Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1885-03-12
Shall We Celebrate the Day!
OFFICE SUpr. OF PUBLIC SCHOOLS,
A1FyANDRIA. March r. 1850.

10 the ed1t0r OF me dteIuhthtu uo@e''e'
Justice is never done Alexandria in the
current school histories. perhaps because
we have, ourselves, been too Indifferent TO
memorials of the great events that han
origin in our town. Some facts which JUS
tify town pride we can hardly make LOO
conspicuous. I think my fellow townsmen
will agree with me that we can never cut
too deeply the name of Alexandria upon
the monuments ofour country's history Al
though the valor of her sous has been signal
abroad on shore and ship, Alexandra mas
had little prominence in "the big wars that
make ambition virtue" but in the peaceful
engenderiug of great results it has claims to
be of as high fame as any of its sis!rrhood
of old communities.
One event specially notable IN ia career
marks the March of hundred yeats ago,
and entities Alexandria 10 be called II HE
CRADLE OF THE CONSTITUTION" We VIII
do well TO parade that meuorahie event,
As here the Congress OF Royal Vlcer"ys
| nanued The British taxation OF America
AS here Washington and Harrison and their
co,npatriots resolved that taxation aad rep
reseutation are jnseparabe and that III
Boston submits we will not" thus epito
mizing the Revolution so here when
Liberty and Peace came, was made The hrs'
effective movement to shape The new ma
ton. Mr. George Tucker in his extensive
/ History Of the United States Is one OF the
few authors who do justice 10 Alexandria.
| think am not seeking too much space
in March 1885 ia ASKING you to publish his
history of The great events which followed
meeting at Alexandria in March, 1850
Having promised the evils which bad re-
suited to The country from the want OF q
more perfect union, MIR. Tucker proceeds:
THE ALEXANDRIA CONVENTION.
"Among these stroug inducements to an
enlargement OF the federal powers, the com
msrcnl difficulties of the States seem to
have exerted principal agency in bringing
about that change in their civil polity. The
several steps by which this great result was
effected may here be noticed Us u curious
and Interesting portion OF the national
annals. Situate ed as Virginia and Mary land
were, having several ports adapted to
foreign trade on the same great estuary the
thesaueake bay aud its waters, the spirit
Of commercial rivalry was soon excited be
tween them, when II WAS found that the
|
was willing TO make To increase lis trade or
revenue, were met by similar concessions and
sacrifices Oh the part Of the Other; and thus al
| uncompensated loss was SlSl aimed By both.
II was moreover . constant source of mutual
irritation, iealousiy and discord. The in
lerest of both states then strongly recon
| meuded them to agree on some uniform
system of duties and other regulations. Yet,
| obvious as were the benefits OF such q sys-
tenn, no successful efforts had been made to
effect it until accident coEcurred with
patriotic sagacity TO bring it about. For
| the purpose of forming compact concern
ING the Jurisdiction ofthe rivers Potomac and
Pocomoke and part of tho Chesapeake
Bay occasionally brought into conflict be.
tween the two States, rs those waters were
common TO both, those Sinrs, in 1855, ap
pointed Commissioners, WHO met at Alex
andria in March of that year. They thence
made visit to Mount Vernon, and, while
there they agreed on the suggestion, it is be-
lieved, of Mr. Madison who was one Of the
Commi: sioners. and with the concurrence of
General Washington to advise their respec-
tive States to make an arrangement for sup
porting u naval force III the Chesapeake al
| their Joint expense, and also TO establish a
| tariff Of duties Common TO both States.
These propositions Of the Commissioners
were adopted by the Virginia Legislature.
Maryland, however, qualified her assent to
the propositions by d condition that they
should first be made to the neighnoring
States of ID .laware and Pennsy wanna But
Mr.. Madison, who had been member of
the Legislature since he left Congress in
17S3 anticipating that Delaware and Penn
sylvania might also require the concurrence
80 no, hf,., htr1f he
posed reform be long protracted aud per-
haps defeated, was induced to propose a
meeting Of Commissioners from oil the
States. The resolution prepared by him
was adopted on The 2lSt of January, 1856,
according TO which, Com missioners were APP
| pointed To meet those of the other States
at time and place to be agreed Oh
| TO take into consideration the trade of the
| United States, to examine the relative Sit
uaton and trade OF those States; to con-
slider how far a uniform system in their
| commercial! relations may be necessary to
| their common interes. and their permanent
harmony, and to report TO the several States
such al act relative to this great object a.,
when unanimously ratified by them, will
enable the United States, in Congress as.
sembled, efitctualiy to provide for the same.
! In the circular letter which conveyed these
resolutions to the States. Annapolis was
proposed as the place, and september the
time of meeting. Nine of the States ap-
pointed commissioners to attend this con
vention, but only those Of five States were
represented these were New York, New
Jersey, Pennsy lvania, Delaware and Vir
ginia; and what was remarkable, the State
in which they sat had no representative
From the small number Of States represent
ed, and the very limited powers coufiIed
to them, the convention decided to adopt
no other measure than TO propose TO their
several States general convention of dep
uties appointed by the Legislatures of all
the States to meet in Philadelphia in the
following May. for the purpose of general
revision of The federal system. This address
was drawn by Alexander Hamilton, who
there embodied the liberal ve,ss he bad
long entertained. The invitation was &C
cepted, and thus originated the government
which gave stability aud prosperity to our
Confederate Republic"
Our boys and girls fnd no mention in