Amendments to the Constitution, [8 June] 1789 — reading text

lalies and water — it iurely is unreafonable. I hope gentle- men Vkill not adopt the motion for 8 cents until they are furniiiied with fome better evidence of its propriety and po- licy, than any that has yet been given^ or as I lulpc'£l that can be given. Mr.. FlTZSTMONS Wjs pleafed that gentlemen went fo fully into a difcuf- fzon of afubje^t whlcli tiiey conceived of great imjionance, but he beiTo-ed them to continue in their mind.s, an obfer- vatiun that hatl already been made ; that whenever a par- ticular duty was fuppofed to bear hard on any one mem- ber ot the union, it ought to be regarded as a part pnly of a fyltem bearing equally upon ail ; he was a friend to com- merce, it was his p:.riicular profeilion, and what he had principally devoted his attention to ;and therefore it might juttly be imagined he was unwilling to fetter it with reltraints; but as a member of this body, he confidered it proper to forego a pertinacious achcfionto that lyilem when Its intereft canie in competition with the general welfare. The gentleman from MaiTachufctts (Mr. Anies) has re- prefented the propofed regulation as tending eventually to the ruin of the commerce lilheries and manufaftures of that ftate. I do not believe(addcd he)fuch a confequence would refult from a duty of 8 cents on a gallon of molafies ; if I did, I would be one of the lait to advocate the meafure, but to underlbnd this circumilance more fully, let liS pro- ceed to an enquiry of the ground on wh;ch we ftand. 7 he Itate of Mafiachulf tts imports a greater proportion of this article than any other in the union; ihe will have therefore (fay the opponents of the meafure) to pay exclulively all the impoit upon it — let us examine this, fome part of the molaOes is confuined in the fubltance, but ail the remain- der is dillilled; this mult either be confumed in the Hate, or exported from it; in the latter cafe I would propofe that all therum lliipped to foreign nations, Ihould di-aw back the duties it had paid as molalles. This would obviate all that was laid relative to the competition between this (late 54 DEBATES A. 1789: and other nations at a foreign market — as to what is ex- ported but confumed in feme other parts of the United States, it is but proper that a duty Ihould be paid, and al- though it may be advanced in the firfb inftance by the peo- ple of Mafiachufetts, yet it will be ultimately paid by the confumers in other parts. What is confumed within the flate itfelf, gentlemen furely do not iiiean to have excluded from a duty, if they confume more country rum thanWeft:-lndia,they pay a lefs duty than thofe ftatcs which confume a greater proportion of the latter,as to what is ufed in iti? raw unmanufactured (late, it will be fuiiicient to obferve,that as it is generally a fubfli- tute for fugar,the confumers will therefore avoid the tax on that article and pay it on the other. In Pennl'ylvania they molUy ufe fugar ; now if the people there pay a tax on that article it is but diflributive julfice that the people of Maflfachuietts pay one on the article they ufe for the fame purpofe. I do contend that if a lefs, or much lefs duty on this ar- ticle is laid, it will rival foreign rum fo far as to prevent its importation in a conliderable degree, whereby the United States will lofe the revenue expected from it or the ope- ration of the tax unequal upon the confumer will be of fugar and molafles, which cannot certainly be in the wilh of any member, if I may judge from the conciliating dif- pofition which is prevalent in the committee. Mr. Ames Stated the difference in the price of country rum and Weft-India, the former was worth 2/3, the latter twice as much, fo that there was not obfcrved a proper ratio in taxing the one 8 cents and the other la cents; he ftated the difficulty of collecting fo high a duty, and exprefTed an apprehenfion that the committee would deceive thcmfelves, in calculating upon it for any great produclion. He was fatisfied it would hereafter become necellary to lower tlie duty from 8 cents if the conmiittee Ihould now agree to lay it, and appealed to their wifdom if it was not better and lefs injurious to the fair trader at any time to encrcafe than diminiih the duties ; this circumftance demanded the attention of the committee, though lie v.ouid not prefs it furcher, being faiibfied that gentlemen's candor would induce them to ackno\\ledge rhe propriety of Inch policy. He had mentioned, before the deveftation which he con- ceived likely to take place, if a high duty was laid on this article, the obfervaiion v.-as thought by the gentleman who A. 1789. Of C O N G R E S S. 5^ Ipoke laft, to be altogether without foundation; he hoped it was; but here his realbn and wiflies were at variance : He was convinced that the fifliery had for fome years pafl been very unproductive; not but what the fifli were to be had in plenty, and the filhermen's abilities were equal to any others in the world; but becaufe they could not find a mar- ket to difpofe of the produft of their labor. He was pret- ty certain the trade would have been abandoned by rriany who have carried on a loofing trade, had it not been for the hope that a more energetic government would be framed, and give them that lupport which the importance of the fnbjecl: required. Allhewifhed on the prefent occafion, was to lay fuchaduty as ihould protedt the manufafture, he feared no lols to the revenue; becaufe if theduty was low all molafles v ould been- tcredand paid for,whereas if it was high it would induce