Show customs court endless quiz sums involved greater than radio giveaways give awa YS NEW YORK on the bilth floor of an office building in downtown new york uncle sam sponsors an endless quiz program involving sums greater than even radios open handed quiz masters give out there you will find judicial answers to such as Is rhubarb a vegetable or a fruit when does an infant become a child Is whale meat fish or is it meat Is a h slide fastener a machine what is a doll when is a rug not a rug these questions are not trivial they and other similar ones actually have been presented to the nine judges of the unit united ed states customs court this unique court han handles dies cases dealing with commercial imports from all countries in the world in some instances the questions have involved millions of dollars in tariff duties and have set important precedents on how the twisting confused united states tariff laws should be applied when it was decided that an infant becomes a child at 2 years the entire clothing industry was affected as well as the price parents pay for their clothing congress had provided tor for one rate of duty on childrens clothing and a different rate on infants wear I 1 the court is called up on to decide what was in fit the minds of tile the congressmen who write the nations nation s tariff laws often its tasks are roti routine and technical but just as 1 often it runs across a real skull i 1 cracker almost every case Is a challenge says the courts chief judge webster J oliver take the case of the slide fasteners decided early last year the importer called them machines government agents called them articles made of metal the importer put a college professor of mechanical engineering on the stand to testify that the slides were like childrens tricycles tri cycles |