THE FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION

ABRAHAM LINCOLN EDITION
VOLUME 13
THE CHRONICLES
OF AMERICA SERIES
ALLEN JOHNSON
EDITOR
GERHARD R. LOMER
CHARLES W. JEFFERYS
ASSISTANT EDITORS

JAMES MADISON
Painting by Gilbert Stuart. In the Bowdoiu College Art Col
lection, Brunswick, Maine. By courtesy of Gerald G. WUder,
Esq., Librarian, Bowdoin College. ,;jj'.

THE FATHERS
OF THE CONSTITUTION
A CHRONICLE OF THE
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE UNION
BY MAX FARRAND

NEW HAVEN: YALE UNIVERSITY PRESS
TORONTO: GLASGOW, BROOK & CO.
LONDON: HUMPHREY MILFORD
OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS
1921

Copyright, 1921, by Yale University Press
c-4-g)

CONTENTS
I. THE TREATY OF PEACE
II. TRADE AND INDUSTRY
III. THE CONFEDERATION
IV. THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE
V. DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN
VL THE FEDERAL CONVENTION
VIL FINISHING THE WORK
VIII. THE UNION ESTABLISHED
APPENDIXBIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
NOTES ON THE PORTRAITS OP THE
MEMBERS OP THE FEDERAL CON
VENTION
INDEX

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ILLUSTRATIONS
JAMES MADISON
Painting by Gilbert Stuart. In the Bowdoin
College Art Collection, Brunswick, Maine.
By courtesy of Gerald G. Wilder, Esq., Li
brarian, Bowdoin College. Frontispiece
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, 1787
Painting by Charles Willson Peale. In the
Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts,
Philadelphia. The bequest of Mrs. Joseph
Harrison. Charles Henry Hart says : "This
is the latest portrait of Franklin from life.
It was painted during the sittings of the con
vention to frame the Constitution of the
United States. The portrait seems to ex
press the individuality of the man more
satisfactorily than any other of Franklin's
portraits." Facing -page 10
JOHN JAY
Plaster cast from the marble bust by Cer-
rachi. In the collection of the New York
Historical Society. " " 20
BACK OF THE STATE HOUSE, PHILA
DELPHIA Engraving by W. Birch, 1799. Photograph
in the collection of Ph. B. Wallace, Phila
delphia. " " 108
ix

X ILLUSTRATIONS
FATHERS OP THE CONSTITUTION.
PLATE I
JOHN LANGDON
NICHOLAS GILMAN
NATHANIEL GORHAM '
RUFUS KING
From the Thomas A. Emmet Collection
in the New York Public Library. Facing page IU
FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION.
PLATE II
WILLIAM SAMUEL JOHNSON
ROGER SHERMAN
ALEXANDER HAMILTON
WILLIAM LIVINGSTON
From the Thomas A. Emmet Collection
in the New York PubUc Library. " " ISO
FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION.
PLATE III
WILLIAM PATERSON
JONATHAN DAYTON
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN
THOMAS MIFFLIN
Prom the Thomas A. Emmet Collection
in the New York Public Library. " " 1S6
FATHERS OP THE CONSTITUTION.
PLATE IV
JARED INGERSOLL
ROBERT MORRIS
JAMES WILSON
GEORGE CLYMER
From the Thomas A. Emmet Collection
iu the New York Public Library. " " jgg

ILLUSTRATIONS xi
FATHERS OP THE CONSTITUTION.
PLATE V
GOUVERNEUR MORRIS
GEORGE READ
GUNNING BEDFORD, JR.
JOHN DICKINSON I
From the Thomas A. Emmet Collection
in the New York Public Library. Facing page 138
FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION.
PLATE VI
RICHARD BASSETT
JAMES McHENRY
DANIEL CARROLL
DANIEL OF ST. THOMAS JENIFER
Prom the Thomas A. Emmet Collection
in the New York Public Library. " " m
FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION.
PLATE VII
GEORGE WASHINGTON
JOHN BLAIR
JAMES MADISON, JR.
WILLIAM BLOUNT
Prom the Thomas A. Emmet Collection
in the New York Public Library. " " 150
FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION.
PLATE VIII
RICHARD DOBBS SPAIGHT
HUGH WILLIAMSON
JOHN RUTLEDGE
CHARLES COTESWORTH PINCKNEY
From the Thomas A. Emmet Collection
in the New York Public Library. " " 16^

xii ILLUSTRATIONS
FATHERS OP THE CONSTITUTION.
PLATE IX
CHARLES PINCKNEY
PIERCE BUTLER
WILLIAM FEW
ABRAHAM BALDWIN
Frora the Thomas A. Emmet Collection
in the New York Public Library. Facing page 160
FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION.
PLATE X
WILLIAM JACKSON, SECRETARY OP
THE FEDERAL CONVENTION
DAVID BREARLEY (Signattjhb Only)
THOMAS FITZSIMONS (Signature Only)
JACOB BROOM (Signature Only)
From the Thomas A. Emmet Collection
in the New York Public Library. " " ISi

FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
CHAPTER I
THE TREATY OF PEACE
"The United States of America"! It was in the
Declaration of Independence that this name was
first and formally proclaimed to the world, and to
maintain its verity the war of the Revolution was
fought. Americans like to think that they were
then assuming " among the Powers of the Earth the
equal and independent Station to which the Laws
of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them"; and,
in view of their subsequent marvelous develop
ment, they are inclined to add that it must have
been before an expectant world.
In these days of prosperity and national great
ness it is hard to realize that the achievement of in
dependence did not place the United States on a
footing of equality with other countries and that.

2 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
in fact, the new state was more or less an unwel
come member of the world family. It is neverthe
less true that the latest comer into the family of na
tions did not for a long time command the respect
of the world. This lack of respect was partly due
to the character of the American population. Along
with the many estimable and excellent people who
had come to British North America inspired by the
best of motives, there had come others who were
not regarded favorably by the governing classes of
Europe. Discontent is frequently a healthful sign
and a forerunner of progress, but it makes one an
uncomfortable neighbor in a satisfied and conservar
tive community; and discontent was the underlj^
ing factor in the migration from the Old World to
the New. In any composite immigrant population
such as that of the United States there was bound
to be a large element of undesirables. Among
those who came "for conscience's sake" were the
best type of religious protestants, but there were
also religious cranks from many countries, of al
most every conceivable sect and of no sect at all-
Many of the newcomers were poor. It was com
mon, too, to regard colonies as inferior places o{
residence to which objectionable persons might be
encouraged to go and where the average of the

THE TREATY OF PEACE 3
population was lowered by the influx of convicts
and thousands of slaves.
"The great number of emigrants from Europe"
— wrote Thieriot, Saxon Commissioner of Com
merce to America, from Philadelphia in 1784 —
" has filled this place with worthless persons to such
a degree that scarcely a day passes without theft,
robbery, or even assassination."' It would per
haps be too much to say that the people of the
United States were looked upon by the rest of the
world as only half civilized, but certainly they were
regarded as of lower social standing and of inferior
quality, and many of them were known to be rough,
uncultured, and ignorant. Great Britain and Ger
many maintained American missionary societies,
not, as might perhaps be expected, for the benefit
of the Indian or negro, but for the poor, benighted
colonists themselves ; and Great Britain refused to
commission a minister to her former colonies for
nearly ten years after their independence had been
recognized. It is usually thought that the dregs of humilia
tion have been reached when the rights of foreigners
'are not considered safe in a particular country, so
} ll ' Quoted by W. E. Lingelbach, History Teacher' » Magazine,
^ March. 1913.

4 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
that another state insists upon establishing therein
its own tribunal for the trial of its citizens or sub
jects. Yet that is what the French insisted upon
in the United States, and they were supposed to be
especially friendly. They had had their own ex
perience in America. First the native Indian had
appealed to their imagination. Then, at an ap
propriate moment, they seemed to see in the Amer
icans a living embodiment of the philosophical the
ories of the time: they thought that they had at
last found "the natural man" of Rousseau and Vol
taire; they believed that they saw the social con
tract theory being worked out before their very
eyes. Nevertheless, in spite of this interest in
Americans, the French looked upon them as an in
ferior people over whom they would have liked to
exercise a sort of protectorate. To them the Amer
icans seemed to lack a proper knowledge of the
amenities of life. Commissioner Thieriot, describ
ing the administration of justice in the new re
public, noticed that: "A Frenchman, with the
prejudices of his country and accustomed to court
sessions in which the officers have imposing robes
and a uniform that makes it impossible to recog
nize them, smiles at seeing in the court room
men dressed in street clothes, simple, often quite

THE TREATY OF PEACE 5
common. He is astonished to see the public enter
and leave the court room freely, those who prefer
even keeping their hats on." Later he adds: "It
appears that the court of France wished to set up a
jurisdiction of its own on this continent for all mat
ters involving French subjects." France failed in
this; but at the very time that peace was under dis
cussion Congress authorized Franklin to negotiate
a consular convention, ratified a few years later, ac
cording to which the citizens of the United States
and the subjects of the French King in the country
of the other should be tried by their respective con
suls or vice-consuls. Though this agreement was
made reciprocal in its terms and so saved appear
ances for the honor of the new nation, nevertheless
in submitting it to Congress John Jay clearly
pointed out that it was reciprocal in name rather
than in substance, as there were few or no Ameri
cans in France but an increasing number of French
men in the United States.
Such was the status of the new republic in the
family of nations when the time approached for the
negotiation of a treaty of peace with the mother
country. The war really ended with the surrender of
Cornwallis at Yorktown in 1781 . Yet even then the
British were unwilling to concede the independence

6 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
of the revolted colonies. This refusal of recogni
tion was not merely a matter of pride; a division
and a consequent weakening of the empire was in
volved; to avoid this Great Britain seems to have
been willing to make any other concessions that
were necessary. The mother country sought to
avoid disruption at all costs. But the time had
passed when any such adjustment might have been
possible. The Americans now flatly refused to
treat of peace upon any footing except that of in
dependent equality. The British, being in no posi
tion to continue the struggle, were obliged to yield
and to declare in the first article of the treaty of
peace that "His Britannic Majesty acknowledges
the said United States . . . to be free, sovereign,
and independent states."
With France the relationship of the United
States was clear and friendly enough at the time.
The American War of Independence had been
brought to a successful issue with the aid of France.
In the treaty of alliance which had been signed in
1778 it had been agreed that neither France nor the
United States should, without the consent of the
other, make peace with Great Britain. More than
that, in 1781, partly out of gratitude but largely
as a result of clever manipulation of factions in

THE TREATY OF PEACE 7
Congress by the Fr ench Minister in Philadelphia, the
Chevalier de la Luzerne, the American peace com
missioners had been instructed "to make the most
candid and confidential communications upon all
subjects to the ministers of our generous ally, the
King of France; to undertake nothing in the nego
tiations for peace or truce without their knowledge
and concurrence; and ultimately to govern your
selves by their advice and opinion."' If France
had been actuated only by unselfish motives in sup
porting the colonies in their revolt against Great
Britain, these instructions might have been accept
able and even advisable. But such was not the
case. France was working not so much with philan
thropic purposes or for sentimental reasons as for
the restoration to her former position of supremacy
in Europe. Revenge upon England was only a
part of a larger plan of national aggrandizement.
The treaty with France in 1778 had declared
that war should be continued until the independ
ence of the United States had been established, and
it appeared as if that were the main purpose of the
alliance. For her own good reasons France had
dragged Spain into the struggle. Spain, of course,
fought to cripple Great Britain and not to help the
" Secret Journals of Congress, June 15, 1781.

8 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
United States. In return for this support France
was pledged to assist Spain in obtaining certain ad
ditions to her territory. In so far as these addi
tions related to North America, the interests of
Spain and those of the United States were far from
being identical; in fact, they were frequently in di
rect opposition. Spain was already in possession
of Louisiana and, by prompt action on her entry
into the. war in 1780, she had succeeded in getting
control of eastern Louisiana and of practically all
the Floridas except St. Augustine. To consolidate
these holdings and round out her American empire,
Spain would have liked to obtain the title to all the
land between the Alleghany Mountains and the
Mississippi. Failing this, however, she seemed to
prefer that the region northwest of the Ohio River
should belong to the British rather than to the
United States.
Under these circumstances it was fortunate for
the United States that the American Peace Com
missioners were broad-minded enough to appreciate
the situation and to act on their own responsibility..
Benjamin Franklin, although he was not the first to
be appointed, was generally considered to be the
chief of the Commission by reason of his age, ex
perience, and reputation. Over seventy -five years

THE TREATY OF PEACE 9
old, he was more universally known and admired
than probably any man of his time. This many-
sided American — printer, almanac maker, writer,
scientist, and philosopher — by the variety of his
abilities as well as by the charm of his manner
seemed to have found his real mission in the diplo
matic field, where he could serve his country and at
the same time, with credit to himself, preach his
own doctrines.
When Franklin was sent to Europe at the out
break of the Revolution, it was as if destiny hadin-
tended him for that particular task. His achieve
ments had already attracted attention; in his lur
cap and eccentric dress "he fulfilled admirably the
Parisian ideal of the forest philosopher"; and with
his facility in conversation, as well as by the attrac
tiveness of his personality, he won both young and
old. But, with his undoubted zeal for liberty and
his unquestioned love of country, Franklin never
departed from the Quaker principles he affected
and always tried to avoid a fight. In these ef
forts, owing to his shrewdness and his willingness
to compromise, he was generally successful.
John Adams, being then the American repre
sentative at The Hague, was the first Commis
sioner to be appointed. Indeed, when he was first

10 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
named, in 1779, he was to be sole commissioner to
negotiate peace; and it was the influential French
Minister to the United States who was responsible
for others being added to the commission. Adams
was a sturdy New Englander of British stock and
of a distinctly English type — medium height, a
stout figure, and a ruddy face. No one questioned
his honesty, his straightforwardness, or his lack of
tact. Being a man of strong mind, of wide reading
and even great learning, and having serene confi
dence in the purity of his motives as well as in the
soundness of his judgment, Adams was little in
clined to surrender his own views, and was ready
to carry out his ideas against every obstacle. By
nature as well as by training he seems to have been
incapable of understanding the French; he was sus
picious of them and he disapproved of Franklin's
popularity even as he did of his personality.
Five Commissioners in all were named, but
Thomas Jefferson and Henry Laurens did not take
part in the negotiations, so that the only other ac
tive member was John Jay, then thirty-seven years
old and already a man of prominence in his own
country. Of French Huguenot stock and type, he
was tall and slender, with somewhat of a schol
ar's stoop, and was usually dressed in black. His

BENJAMIN FRANKUN, 17.87
Fainting by Charles Willson Peale. In ^the Pennsylvania;
Academy of the Fine Arts, Philadelphia. The bequest of Mrs.
Joseph Harrison. Charles Henry Hart says: "This is the latest
portrait of Franklin from life. It was painted' tluring the sittings
of the convention t6 frame the Constitution of the United States.
The portrait seems to express the individuality of the man more
satisfactorily than any other of Franklin's portraits."

THE TREATY OF PEACE 11
manners were gentle and unassuming, but his face,
with its penetrating black eyes, its aquiline nose and
pointed chin, revealed a proud and sensitive dis
position. He had been sent to the court of Spain
in 1780, and there he had learned enough to arouse
his suspicions, if nothing more, of Spain's designs
as well as of the French intention to support them.
In the spring of 1782 Adams felt obliged to re
main at The Hague in order to complete the nego
tiations already successfully begun for a commer
cial treaty with the Netherlands. Franklin, thus
the only Commissioner on the ground in Paris, be
gan informal negotiations alone but sent an urgent
call to Jay in Spain, who was convinced of the
fruitlessness of his mission there and promptly re
sponded. Jay's experience in Spain and his knowl
edge of Spanish hopes had led him to believe that
the French were not especially concerned about
American interests but were in fact willing to sacri
fice them if necessary to placate Spain. He ac
cordingly insisted that the American Commis
sioners should disregard their instructions and,
without the knowledge of France, should deal di
rectly with Great Britain. In this contention he
was supported by Adams when he arrived, but it
was hard to persuade Franklin to accept this point

12 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
of view, for he was unwilling to beheve anything
so unworthy of his admiring and admired French.
Nevertheless, with his cautious shrewdness, he
finally yielded so far as to agree to see what might
come out of direct negotiations.
The rest was relatively easy. Of course there
were difficulties and such sharp differences of opin
ion that, even after long negotiation, some matters
had to be compromised. Some problems, too,
were found insoluble and were finally left without a
settlement. But such difficulties as did exist were
slight in comparison with the previous hopeless
ness of reconciling American and Spanish ambi
tions, especially when the latter were supported by
France. On the one hand, the Americans were the
proteges of the French and were expected to give
way before the claims of their patron's friends to an
extent which threatened to limit seriously their
growth and development. On the other hand,
they were the younger sons of England, uncivilized
by their wilderness life, ungrateful and rebellious,
but still to be treated by England as children of the
blood. In the all-important question of extent of
territory, where Spain and France would have
limited the United States to the east of the Alle
ghany Mountains, Great Britain was persuaded

THE TREATY OF PEACE 13
without great difficulty, having once conceded in
dependence to the United States, to yield the
boundaries which she herself had formerly claimed
— from the Atlantic Ocean on the east to the
Mississippi River on the west, and from Canada on
the north to the southern boundary of Georgia.
Unfortunately the northern line, through ignorance
and carelessness rather than through malice, was
left uncertain at various points and became the
subject of almost continuous controversy until the
last bit of it was settled in 1911.'
The fisheries of the North Atlantic, for which^
Newfoundland served as the chief entrep6t, had
been one of the great assets of North America from
the time of its discovery. They had been one of
the chief prizes at stake in the struggle between the
French and the British for the possession of the con
tinent, and they had been of so much value that a
British statute of 1775 which cut off the New Eng
land fisheries was regarded, even after the "intoler
able acts" of the previous year, as the height of
punishment for New England. Many Englishmen
would have been glad to see the Americans ex
cluded from these fisheries, but John Adams, when
' See Lord Bryce's Introduction (p. xxiv) to W. A. Dunning,
The British Empire and the United States (1914).

