National gazette. [volume], April 23, 1792, Image 1

About National gazette. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1791-1793

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Vol. I.
AUTHENTIC.
SECOND CONGRESS
OF THE
UNITED STATES.
At the firlt Session, begun and held ar the city o(
Philadelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania
on Monday the twenty-fourth of one
tlioufand leven hundred and ninety-one.
An ACT supplementary to the Afl. for tht
EJlabhJhmcnt andfuppori of Light houses.
Beacons, Buoys, and Public Piers.
BE it enaEled by the Senate and House oj
Representatives of the United States o]
America, in Congress assembled, That all
expenses which shall accrue from the
firft day of July next, inclusively, for
the neceflary support, maintenance,
and repairs of all light-houles, beacons,
buoys, the ftakeage of channels, on the
sea coast, and public piers shall continue
to be defrayed by the United States,
until the firft day of July, in the year
on&thoufand (even hundred and ninety
three, not with Handing fuchlight-houfes,
beacons, or public piers, with the lands
and tenements thereunto belonging, and
the jurisdiction of the fame, shall not in
the mean time be ceded to, or veiled in
f?ie United States, by the state or states
refpeftively, in which the fame may be,
and that the said time be further allow
ed, to the states refpeftively to make
ceflion.
And be itfurther enaHed, That the Se
sretary of the Treasury be authorized
to esufe tc be provided, ereft-.-d, and
placed, a floating beacon, and as many
buoys, as may be necetfary for the secu
rity of navigation, at, and near the en
trance of the harbour of Charleston, in
the state of South-Carolina. And alfc
to have affixed three floating beacon;
in the bay of Chefapeak ; one at the
north end of Willoughby's Spit, ano
ther at the tail of the Horse-Shoe ; ant
the third on. the fhoaleft place of th<
middle ground.
Jonathan Trumbull, Speaker of th
H&ufe of Representatives.
JOHN Adams, VUe-Prefident of th
United States, and Prefden
of the Senate
Approved, April twelfth, 1702.
G. Washington, Prefdent of th
United States.
Aji ACT teereEla Light-House on Montoci
Point in thejlateoj A'ew-York.
BE it enalied by tht Senate and House cj
Representatives of the United State,
tf America in Congress assembled, That a:
soon as the jurifdittion of such land or
Montock point in the state of New~\ orl<
as the President of the United State,
shall deem fufficient and most propc:
forthe convenience and accommodati
on of a light-house shall have been ced
ed to the United States, it shall be the
duty of the Secretary of the Treasury
to provide by contrast which shall b<
approved by the President of the Unit
ea States, for building a light houfi
thereonj and for furnifhing the fam<
with all neceflary supplies, and also t<
agree for the lalaries or wages of th(
person or persons who may be appoint
ed by the President for the superintend
ance and care of the fame; and th<
President is hereby authorized to maki
the said appointments. That the num
ber anddifpofition of thai lights in tlx
said light 'house shall be such as ma}
tend to distinguish it from others, ant
as far as is prafticabld, prevent mis
Sake*.
Jonathan TRtMiuxi, Speaker of th
House of Representatives.
John Adams, Vice-'Prefident of tJu
United-States, and Prefidew
of the, Senate.
Approved, April twelfth, 1792.
11, Washington, President of the
United States^
By P. FR E N EA U : Publijhsd Mondays and Thursdays, at Three Dollars per annum,.
MONDAY, April 23, 1792.
An ACT for afcertaimng the Bounds of a \
TraEl oj Land purchajed by John Clet/is j
Symmes.
BE it enaEled by the Senate and House of.l
Representatives of the United States of
America in Congress affembkd, TJiat thc ;
President of the United States be, and!
he hereby is authorized at the request
of John Cleves Symmes or his agent oti
agents, to alter the contratt made be-'
tween the late board of treasury and the]
laid John Cleves Symmes for the lale of J
a tratt of land of one million of acres,!
in such manner that the said tratt mayj
extend from the mouth of the Great
Miami, to the mouth of the Little Mia
mi, and be bounded by the river Ohio,
on the south, by the Great Miami on;
the welt, by the Little Miami on the
east, and by a parallel of latitude on the
north extending from the Great Miami
to the Litttle Miami, so as to compre
hend the proposed quantity of one mil
ion of acres, provided that the north
ern limits of the said tratt shall not in
terfere with the boundary line eftablilh
:d by the treaty of Fort Harmar, be
ween the United States, and th-? Indi
in nations, and provided also that the
he President reserve to the United
States, (uch lands at and near Fort
Washington as he may think necessary
F or the accommodation of a garrilon at
hat Fort.
