v. The vessel, in the case before the Court, as is confes- ARNOLD sed by the pleadings, arrived within the limits of the & OTHERS district of Providence, which is about 20 miles, within the jurisdictional limits of the United States, on the 1st U.STATES. day of July; and if, in the fiscal sense of the term, this constituted an importation, and the law did not take effect until the 2d day of July, the goods so imported, cannot be subject to the duties imposed by that act. We are aware of the decision of the Court, in 1810, in the case of the United States v. Vowell & M-Cican, in 5 Cranch. The distinction there taken by the counsel for the Defendants, between a district and a port of entry, is recognized by the Court as correct. The Court say, "the "duties did not accrue, in the fiscal sense of the term, " until the vessel arrived at the port of entry." But with great deference we contend that the time of importation, even in the fiscal sense of the term, is not ascertained merely by the entry of the master, or of the owner or consignee at the custom house, but by the arrival of the vessel in the United States, or within the limits of some place in the United States, designated by law. Whether this place be a port of entry, strictly so called, or a district, the master and owner have time given them by law, within which, after such arrival, they are allowed to make their entries at the custom house. Suppose the vessel, in this very case, had arrived at the port of Providence, on the 30th day of June, at twelve o'clock the master would be allowed, until twelve o'clock the next day, to make his first report to the collector, and he would not be obliged to exhibit a manifest of his cargo, before 48 hours after his arrival, which would not be until the 2d day of July; and the owner or consignee is allowed 16 days, after the final report of the master, to make his entry, for the purpose of paying or securing the duties. As this vessel would then have arrived, before the law passed, she could not be subject to double duties, although she might not have entered at the custom house, until after the passage of the law. There is, therefore, a material distinction between importation and entry. When a vessel, bound to the United States, with a cargo, has once arrived within certain known and specified limits; when she has once passed the line of demarcation fixed by law, then, at least, if not before, must the goods in such vessel be considered as legally ARNOLD and fiscally imported, and subject to all the provisions & OTHERS of law, relative to the security of duties upon them. v. The limits of a collection district are particularly desigU.STATES. nated by law. In every district, there is one, and but --- one port of entry, but in many of them, there are several ports of delivery. These ports, however, whether of entry or delivery, have no limits fixed or designated by law. When a vessel has arrived, " within the limits of any "district of the United States," she is under the complete control of the government, and she cannot depart from such district, " unless to proceed to some more in" terior district," before a report or entry shall be made by the master, with the collector of some district, under the penalty of $400, and the custom house officers and commanders of the revenue cutters, are authorized to arrest and bring back, any vessel attempting to depart from such district, &c. (Laws United States, vol. 4, § 29, p. 326.) The provisions of the next succeeding section, viz. section 30th, p. 327, are, " that within 24 hours "after the arrival of any ship or vessel, &c. at any port "of the United States, established by law, at which an "officer of the customs resides, the master is to make "a report of his arrival," and within 48 hours, is to make a further report in writing, with a manifest of the cargo, &c. It is certain, that the word "port" mention ed in this section, must be applicable to a port of delivery, at which a surveyor of the customs resides, as well as to a port of entry, at which the collector of the district resides. And, whether the master, according to this section, is obliged within 48 hours, after his arrival within the limits of a district, to make report and entry to the collector of such district, or within 48 hours, after his ar-> rival at some particular port, in such district; still after the arrival of a vessel within the limits of such district, she cannot depart from the same, unless to an interior district, until the master has made a report, and exhibited a manifest of her cargo, to the collector of such district. And after such manifest has been exhibited to the collector, she is not permitted to depart from such district, with the whole or any part of her cargo, either to a foreign port, or to any other district, until bonds are given for the due entry and delivery of the goods, which ARNOLD are destined for another district, or if the goods are des- & OTHERS tined for a foreign port, that they "shall not be landed v. in the United States, unless due entry thereof shall U.STATES " have been first made, and the duties thereupon paid or "secured to be paid, according to law." (Vide 32, 33 & 34 sections, pages 331-2-3 & 4.) If the goods are intended for exportation, they must be so reported in the manifests, and then the vessel importing them, may proceed from the district, within which such ship or "vessel shall first arrive," &c. on giving bond, as above stated (sect. 32.) If the goods or any