f the car.

I pass at this point any discussion of the question whether as a
national policy this traffic should be promoted. It is enough to say
that as the law stands it is authorized between "ports" of the United
States, and that the rules, regulations, and conditions to be prescribed
by the Secretary of the Treasury must not, in view of this declaration
of the legislative will, be further restrictive of the traffic than may
reasonably be necessary to protect the revenues of the United States.
In determining whether further regulations are reasonably necessary to
prevent frauds against our revenue it is not conclusive, at least, to
say that frauds against the revenue under the existing system have not
been discovered. The question is, Are the regulations such as to provide
proper safeguards against fraud, or are they such as to make fraud easy
to those who have the disposition to commit it? If all cars carrying
this merchandise are carefully and honestly inspected at the point of
lading and are securely closed during the transit, the revenue would be
secure, for the proper lading of these cars is not subject to duty.
Frauds can only be perpetrated by introducing products not subject to
free entry. In practice the seals and locks provided by the Treasury
Department do not give security that these cars, in the long transit in
which they are free from observation by officers of the revenue, may not
be opened and dutiable merchandise added.

The duplication of the seals used, composed of wire and lead, is easy,
and the opening of locks scarcely less so. If, however, the cars, when
they arrive in the United States, either at the point where our boundary
is crossed or at some other port of the United States, were subject to
the inspection of a revenue officer before the delivery to the consignee
or owner, the manifest could be verified. The inspection, however, is
now limited to an examination of the lock or seal. The car is not
weighed or opened to verify its contents. I do not think this is an
adequate protection against the surreptitious introduction into the
cars, while on foreign territory, of dutiable articles. It will be seen
by the letter of the Secretary of the Treasury that grain the product
of the United States is now largely transported in American vessels to
Canadian lake ports, and after being there placed in elevators is sent
east in cars sealed by agents of the Treasury.

No observation is taken of this g