President Zachary Taylor, wanting a Pennsylvanian Whig for his cabinet, appointed William M. Meredith (1799-1873) Secretary of the Treasury. Meredith strongly opposed the free-trade legislation passed the year before under his predecessor, Robert J. Walker. He felt that there was a need to protect the American workman, who was subject to competition from poorly paid European labor. Meredith's principal contribution in office was his Annual Report of 1849 in which he set forth an elaborate argument for a protective tariff.
The increase in the public debt due to the recent war with Mexico (1846-1848) and the acquisition of California gave Meredith additional argument for raising revenue through higher import duties, but no action was taken on the tariff during Meredith's term. He also recommended a revision of the Coast Survey Code, which had not been changed since its implementation in 1806, because the Coast Survey had seen great expansion and improvement with the introduction of steam powered ships. Meredith resigned with the rest of the cabinet upon Taylor's death in 1850.
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