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A Century of Lawmaking for a New Nation: U.S. Congressional Documents and Debates, 1774-1875
Journals of the Continental Congress --MONDAY, APRIL 1, 1782
On a report of the Superintendant of finance, to whom was referred a motion of Mr. [Thomas] Bee, seconded by Mr. [Isaac] Motte,
Office Of Finance, March 28th, 1782.
Sir,
The Motion made by the honorable Thomas Bee, Esquire, in Congress, the 25th Instant, being referred to me, I have required a Copy, from the Register, of the Entry made in the Treasury Books; by which I find, that on the 13th September 1780, Major General Lincoln is charged for a Warrant (drawn that Day by the Commissioners of the Treasury, pursuant to an Order of Congress of the 12th Instant) for fifty thousand Dollars, in favor of the honorable Mr. Bee, "In Part of the Monies due him on Account of the Bills of Exchange in his Favor, drawn by Major General Lincoln, and accepted by the Board, in June 1780."
As Mr. Bee alledges that those accepted Bills were not his Property, and that he has given them up to the right Owners, who will claim the full Amount of the Bills, under the Acceptances; and as Congress were in the Practice, at that Time, of granting Money to the Delegates upon their own Applications, charging such Grants to the States they represented, I cannot see any Cause why this Sum may not be added to the ethers; provided the other Delegates of South Carolina agree to the Charge against their State, and accept Mr. Bee as being accountable thereto, for that Sum.
I have taken the Liberty to draft a Resolution, which with great deference is submitted:
Whereas the Sum of Fifty thousand continental Dollars was paid to The honorable Thomas Bee Esqr. by Michael Hillegas Esquire,
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upon a Warrant of the Commissioners of the Treasury of the United States dated the 13th Day of September 1780 and which on that Day was charged to the Honble Major General Lincoln as paid in Part of Bills which he had drawn in Favor of the said Mr. Bee and which had been accepted by the Treasury Board in June 1780, but which said Bills not being the Property of Mr. Bee have been by him delivered to the proper owners who will claim the full Sums expressed therein to the Payment of which they will be entitled. The said Thos. Bee Esqr. to remedy the Inconveniences arising upon this Transactions has moved and the other Delegates of South Carolina have agreed that the said Sum of fifty Thousand Dollars be charged as of that Date to the said State to which he the said Thos. Bee Esquire is to be solely accountable;
Resolved, That the register be, and hereby is, authorised and directed to charge the sum of fifty thousand continental dollars, paid to the Hon. Thomas Bee, in virtue of a warrant dated the 13 September, 1780, to the State of South Carolina, and credit the account of Major General Lincoln for the same.1
[Note 1: 1 The report of the Superintendant of finance, dated March 28, is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 137, I, folios 373 and 379. The motion, in the writing of Thomas Bee, on which the resolution was based, is in No. 137, I, folio 381.]
A letter, of 31 March, from Jonas Fay, Moses Robinson, Paul Spooner and Isaac Tichenor, was read, informing "that in consequence of the resolution of Congress, of the 20 of August last, the State of Vermont have invariably pursued every measure in order to comply with the said resolution, in a manner that was consistent with the obligations she was under to the people inhabiting the east and west unions, and maintaining the peace and harmony of her citizens with those inhabitants"; and enclosing several resolutions of the legislature of Vermont, announcing their compliance with the preliminary required in the said resolution of Congress, of the 20th of August last; together with a duplicate of a commission to them, under the great seal of the State, empowering them, in behalf of the State of Vermont, to subscribe the Articles of Confederation.2
[Note 2: 2 This letter is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 40, II, folio 273, the resolutions of the Vermont legislature are on folio 269, and the commission on folio 187.]
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A motion was made by Mr. [Abraham] Clark, seconded by Mr. [John Morin] Scott,
That the letter of Jonas Fay, &c. with the papers accompanying the same, together with the several papers on the files of Congress, relating to the same subject, and received since the 20th of August last, be referred to a committee.
And on the question for commitment, the yeas and nays being required by Mr. [John Morin] Scott,
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So it was resolved in the affirmative.
Congress took into consideration the report of the committee, consisting of Mr. [James] Madison, Mr. [Abraham] Clark, and Mr. [Ezekiel] Cornell, to whom was referred a letter of 23 of February last, from the president of New Hampshire, which is as follows:1
[Note 1: 1 From this point, the entries in the Journal are by George Bond.]
"That so much of the said letter as relates to five millions of dollars of the old emission, remaining in the treasury of
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New Hampshire, as a surplus of the quota allotted to that State for redemption, be referred to the Superintendant of finance to report:
"That in answer to the remaining part of the letter, which represents that the State of New Hampshire was overrated in the requisition made by Congress on the 2d of November last, and contains a return of its inhabitants, amounting to 82,200 only, the president of the said State be informed:
"That as a valuation of land throughout the United States, which the instrument of Confederation prescribes as the rule for apportioning the public burthens on the several states, was under present circumstances manifestly unattainable, Congress were obliged to resort to some other rule in fixing the quotas in the requisition of November last:
"That the number of inhabitants in each State, having been a rule observed in previous requisitions of money, naturally presented itself as the most eligible one:
"That as no actual numeration of the inhabitants of each State hath yet been obtained by Congress, the computed number which formed the basis of the first requisition made on the states the 29th of July, 1775, was adhered to:
"That although the particular numeration of the inhabitants of New Hampshire, as stated in the letter, should have been made with due accuracy, still a reduction of its quota in conformity thereto, might produce injustice to the other states; since the computation of July, 1775, may as far exceed their real number as it has been found to exceed that of New Hampshire:
"That if the justice of the application from New Hampshire were less uncertain, it would at this season be impossible to superadd to the quotas of the other states, any deduction from that of New Hampshire, and to make such deduction without superadding it to the quotas of the other states, would leave a deficiency in the revenue which has been found
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on calculation to be essential for the exigencies of the current year:
"That the other facts stated by him in his letter, however well founded they may be, are not peculiar to New Hampshire, and if admitted for the purpose to which they are applied, would authorise and produce similar demands from other states:
"That for these considerations, and more especially as the apportionment in question, if hereafter found to be erroneous, will be subject to correction, Congress cannot comply with the request made in behalf of New Hampshire, and confide in the justice and public spirit of the said State for those exertions which may be necessary to prevent deficiency in the public revenue."1
[Note 1: 1 This report, in the writing of James Madison, is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 20, I, folio 19. See post May 22.]
A motion was made by Mr. [Samuel] Livermore, seconded by Mr. [Samuel] Osgood, that the consideration of the report be postponed, in order to make way for the following resolution:2
[Note 2: 2 At this point, Charles Thomson resumes the entries in the Journal.]
"That 66,512 dollars be deducted from the sum set to the State of New Hampshire by the resolution of the 2d November last, as her quota of eight million dollars for the service of the year 1782, it appearing that New Hampshire is overrated that sum."3
[Note 3: 3 This motion, undated, in the writing of Samuel Livermore, is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 20, I, folio 23. A copy of the vote is on folio 21.]
On the question for postponing, the yeas and nays being required by Mr. [Samuel] Livermore,
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So it passed in the negative.1
[Note 1: 1 On this day, according to the indorsement, was read a letter of March 15, from the Governor of North Carolina, acknowledging receipt of certain letters. It is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 72, folio 135.
Also, a letter of March 30, from the Secretary at Wax. It is in No. 149, I, folio 205.]
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