part of them are destined to any other district, the vessel, in which they were brought, may proceed to such other district, on such conditions, as are specified in the 34th section. This section declares, "that before any ship or vessel "shall depart from the district, in which she shall first "arrive, for another district, (provided such departure "be not within 48 hours after her arrival within such "district) with goods, &c. brought in such ship from a "foreign port or place, &c. the master, &c. shall obtain "from the collector of the district, from which she shall "be about to depart, a copy of the report and manifest " made by such master," &c. Then the word district is used, and not port; and the proviso seems to shew, pretty clearly, that within 48 hours after the arrival of a vessel, within a district, a report and manifest must be made to the collector of such district. And when a vessel departs with goods from one district to any other district, the master is obliged within " twenty-four hours after the arrival of such ship within " any other district, so to make report or entry, to or " with the collector of such other district," &c. &c. (See page 335, sect. 34.) The condition of the bonds, in both cases, shew that the goods are considered as imported into the district, and not into particular ports, and that the bonds are given to secure the payment of the duties upon them, in case they should be landed in any other port of the United States. With regard to importation, the words of the condition are, whereas the " following goods, &c. imported into the district of." &c. In the case of the United States v. Vowel and M-Kean, the Court say, the vessel must arrive at the port of entry, before the duties accrued. If by an arrival at a port of VOL. IX. 15 ARNOLD entry, is meant that a vessel must actually go to a port & OTHERS of entry as established by law, before a right to the du v. ties can attach or an entry can be made by the master U.STATES. or owner, the position is believed to be incorrect; as by the 19th section of the collection law, a vessel destined The provisions of all the sections of the law from the If the vessel be owned in whole or in part by a citizen of the United States, the master is to have a manifest of the cargo on board; a copy of this manifest, must be delivered to an officer of the customs, if within four leagues of the coast; a like copy must be delivered to an officer of the customs, after his arrival within the limits of any district, and a certificate of such officer is to be entered on the original manifest; the last copy is to be sent to the collector of the district in which such vessel has arrived, and the original manifest certified by such officer, must be delivered to such collector by the master, or he must make oath, that no such copy had been applied for, &c. (See 25th section, page 321-2) and the master is finally to deliver to the collector of the district under oath, a manifest containing the particulars of the cargo on board; and after this has been done by the master, the owners or consignees of goods thus imported, are to come forward and pay or secure the duties upon them; and for this purpose are to make a particular entry of such parts of the cargo, as are owned by or consigned to them. The form of this entry is given in the 36th sec. of the law, and is headed, by the words" entry of merchandize imported by," &c. : v. The complete control of the government over the ves- ARNOLD sel, from the moment of her arrival within any district, & OTHERS is shewn by the 53d section of the law, page 345. This section provides " that it shall be lawful for the collec- u.STATES. "tor of any district in which any ship or vessel may ar"rive and immediately on her first coming within such " district, &c. "to put on board such ship or vessel, " whilst remaining within such district, or in going "from one district to another, one or more inspector, to " examine the cargo, &c. and to perform such other du"ties," &c. " for the better securing the collection of "the duties." 4. The bond was taken under the former impost law as stated in the plea, and accordingly was an explicit contract for such duties as that law imposed and no other; and whatever claim the Plaintiffs may have for double duties, no more than the single duties ought to be recovered on this bond. If any duties are to be paid, on account of the imported articles, beyond the tariff established by the former impost law, they are not recoverable in this action on the bond given under that law; but recourse must be had to some other process for the recovery of such further duties. The sureties (and in this case two of the Defendants are sureties) will not be made liable beyond the responsibility which they expected on entering into the obligation. They expected to be holden for no more than the duties under the former impost law; and the proceedings on the part of government warranted that expectation. The time of giving the bond, the district where it is taken and the penal sum, being rather less than the amount of double duties, as now demanded, evince conclusively, that the bond, with its condition was not for double duties, but for the single duties. Every argument, which can be urged for a demand of double duties, may be urged with equal force, and far more apparent equity to sustain some other process, in which the sureties would not be subjected to the peculiar hardship of being compelled to pay double duties, for 1 |