8. I have sold to C. D. several parcels of goods, at sundry times, and on various terms of credit, as by the statement annexed.

Jan. 1, a bill amounting to $600 on 4 months' credit.

7,

Feb.
March 15,
April 20,

66

66

370 on 5 months' credit.

560 on 4 months' credit.

420 on 6 months' credit.

When is the equated time for the payment of all the bills?

Ans. July 11. 9. Purchased goods of John Brown, at sundry times, and on various terms of credit, as by the statement annexed.

March 1, 1845, a bill amounting to $675.25 on 3 months.

What is the equated time for the payment of the above bills? Ans. March 16, 1846.

SECTION L.

CUSTOM-HOUSE BUSINESS.

In every port of the United States where merchandise is either exported or imported, there is an establishment called a Custom-house. Connected with this are certain officers, appointed by government, called custom-house officers, whose business is to collect the duties on various kinds of merchandise, &c., imported into the United States.

The following article on Allowances, &c., was very politely furnished the author by the officers of the Boston custom-house, and may therefore be relied on as perfectly correct.

Allowances.

Draft is an allowance made by the officers of the United States government in the collection of duties on merchandise liable to a specific duty, and ascertained by weight, and is also

given by the usage of merchants in buying and selling. It is a deduction from the actual gross weight of the article paying duty by the pound or sold by weight.

For example, a box of sugar actually weighs 500 pounds. The draft upon this weight is 4 pounds.

500 gross.

4 draft.

496 difference. Upon this difference is made a further allowance of fifteen per cent. as tare, or as the actual weight of the box before the sugar was put into it. This tare is allowed by the government in the collection of the duty, and by the merchant in buying and selling. Take, then, the box of sugar, say 500lb. gross.

4 draft.

496 difference. 74 tare.

422 net weight, upon which a duty is paid to the government, or price is paid to the merchant in his sale. This tare of 74 pounds, or 15 per cent., is usually more than the actual tare, but is assumed as the probable or actual tare, by reason of the impossibility of "starting" every box to ascertain the actual weight of the sugar, and the actual weight of the box which contains it. This tare is sufficiently correct for the collector of the duty, and the merchant who deals in the article. It is intended to be a liberal allowance, and varies but little from the actual

tare.

Drafts allowed at the custom-house in the collection of duties, and by the merchants in their purchases and sales, are as follow : ·---

Allowance for Draft.

Draft is another name for Tret, which is an allowance in weight for waste.

EXPLANATION. Many articles of merchandise are weighed

separately; for example, boxes and casks of sugar, chests of

tea and indigo. Upon each box or cask, or chest, an allowance should be made for draft, according to its weight, as by the above rule. Bags of sugar and coffee, or bars of iron and bundles of steel, might be weighed together; say, 10 bags of coffee at one draft might weigh 1121 pounds; from this gross weight must be deducted 7 pounds as draft; 35 bars of Russia iron might be weighed at one draft, weight 2250 pounds, upon which would be an allowance of 9 pounds draft, and by law and usage there can be no greater allowance than 9 pounds for draft. A greater or less number of bags of coffee, or bars of iron, or any other article of merchandise, is weighed, and the deduction is according to the weight of each draft. An old rule, and probably a better one, among merchants was the allowance of per cent. on the gross weight of all merchandise weighed, as draft.

Allowance for Leakage.

Two per cent. is allowed on the gauge of ale, beer, porter, brandy, gin, molasses, oil, wine, and rum, and other liquors in casks, besides the real wants of the cask; for example, a cask of molasses may gauge 140 gallons, gross gauge; from this first deduct 5 gallons, the actual wants, or the quantity necessary to fill the cask,we have

140 gross.

.5 out.

135 difference.

3 two per cent. for leakage. 132 gallons net.

Tare is an allowance made for the actual or supposed weight of the cask, box, case, or bag, which contains the article of merchandise.

The usage of merchants is in conformity with the law and usage of the officers of the customs in their allowance for tare, directed by law, or found to be correct by their examination and experience.

The tariff of the United States being in its details so unsettled, it is deemed advisable not to insert any table.

EXAMPLES.

1. Find the net weight of a hogshead of sugar, weighing gross 12281b., tare 12 per cent.

Ans. 1075lb.

OPERATION.

1228lb. gross weight.
7lb. draft.

1221

12 per cent. of 1221lb. 146lb. tare.

1075lb. net weight.

NOTE. For draft let the pupil examine page 202.

2. Required the net weight of 6 boxes of sugar, weighing gross as follows, the tare being 15 per cent. :

3. What is the net weight of 4 chests of tea, which weigh as

5lb. draft.

455

33 per cent. 150lb. tare. 305lb. net.

NOTE. In making allowances, if there be a fraction of more than half a pound, 1 pound is added to the tare

AMERICAN DUTIES.

The duties on merchandise imported into the United States are either specific or ad valorem duties.

Specific duty is a certain sum paid on a ton, hundred weight, pound, square yard, gallon, &c.; but when the duty is a certain per cent. on the actual cost of the goods in the country from which they are imported, it is called an ad valorem duty, that is, a duty according to the value of the article.

6. What is the duty on 6 hogsheads of sugar, weighing gross as follows: No. 1, 1276lb., No. 2, 1280lb., No. 3, 1178lb., No. 4, 1378lb., No. 5, 1570lb., No. 6, 1338lb.; duty 2 cents per lb., tare 12 per cent. ? Ans. $175.52,5.

7. What is the duty on an invoice of woollen goods, which cost in London 986 sterling, at 44 per cent. ad valorem, the pound sterling being $4.84? Ans. $2099.78+.

8. Required the duty on 5 pipes of Port wine, gross gauge as follows: No. 1, 176 gallons, No. 2, 145 gallons, No. 3, 128 gallons, No 4, 148 gallons, No. 5, 150 gallons; wants of each pipe, 4 gallons; duty 15 cents per gallon. Ans. $106.80.

9. Required the duty on a cargo of iron, weighing 270 tons, at $30 per ton? Ans. $8100. 10. Compute the duty on 7890 pounds of tarred cordage, at 4 cents per pound; duty 1 per cent. Ans. $310.08. 11. What duty should be paid on 10 casks of nails. weighing each 450lb. gress at 4cents per lb., tare 8 per cent. Ans.$164.12.

SECTION LI.

RATIO.

RATIO is the relation which one quantity bears to another of the same kind with respect to magnitude; and the comparison is made by considering how often the one is contained in the other, or how often the one contains the other. Thus, the ratio of 12 to 3 is expressed by dividing 12 by 312 = 4, ratio; or it may be expressed by dividing 3 by 12: = , ratio. The former is the method by which the English mathematicians express ratio, and the latter is the French method.

=

The former of these quantities is called the antecedent, and the latter the consequent.