Jonathan Trumbull, Speaker of tht
House of Representatives.
John Adams, I'm-Prefident of the
United States, and President
of tkc Senate.-
Approved, April tn'n.ijjh, -179 a.
(j . Washington, President rf the
United States.
An ACT for fixing the compcnfations of the
Doorkeepers of the Senate and House of
Representatives in Congress.
BE it enaEled by the Senate and House of
Representatives of the United Slates of
America in Congress assembled, That from
md after the termination of the present
(cllion of Congress, the door-keepers of
the Senate and Houle of Representa
tives, shall each be allowed a i'alary ofi
five hundred dollars per annum, in full
compensation for their services in the
laid offices; and that the assistant door
keeper to each House shall be allowed
in full compeufation for all his servi
ces, the fuin of four hundred and fifty
dollars per annum. And it shall be
the duty of the said door-keepers to do
the usual services pertaining to their
refpoftive offices during the session of
Congress, and in the recess, under the
iirefction of the Secretary of the Senate
md Clerk of the House of Reprelcnta
ives, to take care of the apartments oc
rupied by the refpettive Houses, and
arovide fuel and other accommodations
or their subsequent session. And the
aid compensations shall be certified
md paid in like manner as is provided
jy law, for the other officers of the Se
late and House of Representatives.
Jonathan Tr'umbi/li;, Speaker of tlie
House of Representatives.
John Adams, Vice-President oj the
United States, and Prefideui
of the Senate.
approved, April twelfth, 1702.
G. Washington, Prefident'of t'u
United States.
Mr. MERCER'S Speech on the PUBLIC
DEBT.
[Continued/rem out lofl, and coriclud<d7\
SO much for the right. I now bc£
leave to remark with refpett to the po
licy.
From reasons stated, it would be rea
dily imagined what experience liaslanc
tioned—That a funding system, once
began in any nation, has always increas
ed—the motives that led them to run
in debt a& with jdouble force toprevent
their getting out. It is a cancer in the
body politic that acquires strength from
amputation ; if any remedy exists in
nature, it is yet to be discovered. It is
lo plealant to spend on other people's
cost, that it arms all the powerful pas
sions against the judgment. Hence the
rapid accumulation of public debts
throughout Europe—the increase exhi
bits the appearance of the regular as
cent of a mountain, while the reduc
tions appear like gullies in the fides,
scarcely discernible, impeding the pTo
grefs but for a moment. Great Britair
has run in debt 250 millions sterling ir
less than a century. Had frre original
ly adopted a plan of rendering the deb
irredeemable, and had not seized ever)
favorable rife of credit to lower the in
tereft, by which means she pays now 3
per cent for money borrowed at 8, nc
ryftem of taxation would have paid th<
interest and supported government ever
3t this day ; and all this debt must hav(
began in the memory of men now living
That this government should have
funded, in less than five years from it:
jrigin, near 50 millioris of dollars, anc
Ihould now propose to fund near 2c
rniliions more—that we should hav<
ransacked the whole United States U
find debts toeffeft this, invite them frort
:very quarter, and set them to find out
create and revive debts already funk
to secure as large a fharc of the genera
revenue as poflible; that we fhoulc
have carried the principle to the extra
vagant exccfs we have done, by the in
vention of deferred Hock, which no na
tion ever ventured to hazard, ail in ou:
sarlieft infancy, must afford- fublimi
r>rofpe£ts of our progress in mature age
Something unexampled mtift be done
for if we adopt the addition now propo
fed, I believe we (hall find ourfelve;
[addled with a greater funded debt
thau Great Britain herfelf, comparative
ly with the relative wealth of the res
pefti-ve nations ; and I believe thei
debts make even the boldcft veterari o
the projecting tribe quake with terror
It is true, we may not feel it so fenfibh
in consequence of paying no immediati
interest in so great a proportion as thi
deferred stock ; yet it is a debt our chil
drcn will feel, and some of us-.
It will in the aggregate form a mas
of 70 millions of dollars. The proper
tyof the United States is worth what i
will fell for at an ordinary market
Although it cannot be precisely alcer
tained what the amount woulcl be, wi
are fiill furnifhed with fufficient dau
to form a tolerable estimate. In fh<
state I have the honour to represent
industry and ceconomy. have long give:
a high relative value to their property
That property was afTefled, soon afte
the war [when raised, to an idea
height.] to 12 millions their money
From the fall of price, I do believe tha
the whole or any proportion of it woulc
not now bring, at fair market, the mo
ney. From this we must dedudt sou;
millions for thenegro property, whicl
cannot be included in a relative compa
rii'on with other countries, where-th<
labourers, although equally and mor<
valuable, are not considered as proper
ly ; there would then remain 8 mtlli
ons. Maryland'is at least a 12th of th<
United States, she has indeed alway:
been rated at a higher proportion ; this
would fix the property of the Unitec
States at 260 millions of dollars; the
debt then is more than a 4th of the
wholi value of the property.
