Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-11-24

gress. The Virginia legislature offered
tract ten miles square in any part Of its
territory that Congress might choose and a
bonus of $l20Nbh toward erecting pubic
buildings. The Maryland assembly seconded
the proposition and agreed to cede a sup
Elemental tract and furnishe $1,000 toward
tn, building fund
Choice NarrOws to Two Points.
Later on the choice narrowed down be-
tween point on the west bank of the Sus-
quehanna river In Observation-Disclosures
then to be the center of population, wealth
and territory-and a point on the banks Of
the Potomac. and bills in behalf of these
PROPOSITIONS were offered exciting extreme
bitterness and sectional jealousy. The Eir-
ginians were especially inSistent that the
Potomac site be chosen, and when, on Sep
TENDER s. 1879, bill passed the House of
Representatives to locate the permanent
capital on the Susquehanna. the Virginians
took it so greatly to heart that James Mad
ison, then representative in Congress. as
serted, with heat, that If this action had
beer foreseen by Virginia, that state would
have refused to become party to the Con-
stitution The bill was subsequently amend
ed in the Senate by striking out the clause
referring to the Susquehanna and substitute
ing for it provision naming Germantown
near Philadelphia. in case the state of
Pennsylvania or her citizens should secure
the payment of 100000 toward erecting
public buildings. These amendments were
a seemingly innocent proviso that the laws
Of Pennsylvania should remain in force in
the district selected until Congress should
otherwise direct-an altogether needless
proviso; and in this shape the bill was again
sent to the Senate. where its consideration
was postponed until the next session
Just there Is the point where the fatal
LEGISLATIVE slip was made and the golden OPP
nortunity was lost by Pennsylvania. Al
though Germantown was actually agreed
upon by both houses, yet on account OF the
trif1ing amendment by the House. the whoie
bill failed.
Now. during that constructive era the
early fathers were in sore straits. AleXan-
der Hamilton. Secretary OF the treasury
insisted that it was necessary Tor the per
lection of his system of finance ana TOT
the life of the young republic that the fed
eral government should assume the war IN
debtedness of the several states. Inc
southern members, particularly those from
Virginia and South Carolina-states that
were well able to liquidate their own war
debts-violently opposed it, and, as Jefter-
son tells us in his letters, even threatened
secession and dissolution. In the House
the proposition was lost by small margin
and Hamilton was in despair. In the emer-
gency he sought the aid of Jefferson, MS
bitter rival, who was then Secretary or
State. and the two together, with the help
of Washington, succeeded IN Strengthening
out the difficulty.
Results in n Compromise.
The transaction was a brilliant compro-
mise, brilliant mutual triumph of the
two opposing types of Hamiltonian and
Jeffersonian diplomacy. jefferson, lon his
part, undertook to exert all his influence on
the Virginia recactrants and have them
change their votes in favor of assumption,
while Hamilton. perceiving win me
shrewdness of genius the good use that
could now be made Of the capital site
project, assumed the task of persuadlng
the eastern members to vote for the To-
no mar
town bill that had been put to sleep was
revived and amended by dropping out
Germantown" and inserting Potomac'
the language reading on the Potomac, at
some place between the mouth OF the East
ern branch and the Conococheague. With
the cooperation of Robert Morris, then
senator from Pennsylvania, Hamilton per-
formed his share of the agreement by nav
ing this bill successfully carried through
both houses in July, 1880 The Virginians,
in their turn reconsidered their previous
adverse action and cast their votes In favor
of assumption of the state war aepts
Thus assumption was carried ana the
Potomac got the capital. By the terms of
the Potomac act Philadelphia was MADE
the temporary seat Of government until
the wear 1900 and after that, as REPRE-
sentative Roger Wolcott expressed 1t, the
capital was to go permanently to the In
dian place with the long name on the 70
tomac" The ten-year concession to Phil
adelphia was intended, as Jefferson tells
US, to serve "asean anodyne," to calm in
some degree the ferment excited by the
other measure alone'-that relating to the
Potomac and Conococheague. This pic
turesoue and Notwithstanding Indian
name was pronounced COMFY -go-chig.
rhyming with big, jig and pig. The creek
Conococheague was and still is an OBJ
scure stream rising in Franklin county,
Pa, and flowing south to Williamsport, in
Washington county, Md, where 1t Joins the
Potomac.
Piaue of the New Workers.
Congress at that time was established in
New York, and the metropolitan newspa-
pers of the day abounded in quaint quips.
uuirks and jibes and in homemade dogger-
ell rhymes at the expense Of the unfortu-
nate creek. In one Of these latter per-