270  SELLING  LATIN  AMERICA

treatment  in  the  same  custom-house,  paying  a
duty  of  $200.00.
Theatrical  appliances  are  free  everywhere,
especially  if  the  property  of  a  traveling
troupe.  Despite  this  fact  and  a  positive  statement ­
  to  this  effect  in  the  tariff  regulations,  I
knew  one  large  Latin  American  country,
wherein  a  carousel,  or  “flying-horse”  outfit,
was  refused  admission  unless  the  owner  paid
the  duty  charged  on  live  stock,  each  wooden
horse  being  assessed  at  the  rate  of  $25.00,
which  is  the  tariff  on  breeding  stallions.
Thefts  by  minor  employees  of  the  customhouse ­
  are  only  too  common.  As  a  rule  these
men  are  poorly  paid  and  add  to  their  scanty
income  by  appropriating  whatever  comes
within  their  reach.  I  have  known  of  cases  of
soap,  provisions,  perfumes,  shoes  and  the  like
to  be  entirely  confiscated  in  this  manner.
There  is  absolutely  no  redress.  Very  often  the
higher  employees  are  implicated  in  these
nefarious  practices.  In  one  of  the  largest  and
most  progressive  of  Latin  American  cities,  all
the  foreign  and  native  merchants  had  been  re ­