Omaha daily bee., 1909-11-25

The First congress assembled IN the City
hall In New York on March . 17se. The
constitution had been ratified by eleven
states. although only ten had chosen presi-
Dental electors. New York came into the
new union after the presidential election
and congress met first in that state. The
First congress at the beginning treated
North Carolina and Rhode Island as for
eign nations, but before the two years was
ended all Of the thirteen states were under
the wing Of the constitution and had rep
resentatives and senator's in congress. The
first duty Of the Firs. congress was to
count the electoral vote and, under the
rule then obtaining, declare the person re-
ceiving the highest number Of votes to be
president and the person receiving the next
highest to be vice president, each elector
having voted for two persons.
The congress met on March 4, but there
was no quorum in either house. The
presence Of twelve senators and thirty rep
r~esentatives was necessary to organize the
new government. Bay after day the two
houses met and adjourned. Letters were
sent out implorlng the Indifferent members
Of congress to hasten to New York. The
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government devised by the constitution
could not be operated because It would be
impossible to get a sufficient number Of
men to serve in congress. After four weeks
Of weary waiting the necessary thirty was
obtained and the house Of representatives.
on April 1. organized by electing Frederick
Augustus Muhlenberg as speaker. Five
days later Senator Richard Henry Lee Of
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necessary dozen members and the congress
was organized.
The two houses met together and can
vassed the vote of the electors and de-
clared George Washington president and
John Adams vice president Of the United
States Of America. Mr.. Adams was sworn
In at once and began to preside over the
senate. Messengers were dispatched to
Virginia to inform General Washington
and request his attendance at New York.
1t was a six days journey from Manhat-
tan to Mount Vernon then-it is six hours
now. General Washington FASTENED to
New York, and on April 30 was inaugur-
ated president and this government was
formally organized.
Blu congress had not waited for q presi-
dent or an annual message" It had al
ready begun to legislate for the infant
government. on April 8. the day after the
electoral vote was c~anvassed. the house
took up legislative work. The very first
movement toward aw-making In the
American congress was the introduction,
two weeks before George Washington be-
came president, Of a tariff bill. 1t was
presented in the form Of a resolution by
James Madison, a representative from Vir-
ginia, the father of the constitution" and
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States. This tariff bill was short, only
sixty-slx words being required to state it's
proposals to place a specific duty on
liquors, sugars, tea, coffee and cocoa, and
an ad valorem duty on all other articles.
The amounts were left plank and the bill
was referred to a committee. The first
tariff law, the outgrowth Of this bill, was
approved on July 4, 1889. 10, we have the
tariff with US Away!
The debate on that first tariff measure
is quite as interesting today as It was
then. Mr.. Madison of Virginia, one Of the
fathers OF the democratic party, made the
first tariff speech. He declared, in sub
stance, that all taxation was burdensome
and onorous, that all trade ought to be as
free as possible and that the only reason
or Justification for import duties wa the
necessity Of raising revenue for the federal
government, direct taxation being quite out
or the question. Then, having emphasized
his advocacy of a tariff for revenue only.
he admitted that he was not unmindful OF
the fact that even a revenue tariff would
afford. under certain conditions. incidental
protection to certain industries. The dem
ocratic party has been accused of trimming
and twisting and turning with relation to
the tariff question, but a careful study Of
Mr.. Madison's first speech will acquit the
party of the charge. That pronouncemen
proclaimed the doctrines advocated by JEFF
ferson, Calhoun. Pierce, Morrison, Mills,
Cleveland and Bryan. as well as justifying
the exceptional stand taken by Jackson,
Gushing. Randall and Bailey.
Mr.. Madison and his Virginia notions
met with instant opposition. Mr.. Elias
Boudinot Of New Jersey objected to the
imposition of o tax on rum, declaring that
the people of northern New Jersey con-
sumed great quantities Of imported spirits,
and that II this proposed tax Of 10 cents a
gallon was levied It would compel the Jer-
sey people to purchase the raw native
spirits from the Pennsylvania stills.
Whereupon arose sundTy representatives
OF the state OF Pennsylvania, demanding
that the tariff on spirits be placed at L
cents a gallon, or las high as can be
collected for the protection Of Quaker
stills. They submitted protectionist argu.
ments and supported their position by
presenting a petition from the Philadelphia
paper mills praying for a high tariff OF
paper to protect the American-made pro