«es in the growth of fruit trees, pumkins, and the like—l forget the particulars —but have men tioned enough—you know t lie country. Since you lefc this place, Mr. E. Backus, my felf, and another person for our guide, have made a tour up the Mulkingum, about ico miles, to White-Woman's Creek. We found a molt beautiful country on the river ; we did not go far back, to fee what it was there. " There winters in this place, a number of French gentlemen, who intend to make settle ments in the Scioto purchase ; they have iett France in conl'equence of the revolution in that country. They have brought their national de putes with them, and cannot agree to,fettle to gether : I think, however, they will loon forget them, and all become Republicans. —About joo have arrived—there are Jeveral thousands expect ed out next season." NEW-YORK, Jan. 17 « When thou dost an alms, let not thy left lnr.d know what thy right hand doth." ,7 c J ut Dr. Rodgen is highly obliged to the unknown friend, from whom he received a polite letter of the 4th inft. covering a hundred dollar bank note, for the ufeofthe poor ; and whilehe takes this method of informing him that it came fate to hand, he allures him it ihall be faithfully appro priated to the benevolent purposes of the gener ous Donor. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. THURSDAY, Jan. 6. In committee oj the whole, on the bill repealing after the lafl day of next the ait laying duties on diflilled ffir its, ire. and impoftng others tn their jlead. Mr. Boudinot in the chair, (Continuedfrom our /act.) MR. LIVERMORE was in favor of the bill. He said he considered it as an equal and just mode of taxation—and as fiich will be agree able to the people—they will consider it as drink ing down the national debt. The plan is agree able to the expectations and fentiiner.ts of the people: So far, said he, as my obserVations have extended, I have not found a single individual who has objected to it. He then obviated the objections to the bill, which he conceived arose principally from the word Excise. He thought the term very impro perly applied, on the present occasion, for the duty cannot be said to be an Excise. He then gave a defci iption of what had been considered in times pall as an excise, which to be sure, said he, is a very unequal tax, inasmuch as it fell on the poor only, who were obliged to pur chase in small quantities—while the rich, by storing their cellars, escaped the duty—but this bill provides that the duty lhall fall equally on the rich and poor—lt is to be paid, or secured, by the importer of foreign fpirirs, and at the Kill-head on domeltic spirits—This will equalize the burthen, atid leave no room for complaint. He then adverted to diredl taxation—and by a variety of particulars (hewed, that it was utterly impollible to lay a direcft tax that would not prove unjust, unequal, and grievously oppreflive. Mr. Bloodwortli spoke againit the bill : He dilated largely on the present uneafmefs which prevailed in theftate of North Carolina : His ex perience, he said, was diredtly contrary to that efthe gentlemen from New-Hamfhire, the people to the southward universally condemn an Excise. Mr. Sedgwick said he was unhappy to hear that discontents prevailed in any part of the United States. He could afl'ure gentlemen that he did not contemplate the execution of the laws by mi litary force. He was sure that in no part of the legislature were entertained designs inimical to the public liberty. In framing the present bill, great attention had been paid to prevent its being attended with those qualities which, in other countries, rendered taxation by excise justly ob noxious to popular vefentment. He relied on the good sense and well-informed understandings of the people in every part of America, foi the exe cution of such systems for the support of public credit, and for the diminution of the national debt, as lhould be devised by the wisdom of their representatives. For the fame purposes, he said, lie confided in the patriotism of the gentlemen who came from those diftri&s of country where uneasiness was said to exist He believed there ■\yas indeed a confiderablc deficiency to be pro vided for, for the fppport of government and of the public prpdit. This belief was founded in his confidence ill the information received from the Secretary of the Trcafury. But if there was 110 deficiency, his disposition to support the bill would be the fame ; for he had never believed that a public debt was a public benefit. Is it not then the duty of thole to whom the people have delegated the important trull of guarding their prosperity, in a season of profound peace, to li berate them from the burden and preilure of debt ?