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

belonging to a citizen or citizens thereof, whilft em- ployed in the coalting trade, or in the filheries, fhall pay tonnage more than once in any one year; nor Iball any fniporvefl'el built within the United Srates, pay tonnage on her firft voyage. A. 1789. Of C O N G a E S S. 249 Provided alfo, that no vefTel he employed in the tranf- porcution of the produce or manufaclures of the United States, or any of them^ coaltwiie, except fuch vellels lliall be bijilt within the United States, and the property of a citizen or citizens thereof. The fame was, on the qiieltion put thereupon, agreed to by the Houfe* Ordered, that a bill or bills be brought in purfuant to the faid refolution, and that Mr. Wadfworth, Mr. Heiiter, and Mr. Seney, do prepare and bring in the fiine. May 8. The Speaker, attended by the members of the Houfe, withdrew to the room adjoining the reprefentatives-cham- ber, and there prefenced to the Prelident of the United States, the addrefs agreed to on Tuefday lalt — to which he returned the following anfwer : Gentlement, YOJR very afleclionaie addrefs, produces emotions v/hich I know not how to exprefs. 1 feel tha't my palfc endeavours in the fervice of my country, are far overpaid by its goodnels and 1 fear much that my future ones may ; not fullil your kind anticipation. All that 1 can promife is, that they will be invariably direcled by an honelt and an ar- dent zeal — Of this refource my heart afTures me : For all beyond, I rely on the wifdom and patrioti'fm of thofe with whom I am to co-operate, and a continuance of the bleffings of Heaven on our beloved country. The Speaker and members being returned into theMoufe; Mr Gerry, from the committee appointed, prefented, ac- cording to order, a bill for Golle(lling duties on goods, wares, and merchandize, imported into the United States ; and the fame was received and read the firfl: time. Ordered, that the clerk of this Houfe do procure one hundred copies of the faid bill to be printed for the ufe of the members of this Houle. On motion, ordered, that the committee appointed on the twenty-ninth ultimo, to report an eftimate of the fup- plies requiilte for the prefent year, and of the nett produce of the impoft, as agreed to by the Houfe, beauthorifed and inftrucled to collect early and authentic {taten)e,:ts of the particular articles of foreign produce and n^anufactures an- nually imported into, and of all the articles exported from the feveral States, and the value of fuch imports and eX" ports ; alfo the number of veilels, both foreign and doine'< I i 250 ftic, DEBATES A. 1789. entered and cleared during that time, fpecifying their tonnage, ant! the nations to which they rtfpeftively belong, fpecifying alio the exact numbers of each particular de- fcripcion of velTels of each nation, and the amount of tonnage of each particular veflel. On motion, refolved, that this Houfe will on Tuefday next proceed by ballot to the appointment of a ferjeant at arms. Agreeably to the order of the day, the bi'l for the col- le(5ling duties on goods, wares, and merchandize, import- ed mto the Uni:ed States, was taken up for a fecond reading —when the following obfervations were made, by Mr. Tucker. As I am defirous of beginning with moderate duties, I deem it proper, at this Aage of the buliuefs, to offer my reafonsin fupport of tliis opinion, that, if it be the opinion of the committee, we may go uniformly through the lift, and make the neceiTary reduction. I am oppofed to high duties particularly for two reafons : Firft, Becaufe they will tend to introduce and eftablifh a fyftem of fmuggling ; And, adly, Becaufe they tend to the oppreflion of certain citizens and (rates, in order to promote the benefit of other ftates, and other clafl'es of citizens. I cannot fay I have a peculiar averfioq to a high duty on diflilled fpirits, 1 may therefore be fiifpe^ted of inconfiftency in moving to reduce it, but I do it on the principle of a general redudion ; if I do not fucceed on the firft article, I ihall defpair of fuc- ceeding on the others. It appears to me that if we lay high duties on the im- portation of goods, a fyftem of fmuggling will be adopted before we can poinbly make the necefliiry provifion to pre- vent it. I cake ir, lir, that proper regulations refpecting the colleiftion, is all our fccurity againft illicit trade. From a variety of circu^nftances it appears to me, we ihall not only be a long time in completing inch a fyftem, but for want of experience, many of the regulations will be of a dubious propriety. Gentlemen will recoiled; we have an extenfive lea coaft, acceilable at a thoufand pomts, and upon all this coaft there are but few cuflom-lioufes whfre officers can be ilationed to guard the coUeclion of the duties ; therefore we labour under confiderably greater diladvantages than a thicker fettled country is liable to. I apprehend, if we eonfider the prefent ftate of our population, we Ihall con* elude it impracticable to eftablifli a fuiiicient number of cuftom houi'esj, on thole parts of the coaft moft afflVilablej to  A. 1789. Of C O N G R E S S. 2^1 render us perfedly fecure in the colledion of our duties; if it were practicable the expence would be a formidable objediion ; it would require more revenue to fupport fuch afyrtem, than all that we Ihall derive from the import :But we know in Great-Britain, where the duties are hiph, no expence is fpared in the colleftion, yet fmuggling iscaVried on to a very confiderable amount ; the rifl< run by this