I
(No. i, of Vol^
Wm. CLE LAND,
•■X
BOSTON,
Tranfafts business in the Funds of thi Uhitert
States;
SANK STOCK, BILLS ot' EXCH ANGE, &c.
ftjT Orden from New-York, Philadelphia, »r
any otHer part of the Union, will be attended to
■with Diligence and Punctuality.
June 1
For the GAZETTE of the UNITED STATES.
PUBLIC SCHOOLS,
THr, man who pays refpeft to the opinions of
others, as he will »f hp is confeious he is under
their eye, will follow virtue. In like manner
people should keep an eve on government.
It is a kind of moral check which keeps base and
turbulent paflions down. A well informed peo
ple, as every free one should be made, will form
a kind of confctence for government which will
often guide and always awe then* rulers Theft
is a consequence of raising the body of the citizens
bv establishing schools and making the means of
education general that has not been noticed, tho
it deserves confederation. The admimftration of
a country cannot become very piofligale and cor
rupt unless the body of the citizens are in a great
degree degraded by ignorance. An enlightened
public will find means to give authority to their
opinion of men and measures ; bad men in pow
er may despise the clamours of a London or Paris
mob — but the rrfle&ed indignation of a wi(V peo
ple like the blast of heaven will penetrate the
walls of brass that seem to defend them. The
fleady light thrown on villainy will be irre/iftible,
for molt great crimes agamft a public can exist on
iy in darkness. Knowledge evidently tends to
purifv morals ir- private life, why not in public ?
A remarkable proof that it does so, appears from
the great reformation of the private lives of prin
ces in modern times. Modern Europe would
Tiot, tol®ratc the m mfters whose cnormitie? pol
lute the page of ancient history.—Probably the af
fairs of Ame'ica have been managed with as much
purity a» thp»fe of any country whatever ; the fu
■perior knowledge of the people is a principal
cause.—As t be ete&'ons are free, and Tince the new
government the conduct of rulers having become
more public and intereftin?, we may cxpeft tq
continue :o enjoy the two following advantages—
that men of bad private characters will not be
chosen, and that the public eve will keep them
from at Je«ift very flagrant violations of duty. The
newspapers indeed throw out such insinuations a
£ainft Congress. But the state of knowledge in
ihe country refutes them. It is not very credible
that men of such known base and corrupt princi
ples as they impute co Congrels should have been
freely ele£led,at leafl not a majority of luch men ;
and if members of Congress were not woife than
men are usually found, it is strange that they should
since have become so shamelessly abandoned as
they are represented.
The intention of these remarks however, is to
evince the advantage of establishing schools, and
•providing for the general information of the ci
tizens ; we seem to think we are true sons of li
berty, and that in our day there is fafety. The
danger after v- e leave the stage will be less than it
is at present, if we take ca>e that our childrrn
ih ill be wiser than we ourselves are. It is a mif
fortune that those who have knowledge are fatis
fied with the polTellion or thev are too lew, and
their influence too much refiftfd and fufpefted by
the multitude to give to this firft republican duty
that preponderance which is necelTary to its being
obfrrved. Enough is not thought, nor said, nor
done about providing free schools. The fubjeft
aftords many important points of view which it
would require some labor to prefrnt diftinftly-
The moral, the political uses of learning, how much
it advances human happtnefs and exalts human na-
ture are topics which the benevolent mind de
lights to contemplate. Another class of men
would be more influenced by our shewing that an
ignorant people earn less than those who are well
informed—that the spirit of enterprise, the inven
tive faculties ol the mind acquire new force and
a&ivitv with the latter, especially as the spirit of
imitation and a lively emulation will be so evident
ly incited. there a man who doubts that the
94 letters are a inoreufeful invention than the dis
covery of a new continent.-^And yet while w<-
push our enquiries to find out the figure and hifto
ryof the earth with a curiofuy 'bat grows mort
ardent while we indulge it, how large a part ol
mankind are yet to rereive the advantages of the
invention of letters ? Learning,like the polar day,
gleams in twiliglil only over a small part of tin
horizon ; while ignorance seems even yet to be
condensing her fogs and to browd like chaos ovei
an iniperfeft world : And even we who enjoy tho
twilight fuffVr the children ol the poor to rema;,
with the film on their «ycs, and to grope thei
way through life in the dark. Education removes
'hat film. Men of sense and virtue you who pof
,r s prope.ty or power, begin this work ; establish
schools, make the uiflru&ion of youth
charge and the care of government, and you will
not have lived in va«n. PHILO.
THOSE equal laws our citizens demand,
]u(lice requites that they should understand ;
From public f.hools, Oiall general knowledgeflow.
For 'tis the people's sacred right— to know ;
One solid ast of public good outweighs,
1 he boads of fcicnce, ?nd ihe hero's praise.
