Editing Whiskey Rebellion (section)

== Western grievances ==
[[File:Whiskey Rebellion illustrations from Scribner's Popular History of the United States 01.jpg|thumb|"A Mountain Still" showing production of whiskey including bags of [[rye]] (''Scribner's Popular History of the United States'') ]]
The population of Western Pennsylvania was 75,000 in 1790.<ref>{{cite web | title = ExplorePAHistory.com&nbsp;– Stories from PA History | url = http://explorepahistory.com/story.php?storyId=1-9-16&chapter=3 | access-date = February 11, 2017  }}</ref> Among the farmers in the region, the whiskey excise was immediately controversial, with many people on the frontier arguing that it unfairly targeted westerners.{{sfn |Slaughter |1986 |p=97}} Whiskey was a popular drink, and farmers often supplemented their incomes by operating small [[still]]s.{{sfn |Hogeland |2006 |p=66}} Farmers living west of the [[Appalachian Mountains]] distilled their excess grain into whiskey, which was easier and more profitable to transport over the mountains than the more cumbersome grain. A whiskey tax would make western farmers less competitive with eastern grain producers.{{sfn |Hogeland |2006 |p=68}} Additionally, cash, which at this time consisted of [[Coin|specie]] (gold and silver coins), was always in short supply on the frontier, nevertheless the law explicitly stipulated the tax could only be paid in specie. In lieu of specie, whiskey often served as a [[medium of exchange]], which for poorer people who were paid in whiskey meant the excise was essentially an [[income tax]] that wealthier easterners did not have to pay.<ref>{{harvnb |Hogeland |2006 |p=67}}; {{harvnb |Holt |2004 |p=30}}</ref>
Many of the resisters were war veterans who believed that they were fighting for the principles of the [[American Revolution]], in particular against [[taxation without representation|taxation without local representation]], while the federal government maintained that the taxes were the legal expression of Congressional taxation powers.

Small-scale farmers also protested that Hamilton's excise effectively gave unfair tax breaks to large distillers, most of whom were based in the east. There were two methods of paying the whiskey excise: paying a flat fee (per still) or paying by the gallon. Large distilleries produced whiskey in volume and could afford the flat fee. The more efficient they became, the less tax per gallon they would pay (as low as 6&nbsp;cents, according to Hamilton). Western farmers who owned small stills did not typically have either enough time nor enough surplus grain to operate them year-round at full capacity, so they ended up paying a higher tax per gallon (9&nbsp;cents), which made them less competitive.<ref>{{harvnb |Slaughter |1986 |pp=147–49}}; {{harvnb |Hogeland |2006 |pp=68–70}}</ref> The [[regressive taxation|regressive]] nature of the tax was further compounded by an additional factor: whiskey sold for considerably less on the cash-poor Western frontier than in the wealthier and more populous East. This meant that, even if all distillers had been required to pay the same amount of tax per gallon, the small-scale frontier distillers would still have to remit a considerably larger proportion of their product's value than larger Eastern distillers. Less-educated farmers, who in this era were [[literacy in the United States|often illiterate]], also feared they would be cheated by corrupt [[tax collector]]s. Small-scale distillers believed that Hamilton deliberately designed the tax to ruin them and promote big business, a view endorsed by some historians.<ref>{{harvnb |Hogeland |2006 |pp=68–69}}; {{harvnb |Holt |2004 |p=30}}</ref> However, historian Thomas Slaughter argued that a "conspiracy of this sort is difficult to document".{{sfn |Slaughter |1986 |p=148}} Whether by design or not, large distillers recognized the advantage that the excise gave them and they supported it.<ref>{{harvnb |Slaughter |1986 |p=148}}; {{harvnb |Hogeland |2006 |p=69}}</ref>

Other aspects of the excise law also caused concern. The law required all stills to be registered, and those cited for failure to pay the tax had to appear in distant federal courts, rather than local courts. The only federal courthouse was in Philadelphia, some {{convert|300|mi}} away from the small frontier settlement of Pittsburgh. From the beginning, the federal government had little success in collecting the whiskey tax along the frontier. Many small western distillers simply refused to pay the tax. Federal revenue officers and local residents who assisted them bore the brunt of the protesters' ire. Tax rebels harassed several whiskey tax collectors and threatened or beat those who offered them office space or housing. As a result, many western counties never had a resident federal tax official.<ref name = Hoover />
[[File:This_engraving_is_a_rendering_by_Seth_Eastman_of_Lewis_Brantz's_original_watercolor_painting_of_Pittsburgh_from_1790.jpg|thumb|Pittsburgh in 1790, engraving from a watercolor by [[Lewis Brantz]] (University of Pittsburgh Archives & Special Collections)]]
In addition to the whiskey tax, westerners had a number of other grievances with the national government, chief among which was the perception that the government was not adequately protecting the residents living in the western frontier.<ref name = Hoover /> The [[Northwest Indian War]] was going badly for the United States, with major losses in 1791. Furthermore, westerners were prohibited by Spain (which then owned Louisiana) from using the Mississippi River for commercial navigation. Until these issues were addressed, westerners felt that the government was ignoring their security and economic welfare. Adding the whiskey excise to these existing grievances only increased tensions on the frontier.{{sfn |Slaughter |1986 |p=108}}