—Therefore the only question to be deter- mined is, whether the proposed duties are a pro per fnurce from whence we might derive the ne ceflary aids to provide for the payment of thein tereft, or the diminution of the principal of our debt? He believed, he said, that of all the fub jeifts of revenue which were within the power of Congress, none was so proper as the duty 011 ar dent spirits, contemplated by the bill. 111 this sentiment, lie believed, he concurrcd with that of the great body of the people. The leveral species of taxation, said he, may be divided into the four impost—a tax 011 inter nal negotiations—direift taxes —and that now un der confederation, excise. The impost duties had been extended as far as was, in the opinion of any gentleman, [dictated by found policy. The tax 011 internal negociations, which could not be carried to any considerable extent without the intervention of {lamps, was fubjecft to the objec tion brought against the present bill, and that in a degree incomparably beyond it, of being op posed by public opinion. Diretfl taxes, said he, are still more objectionable on that account, at least in every part of the country to which his knowledge extended. They are of all taxes the most unequal, and in this country would be found the inoft oppreflive. They are unequal, because with whatever exacftnefs they might be appor tioned upon capital or income, the only two principles on which an apportionment can be made ; they may and will be very unequal as to the burden imposed; because amah's ability to pay taxes is not in proportion either to his capi tal property or to his to that part of his income which is over and above his necessary expences, according to the usual manner of liv ing, for persons of his degree in the community. They will be oppreilive in this country, because in many of the states the plentiful circulation of money, and the facility of obtaining it, does not extend to the interior parts, nor could it be ob- tained by many of our citizens without a great facrifice of property. It may be added, that from the extent of our fettlemems compared with the number of our citizens, theexpenceof collection would be immense. « In regard to excises, Mr. Sedgwick faicl that in all insensible modes of taxation, it fliould be observed, that a much greater Aim would be ob tained fioin an individual than by any mode of dire<fl inipofition : this, without entering into a difcuflion of the reasons on which it was found ed, is demonstrated by faift. He instanced the porters of London, from whom, in the single ar ticle of beer, was drawn ten times as much as could be procured by the mod rigorous mode of direift exaiftion. With regard to the proposed duties, though the well-meant cenfideration of morality which had been urged by feme gentle men weighed but little with him, because he doubted whether it was well founded ; yet, if the confuniption fliould be leflened, he did not believe it would be attended with any sensible inconvenience. The? consumption at present amounts to ail enormous qnautity: froin these cormderations, said he, as the measure is ditftated by found policy, he hoped and believed it would be supported by a good degree of unanimity. Mr. Smith, (S. C.) adverted to the funding sys tem, to ihew, that the faith of the United States was pledged to raise a fufficient revenue to dis charge the debt, which by that system, they have engaged to pay. The Secretary's Abatements point out a deficiency : Those statements he had no dopbt were as accurate as the nature of things would admit. Gentlemen who find fault with the proposed plan, do not offer a fnbftitute. He then entered into a defence of the bill, and shew ed in what refpetfts it differed from the English plan of an Excise. He said the present bill was not so exceptiona ble on account of its violating private property, as the Colle&ion Law. He instanced, in a particular clause of that law, the power of entering houses by warrant from a Justice of the peace—Trial by Jury is secured by thisbill—and other provisions friendly to per sonal rights are added. Direct taxes, said he, are as much objected to by North Carolina as the Excise—and tho diredi taxes are mentioned, no plan is offered. He then enlarged on the importance of punc tuality in paying the interell of the public debt, and of having a surplus revenue in the treasury. He doubted not the gentlemen in favor of the bil l were as patriotic as those who are averse to it :— Difference in opinion is to be expend—but he had a better opinion of the good sense of the community, than to suppose they would be led away by a found—They will fee and judge for themfelves —and when they fee that the law is free from all those obnoxious qualities which have been fuggelted, they will submit to it without 702 complaint, efpeclally when :hey realize that the tax is equal—and tlie only effective relource