A NATIONAL PAPER, PUBLISHED WtUNr.SDAYS AND SATURDAYS stY JOHN FEN NO, No. 69, HIGH-STREET, PHILADELPHIA
V-]
CoME, vefair nymphs! who,H'»;e the gilded fly
That flutters hecdlcfs o'er the bendiug gr?fs;
In g'ddy rounds your fleeting moments pjfs—
Come, look, and let lol't (orrow fill your eye.
See where fwrct El a, robb'd of balmy breath,
From parents, life and her companions torn,
Ciopi like the rose-bud opening to the mom,
Extended lies upon the bed of death.
{epim & 1 atczm)
She once was beautiful and young as you,
As fpiightly too (he rang'd the airy round,
In dance fantaOic o'er th' enamelM ground,
And tho't her gidd> pleasure was the true.
She wak'd the sleeping echoes from iheir springs,
With songs delightful to the lift'ning ear,
As warbling founds that fill the trembling air,
When Zephyr plays amid ft the Eolian firings.
No {ecret fear of danger (hook her mind ;
But light, and fporiive as the playful breeze
That winds in Spring aroundthe bloHom'd trees,
Her minutes flew, nor left a sting behind.
'Till the hot fever burning in her veins,
Reuiift tyrant with hi 6 hundred j
tongues.
To telJ her of her nn-rcpcntcd wrongs
ind picrce her fliuter'd heart with goading pains.
Then, like the lily rising on the vale,
Whofecupsare fili'd withpearlsof morrrngdew,
Appear'd her pensive eyes of azure blue—
And her young cheeks were like this be»uty, pale.
Deep mournful sighs rose from her troubled foul;
Upon her lifted hand the Client tear
Fell frequent 'till ih' Eternal heatd her pray'r,
And bade her flood of sorrow ceafc to roll.
She felt sweet Hope diffufed ihroug'n her breast,
Her heart no longer ftiuggled with Dofpair ;
Mild Resignation's calm and heav'nlyair
Smil'd on her facc, and spoke her future reft.
True Gratitude now touch'd her tender mind,
And oft in Client rapture would she raifc
Her snowy hands, and her Creator praise,
In speaking looks, of a seraphic kind.
Her fair companions would she call around,
And bid them turn from folly's flow'ry way,
Left thev, like her, should wander far astray.
And lose themfclve* io pleafmc's f;u»y ground.
Just when the Holy Angels hover'd near,
To bear her spirit to the good on high,
Saturday, June 2, 1 79 2 -
Far the GAZPTtf »f the UNITED STATES.
THE DEATH OF ELA.
And place her 'midst the muftc of the flcy,
She warbled founds that Saints might wish tohear.
41 My blooming frirnds adore the God of Love,
" 'Tis he alone is worthy of your care ;
*' By early piety your fouls prepare
" To meet the glories of eternal Jove."
4{ The song of peace salutes my raptur'd ears,
" My filler Spirits call my foul away—
" I fly—l mount into the realms of day,
'* Where sorrows end, and music fills the spheres."
Dear Maid ! when rested in thy lonely cave,
Tho' thy pale cheeks shall be of worms the prey,
And thy fair form shall mould to dust away,
Yet lhall new honors bloom above thy grave.
Eaeh vernal (low'r upon thy grafTy bed,
With brilliant colors tin&ur'd trom the (kv,
In beauty's chai ms shall catch the traveller's eye,
And bend to ev'ry breeze its lovely head.
Thy pensive Vinvela shall muting gaxe,
And while she fees (hose brauties waging there,
Her glift'ning eye (hall drof> a tender tear,
And frequent sighs exprefsher Eia's praise.
STORY OF THE EVERLASTING TAPER
AN EXTRACT — FROM THE FORESTERS*
"\TOW I have spoken of madam's taper, per
i_\| haps you will be amused with some accuunt
of it. It is a wax candle of a common size, set in
an old fafhioned iilver candlestick, richly embofled
and gilt, but the ru(l and dud of it are so sacred,
that it is never permitted to be fcourc.i. The tra
dition is, that thi« candlestick formerly belonged
to Sr. Peter, and the candle firft placed in it is fup
pol'ed to have been lighted at the sun, and by a
mysterious kind of uninterruptedJ'ucccJjion> has been
kept burning ever fw'ce. Bv the light of this ta
per, old madam reads her bible and books of de
votion, which always lie on a table by her bedside.