The wealth of Great-Britain is esti
mated, by Mr. Young an'd Mr. Pulte
ney, and I believe there is no good'rea
fon to question their authority, at iooc
millions sterling ; they owe 250 milli
ons, which is a fourth ; their debt then
is relatively less than ours. Again,
from their extenfiveand lucrative colo
nial establishments in the Eaftand Weft
Iwd-ies,' their annuaHncome' is inereafed
so as to-yield a net revenuesF 100 mili
011s sterling per annum, so that they re
ally do not owe 3 years income. What
Numb. 51.
our annual net income is, I have nt> fa
tisfa&ory document to Form any efti
mateof, but I fear it is but small. Ihe
deferred (lock may defer the extent of
the evil, but it is by a facrifice of all
principle to convenience.
And for what has all this magicbuild
irig been ere£ted ? What were the be
nefits expe&ed ? The states were going
on rapidly in cxtingaifhing their debts:
there was no complaint that their cer
tificates were too low. In 1785 and
1786, the Maryland certificates were
nearly as high as they are now, or Would
be if assumed. Perhaps some found un
derstandings were led away by vigor of
genius, uncorre&ed by experience, and
bccame bewildered by the vrfioriary
dreams of Pinto, Champion, and a va
riety of calculators. To compare the
Secretary's firfl report on the public
debt, with the last on the frontier dc
:encc, furnifhes at least the consolation
;hat a candid mind will rclinquiflv er
or. Had he adhered to those apof
:les of political truth, Montefquieti and
Smith, the firft pages of. the firfl repO'fi
ivo-ald have been stricken out.
It has anfweredf, I will venture to as
sert, but one good effefl of these pre
dicted, for the myriads of evils it has
entailed. It has enabled some debtors
10 pay off on better terms. But thft
number of them arc blit few, distressed
people cannot keep theft things, they
sarly get into other hands.
As to its increasing our capital, that
ground is now abandoned even by big
otry itfelf. To mortgage an estate adds
nothing to its value—an estate is not
doubled by dividing its profits* So
much wealth as is borrowed on pro
perty, of so much less value is the pro
perty to him that holds, pays the inte
rest, and stands charged.
Every atom of funded debt is so
much taken from the value of the land
in the hand of the landholders, and so
much diminished from the value of
labor to the laborer. Thus one great
alcding of the funded debt predi&'ed irl
the rife Of land, has taken a contrary di
rection, for, unlefsit is round some towns,
lands-will hardly fell at all. Even in
England and old countries, wherethere
is a variety of other wealth, the public
debt has so far leffencd the value of
land, that an estate that actually prodnc-*
ss 1. 90000 a year, is in fact onl)F" esti
mated at about 63, and when fold thd
year's purchases are estimated at the
latter sum.
Men that purchase land are not so
thoughtless of pofterityas adminiftrati*
ons usually are. They purchase in a
great measure for children. They con
lider the incumbrances, and fix' their
price accordingly. Altho' we pay nd
intt-reft on deferred stock, yet it enters
deeply into the price of Our lands.
There is another confideraton that
is weighty on this fubjett : That stock
in every country, particularly in one
situated as we arc, is ever varying in.
value. Since I have been here, in five:
weeks, it"has altered its value one third.
It cannot serve thCn as a medium of
commer'ce, for that nvuft be some cer
tain common fthndard. To measure
our commodities by a standard more va
riable than the commodities themselves,
lias always been held as absurd. COn
feq-uently; I never heard of land, or in
deed any thing: else, fold for stock. If
the exchange'takes place at all, it is firft
by a sale, and money is the metiiunft.
It bears therefore ftich a proportion to
the money in circulation, aha requires'
so much, that it pinches all other ob
jects of sale—.land, produce, and I - be
lieve commerce too. It-jsan old max
im, and I believe a trvic one, that if
money is to be had, it will be had to
game with. $tock"s are so uncertain, that
traffic in them has ever been considered
as "a species of gaming. Thefr'value is
supported by it. Withdraw the game
' See lajl Page.J