedding materials, manufactured from New Zealand hemp, henequen, manila, istle or Tampico fiber, sisal grass, or sunn, or a mixture of any two or more of them, of single ply and measuring not exceeding seven hundred and fifty feet to the pound.

[66]*66With respect to this amendment, plaintiff contends that the intent of Congress in enacting it was to provide for

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Maher-App & Co. v. The United States
418 F.2d 922 (Customs and Patent Appeals, 1969)
Independent Cordage Co. v. United States
3 Cust. Ct. 157 (U.S. Customs Court, 1939)
Vales v. United States
9 Cust. Ct. 219 (U.S. Customs Court, 1942)
Geo Wm. Rueff, Inc. v. United States
28 Cust. Ct. 84 (U.S. Customs Court, 1952)
Maher-App v. United States
60 Cust. Ct. 470 (U.S. Customs Court, 1968)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
72 Cust. Ct. 62, 1974 Cust. Ct. LEXIS 3069, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/winne-v-united-states-cusc-1974.