14 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
he arrived from The Hague, displayed an apprecia
tion of New England interests and the quality of
his temper as well by flatly refusing to agree to any
treaty which did not allow full fishing privileges.
The British accordingly yielded and the Americans
were granted fishing rights as "heretofore" en
joyed. The right of navigation of the Mississippi
River, it was declared in the treaty, should "forever
remain free and open" to both parties; but here
Great Britain was simply passing on to the United
States a formal right which she had received from
France and was retaining for herself a similar right
which might sometime prove of use, for as long as
Spain held both banks at the mouth of the Missis
sippi River, the right was of little practical value.
Two subjects involving the greatest difficulty of
arrangement were the compensation of the Loyal
ists and the settlement of commercial indebtedness.
The latter was really a question of the payment of
British creditors by American debtors, for there
was little on the other side of the balance sheet, and
it seems as if the frugal Franklin would have pre
ferred to make no concessions and would have al
lowed creditors to take their own chances of get
ting paid. But the matter appeared to Adams
in a different light — perhaps his New England

THE TREATY OF PEACE 15
conscience was aroused — and in this point of view
he was supported by Jay. It was therefore finally
agreed "that creditors on either side shall meet
with no lawful impediment to the recovery of the
full value in sterling money, of all bona fide debts
heretofore contracted." However just this pro
vision may have been, its incorporation in the
terms of the treaty was a mistake on the part of
the Commissioners, because the Government of the
United States had no power to give effect to such
an arrangement, so that the provision had no more
value than an emphatic expression of opinion. Ac
cordingly, when some of the States later disregarded
this part of the treaty, the British had an excuse for
refusing to carry out certain of their own obligations.
The historian of the Virginia Federal Conven
tion of 1788, H. B. Grigsby, relates an amusing
incident growing out of the controversy over the
payment of debts to creditors in England:
A Scotchman, John Warden, a prominent lawyer and
good classical scholar, but suspected rightly of Tory
leanings during the Revolution, learning of the large
minority against the repeal of laws in conflict with the
treaty of 1783 (i, e,, especially the laws as to the collec
tion of debts by foreigners) caustically remarked that
some of the members of the House had voted against
paying for the coats on their backs. The story goes

16 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
that he was summoned before the House in full session,
and was compelled to beg their pardon on his knees;
but as he rose, pretending to brush the dust from his
knees, he pointed to the House and said audibly, with
evident double meaning, "Upon my word, a dommed
dirty house it is indeed." The Journal of the House,
however, shows that the honor of the delegates was
satisfied by a written assurance from Mr. Warden that
he meant in no way to afiFront the dignity of the House
or to insult any of its members.
The other question, that of compensating the
Loyalists for the loss of their property, was not so
simple a matter, for the whole story of the Revolu
tion was involved. There is a tendency among
many scholars of the present day to regard the pol
icy of the British toward their North American
colonies as possibly unwise and blundering but as
being entirely in accordance with the legal and
constitutional rights of the mother country, and to
believe that the Americans, while they may have
been practically and therefore morally justffied
in asserting their independence, were still techni
cally and legally in the wrong. It is immaterial
whether or not that point of view is accepted, for
its mere recognition is sufficient to explain the
existence of a large number of Americans who were
steadfast in their support of the British side of the

THE TREATY OF PEACE 17
controversy. Indeed, it has been estimated that as
large a proportion as one-third of the population
remained loyal to the Crown. Numbers must re
main more or less uncertain, but probably the ma
jority of the people in the United States, whatever
their feelings may have been, tried to remain neu
tral or at least to appear so ; and it is undoubtedly
true that the Revolution was accomplished by an
aggressive minority and that perhaps as great a
number were actively loyal to Great Britain.
These Loyalists comprised at least two groups.
One of these was a wealthy, property-owning class,
representing the best social element in the colonies,
extremely conservative, believing in privilege and
fearing the rise of democracy. The other was com
posed of the royal office-holders, which included
some of the better families, but was more largely
made up of the lower class of political and social
hangers-on, who had been rewarded with these posi
tions for political debts incurred in England. The
opposition of both groups to the Revolution was
inevitable and easily to be understood, but it was
also natural that the Revolutionists should incline
to hold the Loyalists, without distinction, largely
responsible for British pre-Revolutionary policy,
asserting that they misinformed the Government

18 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
as to conditions and sentiment in America, partly
through stupidity and partly through selfish in
terest. It was therefore perfectly comprehensible
that the feeling should be bitter against them in the
United States, especially as they had given efficient
aid to the British during the war. In various
States they were subjected to personal violence at
the hands of indignant "patriots," many being
forced to flee from their homes, while their property
was destroyed or confiscated, and frequently these
acts were legalized by statute.
The historian of the Loyalists of Massachusetts,
James H. Stark, must not be expected to under
state the case, but when he is describing, especially
in New England, the reign of terror which was
established to suppress these people, he writes :
Loyalists were tarred and feathered and carried on
rails, gagged and bound for days at a time; stoned,
fastened in a room with a fire and the chimney stopped
on top; advertised as public enemies, so that they
would be cut off from all dealings with their neighbors;
they had bullets shot into their bedrooms, their horses
poisoned or mutilated; money or valuable plate ex
torted from them to save them from violence, and on
pretence of taking security for their good behavior;
their houses and ships burned; they were compelled to
pay the guards who watched them in their houses, and

THE TREATY OF PEACE 19
when carted about for the mob to stare at and abuse,
they were compelled to pay something at every town.
There is little doubt also that the confiscation of
property and the expulsion of the owners from the
community were helped on by people who were
debtors to the Loyalists and in this way saw a
chance of escaping from the payment of their
rightful obligations . The ' ' Act for confiscating the
estates of certain persons commonly called absen
tees " may have been a measure of self-defense for
the State but it was passed by the votes of those
who undoubtedly profited by its provisions.
Those who had stood loyally by the Crown must
in turn be looked out for by the British Govem
ment, especially when the claims of justice were re
inforced by the important consideration that many
of those with property and financial interests in
America were relatives of influential persons in
England. The immediate necessity during the war
had been partially met by assisting thousands to
go to Canada — where their descendants today
form an important element in the population and
are proud of being United Empire Loyalists —
while pensions and gifts were supplied to others.
Now that the war was over the British were deter
mined that Americans should make good to the

20 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
Loyalists for all that they had suffered, and His
Majesty's Commissioners were hopeful at least of
obtaining a proviso similar to the one relating to
the collection of debts. John Adams, however, ex
pressed the prevailing American idea when he said
that "paying debts and compensating Tories" were
two very different things, and Jay asserted that
there were certain of these refugees whom Ameri
cans never would forgive.
But this was the one thing needed to complete
the negotiations for peace, and the British argu
ments on the injustice and irregularity of the treat
ment accorded to the Loyalists were so strong that
the American Commissioners were finally driven to
the excuse that the Government of the Confedera
tion had no power over the individual States by
whom the necessary action must be taken. Final
ly, in a spirit of mutual concession at the end of
the negotiations, the Americans agreed that Con
gress should "recommend to the legislatures of the
respective states to provide for the restitution" of
properties which had been confiscated "belonging
to real British subjects," and "that persons of any
other description" might return to the United States
for a period of twelve months and be "unmolested
in their endeavours to obtain the restitution."

^; !, JOHN JAY
Plaster cast from the marble bust by Cerrachi. In. the
, collection of the New York Historical Society.

THE TREATY OF PEACE 21
With this show of yielding on the part of the
American Commissioners it was possible to con
clude the terms of peace, and the preliminary treaty
was drawn accordingly and agreed to on November
30, 1782. Franklin had been of such great service
during all the negotiations, smoothing down ruffled
feelings by his suavity and tact and presenting dif
ficult subjects in a way that made action possible,
that to him was accorded the unpleasant task of
communicating what had been accomplished to
Vergennes, the French Minister, and of requesting
at the same time "a fresh loan of twenty million
francs." Franklin, of course, presented his case
with much "delicacy and kindliness of manner"
and with a fair degree of success. "Vergennes
thought that the signing of the articles was prema
ture, but he made no inconvenient remonstrances,
and procured six millions of the twenty."' On
September 3, 1783, the definite treaty of peace was
signed and in due time it was ratified by the British
Parliament as well as by the American Congress.
The new state, duly accredited, thus took its place
in the family of nations; but it was a very humble
place that was first assigned to the United States
of America.
' Channing, History ofthe United States, vol. iii, p. 868.

CHAPTER II
TRADE AND INDUSTRY
Though the word revolution implies a violent break
with the past, there was nothing in the Revolution
that transformed the essential character or the char
acteristics of the American people. The Revolution
severed the ties which bound the colonies to Great
Britain; it created some new activities; some sol
diers were diverted from their former trades and oc
cupation; but, as the proportion of the population
engaged in the war was relatively small and the area
of country affected for any length of time was com
paratively slight, it is safe to say that in general the
mass of the people remained about the same after
the war as before. The professional man was found
in his same calling; the artisan retumed to his tools,
if he had ever laid them down; the shopkeeper re
sumed his business, if it had been interrupted; the
merchant went back to his trading; and the farmer
before the Revolution remained a farmer afterward.
22

TRADE AND INDUSTRY 23
The country as a whole was in relatively good
condition and the people were reasonably prosper
ous; at least, there was no general distress or pov
erty. Suffering had existed in the regions ravaged
by war, but no section had suffered unduly or had
had to bear the burden of war during the entire pe
riod of fighting. American products had been in
demand, especially in the West India Islands, and
an illicit trade with the enemy had sprung up, so
that even during the war shippers were able to dis
pose of their commodites at good prices. The
Americans are commonly said to have been an agri
cultural people, but it would be more correct to say
that the great majority of the people were depend
ent upon extractive industries, which would include
lumbering, fishing, and even the fur trade, as well
as the ordinary agricultural pursuits. Save for a
few industries, of which shipbuilding was one of the
most important, there was relatively little manu
facturing "apart from the household crafts. These
household industries had increased during the war,
but as it was with the individual so it was with the
whole country; the general course of industrial ac
tivity was much the same as it had been before
the war.
A fundamental fact is to be observed in the

24 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
economy of the young nation: the people were rais
ing far more tobacco and grain and were extracting
far more of other products than they could possibly
use themselves; for the surplus they must find mar
kets. They had, as well, to rely upon the outside
world for a great part of their manufactured goods,
especially for those of the higher grade. In other
words, from the economic point of view, the United
States remained in the former colonial stage of in
dustrial dependence, which was aggravated rather
than alleviated by the separation from Great Brit
ain. During the colonial period, Americans had
carried on a large amount of this external trade by
means of their own vessels. The British Naviga
tion Acts required the transportation of goods in
British vessels, manned by crews of British sailors,
and specified certain commodities which could be
shipped to Great Britain only. They also required
that much of the European trade should pass by
way of England. But colonial vessels and colonial
sailors came under the designation of "British,"
and no small part of the prosperity of New England,
and of the middle colonies as well, had been due to
the carrying trade. It would seem therefore as if a
primary need of the American people immediately
after the Revolution was to get access to their old

TRADE AND INDUSTRY 25
markets and to carry the goods as much as possible
in their own vessels.
In some directions they were successful. One of
the products in greatest demand was fish. The
fishing industry had been almost annihilated by
the war, but with the establishment of peace the
New England fisheries began to recover. They
were in competition with the fishermen of France
and England who were aided by large bounties, yet
the superior geographical advantages which the
American fishermen possessed enabled them to
maintain and expand their business, and the re
habilitation of the fishing fleet was an important
feature of their programme. In other directions
they were not so successful. The British still be
lieved in their colonial system and applied its prin
ciples without regard to the interests of the United
States. Such American products as they wanted
they allowed to be carried to British markets, but
in British vessels. Certain commodities, the pro
duction of which they wished to encourage within
their own dominions, they added to the prohibited
list. Americans cried out indignantly that this was
an attempt on the part of the British to punish
their former colonies for their temerity in revolting.
The British Government may well have derived

26 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
some satisfaction from the fact that certain restric
tions bore heavily upon New England, as John
Adams complained; but it would seem to be much
nearer the truth to say that in a truly characteris
tic way the British were phlegmatically attending
to their own interests and calmly ignoring the
United States, and that there was little malice in
their policy.
European nations had regarded American trade
as a profitable field of enterprise and as probably
responsible for much of Great Britain's prosperity.
It was therefore a relatively easy matter for the
United States to enter into commercial treaties
with foreign countries. These treaties, however,
were not fruitful of any great result; for, "with un
important exceptions, they left still in force the
high import duties and prohibitions that marked
the European tariffs of the time, as well as many
features of the old colonial system. They were de
signed to legalize commerce rather than to encour
age it." ' Still, for a year or more after the war the
demand for American products was great enough
to satisfy almost everybody. But in 1784 France
and Spain closed their colonial ports and thus ex
cluded the shipping of the United States. This
' Clive Day, Encyclopedia of American Oovernment, vol. i, p. 340.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY 27
proved to be so disastrous for their colonies that
the French Government soon was forced to relax
its restrictions. The British also made some con
cessions, and where their orders were not modified
they were evaded. And so, in the course of a few
years, the West India trade recovered.
More astonishing to the men of that time than
it is to us was the fact that American foreign
trade fell under British commercial control again.
Whether it was that British merchants were ac
customed to American ways of doing things and
knew American business conditions ; whether other
countries found the commerce not as profitable as
they had expected, as certainly was the case with
France ; whether "American merchants and sea cap
tains found themselves under disadvantages due
to the absence of treaty protection which they had
enjoyed as English subjects";' or whether it was
the necessity of trading on British capital — what
ever the cause may have been — within a com
paratively few years a large part of American trade
was in British hands as it had been before the
Revolution. American trade with Europe was car
ried on through English merchants very much as
the Navigation Acts had prescribed.
' C. B. Fist, American Diplomacy, pp. 56-57.

28 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
From the very first settlement of the Ameri
can continent the colonists had exhibited one of
the earliest and most lasting characteristics of the
American people — adaptability. The Americans
now proceeded to manifest that trait anew, not
only by adjusting themselves to renewed com
mercial dependence upon Great Britain, but by
seeking new avenues of trade. A striking illus
tration of this is to be found in the development of
trade with the Far East. Captain Cook's voyage
around the world (1768-1771), an account of which
was first published in London in 1773, attracted a
great deal of attention in America; an edition of the
New Voyage was issued in New York in 1774. No
sooner was the Revolution over than there began
that romantic trade with China and the northwest
coast of America, which made the fortunes of some
families of Salem and Boston and Philadelphia.
This commerce added to the prosperity of the
country, but above all it stimulated the imagi
nation of Americans. In the same way another
outlet was found in trade with Russia by way of
the Baltic.
The foreign trade of the United States after the
Revolution thus passed through certain well-
marked phases. First there was a short period of

TRADE AND INDUSTRY 29
prosperity, owing to an unusual demand for Amer
ican products; this was followed by a longer period
of depression; and then came a gradual recovery
through acceptance of the new conditions and
adjustment to them.
A similar cycle may be traced in the domestic or
internal trade. In early days intercolonial com
merce had been carried on mostly by water, and
when war interfered commerce almost ceased for
want of roads. The loss of ocean highways, how
ever, stimulated road building and led to what
might be regarded as the first " good-roads move
ment " of the new nation, except that to our eyes it
would be a misuse of the word to call any of those
roads good. But anything which would improve
the means of transportation took on a patriotic
tinge, and the building of roads and the cutting of
canals were agitated until turnpike and canal com
panies became a favorite form of investment; and
in a few years the interstate land trade had grown
to considerable importance. But in the meantime,
water transportation was the main reliance, and
with the end of the war the coastwise trade had
been promptly resumed. For a time it prospered;
but the States, affected by the general economic
conditions and by jealousy, tried to interfere with

30 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
and divert the trade of others to their own advan
tage. This was done by imposing fees and charges
and duties, not merely upon goods and vessels
from abroad but upon those of their fellow States.
James Madison described the situation in the
words so often quoted : " Some of the States, . . .
having no convenient ports for foreign commerce,
were subject to be taxed by their neighbors, thro
whose ports, their commerce was carryed on. New
Jersey, placed between Phila. & N. York, was lik
ened to a Cask tapped at both ends : and N. Caro
lina between Virga. & S. Carolina to a patient
bleeding at both Arms." '
The business depression which very naturally
followed the short revival of trade was so serious
in its financial consequences that it has even been
referred to as the "Panic of 1785." The United
States afforded a good market for imported articles
in 1783 and 1784, all the better because of the sup
ply of gold and silver which had been sent into the
country by England and France to maintain their
armies and fleets and which had remained in the
United States. But this influx of imported goods
was one of the chief factors in causing the de
pression of 1785, as it brought ruin to many of
' Records of the Federal Convention, vol. iii, p. 642.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY 31
those domestic industries which had sprung up
in the days of non-intercourse or which had been
stimulated by the artificial protection of the war.
To make matters worse, the currency was in a
confused condition. "In 1784 the entire coin of
the land, except coppers, was the product of for
eign mints. English guineas, crowns, shillings and
pence were still paid over the counters of shops and
taverns, and with them were mingled many French
and Spanish and some German coins. . . . The
value of the gold pieces expressed in dollars was
pretty much the same the country over. But the
dollar and the silver pieces regarded as fractions of
a dollar had no less than five different values."'
The importation of foreign goods was fast draining
the hard money out of the country. In an effort
to relieve the situation but with the result of mak
ing it much worse, several of the States began to
issue paper money; and this was in addition to
the enormous quantities of paper which had been
printed during the Revolution and which was now
worth but a small fraction of its face value.
The expanding currency and consequent depre
ciation in the value of money had immediately
' McMaster, History of the People of the United States, vol. i,
pp. 190-191.

32 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
resulted in a corresponding rise of prices, which for
a while the States attempted to control. But in
1778 Congress threw up its hands in despair and
voted that " all limitations of prices of gold and sil
ver be taken off," although the States for some
time longer continued to endeavor to regulate
prices by legislation. ' The fluctuating value of the
currency increased the opportunities for specula
tion which war conditions invariably offer, and
"immense fortunes were suddenly accumulated."
A new financial group rose into prominence com
posed largely of those who were not accustomed
to the use of money and who were consequently
inclined to spend it recklessly and extravagantly.
Many contemporaries comment upon these
things, of whom Brissot de Warville may be taken
as an example, although he did not visit the United
States until 1788:
The inhabitants . . . prefer the splendor of wealth
and the show of enjoyment to the simplicity of man
ners and the pure pleasures which result from it. If
there is a town on the American continent where the
English luxury displays its follies, it is New York.
You will find here the English fashions: in the dress of
the women you will see the most brilliant silks, gauzes,
' W. E. H. Lecky, The American Revolution, New York, 1898,
pp. 288-294.

TRADE AND INDUSTRY 33
hats, and borrowed hair; equipages are rare, but they
are elegant; the men have more simplicity in their
dress; they disdain gewgaws, but they take their re
venge in the luxury of the table; luxury forms already
a class of men very dangerous to society; I mean bache
lors; the expense of women causes matrimony to be
dreaded by men. Tea forms, as in England, the basis
of parties of pleasure; many things are dearer here than
in France; a hairdresser asks twenty shilling a month;
washing costs four shillings a dozen.'
An American writer of a later date, looking back
upon his earlier years, was impressed by this same
extravagance, and his testimony may well be used
to strengthen the impression which it is the purpose
of the present narrative to convey :
The French and British armies circulated immense sums
of money in gold and silver coin, which had the effect
of driving out of circulation the wretched paper cur
rency which had till then prevailed. Immense quan
tities of British and French goods were soon imported:
our people imbibed a taste for foreign fashions and lux
ury; and in the course of two or three years, from the
close of the war, such an entire change had taken place
in the habits and manners of our inhabitants, that it
almost appeared as if we had suddenly become a differ
ent nation. The staid and sober habits of our ances
tors, with their plain home-manufactured clothing,
' Quoted by Henry Tuckerman, America and her Commentators,
1864.

