Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 37.djvu/472

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456
THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY.

adopted. I made five classes; and since that date the fiscal statement of each year has been tabulated in that way.

I venture to incorporate at this point the statement of the imports under each of the heads named with the duties thereon. I take these figures from the last report of the Bureau of Statistics of the Treasurer of the United States for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1889.

IMPORTS ENTERED FOR CONSUMPTION.

Imports of Merchandise subdivided into Groups or Classes according to Degree of Manufacture and Uses.

In the following tables the extended classification for imports entered for consumption, embracing over a thousand articles and classes of articles, which is mainly an alphabetical arrangement with two grand subdivisions of free and dutiable articles, has been subdivided into the five following general groups or classes, according to the degree of manufacture and uses of the articles imported. It is hoped that the condensation of imports into these groups will in some measure aid and simplify the labors of those engaged in investigating the operations of our tariff laws.

For more extended explanation of this classification, see report of this office on Imported Merchandise entered for Consumption, 1887, page xxiv, etc.

Class A.—Articles of food, and animals.
Class B.—Articles in a crude condition which enter into various processes of domestic industry.
Class C.—Articles wholly or partially manufactured, for use as materials in the manufactures and mechanic arts.
Class D.—Manufactured articles, ready for consumption.
Class E.—Articles of voluntary use, luxuries, etc.

The value of imported merchandise entered for consumption in the United States, with the amount of duty collected thereon added, for the year ending June 30, 1889, has been as follows:

CLASSES. Values. Per cent
of total
value.
Duty
collected.
Per cent
of total
duty.
Total value
and duty.
(A) Articles of food, and animals. $240,666,693 32·45 $66,568,932 30·44 $307,235,625
(B) Articles in a crude condition which enter into the various processes of domestic industry. 172,134,716 23·22 15,363,625 7·02 187,498,341
(C) Articles wholly or partially manufactured, for use as materials in the manufactures and mechanic arts. 84,354,509 11·38 22,195,095 10·15 106,549,604
(D) Articles manufactured, ready for consumption. 147,596,641 19·91 68,683,765 31·40 216,280,406
(E) Articles of voluntary use, luxuries, etc. 96,678,839 13·04 45,890,357 20·99 142,569,196
Total. $741,431,398 100·00 $218,701,774 100·00 $960,133,172

This table does not show the cost of the imports landed in our ports. There are not included in the values of articles the cost of coverings, commissions, etc., excluded from the dutiable value by the act of March 3, 1883; nor freight charges from the country of importation, and undervaluations, the aggregate amount of which can not be estimated with any approximation to accuracy.