Your approbation of the vote of this House at
the last felfion, respeCting the provision for the
public creditors is very acceptable to us : The
proper mode of carrying that refolutiort into ef
fect, being a fubjecft in which the future charac
ter and happiness of thele States are deeply in
volved, will be among the firll to deserve our at
tention.
The prosperity of the United States is the pri
maryobjetft of all our deliberations, and we the
rilh the reflection, that every ineafure which we
may adopt for its advancement, will not only re
ceive your cheerful concurrence, but will at :he
fame time derive from your co-operation, addi
tional efficacy in ensuring to our fellow citizens
the blessings of a free,efficient, and equal govern
ment. FREDERICK A. MUHLENBERG,
Speaker of the House of Reprefeutatives.
To this Address, The President was pleaferf to make
the following reply :
Gentlemen,
I RECEIVE with pleasure the aflurances you
give me, that you will diligently and anxiously
pursue such measures as lhall appear to you con
ducive to the interests of your conttiruents; and
that an early and serious consideration will
be given to the various and weighty matters re
commended by me to your attention.
I have full confidence, that your deliberations
■will continue to be directed by an enlightened
and virtuous zeal for the happiness of our coun
try. G. WASHINGTON.
January 14.
CONGRESS.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
WEDNESDAY, JAN. 13.
Mr. Smith of the committee appointed to wait
on the Prelident of the United Stares, to know at
what time and place the House lhould wait on him
to pi efent their address, reported that '.he Prefi*
dent had appointed to-morrow at twelve o'clock,
at his own house.
Mr. Huntington, from Connecticut ; Mr. Cad
wallader, from New-Je.fey ; Mr. Heifter, from
Pennsylvania ; and Mr. Smith, from Maryland,
appeared and took their feats.
On motion,
Ordered, That so much of the standing rtileS
and orders of this house, as directs the mode of
appointing committees, be rescinded ; and that
hereafter it be a standing rule of the house, that
all committees (hall be appointed by the Speaker,
unless otherwise specially dire<fted by the house,
in which cafe they (hall be appointed by ballot,
and if upon such ballot the number required (hall
not be elected by a majority of the votes given,
the house (hall proceed to a second ballot, in
which a plurality of vores (hall prevail ; and in
cafe a greater number tlian are required to coin
pofe or complete the committee (hall have an equal
number ofvotes, the house fliall proceed to a fur
ther ballot or ballots.
The House resumed the reading of the state
ment of the fourh-weftern frontiers, and of the
Indian department, as referred to in The Presi
dent's meifage of yesterday : Whereupon,
Ordered, That the said meflageand ftareraent
be referred to a committee of five, and that Mr.
. Wadfworth, Mr. Brown, Mr. Boudinot, Mr.
, Burke, and Mr. Baldwin, be of the said commit
tee. Adjourned.
THURSDAY, JANUARY 14.
Mr. Sedgwick, from Mafiachufetts ; and Mr.
Hartley, from Pennsylvania, appeared and took
their feats.
Mr. Livermore, Mr. Ames, Mr. Lawrance, Mr.
Scott, Mr. Smith, (M.) were added to the com
mittee, to whom was referred the ilatement of the
southwestern frontiers and Indian department.
The report of the Secretary of the Treasury
was received and read, and referred to a com
mittee of the whole house, this day fortnight.
Adjourned.
FRIDAY, JANUARY 15.
Mr. Jackson, took his feat this day.
The memorial of John Cockran, Cotnmiffioner
of the Loan-Office in the State of New-York,
praying for an addition to his salary for reasons
Hated in the memorial, was read, and laid on the
table.—Also, the petition of William Montgo
mery and Co. refpediing certain inventions,which
was laid on the table.—-Also sundry reports of the
Secretary of the Department ofWar, onanum
ber of petitions and memorials referred to him
at the last felfion.
