United States v. Two Bay Mules, Etc., 36 F. 84; United States v. Mincey, 254 F. 287; Logan v. United States, 260 F. 746; United States v. One Bay Horse, 270 F. 590.

Section 3229 Revised Statutes (Act July 20, 1868, c. 186, § 102, 15 Stat. 125, 166; 26 U. S. C. § 1661) provides

"The Commissioner of Internal Revenue, with the advice and consent of the Secretary of the Treasury, may

deputy collector, he shall transmit the same, with the duplicate list or description of the goods seized, to the United States district attorney for the district, and said attorney shall proceed thereon in the ordinary manner prescribed by law.

"Fourth. If no claim is interposed and no bond is given within the time above specified, the collector or deputy collector, as the case may be, shall give ten days' notice of the sale of the goods, wares, or merchandise by publication, and, at the time and place specified in the notice, shall sell the articles so seized at public auction, and, after deducting the expense of appraisement and sale, he shall deposit the proceeds to the credit of the Secretary of the Treasury.

"Sec. 3461. Within one year after the sale of any goods, wares, or merchandise, as provided in the preceding section, any person claiming to be interested in the property sold may apply to the Secretary of the Treasury for a remission of the forfeiture thereof, or any part thereof, and a restoration of the proceeds of the sale; and the said Secretary may grant the same upon satisfactory proof, to be furnished in such manner as he shall prescribe: Provided, That it shall be satisfactorily shown that the applicant, at the time of the seizure and sale of the said property, and during the intervening time, was absent, out of the United States, or in such circumstances as prevented him from knowing of the seizure, and that he did not know of the same; and also that the said forfeiture was incurred without willful negligence or any intention of fraud on the part of the owner of said property. If no application for such restoration is made within one year, as hereinbefore prescribed, the Secretary of the Treasury shall, at the expiration of the said time, cause the proceeds of the sale of the said property to be distributed according to law, as in the case of goods, wares, or merchandise condemned and sold pursuant to the decree of a competent court."

compromise any civil or criminal case arising under the internal-revenue laws instead of commencing suit thereon; and, with the advice and consent of the said Secretary and the recommendation of the AttorneyGeneral, he may compromise any such case after a suit thereon has been commenced. Whenever a compromise is made in any case there shall be placed on file in the office of the Commissioner the opinion of the Solicitor of Internal Revenue, or of the officer acting as such, with his reasons therefor, with a statement of the amount of tax assessed, the amount of additional tax or penalty imposed by law in consequence of the neglect or delinquency of the person against whom the tax is assessed. and the amount actually paid in accordance with the terms of the compromise."

(Amended, Acts February 26, 1926, c. 27, § 1201, 44 Stat. 9, 126; May 10, 1934, c. 277, § 512 (b), 48 Stat. 680, 759; May 28, 1938, c. 289, § 815, 52 Stat. 447, 578.)

Wilson Motor Co. v. United States, (Ninth Circuit) 84 F. 2d 630, 632, states-"The government's brief advises that prior to the Act of August 27, 1935, the procedure of the government to afford relief to these innocent owners was under the provisions of compromise powers given the Attorney General and the Treasury under section 1661, 26 U. S. C. A."

In connection with the sections referred to above the United States Code Annotated points to their origin and history.

The National Prohibition Act (October 28, 1919, c. 85, Title II, § 26, 41 Stat. 305, 315, Title 27 U. S. C. § 40) provided that "whenever intoxicating liquors transported or possessed illegally shall be seized by an officer he shall take possession of the vehicle and team or automobile, boat, air or water craft, or any other conveyance, and shall arrest any person in charge thereof." The person

arrested shall be proceeded against but the vehicle or conveyance shall be returned upon execution of a bond. Upon his conviction the court shall order the liquor destroyed "and unless good cause to the contrary is shown by the owner, shall order a sale by public auction of the property seized." See Richbourg Motor Co. v. United States, 281 U. S. 528. This was repealed by The Repeal and Enforcement Act, supra.

