The Debates and Proceedings in the Congress of the United States, First Congress, First Session, Volume 1 Page: 109

                                
109                    GALES  &  SEATON'S  HISTORY                     110
H. or R }                                                Duties on Imports                                         [April 9, 1789.
subject, may be induced to turn then particu-
lar attention to a subject the)' are well able to
do justice to, and to assist the committee with
their knowledge and information; unless such
gentlemen aie now piepaied and disposed to
proceed in filling up the blanks, I shall second
the motion for the committee's using.
Mr. Parker. —As it is impossible that gentle
men should be piepared to go into the imme-
diate discussion o( my woithy colleague's mo
tionfoi raising an impost, I shall liearLily con-
cur in the motion foi the committee's rising
The question on rising being put, was agreed
toj when,
Mi  Speaker resumed the chair, and Mi
Page lepoited progress
Adjourned until to monow.
Thursday, April 9
Egbjrt Benson, fiomNew York, and Isaac
Coles, fiom Vngini.i, appealed and took then
seats.
Mr. Boudinot, from the committee appoint-
ed to prepaie rules for the government of the
House, made a further report; which, being
read, was ordeied to he on the table
Mr Leonard and Mr Wynkoop asked
and obtained leave of absence
The Speaker laid before the House a letter
irom Oliver Ellsworth, Esq a member of
the Senate, stating the appointment of a com
mittee of that House to confer with a com-
mittee to be appointed on the pait of this
House, in prepannga system o( lules to govern
the two Houses in cases of conteience, and to
regulate the appointment of Chaplains
Whereupon, Messis Boudinot, Sherman,
Tuoker, Madison, and Bland, weie elected
by ballot foi that purpose
DUTIES ON IMPORTS.
The House again lesolved itself into a com-
mittee of the whole on the State of the Union,
Mr. Page in the Chan.
Mr. Lawrence —The subject of the piopo-
sition laid befoie the committee by the honora
ble gentleman from Virginia, (Mi   Madison,)
will now, I piesume, Mi   Chan man, lecui   foi
our deliberation.   I imagine it to be of consider
able nnpoi tance, not only to the United States,
but to eveiy  individual of   the Union     The
object of   the  levenue  alone would  place it
in this situation, and in this light I mean now
to consider it.   If 1 am not mistaken, the honor-
able mover of the plan viewed it as a tempo!ary
system, pai ticul.uly calculated to embrace the
spring impoitations; theiefore, in oider to dis
cover whether the mode laid befoie you is well
calculated to answer this end, it will be proper
to consider its opeiation.    The plan consists
of certain distinct propositions; one pait is in
tended to lay a specific sum  on  enumeiated
articles, the other a cei tain per cent, ad valorem ■
pethap9 simplifying  the system may be pio
ductive of happy consequences, and tt strikes
me that confusion and perplexity will be best
avoided by such a measuie; hence, it may be
proper to lay a duty at a ceitain rate per cent
on the value of all aitides, without attempting
an enuineiation of any; because, if we attempt
to specify every ai tide, it Mill expose us to a
question which must lequne moie time than
cm be spared, to obtain the object that appears
to be in the view of the committee. A ques
tion, I say, sir, will anse, whether the enume-
lation embi aces eveiy at tide that will bear a
duly, and whethei the duty to be affixed is the
propei sum the article is able to beai. On this-
head, sn , I believe that the committee ha\e not
mateiials sufficient to foi in even the basis of
the system, beside being wholly incompetent te 
deteimine the rate most advantageous to the
ai tide of revenue, and most agieeableto the
inteiest and convenience of our constituents.
Knowledge on these points can only be obtain-
ed by expenence; but hitheito we have had
none, at least of a geneial nature. The partial
regulations made by the States, throw but little
light on the subject, and its magnitude ought
to induce us to use the greatest degjee of
caution.
A system of the natuie which I hinted at,
will, in my opinion, be not only less complex
and difficult in its foi mation, but likewise easier
and more certain in its opeiation; because the
more simple a plan of levenue is, the easier it
becomes undeistood and executed: and it is,
sn,an earnest wish ot mine, that all our acts
should paitake of this natuie Moreover, by
adopting the plan I have mentioned, you will
embiace the spring importation and give time
foi digesting and manning one upon more per-
fect pnnciplesj and, as the proposed system is
intended to be but a temporaiy one, that I
esteem to be best which requires the least time
to form it
With great defeience I have submitted these
sentiments to the committee, as what occuned
to me to be the bettei plan of the two; though,
I must own, it is a subject on which I am not so
fully infoiuied as I wish to be, and therefoie
hope the indulgence of the committee in con-
sidering it
Mi Fitzsimons—Iobset\e, Mr Chairman,
by what the gentlemen have said, who have
spoken on the subject before you, that the pro-
posed plan of revenue is viewed by them as a
tempoiary system, to be continued only until
pioper inateiidls are biought forwaid and ar-
langed in more peifect foi in I confess, su,
that I cany my views on this subject much
furthei; that I earnestly wish such a one
which, in its operation, will be some way ade-
quate to our present situation, as it respects
oui agucultuie, our manutactuies, anil our
commeice
An honorable gentleman (Mi Lawrenoe)
has expressed an opinion that an enumeration
of articles will operate to confuse the business.