Mr. RICE, of Massachusetts. I move to amend by adding the following us an additional proviso:, Ami providedfurther, That all goods wares, and merchandiseactually onship board and boundto the U.S.when this act shall take elI'cct, from ports beyond the Cape of Good Hope and from be yond Cape Horn, shall be subject to the some conditions and rates of duty which were applicable to said goods.wares and merchandiseat the time of the passageof this net. Mr. Chairman, the action which the committee has just taken has, I resume, 'indicated definitely the purpose of e House with reference toimposingduties upongoodsinbond. I' take itoto be indicative also of the temper of the committee in relation to imposing duties upon goods on ship board from foreign orts near to the U.S. But I wish, i possible, to impress upon the committee the propriety and Justice of at least making a distinction in favor of long voyage goods those that come from ports beyond Cape Horn orbeyo the Cape of Good Hope. It requires many months of time to enable the merchants to send out orders for these goods to the Indies and to remote parts, to gather the goods and ship them, and to give'sufficient time for the ships to arrive. It is often the case that goods imported on these long voyages, and I may say erhaps such is the custom, are sold to arrive. hereforc, while such goods are on the voyage ofimportation if Congress changes the law flir ing the higher duties upon them, the excess must necessarily fall on the importer without any possible remedy in his ban 9. Sir, I am informed that when the last law was passed making new duties applicable im mediately and without notice to this class of merchandise, one merchant living in the district which I have the honor to represent, had goods on the way, and his vessels were due at the port of Boston at a time antecedent to the law taking effect, but owing to adverse winds his vessels were delayed and did not arrive until after the new law went into operation; the' consequence was that his goods being sold to arrive, in that single instance the loss which fell upon the importer amounted to more than 60,000 dollars, for which he had no remedy. I appeal to the justice of the House not to pass a lawmaking n provision here in relation to the revenue of the country which it is impossible for the merchants to compl with. Tiey must haven certain length of tinf: in which to send out their orders for this kind of merchandise. They ought to be permitted to rely upon the good faith of the Government, without disappointment, and to find its legislation so fixed and stable as to render it safe for the merchant actin under the laws of his country to send out or ers, trusting those laws will not be changed before he can get his returns. I agree in almost everything saidby the Gentfrom Ohio, [Mr. SCHENCK] that what we want to make the industry and commerce of the country prosperous is stable legislation. Even if we cannot make the laws regulating trade as right as we would like them, still we ought not be so perpetually changing them as that business men can have no confidence in their stability. Here the hammer