" Some perform of an incredulous turn of mind,
have pretended to call in queftiori this mystery ;
hut ; t is still lie!d sacred by the old lady» and by
noft of Mr. Bull's own family. There are forne
even among the forefters of the fame opinion ; and
such is the liberality in these families, that no one
is molcfted in the indulgence of any innocent
whim, which does not affed the peace of the fa
milies, nor the inieicft of the partnerftiip. It was
not long after the re-eftab J ithment of harmony be
tween them and Mr. Bui! % that these persons sent
two candles in one lantern, and one in another, to
be this venerable taper, and dipt in the
consecrated waters. Two of them were afluallv
lighted in old Madam Bull's prelence, and to her
great fatisfa&ion. The other was lighted at a ta
per supposed to be derived from the fame original,
but " hid under a bu(hel ,s in one of sister Peg's
out-houfes, it not being permitted to burn public
ly in her family, where the only candles allowed
are ot the manufa&ure of Geneva.
* This int'rejiing work is publi/ked zvith the privi
lege of Copy dig/it, and wjU probably be for JULr in this
city in a feu days. WeJhall not theref ore untuipate,
by publi/ning any further extra fir.
+ Anrrican Bishops.
1
11 There has been long a controversy between
different opirnonills on this fubjett, as between
the in Liliput, about breaking ihe egg ai
the big or little end. But it is eafv enough to ac
commodate the matter by granting that S'.. Pewr's
candle, as well as those from Geneva, were ongi- j
nally lighted at the hun ; that the fame source o!j
light i> open to all; and that it is ot no confluence
of whflt materials tapers are made, nor in wh»tj
"kind of candlesticks they are placed, nor by whose
hands they are lighied, provided they givefo dear
a light as to answer the purposes of ti/ton."
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES,
March 33, 1792.
The proportion refpefling a further ajfumption of thc\
State Debts under eonjiicration.
MR. CLARK, on the further alTumption, ob
served, that he supposed every man had
made up his mind on this fubjeft, and that there
fore a lengthy debate would be precluded. He
fnould vote again ft it-—lf it had not been for
the alTumption, we should not have been saddled
with the excise, and a great number of officers.
He knew of no advantage which had refultec;
from the great encreafe of the debt—it had gone
into the hands of foreigners—and for it we had
got little more than a parcel of gewgaws, tooth
picks, and other baubles. Our lands bad not
been improved, nor had any other advantage
that he knew of resulted from it. The residue
of the state debts was not so great, but that the
states could easily provide for it.
Mr. WilUamfon said he considered the propo
sition as founded on so unequal principles, as it
particularly refpefts North-Carolina, that he
lhoul# find himfelf obliged to fay NO to it.
Mr. Giles said he was entirely principled
against the aiTumption. The measure originat
ed altogether with the Secretary of the Trea
sury—and his report contained all the reasons
which he had heard urged in favor of it. He
then entered into a consideration of the effects
of the funding system generally—one was, to
draw the public wealth from the remote parti
of the union to the feat of government. Mo
ney, at the time this system was firft in agita
tion, was drawn from the bank, to accommodate
persons who meant to,and did speculate in state
paper in the distant parts of the union, where it
was extremely low. A system therefore which
has had this effect, ought not to be ftrengthenecl
by adding to itthe means offtillfurtherdraimng
the distant states—the effect may be a tempora
ry relief to some of the distant states, but will
finally operate greatly to their injury.
The next argument he noticed, was that
drawn from the inconvenience of conflicting sys
tems of finance. He thought the prel'ent debt
of the United States was fully equal to the re
sources of the government, and ought not to be
encreafed; for with that encreafe, an encreafe
of burthens is neceflarily iinpofed.—The resour
ces of the general government are said to be not
yet unequivocally secured—he hardly knew what
was meant by this, except it was that the state
governments were not yet fufficiently prostrate.
The mass of debt already on the flioulders
of the United States, he considered as quite fuf
ficient; and to add to it, would be nothing bet
ter than adding to a mass of corruption ; for he
considered the debt in no other light.
VINVELA
The public content, it is faid,will be increas
ed by the measure—he thought di rcctly the re
verse—he anticipated great and increasing dif-j
content*.
The justice of the measure is mentioned—'ie
adverted to the proportions already aflumed on
account of the several states, and (kid it was evi
dent that the most flagrant injustice had been
done, and therefore a further afTumption was
not'ling better than a inanifeft proposition to
perpetuate a fyftein of injustice.
The debt, it is laid, will he purchased by fo
reigner-, if it is not aflumed—he conceived the
reverse idea was the true one, and experience
fan&ioned his fuopofjtion.
Additional taxes, it is said in the report, will
not be necefTary—he thought the report was in
confident with itfelf, as was evident by a sub
sequent remark contained in it. At any rate
he Oiould think himfelf acting an unjuftifiable
part in aifuming a debt when he knew not what
resources were contemplated to pay it.
He was therefore in favor of postponing the|
fubjefr to the time when the sense of the people
could be more fully afcertaincd by a larger re
presentation in that house.
Mr. Smith said, the gentleman lias refered to
the reasons contained in the last report of the
Secretary—"vherear, his reasons are more fully
stated in hi; firft report; to which he wifiied
gentlemen would recur. TiiS gentleman from
CONGRESS.
