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

cents. He thought this would con.ibine the two interelts in liich amanner as to do the mofi good and lealt evil. He confeffed, that he was againil taxing this article, becaufe of the uncertainty which he conceived there was of raifmg it in America but as that point was ; determined againft him by the teltimony of gentlemen well qualiiied to judge, hs would acquieis in laying a fmall duty, Mr. Hartley Though every gentleman was equally difpofed to er.- cour3ge the fpirit of agriculture, though they might doubt the propriety of facrihcing the navigation of the Unhed Stares. He preferred giving a bounty on heinp of Ame- rican growth to taxing the foreign, becaufe the exiflence of the manutadture, and o; Ihip-building alfo, was involved in the price of the raw material. He hoped America would loon becoaie in reality what nature had deiiined her to be — maritime nation. a He therefore could not think it good policy to purfue meafures which mull cramp the growth of a fleet. Gentlemen had made fome remarks upon a country well calculated tor the cultivation of hemp ; he believed v.hat had been advanced was fact. He Ihould fay nothing ac this time to alcertain how far it would be proper to endeavour toitttle the VVeliern Country, 'i hough he had a real friend linp for that New World, yet the policy of taxing the navigation of the Atlantic itates for the purpofe of encouraging their agricuiture, was a queilion worthy of  A. 1739. Of CONGRESS. 77 foiiie conilcleration. He would add no more, but 3 wiili that the committee would lay the duty low. Mr. Moore Made feme cbfervationsou the propriety of encouraging the home manufactures. \I: had already been nientioneci as iucnogruous to blend the lubject in the prelent bill, therefore would fay nothing on that point ; but it uasun. doubtedly the interelt oi the huibandman to get what he wanted at the cheapelt rate ; by the encouragement given nianufaftures you raife them ui price, while a competition is dellroyed which tended to the advantage of agriculture. He thought the manufa>:turing interelt ought liot to Hand \n the way of the other ; but as the commiitee had agreed to give it encouragement, he hoped the other would re- ceive its iliare of legillative fupport. 75 cents on hemp will not more than equal v/hat was laid on cordage, and therefore he ihould vote for it. Mr. White Thoughit with the gentleman from Pennfylvania, that the United btates would furnifh this article in fulficiei.t abun- dance, not only for home confumption but for exportation. The maratime powers of Europe do not raiic the article, but obtaip. it principally from ituiha — thefe Pov.'ers are as well difpofed to take it from us a3 from Rullia* Our back lands are extremely veil adapted to its cultivation, a road to bring it tt> market is openir.g, the Potoraic ex- tends her now navigable waters into the interior coun- try, and a tommanic*ation will be etbblilhed with the river Ohio and welhern waters. The gentleman from Pennlylva- nia (Mr.fiiartJey) had hinted ac the propriety of fettling the weitern territory— it was his opinion that every encou- ragement in our power ought to be given them to engage their affection, that the adminiltration of the government ought to be fuch as to give faiisfadlion to all parts of the union, but it is peculiarly our intcreft to render that coun- try advantageous her fer^tile lands and itreanis, ealy of ; defcent, would pour into the Atlantic Ihites, through the channels he had uientioned, a profuliou of wealth, but hemp in abundance. The Shenandoah river dil'embogues into the Potomac, the fouth branch communicates with it alio, and a number of other rivers whole lands will produce im- jnenfe quantities ; he confidered that this in a very ihor^ time would do more toward encouraging Uiip-building, that: a boaniy as had been mentioned by lome ger.tleaien.  ; 78 DEBATES Mr. Scott A. 1789. Thought he had as perfed a fenfe of the relation be- tween agriculture and commerce as any man in ; a word, he knew the one could ill exilt without the other. I think, adds he, that if the landed iutereit is ruined by our regu- lations, that the ruin of the manufadluring interelt mult be a neccfTary conlequence. Our country furnilhes none of the precious metals nor jewels, we have nothing to dej^end upon but the produ6ls of the foil, yet the -overplus of thefe productions is of little value unlefs a market takes it oif we have no market but what our merchants procure, hence the rieceflity of both interelts going hand in hanti, they mull ftand or fall together ; agriculture is intirled toils propor- tion of encouragement, fo alfo is manufadlures and com- merce, and for no more than that proportion do 1 con- tend. Manufactures are uleful eflablilliments, we f )und their convenience in the late war, but our circumllances do not admit us to become an extenfive manufaduring, country ; we cannot contemplate the exportation of our manufaftures to foreign nations, we cannot by reafon of the demand for labour vie with Europe ; her inhabitants are numerous and their induftry would be loft unlefs em- ployed in the arts, the compenfation made to them is com- paritively frnall. Bur our country from its extent is like a world in itfelf, and its inhabitants will find a readier fup. port from cultivating the land than from manufacturing the