Show probably never since has ho america witnessed so colorful significant on an inauguration as that which made george washington president ills his journey northward from mt vernon had been a continuous continuo 0 ug ovation ills his route was virtually t strewn wl k flowers his short passage through every community was made the occa occasion gion for songs and speeches of affect on t tribute in new york ho he was welcomed with pageantry and acclaim such was his enthusiastic welcome soon ho he learned as has each of his successors that the criticisms and the headaches were to come so too did congress few it if any of its important measures passed without the s strife which wo we have grown accustomed to expect on capitol hill today even over the title with which the president should be addressed congressmen wrangled some with the forms of royalty royalty still in mind wanted to refer to him as ills his highness others as his mightiness senator ellsworth of connecticut protested for example that the plain title president was too common there were he ha explained pla ined it presidents of fire companies and nd of cricket clubs something more impressive was d desirable csIr able but the majority denounced denounce d titles as dangerous arrogant and even idolatrous and finally the simple constitutional form tho the president of the united states was adopted dispute over tariff probably tho the first and most lasting legislative antagonisms in congress were roused by the early carly tariff measures in offering them james madison proposed specific rates on certain articles such as too tea coffee sugar molasses wines and spirits an ad valorem valoree tax upon other imports and various tonnage duties but few liked the measures as a whole the manufacturing districts wonted wanted protection against rival products made with cheaper labor abroad the south and other agricultural areas objected to high rates protesting that they would bear the burden proposals to tax the importation of slaves aroused aro eded bitter debate between c north and south heated discussion occurred on the proposal to tax rum some of it not dissimilar to arguments heard during our recent prohibition period one member insisted that in effect it asked citizens to 4 drink down the public debt when an advocate urged the tax as a method of promoting temperance on an opponent pointed out that they were legislating on revenue not morals but finally the measure passed Inc including ludin g levies on rum soon it was yielding some a month a welcome and encouraging income equally bitter was much of the debate over the financial measures apropo proposed sed by hamilton to raise funds and to meet the total indebtedness incurred during the war the debts both state and national amounted in hi all to about then on an imposing figure however meager it may seem when compared to the billions of public indebtedness created during recent years the problem moreover was complicated by the fact that many of the certificates bonds and prom aises to t op pay issued by the earlier gover government ament had been sold by their original holders at discount to speculators briefly hamilton proposed first to fund the national debt by giving the holders of such paper new federal bonds in exchange and second to have the federal government assume the debts debt S of the states violently were such s suggestions opposed by members who felt the plan benefited the speculator at the expense of the patriot and by representatives of those states which had small debts and therefore feared discrimination against their constituents sound finances but the proposals carried firmly establishing confidence in the credit and fiscal soundness of the new nation then as now the true foundation of happiness and prosperity for the people passage of the national nation 1 I bank the mint and currency ac acts t further increased the availability of credit and money thus quick quickening en the young republics march toward prosperity over salary and appropriation appropriation measures there also raged spirited d discussion economical as those expenditures sound in those these days of reckless spending they then evoked frequent storms of criticism to the president was accorded an annual salary of which he accepted reluctantly to senators and representatives a compensation pensa tion of 6 for every day of attendance with mileage the secretaries of state and treasury received each the t post master general and the attorney general 1500 tho the chief justice john tay jay and the other supreme court justices appropriations for the deport departments civil list etc were similarly modest to this determination that the peoples money should not be waste that sound economy should rule historians attribute much of the fiscal success of tho the new government |