34 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
were suddenly laid aside, and European goods of fine
quahty adopted in their stead. Fine ruffles, powdered
heads, silks and scarlets, decorated the men; while the
most costly silks, satins, chintzes, calicoes, muslins,
etc., etc., decorated our females. Nor was their diet
less expensive; for superb plate, foreign spirits, wines,
etc., etc., sparkled on the sideboards of many farmers.
The natural result of this change of the habits and cus
toms of the people — this aping of European manners
and morals, — was to suddenly drain our country of its
circulating specie; and as a necessary consequence, the
people ran in debt, times became difficult, and money
hard to raise.'
The situation was serious, and yet it was not as
dangerous or even as critical as it has generally
been represented, because the fundamental bases
of American prosperity were untouched. The way
by which Americans could meet the emergency and
recover from the hard times was fairly evident —
first to economize, and then to find new outlets
for their industrial energies. But the process of
adjustment was slow and painful. There were not
a few persons in the United States who were even
disposed to regret that Americans were not safely
under British protection and prospering with Great
Britain, instead of suffering in political isolation.
' Samuel Kercheval, History ofthe 'Valley of 'Virginia, 1833, pp.
199-200.

CHAPTER III

THE CONFEDERATION

When peace came in 1783 there were in the United
States approximately three million people, who
were spread over the whole Atlantic coast from
Maine to Georgia and back into the interior as far
as the Alleghany Mountains ; and a relatively small
number of settlers had crossed the mountain bar
rier. About twenty per cent of the population, or
some six hundred thousand, were negro slaves.
There was also a large alien element of foreign
birth or descent, poor when they arrived in Amer
ica, and, although they had been able to raise
themselves to a position of comparative comfort,
life among them was still crude and rough. Many
of the people were poorly educated and lacking in
cultivation and refinement and in a knowledge of
the usages of good society. Not only were they
looked down upon by other nations of the world;
there was within the United States itself a relatively
35

36 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
small upper class inchned to regard the mass of the
people as of an inferior order.
Thus, while forces were at work favorable to
democracy, the gentry remained in control of af
fairs after the Revolution, although their numbers
were reduced by the emigration of the Loyalists
and their power was lessened. The explanation of
this aristocratic control may be found in the fact
that the generation of the Revolution had been ac
customed to monarchy and to an upper class and
that the people were wont to take their ideas and
to accept suggestions from their betters without
question or murmur. This deferential attitude is
attested by the indifference of citizens to the right
of voting. In our own day, before the great exten
sion of woman suffrage, the number of persons vot
ing approximated twenty per cent of the popula
tion, but after the Revolution less than five per
cent of the white population voted. There were
many limitations upon the exercise of the suffrage,
but the small number of voters was only partially
due to these restrictions, for in later years, without
any radical change in suffrage qualifications, the
proportion of citizens who voted steadily increased.
The fact is that many of the people did not care
to vote. Why should they, when they were only

THE CONFEDERATION 37
registering the will or the wishes of their superiors?
But among the relatively small number who con
stituted the governing class there was a high stand
ard of intelligence. Popular magazines were un
heard of and newspapers were infrequent, so that
men depended largely upon correspondence and
personal intercourse for the interchange of ideas.
There was time, however, for careful reading of the
few available books; there was time for thought, for
writing, for discussion, and for social intercourse.
It hardly seems too much to say , therefore, that there
was seldom, if ever, a people — certainly never a
people scattered over so wide a territory — who knew
so much about government as did this controlling
element of the people of the United States.
The practical character, as well as the political
genius, of the Americans was never shown to better
advantage than at the outbreak of the Revolution,
when the quarrel with the mother country was
manifesting itself in the confiict between the Gov
ernors, and other appointed agents of the Crown,
and the popularly elected houses of the colonial leg
islatures. When the Crown resorted to dissolving
the legislatures, the revolting colonists kept up and
observed the forms of government. When the leg
islature was prevented from meeting, the members

38 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
would come together and call themselves a congress
or a convention, and, instead of adopting laws or
orders, would issue what were really nothing more
than recommendations, but which they expected
would be obeyed by their supporters. To enforce
these recommendations extra-legal committees,
generally backed by public opinion and sometimes
concretely supported by an organized "mob,"
would meet in towns and counties and would be
often effectively centralized where the opponents
of the British policy were in control.
In several of the colonies the want of orderly
government became so serious that, in 1775, the
Continental Congress advised them to form tem
porary governments until the trouble with Great
Britain had been settled. When independence
was declared Congress recommended to all the
States that they should adopt governments of their
own. In accordance with that recommendation,
in the course of a very few years each State estab
lished an independent government and adopted a
written constitution. It was a time when men be
lieved in the social contract or the "compact theory
of the state," that states originated through agree
ment, as the case might be, between king and no
bles, between king and people, or among the people

THE CONFEDERATION 39
themselves. In support of this doctrine no less an
authority than the Bible was often quoted, such a
passage for example as II Samuel v, 3 : "So all the
elders of Israel came to the King to Hebron; and
King David made a covenant with them in Hebron
before the Lord; and they anointed David King
over Israel . " As a philosophical speculation to ex
plain why people were governed or consented to be
governed, this theory went back at least to the
Greeks, and doubtless much earlier; and, though of
some significance in medieval thought, it became of
greater importance in British political philosophy,
especially through the works of Thomas Hobbes and
John Locke. A very practical application of the
compact theory was made in the English Revolu
tion of 1688, when in order to avoid the embarrass
ment of deposing the king, the convention of the
Parliament adopted the resolution: "That King
James the Second, having endeavored to subvert
the Constitution of the Kingdom, by breaking the
original Contract between King and People, and
having, by the advice of Jesuits, and other wicked
persons, violated the fundamental Laws, and with
drawn himself out of this Kingdom, has abdicated
the Government, and that the throne is hereby va
cant." These theories were developed by Jean

40 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
Jacques Rousseau in his Contrat Social — a book
so attractively written that it eclipsed all other
works upon the subject and resulted in his being
regarded as the author of the doctrine — and
through him they spread all over Europe.
Conditions in America did more than lend color
to pale speculation; they seemed to take this hy
pothesis out of the realm of theory and to give it
practical application. What happened when men
went into the wilderness to live.'' The Pilgrim
Fathers on board the Mayflower entered into
an agreement which was signed by the heads
of families who took part in the enterprise:
"We, whose names are underwritten . . . Do
by these presents, solemnly and mutually, in the
Presence of God and one another, covenant and
combine ourselves together into a civil Body
Politick." Other colonies, especially in New England, with
this example before them of a social contract en
tered into similar compacts or "plantation cove
nants," as they were called. But the colonists were
also accustomed to having written charters granted
which continued for a time at least to mark the ex
tent of governmental powers. Through this inter
mingling of theory and practice it was the most

THE CONFEDERATION 41
natural thing in the world, when Americans came
to form their new State Governments, that they
should provide written instruments framed by their
own representatives, which not only bound them
to be governed in this way but also placed limita
tions upon the governing bodies. As the first
great series of written constitutions, these frames
of government attracted Wide attention. Con
gress printed a set for general distribution, and
numerous editions were circulated both at home
and abroad.
The constitutions were brief documents, varying
from one thousand to twelve thousand words in
length, which established the framework of the
governmental machinery. Most of them, before
proceeding to practical working details, enunciated
a series of general principles upon the subject of
government and political morality in what were
called declarations or bills of rights. The charac
ter of these declarations may be gathered from the
following excerpts :
That all men are by nature equally free and inde
pendent, and have certain inherent rights, . . . the
enjoyment of life and liberty, with the means of ac
quiring and possessing property, and pursuing and
obtaining happiness and safety.

42 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
That no man, or set of men, are entitled to exclu
sive or separate emoluments or privileges from the
community, but in consideration of public services.
The body politic is formed by a voluntary association
of individuals; it is a social compact by which the
whole people covenants with each citizen and each citi
zen with the whole people that all shall be governed by
certain laws for the common good.
That all power of suspending laws, or the execution of
laws, by any authority, without consent of the repre
sentatives of the people, is injurious to their rights,
and ought not to be exercised.
That general warrants, . . . are grievous and op
pressive, and ought not to be granted.
All penalties ought to be proportioned to the nature of
the offence.
That sanguinary laws ought to be avoided, as far as is
consistent with the safety of the State; and no law, to
inflict cruel and unusual pains and penalties, ought to
be made in any case, or at any time hereafter.
No magistrate or court of law shall demand excessive
bail or sureties, impose excessive fines . . .
Every individual has a natural and unalienable right
to worship God according to the dictates of his own
conscience, and reason; . . .

THE CONFEDERATION 43
That the freedom of the press is one of the great bul
warks of liberty, and can never be restrained but by
despotic governments.
It will be perceived at once that these are but
variations of the English Declaration of Rights of
1689, which indeed was consciously followed as a
model; and yet there is a world-wide difference be
tween the English model and these American cop
ies. The earlier document enunciated the rights of
English subjects, the recent infringement of which
made it desirable that they should be reasserted
in convincing form. The American documents as
serted rights which the colonists generally had en
joyed and which they declared to be "governing
principles for all peoples in all future times."
But the greater significance of these State Con
stitutions is to be found in their quality as working
instruments of government. There was indeed
little difference between the old colonial and the
new State Governments. The inhabitants of each
of the Thirteen States had been accustomed to a
large measure of self-government, and when they
took matters into their own hands they were not
disposed to make any radical changes in the forms
to which they had become accustomed. Accord
ingly the State Governments that were adopted

44 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
simply continued a framework of government al
most identical with that of colonial times. To be
sure, the Governor and other appointed officials
were now elected either by the people or the legis
lature, and so were ultimately responsible to the
electors instead of to the Crown; and other changes
were made which in the long run might prove of
far-reaching and even of vital significance; and yet
the machinery of government seemed the same as
that to which the people were already accustomed.
The average man was conscious of no difference at
all in the working of the Government under the
new order. In fact, in Connecticut and Rhode Is
land, the most democratic of all the colonies, where
the people had been privileged to elect their own
governors, as well as legislatures, no change what
ever was necessary and the old charters were con
tinued as State Constitutions down to 1818 and
1842, respectively.
To one who has been accustomed to believe that
the separation from a monarchical government
meant the establishment of democracy, a reading
of these first State Constitutions is likely to cause
a rude shock. A shrewd English observer, travel
ing a generation later in the United States, went
to the root of the whole matter in remarking of

THE CONFEDERATION 45
the Americans that, "When their independence
was achieved their mental condition was not in
stantly changed. Their deference for rank and for
judicial and legislative authority continued nearly
unimpaired."' They might declare that "all men
are created equal," and bills of rights might assert
that government rested upon the consent of the
governed; but these constitutions carefully pro
vided that such consent should come from property
owners, and, in many of the States, from religious
believers and even followers of the Christian faith.
"The man of small means might vote, but none
save well-to-do Christians could legislate, and in
many states none but a rich Christian could be a
governor."^ In South Carolina, for example, a
freehold of £10,000 currency was required of the
Governor, Lieutenant Governor, and members of
the Council; £2,000 of the members of the Senate;
and, while every elector was eligible to the House
of Representatives, he had to acknowledge the be
ing of a God and to believe in a future state of
rewards and punishments, as well as to hold "a
freehold at least of fifty acres of land, or a town lot."
' George Combe, Tour of the United States, vol. i, p. 205.
"McMaster, Acquisition of Industrial, Popular, and Political
Rights of Man in America, p. 20.

46 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
It was government by a property-owning class,
but in comparison with other countries this class
represented a fairly large and increasing proportion
of the population. In America the opportunity of
becoming a property-owner was open to every one,
or, as that phrase would then have been understood,
to most white men. This system of class control is
illustrated by the fact that, with the exception of
Massachusetts, the new State Constitutions were
never submitted to the people for approval.
The democratic sympathizer of today is inclined
to point to those first State Governments as a con
tinuance of the old order. But to the conservative
of that time it seemed as if radical and revolution
ary changes were taking place. The bills of rights
declared, "That no men, or set of men, are entitled
to exclusive or separate emoluments or privileges
from the community, but in consideration of public
services." Property qualifications and other re
strictions on office-holding and the exercise of the
suffrage were lessened. Four States declared in
their constitutions against the entailment of es
tates, and primogeniture was abolished in aris
tocratic Virginia. There was a fairly complete
abolition of all vestiges of feudal tenure in the
holding of land, so that it may be said that in this

THE CONFEDERATION 47
period full ownership of property was estabhshed.
The further separation of church and state was also
carried out.
Certainly leveling influences were at work, and
the people as a whole had moved one step farther
in the direction of equality and democracy, and it
was well that the Revolution was not any more rad
ical and revolutionary than it was. The change
was gradual and therefore more lasting. One finds
readily enough contemporary statements to the
effect that, "Although there are no nobles in Amer
ica, there is a class of men denominated 'gentle
men,' who, by reason of their wealth, their talents,
their education, their families, or the offices they
hold, aspire to a preeminence," but, the same ob
server adds, this is something which "the people re
fuse to grant them." Another contemporary con
tributes the observation that there was not so much
respect paid to gentlemen of rank as there should
be, and that the lower orders of people behave as
if they were on a footing of equality with them.
Whether the State Constitutions are to be re
garded as property-conserving, aristocratic instru
ments, or as progressive documents, depends upon
the point of view. And so it is with the spirit of
union or of nationality in the United States. One

48 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
student emphasizes the fact of there being "thir
teen independent repubhcs differing . . . widely
in climate, in soil, in occupation, in everything
which makes up the social and economic life of the
people"; while another sees "the United States a
nation." There is something to be said for both
sides, and doubtless the truth lies between them,
for there were forces making for disintegration as
well as for unification. To the student of the pres
ent day, however, the latter seem to have been the
stronger and more important, although the possi
bility was never absent that the thirteen States
would go their separate ways.
There are few things so potent as a common dan
ger to bring discordant elements into working har
mony. Several times in the century and a half of
their existence, when the colonies found themselves
threatened by their enemies, they had united, or at
least made an effort to unite, for mutual help. The
New England Confederation of 1643 was organ
ized primarily for protection against the Indians
and incidentally against the Dutch and French.
Whenever trouble threatened with any of the Euro
pean powers or with the Indians — and that was
frequently — a plan would be broached for getting
the colonies to combine their efforts, sometimes

THE CONFEDERATION 49
for the immediate necessity and sometimes for a
broader purpose. The best known of these plans
was that presented to the Albany Congress of 1754,
which had been called to make effective prepara
tion for the inevitable struggle with the French and
Indians. The beginning of the troubles which cul
minated in the final breach with Great Britain had
quickly brought united action in the form of the
Stamp Act Congress of 1765, in the Committees
of Correspondence, and then in the Continental
Congress. It was not merely that the leaven of the Revolu
tion was already working to bring about the freer
interchange of ideas; instinct and experience led the
colonies to united action. The very day that the
Continental Congress appointed a committee to
frame a declaration of independence, another com
mittee was ordered to prepare articles of union.
A month later, as soon as the Declaration of In
dependence had been adopted, this second com
mittee, of which John Dickinson of Pennsylvania
was chairman, presented to Congress a report in
the form of Articles of Confederation. Although
the outbreak of fighting made kome sort of united
action imperative, this plan of union was subjected
to debate mtermittently for over sixteen months

50 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
and even after being adopted by Congress, toward
the end of 1777, it was not ratified by the States
until March, 1781, when the war was already draw
ing to a close. The exigencies of the hour forced
Congress, without any authorization, to act as if it
had been duly empowered and in general to proceed
as if the Confederation had been formed.
Benjamin Franklin was an enthusiast for union.
It was he who had submitted the plan of union to
the Albany Congress in 1754, which with modifica
tions was recommended by that congress for adop
tion. It provided for a Grand Council of represent
atives chosen by the legislature of each colony, the
members to be proportioned to the contribution of
that colony to the American military service. In
matters concerning the colonies as a whole, espe
cially in Indian affairs, the Grand Council was to be
given extensive powers of legislation and taxation.
The executive was to be a President or Governor-
General, appointed and paid by the Crown, with
the right of nominating all military officers, and
with a veto upon all acts of the Grand Council.
The project was far in advance of the times and
ultimately failed of acceptance, but in 1775, with
the beginning of the troubles with Great Britain,
Franklin took his Albany plan and, after modifying

THE CONFEDERATION 51
it in accordance with the experience of twenty
years, submitted it to the Continental Congress as
a new plan of government under which the colonies
might unite.
Franklin's plan of 1775 seems to have attracted
little attention in America, and possibly it was not
generally known ; but much was made of it abroad,
where it soon became public, probably in the same
way that other Franklin papers came out. It
seems to have been his practice to make, with his
own hand, several copies of such a document, which
he would send to his friends with the statement
that as the document in question was confidential
they might not otherwise see a copy of it. Of
course the inevitable happened, and such docu
ments found their way into print to the apparent
surprise and dismay of the author. Incidentally
this practice caused confusion in later years, be
cause each possessor of such a document would
claim that he had the original. Whatever may
have been the procedure in this particular case, it
is fairly evident that Dickinson's committee took
Franklin's plan of 1775 as the starting point of
its work, and after revision submitted it to Con
gress as their report; for some of the most impor
tant features of the Articles of Confederation

52 FATHERS OP THE CONSTITUTION
are to be found, sometimes word for word, in
Franklin's draft.
This explanation of the origin of the Articles of
Confederation is helpful and perhaps essential in
understanding the form of government established,
because that government in its main features had
been devised for an entirely different condition
of affairs, when a strong, centralized government
would not have been accepted even if it had been
wanted. It provided for a "league of friendship,"
with the primary purpose of considering prepara
tion for action rather than of taking the initiative.
Furthermore, the final stages of drafting the Ar
ticles of Confederation had occurred at the out
break of the war, when the people of the various
States were showing a disposition to follow readily
suggestions that came from those whom they could
trust and when they seemed to be willing to sub
mit without compulsion to orders from the same
source. These circumstances, quite as much as
the inexperience of Congress and the jealousy of the
States, account for the inefficient form of govern
ment which was devised; and inefficient the Con
federation certainly was. The only organ of gov
ernment was a Congress in which every State
was entitled to one vote and was represented by a

THE CONFEDERATION 53
delegation whose members were appointed annually
as the legislature of the State might direct, whose
expenses were paid by the State, and who were sub
ject to recall. In other words, it was a council of
States whose representatives had little incentive to
independence of action.
Extensive powers were granted to this Congress
"of determining on peace and war, ... of en
tering into treaties and alliances," of maintaining
an army and a navy, of establishing post offices, of
coining money, and of making requisitions upon
the States for their respective share of expenses
"incurred for the common defence or general wel
fare." But none of these powers could be exer
cised without the consent of nine States, which was
equivalent to requiring a two-thirds vote, and even
when such a vote had been obtained and a decision
had been reached, there was nothing to compel the
individual States to obey beyond the mere declara
tion in the Articles of Confederation that, "Every
State shall abide by the determinations of the
United States in Congress assembled."
No executive was provided for except that Con
gress was authorized "to appoint such other com
mittees and civil officers as may be necessary for
managing the general affairs of the United States.

