194

WAREHOUSES  IN  FOREIGN  COUNTRIES.

fines  as  a  means  of  keeping  the  warehouseman  honest,  and  of  obliging ­
  him  to  find,  at  his  own  expense,  the  necessary  police  and  fire
protection  for  his  warehouse.
The  goods  generally  bonded  here  are  tobacco  products,  liquors,
canned  goods,  cotton  goods,  and  cereal  products.  The  forwarding
agents  try  to  get  the  goods  of  their  clients  out  of  bond  as  soon  as
possible,  but  the  merchants  having  their  own  private  bonded  stores
often  keep  their  goods  in  bond  for  many  months.
In  the  morning  the  custom-house  man  comes  and  unlocks  his
locks,  and  at  night  he  comes  again  and  locks  them.  If  the  proprietors ­
  want  to  take  out  anything  from  the  bonded  store,  either
for  local  consumption  or  for  export,  their  clerk  makes  out  the  necessary ­
  declarations  and  takes  them  to  the  custom-house,  with  whatever
money  may  be  necessary.  When  the  documents  are  brought  back
properly  signed  and  stamped  the  goods  are  taken  out  of  the  bonded
store  and  the  transaction  is  entered  in  the  warehouse  books,  which
must  be  open  at  all  times  for  the  inspection  of  the  customs  officials.
When  goods  are  being  put  in  or  taken  out  of  bonded  warehouses  a
customs  official  is  always  supposed  to  be  present.
In  the  matter  of  bonded  warehouses  all  foreigners  are  treated
exactly  alike.  No  Americans,  to  my  knowledge,  make  any  use  of
the  bonded  warehouses  here  at  present,  though  a  number  did  during
the  Boer  war.
W.  Stanley  Hollis.  Consul.
Lourenço  Marquez,  Portuguese  East  Africa,  August  3,  1901^.

SIERRA  LEONE.
(From,  United  States  Consul  Williams,  Sierra  Leone,  West  Africa.)
There  are  four  bonded  warehouses  in  this  colony  owned  and  controlled ­
  by  the  Government.  Three  of  these  are  located  in  Freetown ­
  and  one  in  Sherbro.  The  warehouse  system  is  essentially  a
part  of  the  customs  department,  which  exercises  supervision  and
control.  All  classes  of  goods  are  stored  in  these  warehouses  except
gunpowder  and  kerosene,  which  are  stored  separately.
The  scale  of  charges  for  storage  follows:  For  cotton  goods  and
goods  liable  to  a  specific  duty,  for  one  month  or  fraction  thereof,
one-half  penny  (1  cent)  per  cubic  foot;  for  goods  other  than  cotton,
not  liable  to  specific  duty,  for  first  month,  one-half  penny  (1  cent),
and  subsequent  months  2  pence  (4  cents)  per  cubic  foot;  for  storing
or  depositing  firearms  and  ammunition  other  than  gunpowder,  onehalf
  penny  (1  cent)  per  cubic  foot;  for  storing  or  depositing  every
100  pounds  of  gunpowder  for  six  months,  3  shillings  (73  cents)  ;
for  every  100  pounds  of  gunpowder  remaining  in  store  after  six
months,  5  pence  (10  cents)  per  month;  for  quantities  of  less  than
Ü00  pounds,  a  proportionate  rate.  All  fees  for  storage  or  deposit  of
firearms  or  gunpowder  are  payable  in  advance.  The  charges  on
petroleum  are  1  penny  (2  cents)  per  month  on  every  case  of  10  gallons. ­

The  length  of  time  goods  are  allowed  in  bond  is  two  years,  but
the  owner  or  proprietor  of  any  such  goods,  if  desirous  of  reware-