an illicit trade, as injurious to the morals of the people, as the conluniption of country rum ; in addition he coniideredit a neceffary of life, andwould never coni'ent to tax it 50 per cent upon its value, nor did he believe any other gentleman would, if he confidered that the tax would operate more againft the poor than the rich, becaufe the poor were the principle confumers of the article. Mr. Goodkue. Fifteen cents, the fum laid on Jamaica fpirits, is about one third part of its value, now 8 cents on molaflesis con- fiderably more ; the former is an article of luxury, as was obferved when it was under coufideration, therefore that duty might not be improper ; but the latter cannot be laid to partake of that quality in the fubftance, and when ma- nutadured into rum, it is no more a luxuiy than Jamaica fpirits. I cannot fee therefore why molalles ought ta be taxed 40 or 50 per cent, when the other pays but 33 Surely : the fubilance ought not to pay at this rate — then what good reafon can be offered for the meafure ? Mr. Lawrance Adverted to the prices of the molaffes, which at the place of importation was worth 1/9, Welt-India rum he — Hated to be v/orth 3/4 or 3/6 the duties were not in the — fame proportion he thought the labor of diftillation ought not to be taxed —a gallon of molalles gave a gallon of rum ;but it ought not to be charged even upon tiie prin- ciples of the advocates fcr high duties^ at more than fix cents.  56 DEBATES A. 1789. Mr. Boudinot Had attended to the arguments of the gentlemen on both fides of the queftion,and was led to believe the propor- tion was not properly ubferved. Cy the refolution of Con- grefs in 1783 the molailes was fixed upon due coniidera- tion at id. and W^ell-India rum at 4.'/. the propofed pro- portion was two thirds of what is charged on Weft-India rum. He thought this too high, as it would be an incum- brance on a conliderable man ufadure ; 6 cents were there- fore a more equitable rate than 8 cents w ere — He believed alfo, that it was as much as the article would bear, efpe- cially if it was coniidered that the whole of the article was rot manufacirured into rum ; but a large proportion con- fumed in fubllance this might alfo be near what is intended ; to be charged on fugar ; by fixing it at this rate the necefli- ty of lowering the duty at tome future day would be avoid- ed, which heconfidered an objedl worthy of the commit, tee's confideration. Mr. Goodhue Obferved that even 6 cents bore no kind of proportion to the tax. laid in MalTachufetts upon thjsarticle ; It was much too high and could not fail of giving great difatisfaftion among the people. Mr. Amks. If the committee pafs a refolution that lliall have a ten- dency to injure the fale of country rum, the fad is, that being unable any longer to export it, we ihall have fuch a quantity on hand as to occadon the ruin of thofe concerned hi the manufacture, for unlefs it is exported they have no means of difpotlng of it ; the quantity annually exported is very conliderabie and it gives employ to feveral thou- fand tons of ihipplng, if therefore the trade is flopped by our reftrnclions. it will have a fatal eifetl upon our navi- gation, the encouragement of which is admitted to be of high iajpurtance to every part of the union, Mr. Madison. Stated that the rum exported in one year fince the peace amounted to 683,000 and fome odd gallons, the princple part of which was fent to different parts of the United States : Now if a conliderabie difference was made in the duties between Weft-india rum and that of our own ma- nufatlure, the confequencc would be, that an inferior li- quor would overfpread the country and the revenue be- come unproduftive ; but he did not wifh, objedionable as the manufacture of this article v.'as, that it ihould Ijave no A, 1789. Of C O N G K E S S. 57 encouragement ; if gentlemen would be fatisfied with a fmall reduction, he would withdraw his motion for 8 cents ; but he believed 6 cents was too low, he therefore moved to tax it with 7 cents. Mr. BouDiNOT, Wifhed the gentleman to confidcr the difference in the price, if he did that, he would allow it to be reduced to 6 cents— if this principle could now be fixed it wobld carry them thro' the Vv hole. Mr. Partridge Allowed, if a1i the molaffes was diftilled into rum, that a fmall duty might be proper, but when it was coniidered as an article of luftinance to the poor, and as a requilite to the fupport of the fifheries and navigation, he hoped the committee would allow but a very fmall one indeed. He wifhed it was poffible to difcriminate between what was manufactured into rum, and what was confuraed in the raw ilate, becaufe a higher duty might be collected in the for- mer cafe than in the latter. Mr. FiTZSiMoNs, Stated that there was 327,000 gallons of rum imported into Pennfylvania in 1785, which would tend to fhew how great a part was confumed by the citizens of the union ; a demand in one ftate fo great as this, proved how likely it was for N.E. rum to rival the Weil-india. He thought the prices of the two articles gave the country rum a very coniiderable advantage, and therefore a duty of 7 cents could not be any way injurious to the mannfaclory. The queftion was put on 7 cents and loll. And it was agreed to fill the blank with 6 cents. On filling up the blank on IVladeira wine, Mr. Sherman Moved 1 5 cents. -Mr. GiLMAH Moved 20 cents, and Mr. Hartley Moved 30 cents, in order (as he obferved) to make it correfpond with the ra:e per cent on the value ; as the principle of proportion feemed to be admitted by the com- mittee.