54 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
under their direction." In judicial matters. Con
gress was to serve as "the last resort on appeal in
all disputes and differences" between States; and
Congress might establish courts for the trial of
piracy and felonies committed on the high seas and
for determining appeals in cases of prize capture.
The plan of a govemment was there but it lacked
any driving force. Congress might declare war
but the States might decline to participate in it;
Congress might enter into treaties but it could not
make the States live up to them; Congress might
borrow money but it could not be sure of repaying
it; and Congress might decide disputes without be
ing able to make the parties accept the decision.
The pressure of necessity might keep the States to
gether for a time, yet there is no disguising the fact
that the Articles of Confederation formed nothing
more than a gentlemen's agreement.

CHAPTER IV
THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE
The population of the United States was like a
body of water that was being steadily enlarged by
internal springs and external tributaries. It was
augmented both from within and from without,
from natural increase and from immigration. It
had spread over the whole coast from Maine to
Georgia and slowly back into the interior, at first
along the lines of river communication and then
gradually filling up the spaces between until the
larger part of the available land east of the Alle
ghany Mountains was settled. There the stream
was checked as if dammed by the mountain barrier,
but the population was trickhng through wherever
it could find an opening, slowly wearing channels,
until finally, when the obstacles were overcome, it
broke through with a rush.
Twenty years before the Revolution the expand
ing population had reached the mountains and was
55

56 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
ready to go beyond. The difficulty of crossing the
mountains was not insuperable, but the French and
Indian War, followed by Pontiac's Conspiracy,
made outlying frontier settlement dangerous if not
impossible. The arbitrary restriction of western
settlement by the Proclamation of 1763 did not
stop the more adventurous but did hold back the
mass of the population until near the time of the
Revolution, when a few bands of settlers moved
into Kentucky and Tennessee and rendered im
portant but inconspicuous service in the fighting.
But so long as the title to that territory was in
doubt no considerable body of people would move
into it, and it was not until the Treaty of Peace in
1783 determined that the western country as far as
the Mississippi River was to belong to the United
States that the dammed-up population broke over
the mountains in a veritable flood.
The western country and its people presented no
easy problem to the United States: how to hold
those people when the pull was strong to draw them
from the Union; how to govern citizens so widely
separated from the older communities; and, of
most immiediate importance, how to hold the
land itself. It was, indeed, the question of the
ownership of the land beyond the mountains which

THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE 67
delayed the ratification of the Articles of Confedera
tion. Some of the States, by right of their colonial
charter grants "from sea to sea," were claiming
large parts of the western region. Other States,
whose boundaries were fixed, could put forward no
such claims; and, as they were therefore limited in
their area of expansion, they were fearful lest in the
future they should be overbalanced by those States
which might obtain extensive property in the West.
It was maintained that the Proclamation of 1763
had changed this western territory into "Crown
lands," and as, by the Treaty of Peace, the title
had passed to the United States, the non-claimant
States had demanded in self-defense that the west
ern land should belong to the country as a whole
and not to the individual States. Rhode Island,
Maryland, and Delaware were most seriously af
fected, and they were insistent upon this point.
Rhode Island and at length Delaware gave in, so
that by February, 1779, Maryland alone held out.
In May of that year the instructions of Maryland
to her delegates were read in Congress, positively
forbidding them to ratify the plan of union unless
they should receive definite assurances that the
western country would become the common prop
erty of the United States. As the consent of all

58 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
of the Thirteen States was necessary to the estab
lishment of the Confederation, this refusal of Mary
land brought matters to a crisis. The question
was eagerly discussed, and early in 1780 the dead
lock was broken by the action of New York in
authorizing her representatives to cede her entire
claim in western lands to the United States.
• It matters little that the claim of New York was
not as good as that of some of the other States, es
pecially that of Virginia. The whole situation was
changed. It was no longer necessary for Maryland
to defend her position; but the claimant States
were compelled to justify themselves before the
country for not following New York's example.
Congress wisely refrained from any assertion of
jurisdiction, and only urgently recommended that
States having claims to western lands should cede
them in order that the one obstacle to the final rati
fication of the Articles of Confederation might
be removed.
Without much question Virginia's claim was the
strongest; but the pressure was too great even for
her, and she finally yielded, ceding to the United
States, upon certain conditions, all her lands north
west of the Ohio River. Then the Maryland
delegates were empowered to ratify the Articles of

THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE 59
Confederation. This was early in 1781, and in a
very short time the other States had followed the
example of New York and Virginia. Certain of the
conditions imposed by Virginia were not acceptable
to Congress, and three years later, upon specific
request, that State withdrew the objectionable
conditions and made the cession absolute.
The territory thus ceded, north and west of the
Ohio River, constituted the public domain. Its
boundaries were somewhat indefinite, but subse
quent surveys confirmed the rough estimate that it
contained from one to two hundred millions of
acres. It was supposed to be worth, on the aver
age, about a dollar an acre, which would make this
property an asset sufficient to meet the debts of the
war and to leave a balance for the running expenses
of the Government. It thereby became one of the
strong bonds holding the Union together.

"Land!" was the first cry of the storm-tossed mar
iners of Columbus. For three centuries the leading
fact of American history has been that soon after 1600
a body of Europeans, mostly Englishmen, settled on
the edge of the greatest piece of unoccupied agricul
tural land in the temperate zone, and proceeded to
subdue it to the uses of man. For three centuries the
chief task of American mankind has been to go up

60 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
westward against the land and to possess it. Our
wars, our independence, our state building, our politi
cal democracy, our plasticity with respect to immi
gration, our mobility of thought, our ardor of initiative,
our mildness and our prosperity, all are but incidents
or products of this prime historical fact.'
It is seldom that one's attention is so caught and
held as by the happy suggestion that American in
terest in land — or rather interest in American land
— began with the discovery of the continent. Even
a momentary consideration of the subject, however,
is sufficient to indicate how important was the desire
for land as a motive of colonization. The founda
tion of European governmental and social organiza
tions had been laid in feudalism — a system of land-
holding and service. And although European states
might have lost their original feudal character, and
although new classes had arisen, land-holding still
remained the basis of social distinction.
One can readily imagine that America would be
considered as El Dorado, where one of the rarest
commodities as well as one of the most precious pos
sessions was found in almost unlimited quantities
and could be had for the asking. It is no wonder
' Lecture by J. Franklin Jameson before the Trustees of the
Carnegie Institution, at Washington,, in 1912, printed in the
History Teacher's Magazine, vol. iv, 1913. p. 5.

THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE 61
that family estates were sought in America and
that to the lower classes it seemed as if a heaven
were opening on earth. Even though available
land appeared to be almost unlimited in quantity
and easy to acquire, it was a possession that was
generally increasing in value. Of course wasteful
methods of farming wore out some lands, especially
in the South; but, taking it by and large through
out the country, with time and increasing density
of population the value of the land was increasing.
The acquisition of land was a matter of investment
or at least of speculation. In fact, the purchase of
land was one of the favorite get-rich-quick schemes
of the time. George Washington was not the only
man who invested largely in western lands. A
list of those who did would read like a political
or social directory of the time. Patrick Henry,
James Wilson, Robert Morris, Gouverneur Morris,
Chancellor Kent, Henry Knox, and James Monroe
were among them.'
It is therefore easy to understand why so much
importance attached to the claims of the several
States and to the cession of that western land by
' Not all the speculators were able to keep what they acquired.
Fifteen million acres of land in Kentucky were offered for sale in
1800 for non-payment of taxes. Channing, History of the United
States, vohiy, p. 91.

62 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
them to the United States. But something more
was necessary. If the land was to attain anything
like its real value, settlers must be induced to oc
cupy it. Of course it was possible to let the people
go out as they pleased and take up land, and to let
the Government collect from them as might be pos
sible at a fixed rate. But experience during colo
nial days had shown the weakness of such a method,
and Congress was apparently determined to keep
under its own control the region which it now pos
sessed, to provide for orderly sale, and to permit
settlement only so far as it might not endanger the
national interests. The method of land sales and
the question of govemment for the westem coun
try were recognized as different aspects of the same
problem. The Virginia offer of cession forced the
necessity of a decision, and no sooner was the Vir
ginia offer framed in an acceptable form, in 1783,
than two committees were appointed by Congress
to report upon these two questions of land sales and
of government.
Thomas Jefferson was made chairman of both
these committees. He was then forty years old
and one ofthe most remarkable men in the country.
Born on the frontier — his father from the upper
middle class, his mother "a Randolph" — he had

THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE 63
been trained to an outdoor life; but he was also a
prodigy in his studies and entered William and
Mary College with advanced standing at the age of
eighteen. Many stories are told of his precocity
and ability, all of which tend to forecast the later
man of catholic tastes, omnivorous interest, and ex
tensive but superficial knowledge; he was a strange
combination of natural aristocrat and theoretical
democrat, of philosopher and practical politician.
After having been a student in the law office of
George Wythe, and being a friend of Patrick Henry,
Jefferson early espoused the cause of the Revolu
tion, and it was his hand that drafted the Declara
tion of Independence. He then resigned from Con
gress to assist in the organization of government in
his own State. For two years and a half he served
in the Virginia Assembly and brought about the
repeal of the law of entailment, the abolition of
primogeniture, the recognition of freedom of con
science, and the encouragement of education. He
was Govemor of Virginia for two years and then,
having declined reelection, returned to Congress in
1783. There, among his other accomphshments,
as chairman of the committee, he reported the
Treaty of Peace and, as chairman of another com
mittee, devised and persuaded Congress tq adopt

64 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
a national system of coinage which in its essentials
is still in use.
It is easy to criticize Jefferson and to pick flaws
in the things that he said as well as in the things
that he did, but practically every one admits that
he was closely in touch with the course of events
and understood the temper of his contemporaries.
In this period of transition from the old order to the
new, he seems to have expressed the genius of
American institutions better than almost any other
man of his generation. He possessed a quality
that enabled him, in the Declaration of Independ
ence, to give voice to the hopes and aspirations of a
rising nationality and that enabled him in his own
State to bring abput so many reforms.
Just how much actual influence Thomas Jeffer
son had in the framing of the American land policy
is not clear. Although the draft of the committee
report in 1784 is in Jefferson's handwriting, it is al
together probable that more credit is to be given to
Thomas Hutchins, the Geographer of the United
States, and to William Grayson of Virginia, espe
cially for the final form which the measure took;
for Jefferson retired from the chairmanship and had
already gone to Europe when the Land Ordinance
was adopted by Congress in 1785. This ordinance

THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE 65
has been superseded by later enactments, to which
references are usually made; but the original ordi
nance is one of the great pieces of American legis
lation, for it contained the fundamentals of the
American land system which, with the modifica
tions experience has introduced, has proved to be
permanently workable and which has been envied
and in several instances copied by other countries.
Like almost all successful institutions of that sort,
the Land Ordinance of 1785 was not an immedi
ate creation but was a development out of former
practices and customs and was in the nature of a
compromise. Its essential features were the meth
od of survey and the process for the sale of land.
New England, with its town system, had in the
course of its expansion been accustomed to proceed
in an orderly method but on a relatively small scale.
The South, on the other hand, had granted lands
on a larger scale and had permitted individual se
lection in a haphazard manner. The plan which
Congress adopted was that of the New England
survey with the Southern method of extensive
holdings. The system is repellent in its rectangu
lar orderliness, but it made the process of recording
titles easy and complete, and it was capable of in
definite expansion. These were matters of cardinal

66 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
importance, for in the course of one hundred and
forty years the United States was to have under its
control nearly two thousand million acres of land.
The primary feature of the land policy was the
orderly survey in advance of sale. In the next place
the township was taken as the unit, and its size was
fixed at six miles square. Provision was then made
for the sale of townships alternately entire and by
sections of one mile square, or 640 acres each. In
every township a section was reserved for educa
tional purposes; that is, the land was to be dis
posed of and the proceeds used for the development
of public schools in that region. And, finally, the
United States reserved four sections in the cen
ter of each township to be disposed of at a later
time. It was expected that a great increase in
the value of the land would result, and it was pro
posed that the Gk)vernment should reap a part of
the profits.
It is evident that the primary purpose of the
public land policy as first developed was to acquire
revenue for the Government; but it was also evi
dent that there was a distinct purpose of encourag
ing settlement. The two were not incompatible,
but the greater interest of the Government was in
obtaining a return for the property.

THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE 67
The other committee of which Jefferson was
chairman made its report of a plan for the govern
ment of the western territory upon the very day
that the Virginia cession was finally accepted,
March-1, 1784; and with some important modifica
tions Jefferson's ordinance, or the Ordinance of
1784 as it was commonly called, was ultimately
adopted. In this case Jefferson rendered a service
similar to that of framing the Declaration of In-
pendence. His plan was somewhat theoretical and
visionary, but largely practical, and it was con
structive work of a high order, displaying not
so much originality as sympathetic appreciation
of What had already been done and an instinctive
forecast of future development. Jefferson seemed
to be able to gather up ideas, some conscious and
some latent in men's minds, and to express thenj
in a form that was generally acceptable.
It is interesting to find in the Articles of Confed
eration (Article XI) that, "Canada acceding to
this confederation, and joining in the measures of
the United States, shall be admitted into, and en
titled to all the advantages of this Union : but no
other colony shall be admitted into the same unless
such admission be agreed to by nine States." The
real importance of this article lay in the suggestion

68 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
of an enlargement of the Confederation. The Con
federation was never intended to be a union of only
thirteen States. Before the cession of their west
ern claims it seemed to be inevitable that some of
the States should be broken up into several units.
At the very time that the formation of the Confed
eration was under discussion Vermont issued a de
claration of independence from New York and New
Hampshire, with the expectation of being admitted
into the Union. It was impolitic to recognize the
appeal at that time, but it seems to have been gen
erally understood that sooner or later Vermont
would come in as a full-fledged State.
It might have been a revolutionary suggestion
by Maryland, when the cession of western lands
was under discussion, that Congress should have
sole power to fix the western boundaries of the
States, but her further proposal was not even re
garded as radical, that Congress should "lay out
the land beyond the boundaries so ascertained into
separate and independent states." It seems to
have been taken as a matter of course in the proce
dure of Congress and was accepted by the States.
But the idea was one thing; its carrying out was
quite another. Here was a great extent of western
territory which would be valuable only as it could

THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE 69
be sold to prospective settlers. One of the first
things these settlers would demand was protection
— protection against the Indians, possibly also
against the British and the Spanish, and protection
in their ordinary civil life. The former was a de
tail of military organization and was in due time
provided by the establishment of military forts
and garrisons; the latter was the problem which
Jefferson's committee was attempting to solve.
The Ordinance of 1784 disregarded the natural
physical features of the western country and, by
degrees of latitude and meridians of longitude, ar
bitrarily divided the public domain into rectangu
lar districts, to the first of which the following
names were applied: Sylvania, Michigania, Cher-
ronesus, Assenisipia, Metropotamia, lUinoia, Sara
toga, Washington, Polypotamia, Pelisipia. The
amusement which this absurd and thoroughly Jef-
f ersonian nomenclature is bound to cause ought not
to detract from the really important features of the
Ordinance. In each of the districts into which the
country was divided the settlers might be author
ized by Congress, for the purpose of establishing a
temporary government, to adopt the constitution
and laws of any one of the original States. When
any such area should have twenty thousand free

70 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
inhabitants it might receive authority from Con
gress to establish a permanent constitution and
government and should be entitled to a representa
tive in Congress with the right of debating but not
of voting. And finally, when the inhabitants of
any one of these districts should equal in number
those of the least populous of the thirteen original
States, their delegates should be admitted into
Congress on an equal footing.
Jefferson's ordinance, though adopted, was never
put into operation. Various explanations have
been offered for this failure to give it a fair trial.
It has been said that Jefferson himself was to blame.
In the original draft of his ordinance Jefferson had
provided for the abolition of slavery in the new
States after the year 1800, and when Congress re
fused to accept this clause Jefferson, in a manner
quite characteristic, seemed to lose all interest in
the plan. There were, however, other objections,
for there were those who felt that it was somewhat
indefinite to promise admission into the Confedera
tion of certain sections of the country as soon as
their population should equal in number that of the
least populous of the original States. If the orig
inal States should increase in population to any
extent, the new States might never be admitted.

THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE 71
But on the other hand, if from any cause the popu
lation of one of the smaller States should suddenly
decrease, might not the resulting influx of new
States prove dangerous.''
But the real reason why the ordinance remained
a dead letter was that, while it fixed the limits with-
m which local governments might act, it left the
creation of those governments wholly to the future.
At Vincennes, for example, the ordinance made no
change in the political habits of the people. " The
local government bowled along merrily under this
system. There was the greatest abundance of
government, for the more the United States neg
lected them the more authority their officials as
sumed."' Nor could the ordinance operate until
settlers became numerous. It was partly, indeed,
to hasten settlement that the Ordinance of 1785 for
the survey and sale of the public lands was passed. '
In the meantime efforts were being made by
Congress to improve the unsatisfactory ordinance
for the government of the West. Committees were
' Jacob Piat Dunn, Jr., Indiana: A Redemption from Slavery,
1888. " Although the machinery was set in motion, by the appoint
ment of men and the beginning of work, it was not until 1789 that
the survey of the first seven ranges of townships was completed
and the land offered for sale.

72 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
appointed, reports were made, and at intervals of
weeks or months the subject was considered.
Some amendments were actually adopted, but
Congress^ notoriously inefficient, hesitated to un
dertake a fundamental revision of the ordinance.
Then, suddenly, in July, 1787, after a brief period
of adjournment, Congress took up this subject and
within a week adopted the now famous Ordinance
of 1787.
The stimulus which aroused Congress to activity
seems to have come from the Ohio Company.
From the very beginning of the public domain
there was a strong sentiment in favor of using west
ern land for settlement by Revolutionary soldiers.
Some of these lands had been offered as bounties to
encourage enlistment, and after the war the project
of soldiers' settlement in the West was vigorously
agitated. The Ohio Company of Associates was
made up of veterans of the Revolution, who were
looking for homes in the West, and of other persons
who were willing to support a worthy cause by a
subscription which might turn out to be a good in
vestment. The company wished to buy land in
the West, and Congress had land which it wished to
sell. Under such circumstances it was easy to
strike a bargain. The land, as we have seen, was

THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE 73
roughly estimated at one dollar an acre; but, as the
company wished to purchase a million acres, it de
manded and obtained wholesale rates of two-thirds
of the usual price. It also obtained the privilege
of paying at least a portion in certificates of Revo
lutionary indebtedness, some of which were worth
about twelve and a half cents on the dollar. Only
a little calculation is required to show that a
large quantity of land was therefore sold at about
eight or nine cents an acre. It was in connection
with this land sale that the Ordinance of 1787
was adopted.
The promoter of this enterprise undertaken by
the Ohio Company was Manasseh Cutler of Ips
wich, Massachusetts, a clergyman by profession
who had served as a chaplain in the Revolution
ary War. But his interests and activities ex
tended far beyond the bounds of his profession.
When the people of his parish were without prop
er medical advice he applied himself to the study
and practice of medicine. At about the same
time he took up the study of botany, and be
cause of his describing several hundred species of
plants he is regarded as the pioneer botanist of
New England. His next interest seems to have
grown out of his Revolutionary associations, for it

74 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
centered in this project for settlement of the West,
and he was appointed the agent of the Ohio Com
pany. It was in this capacity that he had come to
New York and made the bargain with Congress
which has just been described. Cutler must have
been a good lobbyist, for Congress was not an effi
cient body, and unremitting labor, as well as diplo
macy, was required for so large and important
a matter. Two things indicate his method of pro
cedure. In the first place he found it politic to
drop his own candidate for the governorship of the
new territory and to endorse General Arthur St.
Clair, then President of Congress. And in the
next place he accepted the suggestion of Colonel
William Duer for the formation of another com
pany, known as the Scioto Associates, to purchase
five million acres of land on similar terms, "but
that it should be kept a profound secret." It was
not an accident that Colonel Duer was Secretary
of the Board of the Treasury through whom these
purchases were made, nor that associated with him
in this speculation were " a number of the principal
characters in the city." These land deals were
completed afterwards, but there is little doubt that
there was a direct connection between them and
the adoption of the ordinance of government.

THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE 75
The Ordinance of 1787 was so successful in its
working and its renown became so great that claims
of authorship, even for separate articles, have been
filed in the name of almost every person who had
the slightest excuse for being considered. Thou
sands of pages have been written in eulogy and in
dispute, to the helpful clearing up of some points
and to the obscuring of others. But the author
ship of this or of that clause is of much less impor
tance than the scope of the document as a working
plan of government. As such the Ordinance of
1787 owes much to Jefferson's Ordinance bf 1784.
Under the new ordinance a governor and three
judges were to be appointed who, along with their
other functions, were to select such laws as they
thought best from the statute books of all the
States. The second stage in self-government
would be reached when the population contained
five thousand free men of age; then the people were
to have a representative legislature with the usual
privilege of making their own laws. Provision was
made for dividing the whole region northwest of
the Ohio River into three or four or five districts
and the final stage of government was reached
when any one of these districts had sixty thousand
free inhabitants, for it might then establish its

76 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
own constitution and govemment and be admit
ted into the Union on an equal footing with the
original States.
The last-named provision for admission into the
Union, being in the nature of a promise for the fu
ture, was not included in the body of the document
providing for the government, but was contained
in certain "articles of compact, between the orig
inal States and the people and States in the said
territory, [which should] forever remain unalter
able, unless by common consent." These articles
of compact were in general similar to the bills of
rights in State Constitutions; but one of them
found no parallel in any State Constitution. Ar
ticle VI reads: "There shall be neither slavery
nor involuntary servitude in the said territory,
otherwise than in the punishment of crimes, where
of the party shall have been duly convicted." This
has been hailed as a f arsighted, humanitarian meas
ure, and it is quite true that many of the leading
men, in the South as well as in the North, were
looking forward to the time when slavery would
be abolished. But the motives predominating at
the time were probably more nearly represented
by Grayson, who wrote to James Monroe, three
weeks after the ordinance was passed: "The

THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE 77
clause respecting slavery was agreed to by the
southern members for the purpose of preventing
tobacco and indigo from being made on the north
west side of the Ohio, as well as for several other
political reasons."
It is over one hundred and forty years since
the Ordinance of 1787 was adopted, during which
period more than thirty territories of the United
States have been organized, and there has never
been a time when one or more territories were not
under Congressional supervision, so that the proc
ess of legislative control has been continuous.
Changes have been made from time to time in or
der to adapt the territorial government to changed
conditions, but for fifty years the Ordinance of
1787 actually remained in operation, and even
twenty years later it was specifically referred to by
statute. The principles of territorial government
today are identical with those of 1787, and those
principles comprise the largest measure of local
self-government compatible with national control,
a gradual extension of self-government to the
people of a territory, and finally complete state
hood and admission into the Union on a footing of
equality with the other States.
In 1825, when the military occupation of Oregon

78 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
was suggested in Congress, Senator Dickerson
of New Jersey objected, saying, "We have not
adopted a system of colonization and it is to be
hoped we never shall." Yet that is just what
America has always had. Not only were the
first settlers on the Atlantic coast colonists from
Europe; but the men who went to the frontier were
also colonists from the Atlantic seaboard. And
the men who settled the States in the West were
colonists from the older communities. The Amer
icans had so recently asserted their independence
that they regarded the name of colony as not
merely indicating dependence but as implying
something of inferiority and even of reproach.
And when the American colonial system was being
formulated in 1783-87 the word "Colony" was not
used. The country under consideration was the
region west of the Alleghany Mountains and in
particular the territory north and west of the Ohio
River and, being so referred to in the documents,
the word " Territory" became the term applied to
all the colonies.
The Northwest Territory increased so rapidly in
population that in 1800 it was divided into two
districts, and in 1802 the eastern part was admitted
into the Union as the State of Ohio. The rest of

THE NORTHWEST ORDINANCE 79
the territory was divided in 1805 and again in 1809;
Indiana was admitted as a State in 1816 and Illi
nois in 1818. So the process has gone on. There
were thirteen original States and six more have be
come members of the Union without having been
through the status of territories, making nineteen
in all; while twenty-nine States have developed
from the colonial stage. The incorporation of the
colonies into the Union is not merely a political
fact; the inhabitants of the colonies become an
integral part of the parent nation and in turn be
come the progenitors of new colonies. If such a
process be long continued, the colonies will eventu
ally outnumber the parent States, and the colonists
will outnumber the citizens of the original States
and will themselves become the nation. Such has
been the history of the United States and its people.
By 1850, indeed, one-half of the population of the
United States was living west of the Alleghany
Mountains, and at the present time approximately
seventy per cent are to be found in the West.
The importance of the Ordinance of 1787 was
hardly overstated by Webster in his famous debate
with Hayne when he said: "We are accustomed
... to praise the lawgivers of antiquity; we help
to perpetuate the fame of Solon and Lycurgus;

80 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
but I doubt whether one single law of any law
giver, ancient or modern, has produced effects
of more distinct, marked and lasting character
than the Ordinance of 1787." While improved
means of communication and many other material
ties have served to hold the States of the Union to
gether, the political bond was supplied by the
Ordinance of 1787, which inaugurated the American
colonial system.

CHAPTER V

DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN

John Fiske summed up the prevailing impression
of the government of the Confederation in the title
to his volume. The Critical Period of American
History. "The period of five years," says Fiske, *
"following the peace of 1783 was the most critical
moment in all the history of the American people.
The dangers from which we were saved in 1788
were even greater than were the dangers from
which we were saved in 1865." Perhaps the plight
of the Confederation was not so desperate as he
would have us believe, but it was desperate enough.
Two incidents occurring between the signing of the
preliminary terms of peace and the definitive treaty
reveal the danger in which the country stood. The
main body of continental troops made up of mili
tiamen and short-term volunteers — always prone
to mutinous conduct — was collected at Newburg
on the Hudson, watching the British in New York.
6 81

82 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
Word might come at any day that the treaty had
been signed, and the army did not wish to be dis
banded until certain matters had been settled —
primarily the question of their pay. The officers
had been promised half -pay for life, but nothing defi
nite had been done toward carrying out the prom
ise. The soldiers had no such hope to encourage
them, and their pay was sadly in arrears. In De
cember, 1782, the officers at Newburg drew up an
address in behalf of themselves and their men and
sent it to Congress. Therein they made the threat,
thinly veiled, of taking matters into their own hands
unless their grievances were redressed.
There is reason to suppose that back of this
movement — or at least in sympathy with it —
were some of the strongest men in civil as in mili
tary life, who, while not fomenting insurrection,
were willing to bring pressure to bear on Congress
and the States. Congress was unable or unwilling
to act, and in March, 1783, a second paper, this
time anonymous, was circulated urging the men
not to disband until the question of pay had been
settled and recommending a meeting of officers on
the following day. If Washington's influence was
not counted upon, it was at least hoped that he
would not interfere; but as soon as he learned of

DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN 83
what had been done he issued general orders calling
for a meeting of officers on a later day, thus super
seding the irregular meeting that had been sug
gested. On the day appointed the Commander-
in-Chief appeared and spoke with so much warmth
and feeling that his "little address . . . drew
tears from many of the officers." He inveighed
against the unsigned paper and against the meth
ods that were talked of, for they would mean the
disgrace of the army, and he appealed to the patri
otism of the officers, promising his best efforts in
their behalf. The effect was so strong that, when
Washington withdrew, resolutions were adopted
unanimously expressing their loyalty and their
faith in the justice of Congress and denouncing the
anonymous circular.
The general apprehension was not diminished
by another incident in June. Some eighty troops
of the Pennsylvania line in camp at Lancaster
marched to Philadelphia and drew up before the
State House, where Congress was sitting. Their
purpose was to demand better treatment and the
payment of what was owed to them. So far it
was an orderly demonstration, although not in
keeping with military regulations; in fact the men
had broken away from camp under the lead of

84 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
noncommissioned officers. But when they had been
stimulated by drink the disorder became serious.
The humiliating feature of the situation was that
Congress could do nothing, even in self-protection.
They appealed to the Pennsylvania authorities
and, when assistance was refused, the members of
Congress in alarm fled in the night and three days
later gathered in the college building in Princeton.
Congress became the butt of many jokes, but
men could not hide the chagrin they felt that their
Government was so weak. The feeling deep
ened into shame when the helplessness of Congress
was displayed before the world. Weeks and even
months passed before a quorum could be obtained
to ratify the treaty recognizing the independence
of the United States and establishing peace. Even
after the treaty was supposed to be in force the
States disregarded its provisions and Congress
could do nothing more than utter ineffective pro
tests. But, most humiliating of all, the British
maintained their military posts within the north
western territory ceded to the United States, and
Congress could only request them to retire. The
Americans' pride was hurt and their pockets were
touched as well, for an important issue at stake was
the control of the lucrative fur trade. So resentment

DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN 85
grew into anger; but the British held on, and the
United States was powerless to make them with
draw. To make matters worse, the Confederation,
for want of power to levy taxes, was facing bank
ruptcy, and Congress was unable to devise ways
and means to avert a crisis.
The Second Continental Congress had come into
existence in 1775. It was made up of delegations
from the various colonies, appointed in more or less
irregular ways, and had no more authority than it
might assume and the various colonies were willing
to concede; yet it was the central body under which
the Revolution had been inaugurated and carried
through to a successful conclusion. Had this Con
gress grappled firmly with the financial problem
and forced through a system of direct taxation, the
subsequent woes of the Confederation might have
been mitigated and perhaps averted. In their en
thusiasm over the Declaration of Independence the
people — by whom is meant the articulate class
consisting largely of the governing and commercial
elements — would probably have accepted such a
usurpation of authority. But with their lack of ex
perience it is not surprising that the delegates to
Congress did not appreciate the necessity of such
radical action and so were unwilling to take the

86 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
responsibility for it. They counted upon the good
will and support of their constituents, which sim
mered down to a reliance upon voluntary grants
from the States in response to appeals from Con
gress. These desultory grants proved to be so un
satisfactory that, in 1781, even before the Articles
of Confederation had been ratified. Congress asked
for a grant of additional power to levy a duty of
five per cent ad valorem upon all goods imported
into the United States, the revenue from which
was to be applied to the discharge of the principal
and interest on debts "contracted . . . for sup
porting the present war." Twelve States agreed,
but Rhode Island, after some hesitation, finally
rejected the measure in November, 1782.
The Articles of Confederation authorized a sys
tem of requisitions apportioned among the "several
States in proportion to the value of all land within
each State." But, as there was no power vested in
Congress to force the States to comply, the situa
tion was in no way improved when the Articles were
ratified and put into operation. In fact, matters
grew worse as Congress itself steadily lost ground
in popular estimation, until it had become little
better t;han a laughing-stock, and with the ending
of the war its requests were more honored in the

DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN 87
breach than in the observance. In 1782 Congress
asked for $8,000,000 and the following year for $2,-
000,000 more, but by the end of 1783 less than
$1,500,000 had been paid in.
In the same year, 1783, Congress made another
attempt to remedy the financial situation by pro
posing the so-called Revenue Amendment, accord
ing to which a specific duty was to be laid upon
certain articles and a general duty of five per cent
ad valorem upon all other goods, to be in operation
for twenty-five years. In addition to this it was
proposed that for the same period of time $1,500,-
000 annually should be raised by requisitions, and
the definite amount for each State was specified un
til "the rule of the Confederation" could be carried
into practice. It was then proposed that the ar
ticle providing for the proportion of requisitions
should be changed so as to be based not upon land
values but upon population, in estimating which
slaves should be counted at three-fifths of their
number. In the course of three years thereafter
only two States accepted the proposals in full,
seven agreed to them in part, and four failed to act
at all. Congress in despair then made a further
representation to the States upon the critical con
dition of the finances and accompanied this with

88 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
an urgent appeal, which resulted in all the States
except New York agreeing to the proposed impost.
But the refusal of one State was sufficient to block
the whole measure, and there was no further hope
for a treasury that was practically bankrupt. In
five years Congress had received less than two and
one-half million dollars from requisitions, and for
the fourteen months ending January 1, 1786, the
income was at the rate of less than $375,000 a year,
which was not enough, as a committee of Congress
reported, "for the bare maintenance of the Federal
Government on the most economical establishment
and in time of profound peace." In fact, the in
come was not sufficient even to meet the interest
on the foreign debt.
In the absence of other means of obtaining funds
Congress had resorted early to the unfortunate ex
pedient of issuing paper money based solely on the
good faith of the States to redeem it. This fiat
money held its value for some little time; then it
began to shrink and, once started on the downward
path, its fall was rapid. Congress tried to meet
the emergency by issuing paper in increasing quan
tities until the inevitable happened: the paper
money ceased to have any value and practically
disappeared from circulation. Jefferson said that

DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN 89
by the end of 1781 one thousand dollars of Conti
nental scrip was worth about one dollar in specie.
The States had already issued paper money of
their own, and their experience ought to have
taught them a lesson, but with the coming of hard
times after the war, they once more proposed by
issuing paper to relieve the "scarcity of money"
which was commonly supposed to be one of the
principal evils of the day. In 1785 and 1786 paper
money parties appeared in almost all the States.
In some of these the conservative element was
strong enough to prevent action, but in others the
movement had to run its fatal course. The futility
of what they were doing should have been revealed
to all concerned by proposals seriously made that
the paper money which was issued should depre
ciate at a regular rate each year until it should
finally disappear.
The experience of Rhode Island is not to be re
garded as typical of what was happening through
out the country but is, indeed, rather to be con
sidered as exceptional. Yet it attracted wide
spread attention and revealed to anxious observers
the dangers to which the country was subject if the
existing condition of affairs were allowed to con
tinue. The machinery of the State Government

90 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
was captured by the paper-money party in the
spring election of 1786. The results were disap
pointing to the adherents of the paper-money cause,
for when the money was issued depreciation began
at once, and those who tried to pay their bills dis
covered that a heavy discount was demanded.
In response to indignant demands the legislature
of Rhode Island passed an act to force the accept
ance of paper money under penalty and thereupon
tradesmen refused to make any sales at all — some
closed their shops, and others tried to carry on busi
ness by exchange of wares. The farmers then re-
taUated by refusing to sell their produce to the
shopkeepers, and general confusion and acute dis
tress followed. It was mainly a quarrel between
the farmers and the merchants, but it easily grew
into a division between town and country, and
there followed a whole series of town meetings and
county conventions. The old line of cleavage was
fairly well represented by the excommunication of
a member of St. John's Episcopal Church of Provi
dence for tendering bank notes, and the expulsion
of a member of the Society of the Cincinnati for a
similar cause.
The contest culminated in the case of Trevett vs,
Weeden, 1786, which is memorable in the judicial

DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN 91
annals of the United States. The legislature,
not being satisfied with ordinary methods of en
forcement, had provided for the summary trial
of offenders without a jury before a court whose
judges were removable by the Assembly and were
therefore supposedly subservient to its wishes. In
the case in question the Superior Court boldly de
clared the enforcing act to be unconstitutional, and
for their contumacious behavior the judges were
summoned before the legislature. They escaped
punishment, but only one of them was reelected
to office.
Meanwhile disorders of a more serious sort,
which startled the whole country, occurred in
Massachusetts. It is doubtful if a satisfactory ex
planation ever will be found, at least one which will
be universally accepted, as to the causes and origin
of Shays' Rebellion in 1786. Some historians
maintain that the uprising resulted primarily from
a scarcity of money, from a shortage in the circu
lating medium; that, while the eastern counties
were keeping up their foreign trade sufficiently at
least to bring in enough metallic currency to relieve
the stringency and could also use various forms of
credit, the western counties had no such remedy.
Others are inclined to think that the difficulties of

92 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
the farmers in western Massachusetts were caused
largely by the return to normal conditions after the
extraordinarily good times between 1776 and 1780,
and that it was the discomfort attending the proc
ess that drove them to revolt. Another explana
tion reminds one of present-day charges against un
due influence of high financial circles, when it is in
sinuated and even directly charged that the rebel
lion was fostered by conservative interests who
were trying to create a public opinion in favor of a
more strongly organized government.
Whatever other causes there may have been, the
immediate source of trouble was the enforced pay
ment of indebtedness, which to a large extent had
been allowed to remain in abeyance during the war.
This postponement of settlement had not been
merely for humanitarian reasons; it would have
been the height of folly to collect when the currency
was greatly depreciated. But conditions were sup
posed to have been restored to normal with the
cessation of hostilities, and creditors were generally
inclined to demand payment. These demands, co
inciding with the heavy taxes, drove the people
of western Massachusetts into revolt. Feeling
ran high against lawyers who prosecuted suits for
creditors, and this antagonism was easily transferred

DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN 93
to the courts in which the suits were brought.
The rebellion in Massachusetts accordingly took
the form of a demonstration against the courts.
A paper was carried from town to town in the
County of Worcester, in which the signers promised
to do their utmost "to prevent the sitting of the
Inferior Court of Common Pleas for the county, or
of any other court that should attempt to take
property by distress."
The Massachusetts Legislature adjourned in
July, 1786, without remedying the trouble and also
without authorizing an issue of paper money which
the hard-pressed debtors were demanding. In the
months following mobs prevented the courts from
sitting in various towns. A special session of the
legislature was then called by the Governor but,
when that special session had adjourned on the
18th of November, it might just as well have never
met. It had attempted to remedy various griev
ances and had made concessions to the malcontents,
but it had also passed measures to strengthen the
hands of the Governor. This only seemed to in
flame the rioters, and the disorders increased.
After the lower courts a move was made against
the State Supreme Court, and plans were laid for a
concerted movement against the cities in the eastern

94 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
part of the State. Civil war seemed imminent.
The insurgents were led by Daniel Shays, an officer
in the army of the Revolution, and the party of law
and order was represented by Governor James
Bowdoin, who raised some four thousand troops
and placed them under the command of General
Benjamin Lincoln.
The time of year was unfortunate for the in
surgents, especially as December was unusually
cold and there was a heavy snowfall. Shays could
not provide stores and equipment and was unable
to maintain discipline. A threatened attack on
Cambridge came to naught for, when preparations
were made to protect the city, the rebels began a
disorderly retreat, and in the intense cold and deep
snow they suffered severely, and many died from
exposure. The center of interest then shifted to
Springfield, where the insurgents were attempting
to seize the United States arsenal. The local mil
itia had already repelled the first attacks, and the
appearance of General Lincoln with his troops com
pleted the demoralization of Shays' army. The in
surgents retreated, but Lincoln pursued relentlessly
and broke them up into small bands, which then
wandered about the country preying upon the un
fortunate inhabitants. When spring came, most

DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN 95
of them had been subdued or had taken refuge in
the neighboring States.
Shays' Rebellion was fairly easily suppressed,
even though it required the shedding of some blood.
But it was the possibility of further outbreaks that
destroyed men's peace of mind. There were sim
ilar disturbances in other States; and there the
Massachusetts insurgents found sympathy, sup
port, and finally a refuge. When the worst was
over, and Governor Bowdoin applied to the neigh
boring States for help in capturing the last of the
refugees, Rhode Island and Vermont failed to re
spond to the extent that might have been expected
of them. The danger, therefore, of the insurrec
tion spreading was a cause of deep concern. This
feeling was increased by the impotence of Congress.
The Government had sufficient excuse for inter
vention after the attack upon the national arsenal
in Springfield. Congress, indeed, began to raise
troops but did not dare to admit its purpose and
offered as a pretext an expedition against the
Northwestern Indians. The rebellion was over be
fore any assistance could be given. The ineffi
ciency of Congress and its lack of influence were
evident. Like the disorders in Rhode Island,
Shays' Rebellion in Massachusetts helped to bring

96 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
about a reaction and strengthened the conservative
movement for reform.
These untoward happenings, however, were only
symptoms : the causes of the trouble lay far deeper.
This fact was recognized even in Rhode Island, for
at least one of the conventions had passed resolu
tions declaring that, in considering the condition of
the whole country, what particularly concerned
them was the condition of trade. Paradoxical as it
may seem, the trade and commerce of the country
were already on the upward grade and prosperity
was actually returning. But prosperity is usually a
process of slow growth and is seldom recognized by
the community at large until it is well established.
Farsighted men forecast the coming of good times
in advance of the rest of the community, and pros
per accordingly. The majority of the people know
that prosperity has come only when it is unmistak
ably present, and some are not aware of it until it
has begun to go. If that be true in our day, much
more was it true in the eighteenth century, when
means of communication were so poor that it took
days for a message to go from Boston to New York
and weeks for news to get from Boston to Charles
ton. It was a period of adjustment, and as we look
back after the event we can see that the American

DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN 97
people were adapting themselves with remarkable
skill to the new conditions. But that was not so
«vident to the men who were feeling the pinch of
hard times, and when all the attendant circum
stances, some of which have been described, are
taken into account, it is not surprising that commer
cial depression should be one of the strongest influ
ences in, and the immediate occasion of, bringing
men to the point of willingness to attempt some
radical changes.
The fact needs to be reiterated that the people
of the United States were largely dependent upon
agriculture and other forms of extractive indus
try, and that markets for the disposal of their
goods were an absolute necessity. Some of the
States, especially New England and the Middle
States, were interested in the carrying trade, but
all were concemed in obtaining markets. On ac
count of jealousy interstate trade continued a pre
carious existence and by no means sufficed to dis
pose of the surplus products, so that foreign mar
kets were necessary. The people were especially
concerned for the establishment of the old trade
with the West India Islands, which had been the
mainstay of their prosperity in colonial times; and
after the British Government, in 1783, restricted

98 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
that trade to British vessels, many people in the
United States were attributing hard times to Brit
ish malignancy. The only action which seemed
possible was to force Great Britain in particular,
but other foreign countries as well, to make such
trade agreements as the prosperity of the United
States demanded. The only hope seemed to lie in
a commercial policy of reprisal which would force
other countries to open their markets to American
goods. Retaliation was the dominating idea in the
foreign policy of the time. So in 1784 Congress
made a new recommendation to the States, prefac
ing it with an assertion of the importance of com
merce, saying: "The fortune of every Citizen is in
terested in the success thereof; for it is the constant
source of wealth and incentive to industry; and the
value of our produce and our land must ever rise or
fall in proportion to the prosperous or adverse state
of trade."
And after declaring that Great Britain had
"adopted regulations destructive of our commerce
with her West India Islands," it was further as
serted: "Unless the United States in Congress as
sembled shall be vested with powers competent to
the protection of commerce, they can never com
mand reciprocal advantages in trade." It was

DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN 99
therefore proposed to give to Congress for fifteen
years the power to prohibit the importation or ex
portation of goods at American ports except in
vessels owned by the people of the United States
or by the subjects of foreign governments having
treaties of commerce with the United States. This
was simply a request for authorization to adopt
navigation acts. But the individual States were
too much concerned with their own interests and
did not or would not appreciate the rights of the
other States or the interests of the Union as a
whole. And so the commercial amendment of
1784 suffered the fate of all other amendments pro
posed to the Articles of Confederation. In fact
only two States accepted it.
It usually happens that some minor occurrence,
almost unnoticed at the time, leads directly to the
most important consequences. And an incident
in domestic affairs started the chain of events in the
United States that ended in the reform of the Fed
eral Government. The rivalry and jealousy among
the States had brought matters to such a pass that
.. either Congress must be vested with adequate
powers or the Confederation must collapse. But
the Articles of Confederation provided no remedy,
and it had been found that amendments to that

100 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
instrument could not be obtained. It was neces
sary, therefore, to proceed in some extra-legal fash
ion. The Articles of Confederation specifically for
bade treaties or aUiances between the States unless
approved by Congress. Yet Virginia and Maryland,
in 1785, had come to a working agreement regard
ing the use of the Potomac River, which was the
boundary line between them. Commissioners rep
resenting both parties had met at Alexandria and
soon adjourned to Mount Vernon, where they not
only reached an amicable settlement of the imme
diate questions before them but also discussed the
larger subjects of duties and commercial matters in
general. When the Maryland legislature came to
act on the report, it proposed that Pennsylvania
and Delaware should be invited to join with
them in formulating a common commercial policy.
Virginia then went one step farther and invited
all the other States to send commissioners to a
general trade convention and later announced
Annapolis as the place of meeting and set the time
for September, 1786.
This action was unconstitutional and was so
recognized, for James Madison notes that "from
the Legislative Journals of Virginia it appears,
that a vote to apply for a sanction of Congress was

DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN 101
followed by a vote against a communication of the
Compact to Congress," and he mentions other sim
ilar violations of the central authority. That this
did not attract more attention was probably due to
the public interest being absorbed just at that
time by the paper money agitation. Then, too,
the men concerned seem to have been willing to
avoid publicity. Their purposes are well brought
out in a letter of Monsieur Louis Otto, French
Charge d' Affaires, written on October 10, 1786, to
the Comte de Vergennes, Minister for Foreign
Affairs, though their motives may be somewhat
misinterpreted.
Although there are no nobles in America, there is a
class of men denominated "gentlemen," who, by rea
son of their wealth, their talents, their education,
their families, or the offices they hold, aspire to a pre
eminence which the people refuse to grant them; and,
although many of these men have betrayed the inter
ests of their order to gain popularity, there reigns
among them a connection so much the more intimate
as they almost all of them dread the efforts of the
people to despoil them of their possessions, and, more
over, they are creditors, and therefore interested in
strengthening the government, and watching over the
execution of the laws.
These men generally pay very heavy taxes, while the
small proprietors escape the yigilance of the collectors.

102 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
The majority of them being merchants, it is for their
interest to establish the credit of the United States in
Europe on a solid foundation by the exact payment
of debts, and to grant to congress powers extensive
enough to compel the people to contribute for this pur
pose. The attempt, my lord, has been vain, by pam
phlets and other publications, to spread notions of jus
tice and integrity, and to deprive the people of a free
dom which they have so misused. By proposing a
new organization of the federal government all minds
would have been revolted; circumstances ruinous to the
commerce of America have happily arisen to furnish the
reformers with a pretext for introducing innovations.
They represented to the people that the American
name had become opprobrious among all the nations
of Europe ; that the flag of the United States was every
where exposed to insults and annoyance; the husband
man, no longer able to export his produce freely, would
soon be reduced to want; it was high time to retaliate,
and to convince foreign powers that the United States
would not with impunity suffer such a violation of the
freedom of trade, but that strong measures could be
taken only with the consent of the thirteen states, and
that congress, not having the necessary powers, it was
essential to form a general assembly instructed to pre
sent to congress the plan for its adoption, and to point
out the means of carrying it into execution.
The people, generally discontented with the obsta
cles in the way of commerce, and scarcely suspecting
the secret motives of their opponents, ardently em
braced this measure, and appointed commissioners,
who were to assemble at Annapolis in the beginning
of September.

DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN 103
The authors of this proposition had no hope, nor even
desire, to see the success of this assembly of commis
sioners, which was only intended to prepar^ k question
much more important than that of commerce. The
measures were so well taken that at the end of Septem
ber no more than five states were represented at An
napolis, and the commissioners from the northern
states tarried several days at New York in order to
retard their arrival.
The states which assembled, after having waited
nearly three weeks, separated under the pretext that
they were not in sufficient numbers to enter on busi
ness, and, to justify this dissolution, they addressed to
the different legislatures and to congress a report, the
translation of which I have the honor to enclose
to you.' /
Among these "men denominated 'gentlemen'"
to whom the French Charge d'Affaires alludes, was
James Madison of Virginia. He was one of the
younger men, unfitted by temperament and phy
sique to be a soldier, who yet had found his oppor
tunity in the Revolution. Graduating in 1771
from Princeton, where tradition tells of the part he
took in patriotic demonstrations on the campus —
characteristic of students then as now — he had
thrown himself heart and soul into the American
cause. He was a member of the convention to
¦ Quoted by Bancroft, History of the Formation of the Constitu
tion, vol. ii. Appendix, pp. 399-400.

104 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
frame the first State Constitution for Virginia in
1776, and from that time on, because of his ability,
he was an important figure in the political history
of his State and of his country. He was largely
responsible for bringing about the conference be
tween Virginia and Maryland and for the subse
quent steps resulting in the trade convention at
Annapolis. And yet Madison seldom took a con
spicuous part, preferring to remain in the back
ground and to allow others to appear as the leaders.
When the Annapolis Convention assembled, for ex
ample, he suffered Alexander Hamilton of New
York to play the leading r61e.
Hamilton was then approaching thirty years of
age and was one of the ablest men in the United
States. Though his best work was done in later
years, when he proved himself to be perhaps the
most brilliant of American statesmen, with an ex
traordinary genius for administrative organization,
the part that he took in the affairs of this period
was important. He was small and slight in person
but with an expressive face, fair complexion, and
cheeks of "almost feminine rosiness." The usual
aspect of his countenance was thoughtful and even
severe, but in conversation his face lighted up with
a remarkably attractive smile. He carried himself

DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN 105
erectly and with dignity, so that in spite of his
small figure, when he entered a room "it was ap
parent, from the respectful attention of the com
pany, that he was a distinguished person." A con
temporary, speaking of the opposite and almost
irreconcilable traits of Hamilton's character, pro
nounced a bust of him as giving a complete ex
position of his character: "Draw a handkerchief
around the mouth of the bust, and the remnant of
the countenance represents fortitude and intrepid
ity such as we have often seen in the plates of Ro
man heroes. Veil in the same manner the face and
leave the mouth and chin only discernible, and
all this fortitude melts and vanishes into almost
feminine softness."
Hamilton was a leading spirit in the Annapolis
Trade Convention and wrote the report that it
adopted. Whether or not there is any truth in
the assertion of the French charge that Hamilton
and others thought it advisable to disguise their
purposes, there is no doubt that the Annapolis
Convention was an all-important step in the
progress of reform, and its recommendation was
the direct occasion of the calling of the great
convention that framed the Constitution of the
United States.

106 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
The recommendation of the Annapolis delegates
was in the form of a report to the legislatures of
their respective States, in which they referred to
the defects in the Federal Govemment and called
for "a convention of deputies from the different
states for the special purpose of entering into this
investigation and digesting a Plan for supplying
such defects." Philadelphia was suggested as the
place of meeting, and the time was fixed for the
second Monday in May of the next year.
Several of the States acted promptly upon this
recommendation and in February, 1787, Congress
adopted a resolution accepting the proposal and
calling the convention "for the sole and express
purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation
and reporting . . . such alterations ... as shall
. . . render the Federal Constitution adequate to
the exigencies of Government and the preservation
of the Union." Before the time fixed for the meet
ing of the Philadelphia Convention, or shortly after
that date, all the States had appointed deputies
with the exception of New Hampshire and Rhode
Island. New Hampshire was favorably disposed
toward the meeting but, owing to local conditions,
failed to act before the Convention was well under
way. Delegates, however, arrived in time to share

DARKNESS BEFORE DAWN 107
in some of the most important proceedings. Rhode
Island alone refused to take part, although a letter
signed by some of the prominent men was sent to
the Convention pledging their support.

CHAPTER VI
THE FEDERAL CONVENTION
The body of delegates which met in Philadelphia in
1787 was the most important convention that ever
sat in the United States. The Confederation was
a failure, and if the new nation was to be justified
in the eyes of the world, it must show itself capable
of effective union. The members of the Convention
realized the significance of the task before them,
which was, as Madison said, "now to decide forever
the fate of Republican government." Gouverneur
Morris, with unwonted seriousness, declared : " The
whole human race will be affected by the proceed
ings of this Convention." James Wilson spoke with
equal gravity : ' ' After the lapse of six thousand years
since the creation of the world America now presents
the first instance of a people assembled to weigh
deliberately and calmly and to decide leisurely and
peaceably upon the form of government by which
they will bind themselves and their posterity."
108

BACK OF THE STATE HOUSE, PHILADELPHIA
Engraving by W. Birch, 1799. Photograph in the collection of
Ph. B. Wallace, Philadelphia.

THE FEDERAL CONVENTION 109
Not all the men to whom this undertaking was
entrusted, and who were taking themselves and
their work so seriously, could pretend to social dis
tinction, but practically all belonged to the upper
ruling class. At the Indian Queen, a tavern on
Fourth Street between Market and Chestnut, some
of the delegates had a hall in which they lived by
themselves. The meetings of the Convention were
held in an upper room of the State House. The
sessions were secret; sentries were placed at the
door to keep away all intruders; and the pavement
of the street in front of the building was covered
with loose earth so that the noises of passing traffic
should not disturb this august assembly. It is not
surprising that a tradition grew up about the Fed
eral Convention which hedged it round with a sort
of awe and reverence. Even Thomas Jefferson re
ferred to it as "an assembly of demigods." If we
can get away from the glamour which has been
spread over the work of the Fathers of the Consti
tution and understand that they were human be
ings, even as we are, and influenced by the same
motives as other men, it may be possible to ob
tain a more faithful impression of what actually
took place.
Since representation in the Convention was to be

110 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
by States, just as it had been in the Continental
Congress, the presence of delegations from a ma
jority of the States was necessary for organization.
It is a commentary upon the times, upon the diffi
culties of travel, and upon the leisurely habits of
the people, that the meeting which had been called
for the 14th of May could not begin its work for
over ten days. The 25th of May was stormy, and
only twenty-nine delegates were on hand when
the Convention organized. The slender attendance
can only partially be attributed to the weather, for
in the following three months and a half of the Con
vention, at which fifty-five members were present
at one time or another, the average attendance was
only slightly larger than that of the first day. In
such a small body personality counted for much, in
ways that the historian can only surmise. Many
compromises of conflicting interests were reached
by informal discussion outside of the formal ses
sions. In these small gatherings individual char
acter was often as decisive as weighty argument.
George Washington was unanimously chosen as
the presiding officer of the Convention. He sat on
a raised platform, in a large, carved, high-backed
chair, from which his commanding figure and dig
nified bearing exerted a potent influence on the

THE FEDERAL CONVENTION 111
assembly, an influence enhanced by the formal cour
tesy and stately intercourse of the times. Wash
ington was the great man of his day and the mem
bers not only respected and admired him; some of
them were actually afraid of him. When he rose
to his feet he was almost the Commander-in-Chief
again. There is evidence to show that his support
or disapproval was at times a decisive factor in the
deliberations of the Convention.
Virginia, which had taken a conspicuous part in
the calling of the Convention, was looked to for
leadership in the work that was to be done. James
Madison, next to Washington the most important
member of the Virginia delegation, was the very
opposite of Washington in many respects — small
and slight in stature, inconspicuous in dress as in
figure, modest and retiring, but with a quick, active
mind and wide knowledge obtained both from ex
perience in public affairs and from extensive read
ing. Washington was the man of action ; Madison,
the scholar in politics. Madison was the younger
by nearly twenty years, but Washington admired
him greatly and gave him the support of his in
fluence — a matter of no little consequence, for
Madison was the leading expert worker of the Con
vention in the business of framing the Constitution.

