re, a comprehensive conclusion is clearly warranted, would appear
to be discriminatory and fail to fulfill the scientific and impartial
purposes of the provisions of section 315.

_Determining the dividing line for tariff purposes between higher and
lower priced hats._--The above tables sufficiently demonstrate that the
great bulk of men's sewed straw hats, imported at the port of New York
during the period of investigation, came from Italy and had a foreign
value of $7 or less per dozen, and much the larger part of the
higher-priced hats came from England and had a foreign value of $8.50
or more per dozen. The separation into classes of lower and higher
priced hats, with different duties for each class tends to result in
an overstatement of the values of the lower-priced imports in order to
obtain the benefit of the lower duty on high-priced imports. There is
also a tendency of the higher-priced imports to increase in volume. To
meet the changed situation a higher "breaking point" than the $7 value
is desirable. For example, with a 90 per cent duty, a hat whose foreign
value is $7 per dozen would cost, landed, duty and transportation paid,
$14.40. If the rate of 60 per cent remain on hats in the higher bracket,
as certain commissioners suggest that it continue to do, instead of the
$7 hat it might be profitable to import a hat worth $8.25 per dozen,
which would enter, duty paid and transportation included, for $14.30.
Adopting and applying the same method to hats having an invoice value
of $7.50 or less per dozen, a breaking point of approximately $9.10
would make it unprofitable to bring in higher-priced hats in order to
obtain the benefit of a 55 per cent rate of duty. A breaking point of
approximately $9.50 would therefore appear to be safely calculated to
prevent overvaluation with respect to the great bulk of low-priced men's
sewed straw hats now being imported.

_Some omissions from and doubtful features in the commission's
report._--Although from the point of view of equalizing foreign and
domestic costs under the provisions of section 315, the data of the
commission on their face point to an increase from 60 to 88 per cent ad
valorem, complete frankness compels the statement that the conclusion
arrived at is not free from difficulties; that the record is not
unequivocal; and that a strong case might be made for not advancing
the duty to the full extent thus indicated. Since the application
of the cost-of-produ