Cambon Disputes the Tariff on French Liqueurs

French ambassador Jules Cambon had negotiated a commercial agreement with American commissioner John Kasson on 28 May 1898, reducing duties on selected goods. Within days of its entry into effect on 1 June, a disagreement arose over French liqueurs. New York customs officials treated cordials as a separate category from the brandies and spirits receiving the concession. Cambon asked Secretary of State William Day to intervene on 9 June. [2] [1]

Cambon argued that the agreement’s broad wording covered cordials as well as brandy. He also challenged the American negotiating figures: the estimated concession of $195,729, he maintained, could only have included the wider range of spirits. Excluding cordials would therefore reduce the benefit France believed it had obtained. The embassy pursued the question in writing and through an appearance by its secretary, Thiébaut, before the Treasury Department. [1] [3] [4]

Treasury Secretary Lyman Gage rejected that interpretation on 13 July. He held that the tariff law specifically classified cordials and liqueurs separately, so the general language of the agreement did not reduce their duty. Day endorsed the ruling on 25 July: the beverages remained subject to $2.25 per proof gallon rather than the $1.75 concession. He told Cambon that dissatisfied parties could take the question to court. [3] [4]

Related Diplomats

1. Jules Cambon [2] [1]

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