Mr. Hartley —upon a presumption that the
unfinifhed business of the lafl feflxon, was to beta
ken up in the present, in the fituationit was then
l e ft~propofed that the bill for the promoting
of science and ufeful arts, and for fecuringto au
thors and inventors the benefits of their v/ritings
and discoveries should be taken into consideration,
and to that purpose laid a motion on the table.
Mr. Smith (S. C.Jmoved that the House should
go into a committee of the whole on the Presi
dent's Speech, which motion being agreed to—
Mr. Balpwin took the chair.
Mr. Smith then read aftatement of the feve
xyl articles in the Speech which were recom-
I- _t
mended to the confutation of the House—and
moved that the committee of the whole ihould
come to a resolution to refer the fame to feletft
committees— 1 his being adopted, the committee
rofe,and the Chairman reported the resolution to
the House Oil which the House appointed com
mittees for the following purposes, viz.
Relolved, that a committee be appointed tore
port a plan to provide for the national defence,
and Mr. Gillman, Mr. P. Muhlenberg, Mr. Hei-
Iter, Mr. Matthews and Mr. Floyd, were ap
pointed.—
Resolved, that a committee be appointed, for
bringing in a bill making provision for persons
employed in the intercourse between foreign na
tions, and the United States—Mr. Sedgwick,
Mr. Huntington and Mr. Lee were appointed.—
Resolved, that a committee be appointed to
bring in a bill for the eitablilliment of a uniform
rule of naturalization—Mr. Hartley, Mr. Tuck
er and Mr. Moore were appointed
7 hat part of the Speech referring to unifor
mity in the coin, weights and measures of the
United States, was referred to the Secretary of
State. Several other parts of the Speech, respec
ting post offices, and post roads—the promoting
of science and literature, &c. it was ordered
fliould lie 011 the table—as reports were ready to
lay before the House relative to those fubjc(sls.
Mr. Goodhue moved that a committee fliould
be appointed, to divide the State of North Caro
lina into diftridts, for the purpose of collecting
the impost in that State, agreeable to the laws of
the Uniied States.
Several other motions, referring to the fame
objeJl, were introduced—but the following pro
posed by Mr. Sedgwick was adopted, viz.
Resolved, that a committee be appointed to
report a bill or bills, for making such alterations
in the laws of the United States, as may be ne
cefTary to conform the fame to the present State
of North Carolina—and Mr. Benfon, Mr. Cad
wallader and Mr. Trumbull were appointed.
Adjourned till Monday, n o'clock.
LEGISLATURE OF STATE OF NEW-YORK.
HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY.
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 13, 1790.
A MESSAGE from His Excellency the Governor, to the General AJfem
bly of this State.
Gentlemen of the Legislature,
THE Amendments proposed to the Constitution of the United
States, and the other Communications which have been made
to me in your Recess by the Direction of Congress, will be fub
mi:ted to your Consideration with this Meflage. The Returns
required by the Resolutions accompanying these Papers, for the
Tieafury and War Departments, are already dire&ed to be made
and tranlinitted to those Offices refpe&ively.
The usual Returns from your Treasury will disclose the present
state of our Finance*, and evince the necessity of a permanent
Arrangement for the support of Government and the maintenance
of the public Credit. lam happy to observe, that manyintereft
m r Obje&s which have si nee the close of the War occupied much
of the Time of the Legislature, ire now accompli (lied, and that it
will confequentiy be in your Power to devote a greater Portion of
your Attention to this important Business.
I conceive it proper, at this Time, to remind the Legislature,
that in the Course of the present Year the Period will arrive when
by our Constitution a Cenlus of the Elettors and Inhabitants is
to be taken for apportioning the Reprefcntation to the Senate and
Affcmbly.
It is with Pleafurc I inform you, that the Survey of the waste
Lands, directed to be fold, is complt ated, and that such Progress
has been made in the running out of those allotted as a Bounty to
the Troops of this State, that rants may be vfTued to the Indivi
duals c ntitl dto them without any further actual Surveys. I flial 1
direst the Accounts of the Expences, which have accrued in those
Services, to be lodged in the Audttor'sOffice for Liquidation, and
I slater myfelf it will be found, that as great a regard to Oecono
my has been observed a the Nature of the Business, and the Ob
structions which attended the Execution of it, would permit.