112 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
Govemor Edmund Randolph, with his tall figure,
handsome face, and dignified manner, made an
excellent impression in the position accorded to
him of nominal leader of the Virginia delegation.
Among others from the same State who should be
noticed were the famous lawyers, George Wythe
and George Mason.
Among the deputies from Pennsylvania the fore
most was James Wilson, the "Caledonian," who
probably stood next in importance in the Conven
tion to Madison and Washington. He had come
to America as a young man just when the troubles
with England were beginning and by sheer ability
had attained a position of prominence. Several
times a member of Congress, a signer of the Dec
laration of Independence, he was now regarded as
one of the ablest lawyers in the United States. A
more brilliant member of the Pennsylvania delega
tion, and one of the most brilliant of the Conven
tion, was Gouverneur Morris, who shone by his
cleverness and quick wit as well as by his wonder
ful command of language. But Morris was ad
mired more than he was trusted; and, while he sup
ported the efforts for a strong govemment, his sup
port was not always as great a help as might have
been expected. A crippled arm and a wooden leg

THE FEDERAL CONVENTION 113
might detract from his personal appearance, but
they could not subdue his spirit and audacity. '
There were other prominent members of the
Pennsylvania delegation, but none of them took an
important part in the Convention, not even the
aged Benjamin Franklin, President of the State.
At the age of eighty-one his powers were failing,
and he was so feeble that his colleague Wilson read
his speeches for him. His opinions were respected,
but they do not seem to have carried much weight.
Other noteworthy members of the Convention,
though hardly in the first class, were the handsome
and charming Rufus King of Massachusetts, one
of the coming men of the country, and Nathaniel
' There is a story which illustrates admirably the audacity of
Morris and the austere dignity of Washington. The story runs
that Morris and several members of the Cabinet were spending
an evening at the President's house in Philadelphia, where they
were discussing the absorbing question of the hour, whatever it
may have been. " The President," Morris is said to have related
on the following day, " was standing with his arms behind him —
his usual position — his back to the fire. I started up and spoke,
stamping, as I walked up and down, with my wooden leg; and, as
I was certain I had the best of the argument, as I finished I stalked
up to the President, slapped him on the back, and said, 'Ain't I
right. General?' The President did not speak, but the majesty
of the American people was before me. Oh, his look! How I
wished the floor would open and I could descend to the cellar!
You know me," continued Mr. Morris, "and you know my eye
would never quail before aiiy other mortal." — W. T. Read, Life
and Correspondence of George Read (1870) p. 441.
8

114 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
Gorham of the same State, who was President of
Congress — a man of good sense rather than of
great ability, but one whose reputation was high
and whose presence was a distinct asset to the Con
vention. Then, too, there were the delegates from
South Carolina: John Rutledge, the orator. Gen
eral Charles Cotesworth Pinckney of Revolutionary
fame, and his cousin, Charles Pinckney. The last
named took a conspicuous part in the proceedings
in Philadelphia but, so far as the outcome was con
cerned, left his mark on the Constitution mainly in
minor matters and details.
The men who have been named were nearly all
supporters of the plan for a centralized government.
On the other side were WilliamPaterson of New
Jersey, who had been Attorney-General of his
State for eleven years and who was respected for
his knowledge and ability; John Dickinson of Dela
ware, the author of the Farmer's Letters and chair
man of the committee of Congress that had framed
the Articles of Confederation — able, scholarly,
and sincere, but nervous, sensitive, and conscien
tious to the verge of timidity — whose refusal to
sign the Declaration of Independence had cost him
his popularity, though he was afterward returned
to Congress and became president successively of

FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
PLATE I
JOHN LANGDON U.
NICHOLAS GILMAN ';
NATHANIEL GORHAM
RUFUS KING
From the Thomas A. Emmet Collection in the New York Public
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THE FEDERAL CONVENTION 115
Delaware and of Pennsylvania; Elbridge Gerry of
Massachusetts, a successful merchant, prominent
in politics, and greatly interested in questions of
commerce and finance; and the Connecticut dele
gates, forming an unusual trio. Dr. William Samuel
Johnson, Roger Sherman, and Oliver EUsworth.
These men were fearful of establishing too strong a
govemment and were at one time or another to be
found in opposition to Madison and his supporters.
They were not mere obstructionists, however, and
while not constructive in the same way that Madi
son and Wilson were, they must be given some
credit for the form which the Constitution finally
assumed. Their greatest service was in restraining
the tendency of the majority to overrule the rights
of States and in modifying the desires of individ
uals for a government that would have been too
strong to work well in practice.
Alexander Hamilton of New York, as one of the
ablest members of the Convention, was expected to
take an important part, but he was out of touch
with the views of the majority. He was aristo
cratic rather than democratic and, however excel
lent his ideas may have been, they were too radi
cal for his feUow delegates and found but little sup
port. He threw his strength in favor of a strong

116 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
government and was ready to aid the movement in
whatever way he could. But within his own delega
tion he was outvoted by Robert Yates and John
Lansing, and before the sessions were half over he
was deprived of a vote by the withdrawal of his
colleagues. Thereupon, finding himself of little
service, he went to New York and returned to
Philadelphia only once or twice for a few days at
a time, and finally to sign the completed document.
Luther Martin of Maryland was an able lawyer
and the Attorney-General of his State; but he was
supposed to be allied with undesirable interests,
and it was said that he had been sent to the Con
vention for the purpose of opposing a strong gov
emment. He proved to be a tiresome speaker and
his prosiness, when added to the suspicion attach
ing to his motives, cost him much of the influence
which he might otherwise have had.
All in all, the delegates to the Federal Conven
tion were a remarkable body of men. Most of them
had played important parts in the drama of the
Revolution; three-fourths of them had served in
Congress, and practically all were persons of note
in their respective States and had held important
public positions. They may not have been the
"assembly of demigods" which Jefferson called

THE FEDERAL CONVENTION 117
them, for another contemporary insisted "that
twenty assemblies of equal number might be col
lected equally respectable both in point of ability,
integrity, and patriotism." Perhaps it would be
safer to regard the Convention as a fairly represen
tative body, which was of a somewhat higher order
than would be gathered together today, because
the social conditions of those days tended to bring
forward men of a better class, and because the
seriousness of the crisis had called out leaders of
the highest type.
Two of three days were consumed in organizing
the Convention — electing officers, considering the
delegates' credentials, and adopting rules of proce
dure; and when these necessary preliminaries had
been accomplished the main business was opened
with the presentation by the Virginia delegation of
a series of resolutions providing for radical changes
in the machinery of the Confederation. The prin
cipal features were the organization of a legislature
of two houses proportional to population and with
increased powers, the establishment of a separate
executive, and the creation of an independent ju
diciary. This was in reality providing for a new
government and was probably quite beyond the

118 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
ideas of most of the members of the Convention,
who had come there under instructions and with
the expectation of revising the Articles of Confed
eration. But after the Virginia Plan had been the
subject of discussion for two weeks so that the
members had become a little more accustomed to
its proposals, and after minor modifications had
been made in the wording of the resolutions, the
Convention was won over to its support. To
check this drift toward radical change the opposi
tion headed by New Jersey and Connecticut pre
sented the so-called New Jersey Plan, which was in
sharp contrast to the Virginia Resolutions, for it
contemplated only a revision of the Articles of Con
federation, but after a relatively short discussion,
the Virginia Plan was adopted by a vote of seven
States against four, with one State divided.
The dividing line between the two parties or
groups in the Convention had quickly manifested
itself. It proved to be the same line that had di
vided the Congress of the Confederation, the cleav
age between the large States and the small States.
The large States were in favor of representation in
both houses of the legislature according to popula
tion, while the small States were opposed to any
change which would deprive them of their equal

THE FEDERAL CONVENTION 119
vote in Congress, and though outvoted, they were
not ready to yield. The Virginia Plan, and subse
quently the New Jersey Plan, had first been con
sidered in committee of the whole, and the ques
tion of "proportional representation," as it was
then called, would accordingly come up again in
formal session. Several weeks had been occupied
by the proceedings, so that it was now near the end
of June, and in general the discussions had been
conducted with remarkably good temper. But it
was evidently the calm before the storm. And the
issue was finally joined when the question of repre
sentation in the two houses again came before the
Convention. The majority of the States on the
29th of June once more voted in favor of propor
tional representation in the lower house. But on
the question of the upper house, owing to a pecu
liar combination of circumstances — the absence
of one delegate and another's change of vote caus
ing the position of their respective States to be re
versed or nullified — the vote on the 2d of July re
sulted in a tie. This brought the proceedings of
the Convention to a standstill. A committee of
one member from each State was appointed to con
sider the question, and, "that time might be given
to the Committee, and to such as chose to attend

120 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
to the celebration on the anniversary of Independ
ence, the Convention adjourned" over the Fourth.
The committee was chosen by ballot, and its com
position was a clear indication that the small-State
men had won their fight, and that a compromise
would be effected.
It was during the debate upon this subject, when
feeling was running high and when at times it
seemed as if the Convention in default of any satis
factory solution would permanently adjourn, that
Franklin proposed that "prayers imploring the as
sistance of Heaven ... be held in this Assembly
every morning." Tradition relates that Hamilton
opposed the motion. ' The members were evidently
afraid of the impression which would be created
outside, if it were suspected that there were dis
sensions in the Convention, and the motion was not
put to a vote.
How far physical conditions may influence men
in adopting any particular course of action it is
impossible to say. But just when the discussion in
the Convention reached a critical stage, just when
the compromise presented by the committee was
ready for adoption or rejection, the weather turned
from .unpleasantly hot to being comfortably cool.
And, after some little time spent in the consideration

FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
'PLATE II'
WILLIAM SAMUEL JOHNSON . '
'¦-¦:- . ROGER SHERMAN •
ALEXANDER HAMILTON
WILLIAM LIVINGSTON
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Library.

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THE FEDERAL CONVENTION 121
of details, on the 16th of July, the great com
promise of the Constitution was adopted. There
was.no other that compared with it in importance.
Its most significant features were that in the upper
house each State should have an equal vote and
that in the lower house representation should be
apportioned on the basis of population, while direct
taxation should follow the same proportion. The
further proviso that money bills should originate
in the lower house and should not be amended in
the upper house was regarded by some delegates as
of considerable importance, though others did not
think so, aud eventually the restriction upon amend
ment by the upper house was dropped.
There has long been a prevailing belief that an
essential feature of the great compromise was the
counting of only three-fifths of the slaves in enu
merating the population. This impression is quite
erroneous. It was one of the details of the com
promise, but it had been a feature of the revenue
amendment of 1783, and it was generally accepted
as a happy solution of the difficulty that slaves pos
sessed the attributes both of persons and of prop
erty. It had been included both in the amended
Virginia Plan and in the New Jersey Plan; and
when it was embodied in the compromise it was

122 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
described as "the ratio recommended by Congress
in their resolutions of April 18, 1783." A few
months later, in explaining the matter to the
Massachusetts convention, Rufus King said that,
"This rule . . . was adopted because it was the
language of all America." In reality the three-
fifths rule was a mere incident in that part of the
great compromise which declared that "represen
tation should be proportioned according to direct
taxation." As a further indication of the attitude
of the Convention upon this point, an amendment
to have the blacks counted equally with the whites
was voted down by eight States against two.
With the adoption of the grfeat compromise a
marked difference was noticeable in the attitude of
the delegates. Those from the large States were
deeply disappointed at the result and they asked
for an adjournment to give them time to consider
what they should do. The next morning, before
the Convention met, they held a meeting to deter
mine upon their course of action. They were apv
parently afraid of taking the responsibility for
breaking up the Convention, so they finally decided^
to let the proceedings go on and to see what might
be the ultimate outcome. Rumors of these dis
sensions had reached the ears of the public, and it

THE FEDERAL CONVENTION 123
may have been to quiet any misgivings that the
following inspired item appeared in several local
papers : "So great is the unanimity, we hear, that
prevails in the Convention, upon all great federal
subjects, that it has been proposed to call the room
in which they assemble Unanimity Hall."
On the other hand the effect of this great com
promise upon the delegates from the small States
was distinctly favorable. Having obtained equal
representation in one branch of the legislature, they
now proceeded with much greater willingness to
consider the strengthening of the central govern
ment. Many details were yet to be arranged, and
sharp differences of opinion existed in connection
with the executive as well as with the judiciary.
But these difficulties were slight in comparison with
those which they had already surmounted in the
matter of representation. By the end of July the
fifteen resolutions of the original Virginia Plan had
been increased to twenty-three, with many en
largements and amendments, and the Convention
had gone as far as it could effectively in determin
ing the general principles upon which the govern
ment should be formed. There were too many
members to work efficiently when it came to the ac
tual framing of a constitution with all the inevitable

124 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
details that were necessary in setting up a ma
chinery of government. Accordingly this task was
turned over to a committee of five members who
had already given evidence of their ability in this
direction. Rutledge was made the chairman, and
the others were Randolph, Gorham, Ellsworth, and
Wilson. To give them time to perfect their work,
on the 26th of July the Convention adjourned for
ten days.

CHAPTER VII

FINISHING THB WORK

Rutledge and his associates on the committee of
detail accomplished so much in such a short time
that it seems as if they must have worked day and
night. Their efforts marked a distinct stage in the
development of the Constitution. The committee
left no records, but some of the members retained
among their private papers drafts of the different
stages of the report they were framing, and we are
therefore able to surmise the way in which the com
mittee proceeded. Of course the members were
bound by the resolutions which had been adopted
by the Convention and they held themselves close
ly to the general principles that had been laid down.
But in the elaboration of details they seem to have
begun with the Articles of Confederation and to
have used all of that document that was consist
ent with the new plan of government. Then they
made use of the New Jersey Plan, which had been
125

126 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
put forward by the smaller States, and of a third
plan which had been presented by Charles Pinck
ney; for the rest they drew largely upon the State
Constitutions. By a combination of these different
sources the committee prepared a document bear
ing a close resemblance to the present Constitution,
although subjects were in a different order and in
somewhat different proportions, which, at the end
of ten days, by working on Sunday, they were able
to present to the Convention. This draft of a
constitution was printed on seven folio pages with
wide margins for notes and emendations.
The Convention resumed its sessions on Mon
day, the 6th of August, and for five weeks the re
port of the committee of detail was the subject of
discussion. For five hours each day, and sometimes
for six hours, the delegates kept persistently at
their task. It was midsummer, and we read in the
diary of one of the members that in all that period
only five days were "cool." Item by item, line by
line, the printed draft of the Constitution was con
sidered. It is not possible, nor is it necessary, to
follow that work minutely; much of it was purely
formal, and yet any one who has had experience
with committee reports knows how much import
ance attaches to matters of phrasing. Just as the

FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
,.5.,, PLATE III
WILLIAM PATERSON
JONATHAN DAYTON
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN
THOMAS MIFFLIN
From the Thomas A. Emmet Collection in the New York Public
Library.

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FINISHING THE WORK 127
Virginia Plan was made more acceptable to the ma
jority by changes in wording that seem to us insig
nificant, so modifications in phrasing slowly won
support for the draft of the Constitution.
The adoption of the great compromise, as we
have seen, changed the whole spirit of the Conven
tion. There was now an expectation on the part
of the members that something definite was going
to be accomplished, and all were concerned in mak
ing the result as good and as acceptable as possible.
In other words, the spirit of compromise pervaded
every action, and it is essential to remember this in
considering what was accomplished.
One of the greatest weaknesses of the Confedera
tion was the inefficiency of Congress. More than
four pages, or three-fifths of the whole printed
draft, were devoted to Congress and its powers.
It is more significant, however, that in the new
Constitution the legislative powers of the Confed
eration were transferred bodily to the Congress of
the United States, and that the powers added were
few in number, although of course of the first im
portance. The Virginia Plan declared that, in ad
dition to the powers under the Confederation, Con
gress should have the right "to legislate in all cases
to which the separate States are incompetent."

128 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
This statement was elaborated in the printed draft
which granted specific powers of taxation, of regu
lating commerce, of establishing a uniform rule of
naturalization, and at the end of the enumeration
of powers two clauses were added giving to Con
gress authority :
To call forth the aid of the militia, in order to execute
the laws of the Union, enforce treaties, suppress insur
rections, and repel invasions;
And to make all laws that shall be necessary and prop
er for carrying into execution the foregoing powers.
On the other hand, it was necessary to place
some limitations upon the power of Congress. A
general restriction was laid by giving to the execu
tive a right of veto, which might be overruled, how
ever, by a two-thirds vote of both houses. Follow
ing British tradition — yielding as it were to an in
herited fear — these delegates in America were led
to place the first restraint upon the exercise of con
gressional authority in connection with treason.
The legislature of the United States was given the
power to declare the punishment of treason; but
treason itself was defined in the Constitution, and
it was further asserted that a person could be con
victed of treason only on the testimony of two wit
nesses, and that attainder of treason should not

FINISHING THE WORK 129
"work corruption of blood nor forfeiture except
during the life of the person attainted." Arising
more nearly out of their own experience was the
prohibition of export taxes, of capitation taxes, and
of the granting of titles of nobility.
While the committee of detail was preparing its
report, the Southern members of that committee
had succeeded in getting a provision inserted that
navigation acts could be passed only by a two-
thirds vote of both houses of the legislature. New
England and the Middle States were strongly in
favor of navigation acts for, if they could require
all American products to be carried in American-
built and American-owned vessels, they would give
a great stimulus to the ship-building and commerce
of the United States. They therefore wished to
give Congress power in this matter on exactly the
same terms that other powers were granted. The
South, however, was opposed to this policy, for it
wanted to encourage the cheapest method of ship
ping its raw materials. The South also wanted a
larger number of slaves to meet its labor demands.
To this need New England was not favorably dis
posed. To reconcile the conflicting interests of the
two sections a compromise was finally reached. The
requirement of a two-thirds vote of both houses for

130 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
the passing of navigation acts which the Southern
members had obtained was abandoned, and on the
other hand it was determined that Congress should
not be allowed to interfere with the importation of
slaves for twenty years. This, again, was one of
the important and conspicuous compromises of the
Constitution. It is liable, however, to be misun
derstood, for one should not read into the senti
ment of the members of the Convention any of the
later strong prejudice against slavery. There were
some who objected on moral grounds to the recog
nition of slavery in the Constitution, and that word
was carefully avoided by referring to "such Persons
as any States now existing shall think proper to ad
mit." And there were some who were especially
opposed to the encouragement of that institution
by permitting the slave trade, but the majority of
the delegates regarded slavery as an accepted in
stitution, as a part of the established order, and
public sentiment on the slave trade was not much
more emphatic and positive than it is now on
cruelty to animals. As Ellsworth said, " The mo
rality or wisdom of slavery are considerations be-r
longing to the States themselves," and the com
promise was nothing more or less than a bargain
between the sections.

FINISHING THE WORK 131
The fundamental weakness of the Confederation
was the inability of the Government to enforce its
decrees, and in spite of the increased powers of
Congress, even including the use of the militia "to
execute the laws of the Union," it was not felt that
this defect had been entirely remedied. Experi
ence under the Confederation had taught men that
something more was necessary in the direction of
restricting the States in matters which might inter
fere with the working of the central Government.
As in the case of the powers of Congress, the Arti
cles of Confederation were again resorted to and
the restrictions which had been placed upon the
States in that document were now embodied in
the Constitution with modifications and additions.
But the final touch was given in connection with
the judiciary.
There was little in the printed draft and there is
comparatively little in the Constitution on the sub
ject of the judiciary. A Federal Supreme Court
was provided for, and Congress was permitted, but
not required, to establish inferior courts; while the
jurisdiction of these tribunals was determined upon
the general principles that it should extend to
cases arising under the Constitution and laws of
the United States, to treaties and cases in which

132 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
foreigners and foreign countries were involved, and
to controversies between States and citizens of dif
ferent States. Nowhere in the document itself is
there any word as to that great power which has
been exercised by the Federal courts of declaring
null and void laws or parts of laws that are re
garded as in contravention to the Constitution.
There is little doubt that the more important men
in the Convention, such as Wilson, Madison, Gou
verneur Morris, King, Gerry, Mason, and Luther
Martin, believed that the judiciary would exercise
this power, even though it should not be specificaUy
granted. The nearest approach to a declaration of
this power is to be found in a paragraph that was
inserted toward the end of the Constitution. Odd
ly enough, this was a modification of a clause intro
duced by Luther Martin with quite another intent.
As adopted it reads : " That this Constitution and
the Laws of the United States . . . and all Trea
ties . . . shall be the supreme Law of the Land;
and the Judges in every State shall be bound there
by; any Thing in the Constitution or Laws of any.
State to the Contrary notwithstanding." This
paragraph may well be regarded as the keystone of
the constitutional arch of national power. Its sig
nificance lies in the fact that the Constitution is

FA THERS OF THE^ CONS TI TUTION
PLATE IV t,
* % , » JARED INGERSOLL ,. '
ROBERT MORRIS
JAMES WILSON
GEORGE CLYMER
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FINISHING THE WORK 133
regarded not as a treaty nor as an agreement between
States, but as a law; and while its enforcement is
backed by armed power,- it is a law enforceable in
the courts.
One whole division of the Constitution has been
as yet barely referred to, and it not only presented
one of the most perplexing problems which the Con
vention faced but one of the last to be settled —
that providing for an executive. There was a gen
eral agreement in the Convention that there should
be a separate executive. The opinion also devel
oped quite early that a single executive was better
than a plural body, but that was as far as the mem
bers could go with any degree of unanimity. At
the outset they seemed to have thought that the
executive would be dependent upon the legislature,
appointed by thajt body, and therefore more or less
subject to its control. But in the course of the
proceedings the tendency was to grant greater and
greater powers to the executive; in other words,
he was becoming a figure of importance. No such
office as that of President of the United States was
then in existence. It was a new position which
they were creating. We have become so accus
tomed to it that it is difficult for us to hark back
to the time when there was no such officer and to

134 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
realize the difficulties and the fears of the men who
were responsible for creating that office.
The presidency was obviously modeled after
the governorship of the individual States, and yet
the incumbent was to be at the head of the
Thurteen States. Rufus King is frequently quot
ed to the effect that the men of that time had
been accustomed to considering themselves sub
jects of the British king. Even at the time of the
Convention there is good evidence to show that
some of the members were still agitating the desir
ability of establishing a monarchy in the United
States. It was a common rumor that a son of
George III was to be invited to come over, and
there is reason to believe that only a few months
before the Convention met Prince Henry of Prussia
was approached by prominent people in this coun
try to see if he could be induced to accept the head
ship of the States, that is, to become the king of the
United States. The members of the Convention
evidently thought that they were establishing
something like a monarchy. As Randolph said,
the people would see "the form at least of a little
monarch, " and they did not want him to have des
potic powers. When the sessions were over, a lady
asked Franklin : " Well, Doctor, what have we got.

