Page:Memoir, correspondence, and miscellanies, from the papers of Thomas Jefferson - Volume 1.djvu/253

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Congress should regulate their commerce, it is proper that they should form treaties with all nations with whom we may possibly trade. You see that my primary object in the formation of trea ties, is to take the commerce of the States out of the hands of the States, and to place it under the superintendence of Congress, so far as the imperfect provisions of our constitution will admit, and until the States shall, by new compact, make them more perfect. I would say then to every nation on earth, by treaty, your people shall trade freely with us, and ours with you, paying no more than the most favored nation, in order to put an end to the right of in dividual States, acting by fits and starts, to interrupt our commerce or to embroil us with any nation. As to the terms of these trea ties, the question becomes more difficult. I will mention three different plans. 1. That no duties shall be laid by either party on the productions of the other. 2. That each may be permitted to equalise their duties to those laid by the other. 3. That each shall pay in the ports of the other, such duties only as die most favored nations pay.

1. Were the nations of Europe as free and unembarrassed of established systems as we are, I do verily believe they would con cur with us in the first plan. But it is impossible. These esta blishments are fixed upon them ; they are interwoven with the body of their laws and the organization of their government, and they make a great part of their revenue ; they cannot then get rid of them.

2. The plan of equal imposts presents difficulties insurmountable. For how are the equal imposts to be effected ? Is it by laying in the ports of A, an equal per cent, on the goods of B, with that which B has laid in his ports on the goods of A ? But how are we to find what is that per cent. ? For this is not the usual form of imposts. They generally pay by the ton, by the measure, by the weight, and not by the value. Besides, if A sends a million s worth of goods to B, and takes back but the half of that, and each pays the same per cent., it is evident that A pays the double of what he recovers in the same way from B : this would be our case with Spain. Shall we endeavor to effect equality, then, by saying A may levy so much on the sum of B s importations into his ports, as B does on the sum of A s importations into the ports of B ? But how find out that sum ? Will either party lay open their cus tom house books candidly to evince this sum ? Does either keep their books so exactly as to be able to do it ? This proposition was started in Congress when our instructions were formed, as you may remember, and the impossibility of executing it occasioned it to be disapproved. Besides, who should have a right of decid-