This is a suit against the collector of customs for the port of New York to recover back duties alleged to have been overcharged. In August and September, 1874, the plaintiff imported goods from Vienna, in Austria, chargeable with an ad valorem duty. The invoices upon which they were entered at the custom-house were made out in Austrian paper florins, in which currency they were purchased, and amounted to the sum of 10,163 71/100 florins. This was assessed and liquidated by the collector at the sum of $4,818, gold coin of the United States, by converting the same into Austrian silver florins at 45 77/100 cents for each paper florin, and 47 6/10 cents, gold coin of the United States, for each Austrian silver florin, making the duty equal to $1,930.67. The plaintiff paid the duty under a written protest, addressed to the collector, in which he assigned the following ground of objection, namely: 'In computing the amount in United States money of foreign dutiable value of the merchandise covered by the said entries, you have estimated the value of the paper florin, being the currency in which invoices, upon which entries were made, were made out, to be greater than 40 cents. I claim that under existing laws and upon the fact that in computations at the existing laws the value of the paper florin therein specified should be estimated as of the value of 40 cents, and shall hold you responsible for the excess of duty thus illegally claimed and exacted.' The plaintiff having appealed to the Secretary of the Treasury, without effect, brought the present action to recover the alleged excess of duty exacted.
On the trial, the foregoing facts being proved, the plaintiff took the stand, and testified that he was in Vienna in 1873 and part of 1874, and that in those years, and for some time prior thereto, the silver florin was not in circulation in Austria, having ceased to be a standard or measure of value early in 1873, owing to the fact that silver had been demonetized by the German Empire, where it had previously been current; its place, as a standard, being taken by the 8-florin Austria-Hungarian gold piece; that by the official paper or gazette of the stock exchange of Vienna the silver florin was worth 45 46/100 cents in American gold coin in September, 1874, and the paper florin, 43 71/100 cents; that the actual value of the invoice in question was $4,442.56; that the amount of duty should have been assessed at $1,780.67; and that the excess paid and claimed is $150.
The plaintiff further exhibited in evidence a letter of the Secretary of the Treasury to the collector of customs at New York, dated Oct. 23, 1874 (a few weeks after the importation of the goods in question), in which he stated, amongst other things, that the department had authentic information that the silver florin had generally been thrown out of use, both as a standard and as currency, its place as a standard being taken by the 8-florin gold piece, which had its exact equivalent in the 20-franc gold piece of France; that under these circumstances it became necessary to review the former action of the department in determining the value of the florin of Austria for assessment of duty on imports, and to apply to the 8-florin gold piece and the paper florin the rules applied to all currencies the values of which are not declared in terms by some specific statute: the collector was, therefore, directed to accept the certificate of a consul of the United States at any point in Austria-Hungary as to the value of the paper florin relatively to the 8-florin gold piece and its equivalent in American gold dollars, as the true value for duty of any invoice of merchandise properly expressed in that currency.
The defendant gave in evidence the consular certificate of the United States consul at Vienna, attached to the invoice, in which it was stated that the true value of the currency of the Austria-Hungarian monarchy, in which the invoice was made out, was 45 77/100 cents estimated in United States gold, silver florin being 47 60/100 cents. He also gave in evidence an extract from the proclamation of the Secretary of the Treasury, made on the 1st of January, 1874, announcing the determinations of the value of foreign moneys made by the director of the mint under the act of March 3, 1873 (17 Stat. 602), which extract was as follows, to wit:--
'The following list of standard values of foreign currencies in the money of account of the United States shall be used in the computation of customs duties, until otherwise provided by law or regulation:-- 'Foreign moneys of account and their values in United States money of account. Austria, monetary unit, florin; standard, silver; value in U.S. money of account, 47.60 [cents].'