With refpefl to the Measure recommended more immediately
to my Care by the con urrent Resolution of the Senate and At
kmhly in July last, it is lufficient to mention, that it has been exe
cuted without incurring any Expence to the State.
G. CLINTON.
New-York, 13th of January, 1790.
The feverai a6ts of Congress, and other communications which
accompanicd the mcllage of hisexcellencv the Governor were also
read.
Ordered, That the said meflage of his excellency the Gover
nor, and sundry matters which accompanied the fame, be com
mitted to a committee of the whole house.
Mr. Jones introduced the following resolve viz.
Resolved, if the hon. the senate Concur herein, That the trea
surer be, and is hereby directed to deliver one copy of the laws
of the state to his Excellency the Governor, one to each house of
the legislature of the United States, one to the fecretaiy of state for
the United States, two to the clerk of the senate of this stare, four
to the clerk of the house for the use of the legislature, one to the
chancellor, one to each judge of the supreme court, and one
to the judge of the court of probates, one to the secre
tary, one to the attorney general, one to the clerk of the su
preme court, one to the auditor, one to the clerk of each county
of the state for the use of their refpeftive offices, and one other
copy for the use of his own office, one to the clerk of each town,
for the use of each town, he giving his receipt, one for each judge
of the supreme court of the United States, one to the clerk of the
supervisors in each county, for the use of the supervisors Also
to Richard Varick and Samuel Jones, Efquircs, by whom the said
laws were revised and digested, each one copy ; and to each
membei of the senate and aflembly of this state one copy—and
the treasurer is hereby aire&cd, to have regard, in the distribution
of the laid laws, to the order observed in this resolution, giving
priority to those who are firft named, adopted 37 to 4.
THURSDAY, JANUARY 14.
The following meflage was received from the Senate :
Resolved, (if the hon. the Aflembly concur herein) that a joint
committee of both Houses of the Legislature be appointed to ex
amine such accounts as have been submitted by the auditor of this
state to the commiflioner appointed by the United States, for fet
ling the accounts between the United States and individual states ;
and to advise the auditor relative to the vouchers of the claims of
this state • and in cafe of such concurrence, that Mr. Philip Schuy
ler, Mr. L'Hommedieu, and Mr. Livingfton, be of the said com
mittee on the part of the Senate.
The House concurred, and appointed Mr. King, Mr. Randall,
Mr. Schoonmaker, Mr. Barker, and Mr. Giles, the committee on
their part.
The House tefolved that they would choose a Council of Ap
pointment this day at 12 o'clock.
Went into a committee on the Governor's mcfTdge ;
Mr. Watts in the chair.
It was rclolved that committees be appointed to bring in bills
in conformity to the ast of Congress ot 23d September last, ref
pedling gaols ; and that of the 7th August, refpeftinglight-houfes.
A resolution was also agreed to, appointing a committee to pre
pare and bring in a bill in conformity to the concurrent resolution
of the Legislature of the 13th of July last, rcfpe£ling Fort George
and its dependencies.
The committee then rose, the House accepted of the report,
and appointed committees accordingly.
FOR THE GAZETTE OF THE UNITED STATES.
To the Hon. LEGISLATURE of this STATE.
