The Debates and Proceedings in the Congress of the United States, First Congress, First Session, Volume 1 Page: 113

                                
113                    GALES  & 'SEATON'S  HISTORY                     114
II  of R.]                                        Duties, on Impoits.                                      [AritiL 9, 17B3
on such enuineiated ai tides of imputation as
have been heietofore cunsideied as piopci ones
by the Congiess ol 1783     So far, sir, the niat-
tei may be plain to us, and we run no hazud
of doing any thing which may give dissatisfac-
tion to any State in the Union.    The-duties
Ipioposed by tlie Congiess ot 1783 weie, I be-
lieve, five per cent   on the value of all goods
imported, and an additional duty on a few enu-
j* meiated   aiticles     Ihis   recommendation   of
*  Congress has been so umveisally leceived by
\ the several Slates, that I think we lun no nsk
*of giving umbiage to any by adopting the plin;
but the other ai tides, which hnve just been of
feied, aie, I appiehend, to many ot us so novel,
and, at the same tune, so important, as to make
it haid to deleimine   the piopnety of taxing
them in a few horns, oi e\cn in a lew days
I wish, with the honorable gentleman fiom
New York, that the system we now adopt be
con%ideied as-a teinpoiaiy one, seeming a duty
only upon such aiticles of iinpoittlion ai aie
geneially agieed to be proper; and* on this ac
count, I wish the article of tonnage, mentioned
in the fust list of piopositions, to be postponed;
because, with itspect to it, the different States
H ai e not upon an equal footing. It appeal s ev l
dently to beai haulei upon some Stp'es than
upon otheis In some they wish a high duty
upon tonnage, e\ en so high as to picclude the
admission of foieign vessels altogether, having
sufficient to canyon then whole tiade within
themselves Otheis again wish moic model ate
duties, inasmuch as it may be convenient to
employ foie'ign shipping in thai eommeice;
whilstsome otheis wish only such duty to be
laid as to answei the#>le puipose of revenue,
being constiained, for want of vessels ot thm
own, to employ foieigners in the transportation
of their productions, whtcii pioducfinns must
eventually pay eveiy chaige o! this natuie
I do not, su, at this time, wish to entei i"fo
, (he merits of this subject; but just to state v hat
^ I conceive to be the views and mteiests of (lie
seveial States, in oulei that gentlemen miy
judge how fai it would be piudent at this tme
to take- a decisive step in matteis so leplete
with difficulty as we see this to be, in ieconcil-
mg the various and advcise inteiests of the
Union, especially when it is consideud tint the
vote of the committee, if can icd into execution,
will not place the Eastern and Southern bvtes
upon an equal footing
In oidei topiesei ve the peace anil tianquility
of the Union, it will become nicessaiy that mu
tual deference and accommodation should take
place on subjects so unpoitant as the one I hive
fust touched upon And, m oider that th s
may take place, it is piopei (hat gentlemen d<_-
livei then sentiments with fieedom and caiiiloi
I have done this in a mannei which I conceived
it my duty to do, and shall just iepe.it that I
wish to conpoie the question to that pai t of the
motion made by the honoinble gentleman fiom
Vngmia,(Mi. Madison) which lespects laying
a geneial impost on the lalue ol all goods nn
poited, and the small enumeiation which pie
cedes it if it is in contemplation to do othei -
wise, I shall be umlei the necessity of moving,
foi a division of the question II 1 should losj
this, and a high tonnage duty be insisted on, I
shall be obliged to vote against the mcasue al-
together when, if the business is conducted or
pnnciples of moderation^ I shall give my vot&
foi it to a ceitain degree
Wheie different inteiests pievail, it is to be
supposed adverse sentiments will ansc, and the
gentlemen fiom those States which areinteiest-
i d in having a high tonnage duly mhI on toieigu
shipping will natuially be moie favoiably in-
clined to a conesponding measuie. than those
fiom othei States whose inieiest it would be t 
have little or no duty at all. Hence all that
can be expected, is such a degiee of accommo-
dation as to insure the gieatest degiee of geneial
good, with the least possible evil to the indi-
viduals of the political cominomtj.
Mi Hartley. — riiebusinessbcfoietheHouscr\
is ceitainly ol vety gieat unpin tance, and wor- \
thy ot stnet attention I h«ve obse'ved, snT
fiom the conveisition of the membeis, that it is>
in the contemplation of some to entei on this
business, in a limited and paitial mannei, as it
ielates to levenue alone7 but,foi iny own pait,. /
I wish to do it on as broad a bottom as is at tlnv
time piacticable The obseivationsof thehon-
enable gentleman from South Caiolina, (Mi.
Tucker) ury have weight in some tutui e stage
of the business, for the ditide of tonnage will
notpiobibly be detei mined foi =eveiaJ days,,
befoie which time his colleagues ma} aruve
and be consulted in the mannei he witsh.es; but
suiely no aigument, derived fiom that punci-
p!e, can opeiate to diacouiage the committee
from taking such measiucs as will tend to pio-
tect and pioraote oui domestic manufactuies.
If ue consult the his toiy of tnc ancient vvoild,    ]
we sliill see that they hive thought piopei, (oi
a long time past, to give great encouragement    j
to the establishment ot manufactuies, by hying   I
such pai tial duties on the unpoi t ition ot lo1 eigi*    1
goods, as to give the home manufactuies a con-^ J
suitable advantage in the puce when biought t{
to maiket.    It i<- also well known to tins com-
mittee, that there aie miny aiticles that will
beai a lughei duty thru o<heis, which aie to. te-
rn iin in the common mast, and be taxed witis
a ceitain impost ad valorem     Fiom tins view
of the subject, I think it both politic and just
that the iosteiing hand of the Geneial Govern-  J
ment should extend toa II those manufactuies/
which will tend to nitionil utility   I am tiieie-
foie sony that gentlemen seem to fix their mind
to so eaily a puiod as 17B3; foi  we veiywell
know oui  en cumstances  aie   much  changed   .
since that time   we had then but few minufac- 4
tuiesamongus, and the vast cjuintitiesof goods f^
that flowed in upon lis ft mn Eui ope, at the con
elusion of the wii, ieud red those tew almost
useless; since the'i we have been foiced by ne-
cessity, and vinous othei  causes, to mciease
oui domestic manufactuies to such a degiee a*