with in the present command of the government—the oeneral government is authoriied to la) excises : North Carolina knew tiiis when (he adopted the Constitution. The opposition he suspected was agaitift the object to which the money is to be appropriated. Mr. Giles laid, the sentiments of the people of the louthern states, have been so differen:ly re presented, from what lie conceived to betheltate of fadls, that in justice to them lie conceived him-- felf bound to take some notice of the obfervatious which had fallen from gentlemen. He then Hated certain principles on which tax ation should be formed—faxes lhould be neces sary and railed 011 a plan confident with ih» principles ol liberty. He adverted to the necelfity, which he observ ed was abundantly apparent, from the report of the Secretary of the Trealury—but he did not confine his opinion to what had fallen from him. He instanced other reasons which would occasion a neceifity for replenilbing the public ti eafury. The expediency of the present mode he argued from the Import's being carried to the utmoll— from the approbation of this mode by a majority of the people —and tho uneafinefies might prevail infonie of the southern Hates, he considered them as originating altogether from the want of due in formation Pollefled of that information he could pledge himfelf to the committee, that they would cheerfullv acquiesce in whatever the legislature should decide to be for the general interest. With refpe<t to the bill's being agreeable to the principles of"liberty and i-epublicanifm, this would more properly come into view when that part of the bill which designates the mode of collection, comes under consideration. At pre sent he would only fay, that he had observed with pleasure, that there appeared to be a uni versal disposition in the members of the lioufe, to manifeft the moll scrupulous attention ill all their deliberations, to the liberties of the people. On the whole lie had no doubt that 011 mature reflexion the peoplewoukl acquiesce in thepi efent plan, when the honor, security and peacc of the United States appeared to be efl'entially connect ed with a further provision for the public exi gencies. Mr. Stone particularly alluded to the statement offered by Mr. Jackson— by which it appeared tha£ only the sum of 146,000 dollars were want ed—whereas the Secretary's report calls tor the enormous l'um of 800,000. He called on gentlt men to fliew the errors of the statement offered by the gentleman—lt had not been done. He then adverted to the number of people that would probably be wanted in order to make the duty productive : He believed they would be so numerous at to be fufficient to conllitute an army. Mr. Fitzlimons read an estimate of the actual and probable produce of the present Import and Tonnage, for the current year—by which it ap pears there wlil be a deficiency of upwards of 300000 dollars—but taking into confederation certain contingencies, which ihould they take place, will diminish the amount of the present duties, it appeared that the deficiency would be much larger than the sum mentioned—but even in cafe of a surplus being produced by this bill, there are objects to which it can be applied, highly beneficial to the United States : He in stanced finking the deferred dock,and the three per cents : The redudii&n of the public debt is an object which ought never to be loft fight of. Adjourned. MONDAY, .sundry petitions were read and referred. In committee of the whole on the bill, direft inp the mode in which the evidences of thedebr of the United States, which are, or may be de stroyed, shall be renewed. Mr. Bcndinot in the chair. The committee went through the dTfcuffion of the bill ; they made sundry amendments, which were reported to the houle. It was then moved that the bill be engrofleil for a third reading.—This was objected to by several members, and a motion for itsrecommit nient to a select committee, made by Mr. Seney, after some debate, was carried—and the follow ing gentlemen were appointed the committee, Mefl'rs. Sedgwick, Williamfon, Lawrance, Car roll, Clymer, Sturges and Sherman. In committee of the whole on the bill, declar ing what officer, in cafe of vacancy, [by death, removal,or inability] in the office of l'refidenr, and Vice-President, ffiall acft as President. Mr. Boudinot 111 the chair. The firft clause of the bill was read, which con tains a blank to be filled up, designating theper fon who (hall act as President. This Mr. Smith, (S. C.) after some preliminary observations mov ed should be filled with the Secretary of ft ate far the time being. Mr. Livermore moved to insert the President of the Senate, pro tempore. Mr. Ber.fon moved to insert the chief jnfbce of the United States. Jan. Io
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