A WRITER, in a late Poughkeepfie paper, on
the important subject of PUBLIC SCHOOLS,
introduces this very lingular observation, " It
" is even conjectured, fays he, that our legilla
" ture will never confentto a law, making it the
" duty of each town to support a refpedtable
lC school, for fear it would be unpopular."—Can
it be pollible that there should bu any foundation
forfuch a conjecture ! If there is—Can language
u gg e ft a more powerful motive, to induce the
Legislature to pass such a law ? Does it not in
dicate such a state of ignorance, and degradation,
as calls on all the principles of humanity, bene
volence, and patriotism, to make the moll Ipir
itedexertions, that the people maybe brought
from under the tyranny offuch ignominious sen
timents, so hostile to their best interests, in every
point of view > for that society must be in a de
plorable condition, in which it is unpopular to
propose a public regulation, that has for its ob
jeift, thedifl'ulion of knowledge, science, and vir
tue, among the people. The Deity hath not de
vised a fyHem so competent to this delign, as pub
lic schools.— ihe present enlightened Legislature
of this State, hath on many occasions adopted a
most public spirited line of conduct—and there
can be no djubt, that this important fubje<st will
be taken into confederation by them—and fuclx
effectual provision made, that the State of New-
York may in this, as Ihe does in other refpecfts,
support her pretensions to an enlightened, liber
al policy. C I V I S.
FOR THE GAZETTE OF THE UNITED STATES,
Mr. Editor,
I was agreeably surprized to read in one of the Papers 16 clay*
that in the report df the Secretary of the Treasury, the Reve
nue which may He expelled from the Poll-Office is eft'mated at
100000 Dollars —this is so contrary to pall experience, that I can
not but suppose, that in addition to enhancing the rate of poftagc,
fume new arrangements are contemplated—there is one which
appears to me very effeniial, aud that is to give the Merchants and
others a greater opportunity to answer their Letters by the return
of the poll by which they are received—The practice of clofin *
the mail, the fame evening that it arrives, which in a great meal
sure deprives them of this convenience, operates againfl there
venue to Government. MERCATOR.
January 154
NEW-TURK, JANUARY 16, 1790.
FROM CORRESPONDENTS.
The public anticipations are more than realized by the commu
nications made to Congress at the commencement of the present
feflion. During the recess it appears that the Executive Depart
ments have been inceflantly employed in forming the necessary
arrangements, colle6ling information, and preparing public busi
ness, in such manner that the National Legislature has the most im
portant obje&s brought immediately before them—and there is no
doubt, but that they will proceed in the difcuflion of every fubjefi*
with all that unanimity and dispatch, which is compatible with
doingjuftice to the general interests of their constituents.
How mull the bosom of every friend to the United States ex
pand with pleasure, in contemplating the situation of our country,
as delineated in the fpcech of The President to both Houses of
Congress: What a generous confidence in the patrio(ifm of the
citizens ! And what a glow of hope, that as they have begun, so
they will continue to appreciate the bleflings of good govern
ment, under the best Conilitution ever conferred upon any of the
sons of men.
Of the Report of the Secretary of the Treasury much may be
said ; but as it will shortly belaid before the public, an anticipation
of iheir opinion, will doubtless fall below the sentiments that will
be excitcd on its appcarance.
Another correspondent informs, that a number of the fe& call
ed Shakers, having, thro the benevolence of a certain Societv„
not an hundred miles from John-Street, been indulged with the
use of their Tabernacle for a few evenings part, to hold their par
ticular meetings in, hasoccafioned those extraordinary appearances,
noises, See. which have excited so much speculation.—There is
nothing new in all this—there was a fe£fc in Persia a thousand years
ago, that beat this hollow, in writhings, contortions, groanings
and fcreechings.
BOSTON STAGE.
THE subscriber informs the public, that having contra&ed to
carry the public mail in the ftagefrom New-York to Boston„
for the year 1790 —commencing January the firft to go twice a
week till the firft of May, and three times a week from firft May
to firft November, and to employ a person to go thro* with the
mail to take Care of it. He engages that this conductor ftiall tran
fa£t all private bufmefs committed to him with fidelity at a rea
sonable Commiflion—he will carry bundles, money, newspapers,
! See. And may be seen every Wednesday and Saturday Evening
in New-York, at Fraunces Tavern, in Boston at the fubferibers
House, in Hartford at Frederick Bull's, Coffee House.
Four a&ive men are now engaged as Conductors, who have
given bonds for the faithful discharge of their trust.
LEVI PEASE,