Viewing page 41 of 145

This transcription has been completed. Contact us with corrections.

^[[checkmark symbol]]

[[preprinted]]
HIRSHBACH & SMITH, INC.
CUSTOMS BROKERS AND FORWARDERS
2-4 STONE STREET
NEW YORK
TELEPHONE: 3260 3268 BOWLING GREEN
NEW YORK
[[/preprinted]]

April 24, 1930

J. Seligmann & Co.,
3 East 51st Street,
New York City.

Gentlemen:

We are in receipt of your letter of the 22nd and in reply would state:

[[underlined]]First[[/underlined]]: When an antique object is received in the Appraisers Stores, it is subjected to an examination by the appraising officer. The person making the examination is supposedly able, in most instances, to determine without assistance the antiquity of the importation. Where he is in doubt, it is the practice for him to call upon other importers for an expression of their opinions. Inasmuch as for this purpose he has available all of the foremost firms, his ultimate decision is usually correct. The experts cannot be selected by the importer, but usually if there is a question, the appraiser is willing to listen not only to the opinion of those whom he requests to examine the article, but also to any recognized authority selected by the importer. It should be borne in mind that his decision is subject to review by the Customs Court, and before he decides that an article is not genuinely antique, he must be fortified by the opinions of capable experts who would then testify in his favor in the Court hearings. At such hearings the importer is also permitted to produce all the witnesses he desires to prove the antiquity. This is merely cited to allow that an examiner is usually very cautious in denying the assumption that an article is antique.

[[underlined]]Second[[/underlined]]: If works of art are shipped to a port other than New York and examined there, the importer cannot, as a matter of right, demand the transportation of the shipment to New York. It is the custom in such outports to refer any questionable item to the New York examiner. Sometimes, in our experience, the merchandise has been sent to New York and at other times, photographic copies have been furnished to the appraiser here, to assist him in deciding on the nature of the article.

[[underlined]]Third[[/underlined]]: If the appraiser finds that an article is not antique within the meaning of the law and duty is assessed, the possibility of exportation depends upon the method of entry and the place of examination. Any merchandise which remains under continuous Government custody can be exported without the payment of duty. Therefore, if all the packages and articles imported are sent to the Appraisers Stores for examination, and are found dutiable, they can be exported from there without the payment of duty; if the merchandise is delivered to the importer under