latter intereft is limited by its very nature ; lb that I take it for granted, it is not intended to facrlfice the one jnterefl to the other. I faid on imported hemp yellerday, that a fmall duty would produce a great quantity from a country now ule- lefsto us, in a confiderable degree ; hemp will bear the expence of a carriage which no kind of grain can, and con- fequently encreafe the value of our vacant territory but ; if there was no convenience by the rout of Fotoniac, or acrols the mountains to bring to your fea ports the hemp wh^h you want, yet the MiHiffippi would furniih the means, and with the encouragement, nay but fmall en- couragement, of the (reneral government, more of this ar- ticle would iil'ue out of the mouth of that river alone, than the whole of the United States could confume. We who live there are no ftrangers to its navigation, nor do we find it difficult to conltrudl boats of great dimenfions, capa. ble of floating down njany tons ; but large quantities will be furnifhed alfo from the (Irong and vigorous lands in A. 1789. OfCONGRESS. 79 the back parts of Penrfylvania, and other ftates ; I know very well both the nature of the plant and its cultivation, it will exhault lands as laid by the gentleman from Jerfey (Mr. Boudinot) but it is not to be apprehended as doing injury to thofe 1 1 ave dilcribed ; conliderJng this bufinefs of conliderable importance to the whole union, I fliall be in tavor of it, knowing that if the people on the other fide of the niountains, only hear of the encouragement being propofed by Congrefs, they will lay hold on it as a hope, and be encouraged by the mere hope of encouragement, to draw forth the bounties of nature from a rich and fertile ioil. Mr. Burke Thought it proper to lu^geil to the committee what might be the probable tffed: of the propofed meafure in the flate he reprelented (South-Carolina) and the adjoining one (Georgia). 1 he Itaple produ«5fs of that part of the union Avere hardly worth cultivation on account of their fall in price, the planters were therefore difpofed to purlue fome other— the lands were certainly well adapted to the growth of hemp, and he had no doubt but its culture would be practifed with attention. Cotton was likewile in contem- plation among them, and if good feed could be procured he hoped might fucceed. But the low flrong rice lands would produce hemp in abundance, many thouland tons even this year if it was not fo late in the feafon. He liked the idea of laying a low duty now, and encouraging it a- gaitilf the time when a fupply might be had from our own cultivation. Mr. Madison Feared 75 cents was too hgh ; he was doubtful whether it would not have been as well to have left out cordage ; for if a duty on hemp was impolitic becaufe it burthened navigation, fo alio was that on cordage. He by no means approved of mtalurts injurious to Ihip-building, which he coiilidered in a three-fold view ; firlt, as it related to vef- fels employed in the cnalting trade ; lecond, as it refpeded thole employed in thofe channels of trade, the flream of which dei)ei.ds upon the policy of foreign nations; and third, as It was ci nnedted with velltls built forfale. With refped to the fiiit, ))o doubt but we can prevent any dif- couragement from the o] eration of the duty, becaufe we can make Inch difcrimiuation as will prevent a rivalihip; but m relation to the two other points, and particularly the lalt, he was fenlible that every penny laid upon cordage ^o DEBATES would enter into the price of the A. 1789, and, by raiiing veflel, the price drive the purchafers to feek a better bargain at bther hands Fearful therefore of injuring this interefthe fiiould vote for a imail duty at prefent, in hopes of being able to fee in a little time fufficient quantities of hemp brought to market, as pre«JvT:t'd, at even a lefs price thaii was given now for the imported. Mr. Smith agreed to 40 cents, provided the committee Would make it ico at the end of two years. Mr. Madifon could not judge of the altieraticn in the circumfiances of this country two years hence, and there- fore did not like the kind of proviiion mentioned. H« preferred making it a politive fum, and moved 50 cents. Which was agreed to On Malt. Mr. Sherman thought this might be ftruck out on the fame principle that beef and pork had been, there was none imported. Mr. FiTZSiMoNs Replied that there had been conliderable and recent im- ^ portations of this article into the United States, 30,000 ;|^ btTfhels in one year, certainly this interferes with the ^ produces of the country. He moved 10 cents per buihel> ^ and it was agreed to. On motion of Mr. Ames, Barley was taxed 6 cents and S ^ lime 100 cents. He juit ftated that thefe articles were im* \ ported in conliderable quantities from a neighbouring ftate | that had not yet adopted the Conltitution and perhaps, faid ^ ; he, our political lituation is fuch as to make fome regula- tions on this head neceflary. On nails, fpikes, tacks, and brads. Mr Lee Did not think we were ripe for fuch extenfive manufac- tures as fome gentlemen feemed to be delirous of encou- raging, but this was particularly objedionable, becaufe it was a tax upon the improvement of titates, unlefs the articles could be furnilhed as cheap and abundantly at heme as they were by foreign nations. He moved to ftrike it out. Mr. Madison ^ Conceived this like a tax on