PHILADELPHIA.
[Whole No. 525. I
New-Jerfcy (Mr. Clark) has observe '. that he
supposes every gentleman has made up his inind,
ind yet he goes on to date his obje6i ins to the
meafare. He hoped the gentleman would not
jbjeft to other persons giving their reasons why
they are iufavor of it, or of anfv/ering his ob
jections. He then noticed Mr.Clark's remarks
efpefting the excise. The excise, Mr. Smith
Paid, was not the result of the aiTuniptior—it
was firft thought of for the debt of the United
states, and was diverted from this debt, on
account of the impod being taken from the
dates. It has been laid that some of the didant
dates are opposed to a farther affumptior. T r.
answer to this, he said fo:ne of the didant dates
were in favor of it—he indanced Sonth-Caro
lina, the legislature of which had expressly in
dru&ed their representatives to advocate it—
He infilled that the reasoning of the Secretary
was conc'ufive, in refpeft to the loss the dates
would incur by reason of the speculations of fo
reigners. The debt is due, and mud be provid
ed for. Foreigners consider this government as
in honed government; and putting confidence
n tW jultice, will purchase the debt.
He further observed, that a great saving
would be made by a further aflumption—it
would reduce the interest from 7 to about 4k
ier cent.
The debt is ajuft debt, and has as good preten
tions as that already provided for—and therefore
the gentleman is mistaken in faying that a far
ther afiumption would be founded in injultice——
lie gentleman fays if the debts are notalfumed,
foreigners will not buy them—the gentleman
<urely does not mean that the debt (hall never
He paid; but his reasoning goes to that. The
gentleman calls the public debt a mass of cor
ruption—if the debt is a mass of corruption, it
is better to confine it to as narrow limits as pos
sible.
Having eftablirtied the principle of aflump
tion, it remains that the government £hou\l
'■ompleat the fyltem ; otherwise a manifeft in
justice will take plate, by creating a diftinflion
between creditors exaftlv similarly circumstan
ced in the firft place, and whose demands are
.irecifely the fame with thole provided for.
A surplus has been alTumed in some of the
states, in rm'O'onenrc of the as to
the sum already assumed.
These fabfcriptions are in a very awkv/ard
lituation indeed.
He next noticed Mr. Giles's obfervatiorns as
toapoftponement, and his reasoning arising from
i deficiency of funds; there was no di fiici. Tv on
the ftibjetft of funds, said he, when the frontiers
were under consideration, nor when the ge ntle
,nan urged paying off the national debt.
With refpeft to pointing out the am® .Irrt of
the funds necefTarv—this, he observed, would
be premature, till the amount to be provided
for was known.
Mr. B. Bourne observed, that t'lough it was
fuppoled that objections would be made to the
proposition, it was hardly to be expected that
they would be made by gentlemen from states
whose debts have already been completely as->
fumed—He then adverted to the lituation of
thole states who had yet a large debt to pay—
and expatiated on the nature of fio'e debts,
and urged the absolute neceflity and juflice of
a further assumption. If, said be, the meafurd
ivas unjust at firft, which does not appear, it is
nw a measure of ftrift justice and found policy
—The state of Rhode-Island had not had any
thing like justice done to her in the former af
rumption—Her debt amounts to one fiftietjl of
the whole debt assumed, whereas (he has only a
one hundred and seventieth part provided for—
the injustice of this partial provision was so flar
";rant, that he hoped it would not be continued
by rejecting the proposition.
Mr. Clark added some further remarks—H«
was for a settlement of the accounts before any
further steps were taken in afluming.
Mr. Baldwin said he had always been opposed
to the allumption, and on that principle Ihould
oppose proceeding any further in the business—
He stated certain objections against the general
government's extending their legiilation to ob
jedts which are not contemplated in the organi
zation of the government—An inequality of
burthens is the inevitable consequence, as no
'ecnrity for an honest apportionment of taxes oa
so general a fcale,from the nature of the govern
ment can be expected.
Mr. Baldwins' fpeecri appeared to be def.gned
to impress this idea, that a previous ascertain-
nent of tha bona fide debt of the refpeftive
States lliou'd precede any assumption.
Mr. Smith (3. C.) replied generally to Mr.
Baldwin.
Mr. Mercer. Language has changed, ptftj
lie debt is no longer corfidered as a public blessing,
'jut as a public curse—and this ientiinent per
vades this House ; What is the nature of th«
pre ft: lit proposition ? why it is to assume the
debt of the several States—and thus we are to
s;o on afluming as long as any debt; exist in any
of the State".
There never was a larger sluice to overflow
the public with the burthen of an enormous
debt, than that contained in the proposition.
He confidercd it as holding out a temptation to
originate anew, claims which have been alrea
dy funk : A frcond and third finite, said lie, is"
opened i;i th" deferred and irredeemable qualify