Alexandria gazette, commercial and political. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1812-1817, 1813-04-02

AL the contractors, military officers,
comnissaries and other dependents ia
tho army dance, and make their fortunes
at the public expense.
But the farmers, fishermen and me-
chanics nay tie fiaer. We pay ii by
the certain fall of our Iarms, our produce
and our iabor.-Sum fbs do not yet
feel it, and we are weak enough to be-
lieye that the day ofreekouing will me-
yer come. We are like silly men, who,
so long as they san get money on mort-
gage. live as ifthe hour Of redemption
would never arrive. We shall soon Esd
the sheriff at the door, when we are un
prepared. =
We now pay the piper, in the incrsas-
ed price of foreign articles, our rum,
tea, sugar and English goods, AZ well as
in the diminished value of some of our
own products, our lumber and other ar.
ticles; but we shall next summer feel
It in the direct taxes, which will 10 July
next DC levied on our land and cattle. to
an amonnt three or foar. times that Of
our state tax. You have thought it
~auld not come, you arc deceived. I
have reat.0 the acts Of Congress, and
gon viii feel il seen, as ees!ain, as speedy
as inexorabis and as dreadful as death.
Whethsr the war has borne, and who
therit is likely to bear equally upon all
the states
The var has borne very uneqully up.
on the different states. While the nor
ihern states have been. and will continue
70 be great sufferers, the southern states
have been great gamers BY the war, for
they have been enriched by it.,
No man breads disunion more than
do. and no man SO much disapproves the
90 wing iealousies, and making distinc-
lions between the states; but then am
not such fool, am not such slave to
nv fears of disunion, IS TO approve of
measures which RUIN my own part of the
county, my own native town and state,
end enrich the other states who voted
for it.
Now for the facts; Massachusetts,
owned more than one third part Of all
the shipping in the United States, and
vet its representatives. in congress are
only one ninth. As the shipping intc-
rests are the greatest sufferers by the
war, so it follows, that Massachusetts
ry.n.t in this one article lose three times
her fair proportion. The fisheries and
lu.nDsr trade, which are TIVE others OF
our staples, and are nearly peculiar to
us, are almost, orqnite ruined. In these
articles alone, we suffer more than all
the states south of New-York do, from
all Sorts o. losses. Our trade in salted
provisions has also met great check,
and would have been ruined If Britain
bad begun the ar III earnest, which she
never did ill now. Next season we
must xii our cattle as the, South Ame-
rieans ia. for their hides and tallos, and
aba,deo tt.eir Aesh To the birds OF prey.
Wri,e We thu. suffer more than any
other peop,e from the loss npon our
own products, We pa ',ur ~ I'VE times
IN, part of the eXpelsces Il the war, or
at least ct the present taNSs
This is because we are much greater
consumers I'm proportion to their NUM-
bersl a. articles subject to taxation.
Tb.s there are one million and more
Of slaves, who are duly represented M
congress, End yet thy consume no faaa.
biz articles; but poor lntabltant o.
Barnstable county, or of the province OF
Maine. they are a little weakly & want
a cup of tea, must pay the double duty
of IS cents pound.
So on all spirits we pay 60 cents
gallon, bu, the southern people make
their own spirits, and pay nothing. l
see Mr.. Quincy proposed to put the
some TAG on their whiskey, which they
,,jected They like the union, but they
do not like equality they like the war,
but we must pay for it. -
So when the direct taxes come, II the
whole was to be raised upon the polls,
Doll tax every year in our state would
be "a dollar. head; yet IN the southern
states their black laborers are not count
ed as polls, and the tax must there oe
levied on the rich planter.
The war is therefore much more hea-
yily felt here than there, even when the
burdens are fairly proportional.
While we in Massachusetts have been
suffering in our shipping, ship buildings
fisheries, lumber trade, and country
products, while houses and stores, ana
wbarves, as arm told, in the towns, are
falling in value every hour, the southern
states have been enriched beyond all
measure, since the war. Their h"u'
and rice, and wheat, have been SOLO a,
prices higher than was ever known: and
So cunning are they, and so afraid is
nrc,itent Madison of making them op-
6oscd TO war, that after all his parade u
sngry speeches sb-ut Bri'ain's lera6 IS
to carry their -four, it evapeTaled IN
sn,L o. and congress rose without 'of-