"When the commissioner, his assistants, inspectors, or any officer of the law shall discover any person in the act of transporting in violation of the law, intoxicating liquors in any wagon, buggy, automobile, water or air craft, or other vehicle, it shall be his duty to seize any and all intoxicating liquors found therein being transported contrary to law. Whenever intoxicating liquors transported or possessed illegally shall be seized by an officer he shall take possession of the vehicle and team or automobile, boat, air or water craft, or any other conveyance, and shall arrest any person in charge thereof. Such officer shall at once proceed against the person arrested under the provisions of this title in any court having competent jurisdiction; but the said vehicle or conveyance shall be returned to the owner upon execution by him of a good and valid bond, with sufficient sureties, in a sum double the value of the property, which said bond shall be approved by said officer and shall be conditioned to return said property to the custody of said officer on the day of trial to abide the judgment of the court. The court upon conviction of the person so arrested shall order the liquor destroyed, and unless good cause to the contrary is shown by the owner, shall order a sale by public auction of the property seized, and the officer making the sale, after deducting the expenses of keeping the property, the fee for the seizure, and the cost of the sale, shall pay all liens, according to their priorities, which are established, by intervention or otherwise at said hearing or in other proceeding brought for said purpose, as being bona fide and as having been created without the lienor having any notice that the carrying vehicle was being used or was to be used for illegal transportation of liquor, and shall pay the balance of the proceeds into the Treasury of the United States as miscellaneous receipts. All liens against property sold under the provisions of this section shall be transferred from the property to the proceeds of the sale of the property."

The Act of September 21, 1922, (c. 356, § 618, 42 Stat. 858, 987) provides

"Whenever any person interested in any vessel, vehicle, merchandise, or baggage seized under the provisions of this Act, or who has incurred, or is alleged to have incurred, any fine or penalty thereunder, files with the Secretary of the Treasury if under the customs laws, and with the Secretary of Commerce if under the navigation laws, before the sale of such vessel, vehicle, merchandise, or baggage a petition for the remission or mitigation of such fine, penalty, or forfeiture, the Secretary of the Treasury, or the Secretary of Commerce, if he finds that such fine, penalty, or forfeiture was incurred without willful negligence or without any intention on the part of the petitioner to defraud the revenue or to violate the law, or finds the existence of such mitigating circumstances as to justify the remission or mitigation of such fine, penalty, or forfeiture, may remit or mitigate the same upon such terms and conditions as he deems reasonable and just, or order discontinuance of any prosecution relating thereto."

[Reenacted by Act July 17, 1930, c. 497, § 618, 46 Stat. 590, 757; 19 U. S. C. § 1618.]

The Act May 29, 1928 (c. 852, § 709, 45 Stat. 791, 882, 26 U. S. C. § 1626) extended "the provisions of law applicable to the remission or mitigation by the Secretary of the Treasury of forfeitures under the customs laws. . . to forfeitures incurred or alleged to have been incurred, before or after the enactment of this Act, under the internal-revenue laws."

In the situation disclosed by the foregoing summary, Congress came to consider the Act of August 27, 1935. The Judiciary Committees of Senate and House made reports (Senate Report No. 1330, House Report No. 1601,

74th Cong., 1st Session). In each the paragraphs relative to § 204 (a) and (b) are the same in substance.*

'House Reports, Vol. 4, 74th Congress, 1st Session, 1935, Report No. 1601, p. 6—

"Section 204 (a) of section 204 provides that in any court proceeding for the forfeiture under the internal-revenue laws of any vehicle or aircraft seized for a violation of the internal-revenue laws relating to liquor, the court shall, upon decree of forfeiture, have exclusive jurisdiction to remit or mitigate the forfeiture. At the present time, the court has authority only to decree the forfeiture, and remission or mitigation is dependent upon administrative action. Section 204 extends to the court which determines whether the vehicle or aircraft shall be forfeited by reason of having been used in the violation of internal-revenue laws relating to liquor, the power to determine whether the claim of any person having an interest in the vehicle or aircraft should be allowed after forfeiture. Thus, in all cases where the value of the seized property exceeds $500, and in all cases where the value is $500 or less, but a bond is posted in order to bring the forfeiture proceeding into court, the court will have exclusive jurisdiction to remit or mitigate the forfeiture. In the event that a bond is not filed in cases where the property is of the value of $500 or less, the power to remit or mitigate will remain in the Secretary of the Treasury.

"Certain standards are given to the court to guide it in this determination. Thus, under subsection (b), the claimant must prove that he acquired his interest in good faith, that he had no knowledge or reason to believe that the vehicle or aircraft was being or would be used in violating Federal or State liquor laws, and that, if his interest arises out of, or is subject to, any agreement under which any person having a record or reputation for violating Federal or State liquor laws has a right with respect to the vehicle or aircraft, the claimant, before he acquired his interest, or before the other person acquired his right, which ever of these events occurred later, inquired of the law enforcement officers in the locality where such other person acquired his right, of the locality in which such other person then resided, and of each locality where the claimant made inquiry as to the character or credit standing of such other person, whether the other person had such a record or reputation, and was informed he had not. This last requirement is predicated upon the