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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 --WEDNESDAY, APRIL 28, 1784.
Congress assembled: Present, eleven states as yesterday.
The committee, consisting of Mr. [Jacob] Read, Mr. [John] Montgomery and Mr. [Thomas] Stone, to whom it was referred to take order upon the report of a committee of the 23 day of April instant, on the motion of Mr. [Jacob] Read of the 16 day of March last, Report, That in virtue of the said order of the United States in Congress assembled, your committee took measures, and have caused Henry Carbery, late a captain in the Pensylvania line of Continental troops, in the said report mentioned, to be arrested and brought before the honorable Robert Goldsborough, one of the judges of the general court of the state of Maryland, for examination, and to be proceeded against according to law and justice. Your committee have caused to be laid before the said Judge, all such proofs and evidences of the nature and circumstances of the crime charged against the said Henry Carbery, as were on the files or in the possession of Congress. And your committee informed the said judge, that it was the sense of the United States in Congress assembled, that the said Henry Carbery, who is a fugitive from justice, ought to be tried according to the laws of Pensylvania, in which state the offence charged against
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him was committed, and to the laws of which State he is amenable. Your committee recommend that the executive of the state of Maryland, be requested to take proper measures for the delivery of the body of the said Henry Carbery, to the executive of the state of Pensylvania, or their order, that he may be dealt with according to law.
Resolved, That Congress agree to the said report.
Congress resumed the consideration of the report of the grand Committee, appointed to report the arrearages of interest, &c. and the paragraph respecting facilities as entered on the journal of the 5 of April, being amended as to the proportions therein expressed, so as to correspond with the report agreed to and passed yesterday.
A motion was made by Mr. [Jacob] Read, seconded by Mr. [Thomas] Stone, to refer the said paragraph as amended, to the Superintendant of finance to report; and on the question to agree to this, the yeas and nays being required by Mr. [Jacob] Read,
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So it passed in the negative.
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The paragraph being further amended, to read as follows:
It remained lastly to consider, whether no facilities might be given to the payment of these sums by the several states. The committee observed, that of the purposes for which money is wanting, about three-fourths can be answered by nothing but money itself; but that the other fourth, consisting of interest on our domestic debt, may be effected by procuring a discount of the demand in the hands of the holders; an operation which will be shorter, and less impoverishing to the state. And however in times of greater plenty, the accuracy of fiscal administration might require all transactions to be in actual money, at the treasury itself; yet till our constituents shall have had some respite from their late difficulties, it behoves us to prefer their easement. The committee are therefore of opinion, that the several legislatures may be admitted so to model the collection of the sums now called for, that the three-fourths of any sum being paid in actual money, the other fourth may be discharged by procuring discounts of interest with our domestic creditors; always taking care that the collection of money shall proceed at least in threefold proportion with the operations of discount. And to ascertain the evidences of discount which shall be receivable in lieu of money, the holders of loan office certificates shall be at liberty to carry them to the office from which they issued; and the holders of certificates of other liquidated debts of the United States, to carry the same to the loan office of that state wherein the debt was contracted, and to have the interest due thereon, settled and certified to the last day of the year 1782: for which interest, the loan officer shall give a certificate in such form and under such cautions and instructions, as the Superintendant of finance shall transmit to him; which certificates of interest being parted with by the holder of the principal, shall be deemed evidence that he has received satisfaction
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for the same, and therefore shall be receivable from the bearer, within the same state, and from the state when obtained from the bearer, in lieu of money in the proportion before stated; which payment in certificates by the State into the public treasury, in the proportion that each State avails itself of the facilities shall be considered as a discharge of so much of the interest due upon the domestic debt, so that the three-fourths or greater proportion, if any state should not avail itself of the facilities in the degree hereby admitted, paid in money, at the same time shall be applied, according to the above statement, giving preference to the discharge of the expences of internal government, and the interest due upon the foreign debt. And where loan office certificates, issued after the first day of March, 1778, shall be presented to the loan officer, they shall be reduced to their specie value, according to the resolutions of Congress of June 28, 1780, that specie value expressed on some part of the certificate, and the interest thereon settled and certified as in other cases.
Resolved, That Congress agree to the same.
The yeas and nays on the question having been required by Mr. [John] Beatty,
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So it was resolved in the affirmative.
On motion of Mr. [Edward] Hand, seconded by Mr. [James] McHenry,
Whereas by the ordinance for regulating the Post Office of the United States of America, passed the 18th day of October, 1782, it is ordained, that letters, packets and despatches to and from the Commander in chief of the armies of these United States, on public service, shall pass and be carried free of postage: And whereas there is reason to apprehend that the numerous letters and packets addressed to the late Commander in chief of the armies of these United States, in consequence of his late command, and on matters foreign to his private concerns, will subject him to an expence in postage, which it would be improper and unreasonable he should bear,
Resolved, That all letters and packets to and from the late Commander in chief of the armies of the United States, shall pass and be carried free of postage until the further orders of Congress: and that the postmaster general be, and he is hereby directed to refund to the said late Commander in chief, all the monies paid by him for the postage of letters or packets since the time of his resignation.1
[Note 1: 1 This motion in the writing of Edward Hand, is in the Papers of the Continental Congress, No. 36, II, folio 365.]
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