clafs of people is very great, the penalties are very fevere^ and the vigilence of the officers renders detedion not very inri- probable. As this is the cafe, under the adminiUranon of a very powerful government, I apprehend ours, which is only in its infancy, will be unable to prevent.it taking place here, oiherwife than by a fyitem of moderate duties If : we begin with laying them high, there will be an inunc- diate temptation to engage in a fyitem of fmuggling, a • fyftem oi which may loon be formed, fo as to render our future efforts ineffec1:ual ; it's better to avoid the tempta- tion, than to punilh the evil. A man that is difpofed to trade fairly, will be brought under the neceflity of falling into the fame prac^cice, or giving up his bufinels; for tl;e higher the duty, the greater the advantage the fmuggltr has over the fair trader, being compelled by necellity to engage in a contraband trade, or to foregoe the means of a liveliiiood ; fmuggling will be no longer diihononr- able, no longer difficult, and none will be found oppoiing the practice ; repeated efforts to corrupt will be fuccelslul among even the officers of your culfoms, they at hril may refill the temptation, but when they find the practice ge- neral, their vigilance will wink at a contraband trade, and fmup-idintr will be confidered as a matter of courfe thev will conlider the rev/ard given them. for being out of the way asabeneiit to which tliey are entitled ; for thefe reaiv)ns, I Ihall be againft a fyllcin of high dutis and becaule I fear there is danger of a fyitem of imuggliig being introduced before proper arrangements are made to preverit it, or if we had time to make fuch arrangemt^nts they mult inevitably be in- eifeclual. The other reafon for which I am oppofed to high duties on enumerated articles is, becaule it tends to the oppreijion of a certain defcription of citi^Ljns and particular Itates in order to promote the advantage of other Itates and other citizens. The itate I have the honor to reprelent v^-ill be injured by fuch duties, yet tiiat itate requires relief rather than additional opprellion. We may very well know that there are feveral itates that do not import thofc articles  1S1 DEBATES A. 1789. confequently they do not contribute their prc^portion to the iupporc of the Union. Uii the principle ot leliening the ine- quahty, it tiie motion I now make ihall be leconded and ap- proved by the coninittee, I will go on to make a reduction on molt of the articles, begin ng with this, lb as to have them on a lower fcale than what we have at prelent before ns; it was with a view to bring isboiit this mealure that I voted for a high dnty on niolalies, v^ hen that article was nrll before us ; if the duty on W eil-India rum is reduced, I Ihall be willing to niake a proportionable rcduftion on nio- lalles. When this hit of duties came before the houfe ironi connnittee of the whole, I found the fcale was adhered to, and was therefore under the necelhty of voting as 1 did for the higheit lum rather the loweit, in doing this, I was actucted by adelire of having foniefirturity of the eaitern inenibers for the general redijction which 1 vi ilh to brirg about. I was convinced by then- arguments that a high duty on molafles is opprellive to the poor ; Idonotwii'h to add to their burthens, on the contrary, 1 fliould be glad to exenipt them from taxation altogether if it was in my power, but this I apprehend cannot be done, they mult be taxed in propor- tion to the other citizens. An in;polt duty on ariiclesof im])ortfition will affecl; the poor of every itate, provided they confume the goods brought from foreign countries. 1 could not anfwer for my condutt if I did not agree to a heavy tax upon the eaftern Itates, when I found the louthern ones taxed in that proportion. If the genilemen ot rvlafiaelui- letts think the duty on molalTes bears heavier on their ilate they may i-emedyihe evil by agreeing to a general reducti- on if they mliit that the burthen operates unequally and ; oppi-edively it is not the fault of us who are compelled to the mealure by a fnnilar impolition on the confuuiptioii of our ftate. I would obferve further, that a high duty not only tends to the encouragement of fmuggling, but it likewile railes, in my mind, a Icruple refpcdting the allowance ot a draw- back, as I conceive every draw- back becomes an additional encouragement to fmuggling in many inttances, 1 fear it ; n;ay be found, that the draw back v.'ill amount to more than all the duties paid in the flates whoareentitled to it. Coniider- ing the iituation of the Hates of North Carolina and Khode- Jfland, which are not in the union, their contiguity to the other itatcs, will encreafe the facility with which fmug- irling can be carried on ;it will be cafy to import articles irom F.urope and the V/ell- Indies into their ports, ai;d  A. 1789. Of C O N G R E S S. 253 fend them by land, or even water, to the adjacent dates. When thele are iiuuggled into ihe United biatcs, they luay be re-exported and entitled lo receive a draw-beck, al- though the revenue u as not collected upon the m poriation. It we agree to moderate duties, it will be much ealier to regulate our r>lteiii ca this head ; if our revenue is found not to be quite lb produdive as gentleuien calculate upon a lyitem of higher duties, which by the by, appears to me to be very unlikely, we Ihall be better able to jtidge what we can do after a trial, than we tan poli:biy aipreiem; at any rate it will be but a I'inall whtrtas, by a large Icale lofs ; we may throw