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

deftercnce and accommodation ibould take place, on fubjefts fo important as the one I have firil touched upon: And in order tiiat this may take place, it is proper that gentlemen deliver their fentiments with freedom and candor. I have done this in a manner which I conceived it my duty to do, and lliall jiiiirepeat that 1 wilh to confine the queftion to that part of the motion made by the honorable gentlemian from Vir- ginia, (Mr. Madifon) which refpeds laying a general im« poft on the value oi all goods imported, and the fmall e- TiUmeration which precedesit: If it is in contemplation to do otherwife, I fliall be under the necellity of m.oving for a diviiion of the quelHon, if i Jhould loofe this and a hiMi tonnage duty be inlifted on. I ihall be obliged to vote a- gainit the meafure altogether, when if the bufmefs is con- ducted upon principles ol moderation I ihall give my vote for it to 3 certain deyree. Where dilferent inierefl: prevail, it is to be fuppofed adverfe fentiments will arife, and the gentlemen from thofe ftates \vhich are interefted in having a high tonnage duty laid on foreign ihipping will isaturally be m.ore favourably in- clined to a correfponding meafure, than thofe from other ftates whofe interell it would be, to have little or no duty at all, hence all that can be excepted i§ fuch a degree of 22 DEBATES A. 172^. accommodation as to infure the greatefl: degree of general good vvitli the lead pollible evil to the individuals of the political community. Mr. Hartley. The bufinefs before the houfe is certainly of very great iinnortaiice, and worthy of ftrift attention, I have otferved, Sir, from the convcrfation of the mem- bers, that is in the contemplation of fonie to enter on this buQnefs in a limitted and partial manner, as it relates to revenue alone ; but for my own part, I v.'ifh to do it on as broad a bottom as is at this time practicable. The obfer- vatious of the honorable gentleman from South-Carolina (Mr. Tucker) may havev.eightin fome future ftage of the bufinefs, for the article of tonnage will not probably be determined for feveral days, before v^/hich time his col- leagues may arrive and be confulted, in the manner he wiihes ; but furely no argument, derived from that prin- ciple, can opperate to difcourrge the committee from taking fuch meafures as will tend to protect and promote cur do- jnefiic manufactures. If we confult the hiftory of the ancient world, we Ihall fee that they have thought proper for a long time paif, to give great encoLigragement to efrabli/li manufadtures, by laying fuch partial duties on the importation of foreign goods, as to give the home manufadtures a conliderable advantoge in the price when brought to market. It is alfo well known to this committee, that there are many articles that will bear a higher duty than others, which are to remain in the common mafs, and be taxed with a certain impofl ad valo- rem ; from this view of the fubjedt, I think it both politic and jnft, that the foltcring hand of the general government fhould extend to all thofc manufadtures, which will tend to national utility. 1 am therefore forry that gentlemen ieem to fix their aund to lo early a period as 17 83, for v.c very well know our circumftances are m.uch changed fmcc that time : We had then but few manufactures among us, and the vaft quari titles of goods that flov/ed in upon us from Europe, at theconclufion of the war, rendered thofe few almoit ufelefs ; fince then we have been forced by necelTity and various other caufes to increafe our domeftic manufac- tures to fuch a degree as to be able to furnifii fome in fuffi- cient quantity to anfwer the confumption of the whole uni- on, while others are daily growing into importance. — Our ftotk of materials is in many inftances equal to the greatefl demand and our artizansfufficient to work them even up for exportation; in thrfs cafes I take it to be the policy of e'.-cry A. 1789. Of C O N G R E S &. 23 enlightened nation to give their manufactures that degree of encouragement neceiTary to perfed tiiem, without op- prefllng the other parts of the comnjunity, and under this encouragement the induftry of the manufafturer will be employed to add to the wealth of the nation. Many of the articles in the lift propofed by my worthy colleao-ue, will have this tendency : And therefore, 1 wilh them to be received and confidered by the committee; if information cannot be obtained, as to the cir- fufficient cumfiances of any particular manufafture fo as to enable the committee to determine a proper degree oi encourage- — ment it may be relinquiflied; but at prefent it will perhaps bemoft advifable to receive the whole. Mr. Madifon. From what has been fuggefted by the gentlemen that have fpoken on the fubjecl before us, I am led to apprehend we Ihall be under the necelhty of travel- ling farther into an invefligation of principles than v^hat I fuppofed would be neceffary or had in contemplation when I oflered the propofitions before you. It was my view to reftrain the firft clTay on this fubjedl objed of revenue, and make this rather a principally to the temporary expedient than any thing permanent, I fee hov/cver, that there are ftrong exceptions againfl deciding imm.ediately on a part of the plan, which 1 had the honor to bring forward, as well as againft an application to the refources mentioned in the lift of articles juit propofed by the gentleman from Pennfylvania. I prefume, that however much we may be difpofed to promote domeftic manufadures, we ought to pay fome re- gard to the prefent policy of obtaining revenue. It may be remarked alfo, that by fixing on a temporary expedient for this purpofe, we may gain more than we Ihall Iqfe by fufpending the confideration of the other fubjed, until we obtain fuller information of the ftate of our manufactures. We have at this time the ftrongeft motives for turning our attention to the point I have mentioned ; every gentleman fees that the prolpecl of our harveft from the fpring im- portations is daily vaniiliing ; and if the committee delay levying and colleding an impcft, until a fyftem of proteft- ing duties ihall be perfefted, there \\\\\ be no importations of any confequence, on which the law is to operate, be- cauie, by that time all the fpring vefTels will have arrived. Therefore, from a puriuitof this policy, we iliallfufier a lofs equal to the furplus which might be expelled from a fyftem of higher duties.  — 24 DEBATES A. 17S9. I am fenfiule that there is great weight in the obferva- tion that fell iVom tlie hon. gentleman from South-Caroli- na, (Mr. Tucker) That it will be necefTary on the one hand, to weigh and regard the fentiments ot the gentlemen from the different parts of the United States ; but on the other hand, we mult limit our confideration on this head, and notwithflanding all the defference and refpedt we pay- to thofe fentiments, we muft: confider the general intereit of the union, for this is as much every gentlemean's duty — to confider as is the local or fi:ate interell and any fyftem of impoit that this committee will adopt, muft be founded on the principles of mutal conceflion. Gentlemen will be pleafed to recoiled that thofe parts of the union which contribute more under one fyftem than tlie other, are alfo thofe parts more thinly planted, and confequently ftand molt in need of national protection therefore they will have lefs reafon to complain of un- equal burthciis- There is another confideration, the ftates that are mod advanced in population and ripe for manufactures, ought to have thdr particular intereil attended to in fome de- gree, v.hile thefe ftates retained the power of making re- gulations of trade, they had the power to prctedt and che- riPn fuch iuititutions, by adopting the preient conftitution they have thrown the exercife of this power into other — hands they muft have done this with an expectation, that thofe interefts would not be neglefted here. lam afraid, Sir, on the one hand, that if we go fully into a dif.uilion of the fubjecl:, we fnall confume more time than prudence would dicT:ate to fpare ; on the ether hand, if we do no: develope it and fee the principles on which we mutually act, we Ihall fubjecl oarfelves to great diffi- culties. I beg leave therefore to Itate the grounds on which my opinion with refpecT: to the matter under con- fideration is. founded,. namely, whether our prefent fyftem ihould be a temporary or permanent one ? in the firft place, I own myfelf the friend to a very free fyftem of com- merce, and hold it as a truth, that commercial Ihackles are generally unjuft, opprefilve and impolitic, — it is alfo a truth, that if induftry and labour are left to take their own courfe, they will generally be directed to thofe objects which are the moft'prodnetive, and this in a more certain and direct manner than the wifdom of the moft enligh- tened legiuature could point out, nor do I think that the national intereft is more promoted by fuch reftriftions. A. 1789. Of congress.' 1^ than that the intereft of individuals would be promoted by legiilative interference direi^ing the particular application of its induftry, for example, wc Ihoiild find no advantage in faying, that every man ihould be obliged to furnifli hiui- felf by his own labor withthofe accommodations which de. pend upon the mechanic arts, inflead of employing hisricigh- bour, who could do it for him on better terms. It would be of no advantage to the flioemaker to make his own clothes to fave the expence of the taylor's bill, nor of the taylor to make his own fhoes to fave the expence of pro- curing them from the fhoemaker. It would be better po-^ licy to fufrer each to employ his talent in his own way ; the cafe is the fame between the exercife of the arts and agri- culture— between the city and the country, and betweenr city and town, each capable of making particular articles in fufHcienc abundance to fupply the other — thus all are benefitted by exchange,- and the lefs this exchange is cramp- ed by government, the greater are the proportions of be- nefit to each. The fame argument holds good betweeri nation and naticTi, and betu^een parts of the lame nation. In my opi.iion, it would be proper alfo, for gentlemeri- to confider the means of encouraoinT the cireat ftaule of America, I mean agriculturey which I think may julliiy be Hiled the ftaple of the United States; from the fpontaneous produdlions which nature furnilhes, and the manifeft pre- ference it has over every other objeft of emolument in this country. If we compare the chcapnefs of our laiicf with that of other nations, we fee fo decided an advantage in that cheapnefs, as to have full confidence of beiiig un- rivaled ; with reipecT; to the object of manufavtlare, other countries may and do rival us ; but we may be faid to have a monopoly in agriculture, thepoiTefTionof the foil and the lownefs of its price, give us as much a monopoly in this cafe, as any nation or other parts of the world have in the monopoly of any article whatever j but, witli this advantage to us, that it cannot be Ihared nor injureil by rivallhip. If my general principle Is a good one, that commerce ought to be free, and labour and indufcry left at large to find its proper objcd:, the only thing which remains, will be to difco\'er the exceptions that do not come with- in the rule I have laid down. I agree with the gen-' tleman from Pcnnfylvania, that there are