FINISHING THE WORK 135
a republic or a monarchy? " " A republic," replied
the doctor, "if you can keep it."
The increase of powers accruing to the executive
office necessitated placing a corresponding check
upon the exercise of those powers. The obvious
method was to render the executive subject to im
peachment, and it was also readily agreed that his
veto might be overruled by a two-thirds vote of
Congress; but some further safeguards were neces
sary, and the whole question accordingly turned
upon the method of his election and the length of
his term. In the course of the proceedings of the
Convention, at several different times, the mem
bers Voted in favor of an appointment by the na
tional legislature, but they also voted against
it. Once they voted for a system of electors cho
sen by the State legislatures and twice they voted
against such a system. Three times they voted to
reconsider the whole question. It is no wonder
that Gerry should say: "We seem to be entirely
at a loss."
So it came to the end of August, with most of the
other matters disposed of and with the patience of
the delegates worn out by the long strain of four
weeks' close application. During the discussions it
had become apparent to every one that an election

136 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
of the President hf the people would give a decided
advantage to the large States, so that again there
was arising the divergence between the large and
small States. In order to hasten matters to a con
clusion, this and all other vexing details upon which
the Convention could not agree were turned over to
a committee made up of a member from each State.
It was this committee which pointed the way to a
compromise by which the choice of the executive
was to be entrusted to electors chosen in each State
as its legislature might direct. The electors were
to be equal in number to the State's representation
in Congress, including both senators and represen
tatives, and in each State they were to meet and to
vote for two persons, one of whom should not be an
inhabitant of that State. The votes were to be
listed and sent to Congress, and the person who had
received the greatest number of votes was to be
President, provided such a number was a majority
of all the electors. In case of a tie the Senate was
to choose between the candidates and, if no one had
a majority, the Senate was to elect "from the five
highest on the list."
This method of voting would have given the
large States a decided advantage, of course, in that
they would appoint the greater number of electors.

FINISHING THE WORK 137
but it was not believed that this system would
ordinarily result in a majority of votes being cast
for one man. Apparently no one anticipated the
formation of political parties which would concen
trate the votes upon one or another candidate. It
was rather expected that in the great majority of
cases — " nineteen times in twenty," one of the dele
gates said — there would be several candidates and
that the selection from those candidates would fall
to the Senate, in which all the States were equally
represented and the small States were in the major
ity. But since the Senate shared so many powers
with the executive, it seemed better to transfer the
right of "eventual election" to the House of Repre
sentatives, where each State was still to have but
one vote. Had this scheme worked as the design
ers expected, the interests of large States and
small States would have been reconciled, since in
effect the large States would name the candidates
and, "nineteen times in twenty," the small States
would choose from among them.
Apparently the question of a third term was
never considered by the delegates in the Con
vention. The chief problem before them was the
method of election. If the President was to be cho
sen by the legislature, he should not be eligible to

138 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
reelection. On the other hand, if there was to be
some form of popular election, an opportunity for
reelection was thought to be a desirable incentive
to good behavior. Six or seven years was taken as
an acceptable length for a single term and four
years a convenient tenure if reelection was per
mitted. It was upon these considerations that the
term of four years was eventually agreed upon,
with no restriction placed upon reelection.
When it was believed that a satisfactory method
of choosing the President had been discovered —
and it is interesting to notice the members of the
Convention later congratulated themselves that at
least this feature of their government was above
criticism — it was decided to give still further pow
ers to the President, such as the making of treaties
and the appointing of ambassadors and judges, al
though the advice and consent of the Senate was
required, and in the case of treaties two-thirds of
the members present must consent.
The presidency was frankly an experiment, the
success of which would depend largely upon the
first election; yet no one seems to have been anx
ious about the first choice of chief magistrate, and
the reason is not far to seek. From the moment
the members agreed that there should be a single

FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
: ¦¦;,-. PLATE V ¦¦ ''
¦ ¦-¦ r't;:.
GOUVERNEUR MORRIS
GEORGE READ
GUNNING BEDFORD, JR.
JOHN DICKINSON
From the Thomas A. Emmet Collection in the New York Public
Library

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FINISHING THE WORK 139
executive they also agreed upon the man for the po
sition. Just as Washington had been chosen unan
imously to preside over the Convention, so it was
generally accepted that he would be the first head
of the new state. Such at least was the trend of
conversation and even of debate on the floor of the
Convention. It indicates something of the con
ception of the office prevailing at the time that
Washington, when he became President, is said to
have preferred the litle, "His High Mightiness, the
Mesident of the United States and Protector of
their Liberties."
The members of the Convention were plainly
growin^tired and there are evidences of haste in
the' work of the last few days. There was a ten
dency to ride rough-shod over those whose tempera
ments forced them to demand rfiodifications in
petty matters. This precipitancy gave rise to con
siderable dissatisfaction and led several delegates
to declare that they would not sign the completed
document. But on the whole the sentiment of the'
Convention was overwhelmingly favorable. Ac
cordingly on Saturday, the 8th of September, a new
committee was appointed, to consist of five mem
bers, whose duty it was "to revise the stile of and
arrange the articles which had been agreed to by

140 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
the House." The committee was chosen by bal
lot and was made up exclusively of friends of the
new Constitution : Doctor Johnson of Connecticut,
Alexander Hamilton, who had returned to Phila
delphia to help in finishing the work, Gouverneur
Morris, James Madison, and Rufus King. On
Wednesday the twelfth, the Committee made its re
port, the greatest credit for which is probably to be
given to Morris, whose powers of expression were so
greatly admired. Another day was spent in wait
ing for the report to be printed. But on Thursday
this was ready, and three days were devoted to go
ing over carefully each article and section and giv
ing the finishing touches. By Saturday the work
of the Convention was brought to a close, and the
Constitution was then ordered to be engrossed.
On Monday, the 17th of September, the Conven
tion met for the last time. A few of those present
being unwilling to sign, Gouverneur Morris again
cleverly devised a form which would make the
action appear to be unanimous: "Done in Con
vention by the unanimous consent of the states
present ... in witness whereof we have here
unto subscribed our names." Thirty-nine dele
gates, representing twelve States, then signed the
Constitution.

FINISHING THE WORK 141
When Charles Biddle of Philadelphia, who was
acquainted with most of the members of the Con
vention, wrote his Autobiography, which was pub
lished in 1802, he declared that for his part he con
sidered the government established by the Consti
tution to be "the best in the world, and as perfect
as any human form of government can be." But
he prefaced that declaration with a statement that
some of the best informed members of the Federal
Convention had told him "they did not believe a
single member was perfectly satisfied with the Con
stitution, but they believed it was the best tbey
could ever agree upon, and that it was infinitely
better to have such a one than break up without
fixing on some form of government, which I believe
at one time it was expected they would have done."
One of the outstanding characteristics of the
members of the Federal Convention was their prac
tical sagacity. They had a very definite object
before them. No matter how much the members
inight talk about democracy in theory or about an
cient confederacies, when it came to action they did
not go outside of their own experience. The Con
stitution was devised to correct well-known defects
and it contained few provisions which had not been
tested by practical political experience. Before

142 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
the Convention met, some of the leading men in the
country had prepared lists of the defects which ex
isted in the Articles of Confederation, and in the
Constitution practicaUy every one of these defects
was corrected and by means which had already
been tested in the States and under the Articles of
Confederation.

CHAPTER VIII
THE UNION ESTABLISHED
The course of English history shows that Anglo-
Saxon tradition is strongly in favor of observing
precedents and of trying to maintain at least the
form of law, even in revolutions. When the Eng
lish people found it impossible to bear with James
II and made it so uncomfortable for him that he
fled the country, they shifted the responsibility
from their own shoulders by charging him with
"breaking the original Contract between King and
People." When the Thirteen Colonies had reached
the point where they felt that they must separate
from England, their spokesman, Thomas Jefferson,
found the necessary justification in the funda
mental compact of the first settlers "in the wilds of
America" where "the emigrants thought proper to
adopt that system of laws under which they had
hitherto lived in the mother country"; and in the
Declaration of Independence he charged the King
143

144 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
of Great Britain with " repeated injuries and usurpa
tions all having in direct object the establishment
of an absolute Tyranny over these States."
And so it was with the change to the new form
of government in the United States, which was ac
complished only by disregarding the forms pre
scribed in the Articles of Confederation and has
been called, therefore, "the Revolution of 1789."
From the outset the new constitution was placed
under the sanction of the old. The movement be
gan with an attempt, outwardly at least, to revise
the Articles of Confederation and in that form was
authorized by Congress. The first breach with the
past was made when the proposal in the Virginia
Resolutions was accepted that amendments made
by the Convention in the Articles of Confederation
should be submitted to assemblies chosen by the
people instead of to the legislatures of the separate
States. This was the more readily accepted be
cause it was believed that ratification by the legis
latures would result in the formation of a treaty
rather than in a working instrument of government.
The next step was to prevent the work of the Con
vention from meeting the fate of all previous
amendments to the Articles of Confederation,
which had required the consent of every State in

FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION,
PLATE VI
Richard bassewt
james mchenry
daniel carroll'
daniel of st. thomas jenifer
From the Thomas A. Emmet Collection in the New York Public
Library.

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THE UNION ESTABLISHED 145
the Union. At the time the committee of detail
made its report, the Convention was ready to agree
that the consent of all the States was not necessary,
and it eventually decided that, when ratified by the
conventions of nine States, the Constitution should
go into effect between the States so ratifying.
It was not within the province of the Convention
to determine what the course of procedure should
be in the individual States; so it simply transmitted
the Constitution to Congress and in an accompany
ing document, which significantly omitted any re
quest for the approval of Congress, strongly ex
pressed the opinion that the Constitution should
"be submitted to a convention of delegates chosen
in each state by the people thereof." This was
nothing less than indirect ratification by the people ;
and, since it was impossible to foretell in advance
which of the States would or would not ratify, the
original draft of "We, the People of the States
of New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island,
. . ." was changed to the phrase "We, the People
of the United States." No man of that day could
imagine how significant this change would appear
in the light of later history.
Congress did not receive the new Constitution
enthusiastically, yet after a few days' discussion

146 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
it unanimously voted, eleven States being pres
ent, that the recommendations of the Convention
should be followed, and accordingly sent the docu
ment to the States, but without a word of approval
or disapproval. On the whole the document was
well received, especially as it was favored by the
upper class, who had the ability and the opportu
nity for expression and were in a position to make
themselves heard. For a time it looked as if the
Constitution would be readily adopted.
The contest over the Constitution in the States
is usually taken as marking the beginning of the
two great national political parties in the United
States. This was, indeed, in a way the first great
national question that could cause such a division.
There had been, to be sure, Whigs and Tories in
America, reproducing British parties, but when the
trouble with the mother country began, the suc
cessive congresses of delegates were recognized and
attended only by the so-called American Whigs,
and after the Declaration of Independence the
name of Tory became a reproach, so that with the
end of the war the Tory party disappeared. After
the Revolution there were local parties in the va
rious States, divided on one and another question,
such as that of hard and soft money, and these issues

THE UNION ESTABLISHED 147
had coincided in different States; but they were
in no sense national parties with organizations,
platforms, and leaders; they were purely local, and
the followers of one or the other would have denied
that they were anything else than Whigs. But a
new issue was now raised. The Whig party split
in two, new leaders appeared, and the elements
gathered in two main divisions — the Federalists
advocating, and the Anti-Federalists opposing, the
adoption of the new Constitution.
There were differences of opinion over all the
questions which had led to the calling of the Fed
eral Convention and the framing of the Constitu
tion and so there was inevitably a division upon the
result of the Convention's work. There were those
who wanted national authority for the suppression
of disorder and of what threatened to be anarchy
throughout the Union; and on the other hand there
were those who opposed a strongly organized gov
ernment through fear of its destroying liberty.
Especially debtors and creditors took opposite
sides, and most of the people in the United States
could have been brought under one or the other
category. The former favored a system of gov
ernment and legislation which would tend to re-
Ueve or postpone the payment of debts; and, as that

148 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
relief would come more readily from the State Gov
ernments, they were naturally the friends of State
rights and State authority and were opposed to any
enlargement of the powers of the Federal Govern
ment. On the other hand, were those who felt the
necessity of preserving inviolate every private and
public obligation and who saw that the separate
power of the States could not accomplish what was
necessary to sustain both public and private cred
it; they were disposed to use the resources of the
Union and accordingly to favor the strengthening
of the national government. In nearly every State
there was a struggle between these classes.
In Philadelphia and the neighborhood there was
great enthusiasm for the new Constitution. Al
most simultaneously with the action by Congress,
and before notification of it had been received, a
motion was introduced in the Pennsylvania As
sembly to call a ratifying convention. The Anti-
Federalists were surprised by the suddenness of
this proposal and to prevent action absented them
selves from the session of the Assembly, leaving
that body two short of the necessary quorum for
the transaction of business. The excitement and
indignation in the city were so great that early the
next morning a crowd gathered, dragged two of the

THE UNION ESTABLISHED 149
absentees from their lodgings to the State House,
and held them firmly in their places until the roll
was called and a quorum counted, when the House
proceeded to order a State convention. As soon
as the news of this vote got out, the city gave itself
up to celebrating the event by the suspension of
business, the ringing of church bells, and other
demonstrations. The elections were hotly con
tested, but the Federalists were generally success
ful. The convention met towards the end of No
vember and, after three weeks of futile discussion,
mainly upon trivial matters and the meaning of
words, ratified the Constitution on the 12th of De
cember, by a vote of forty-six to twenty-three.
Again the city of Philadelphia celebrated.
Pennsylvania was the first State to call a conven
tion, but its final action was anticipated by Dela
ware, where the State convention met and ratified
the Constitution by unanimous vote on the 7th of
December. The New Jersey convention spent only
a week in discussion and then voted, also unani
mously, for ratification on the 18th of December.
The next State to ratify was Georgia, where the
Constitution was approved without a dissenting
vote on January 2, 1788. Connecticut followed
immediately and, after a session of only five days.

150 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
declared itself in favor of the Constitution, on the
9th of. January, by a vote of over three to one.
The results of the campaign for ratification thus
far were most gratifying to the Federalists, but the
issue was not decided. With the exception of
Pennsylvania, the States which had acted were of
lesser importance, and, until Massachusetts, New
York, and Virginia should declare themselves, the
outcome would be in doubt. The convention of
Massachusetts met on the same day that the Con
necticut convention adjourned. The sentiment of
Boston, like that of Philadelphia, was strongly
Federalist; but the outlying districts, and in par
ticular the western part of the State, where Shays'
Rebellion had broken out, were to be counted in the
opposition. There were 355 delegates who took
part in the Massachusetts convention, a larger
number than was chosen in any of the other States,
and the majority seemed to be opposed to ratifica
tion. The division was close, however, and it was
believed that the attitude of two men would deter
mine the result. One of these was Governor John
Hancock, who was chosen chairman of the conven
tion but who did not attend the sessions at the dut-
set, as he was confined to his house by an attack of
gout, which, it was maliciously said, would disappear

FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION.
PLATE VII
GEORGE WASHINGTON
JOHN BLAIR
JAMES MADISON, JR.
WILLIAM BLOUNT
From the Thomas A. Emmet Collection iji the New York Public
: ^ Library. '

ErcLvure, Anderaen ^Lavih , Ca. NY.

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THE UNION ESTABLISHED 151
as soon as it was known which way the majority
of the convention would vote. The other was
Samuel Adams, a genuine friend of liberty, who was
opposed on principle to the general theory of the
government set forth in the Constitution. "I
stumble at the threshold," he wrote. " I meet with
a national government, instead of a federal union
of sovereign states." But, being a shrewd poli
tician, Adams did not commit himself openly and,
when the tradesmen of Boston declared themselves
in favor of ratification, he was ready to yield his
personal opinion.
There were many delegates in the Massachusetts
convention who felt that it was better to amend the
document before them than to try another Federal
Convention, when as good an instrument might not
be devised. If this group were added to those who
were ready to accept the Constitution as it stood,
they would make a majority in favor of the new
government. But the delay involved in amending
was regarded as dangerous, and it was argued that,
as the Constitution made ample provision for
changes, it would be safer and wiser to rely upon
that method. The question was one, therefore, of
immediate or future amendment. Pressure was ac
cordingly brought to bear upon Govemor Hancock

152 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
and intimations were made to him of future politi
cal preferment, untU he was persuaded to propose
immediate ratification of the Constitution, with an
urgent recommendation of such amendments as
would remove the objections of the Massachusetts
people. When this proposal was approved by
Adams, its success was assured, and a few days
later, on the 6th of February, the convention voted
187 to 168 in favor of ratification. Nine amend
ments, largely in the nature of a bill of rights, were
then demanded, and the Massachusetts representa
tives in Congress were enjoined " at all times, . . .
to exert all their influence, and use all reasonable
and legal methods, To obtain a ratification of the
said alterations and provisions." On the very day
this action was taken, Jefferson wrote from Paris to
Madison: "I wish with all my soul that the nine
first conventions may accept the new Constitution,
to secure to us the good it contains; but I equally
wish that the four latest, whichever they may be,
may refuse to accede to it till a declaration of rights
be annexed."
Boston proceeded to celebrate as PhUadelphia,
and Benjamin Lincoln wrote to Washington, on
the 9th of February, enclosing an extract from the
local paper describing the event:

THE UNION ESTABLISHED 153
By the paper your Excellency will observe some ac
count of the parade of the Eighth the printer had by no
means time eno to do justice to the subject. To give
you some idea how far he has been deficient I will men
tion an observation I heard made by a Lady the last
evening who saw the whole that the description in the
paper would no more compare with the original than
the light of the faintest star would with that of the Sun
fortunately for us the whole ended without the least
disorder and the town during the whole evening was,
so far as I could observe perfectly quiet. '
He added another paragraph which he later struck
out as being of little importance; but it throws an
interesting sidelight upon the customs of the time.
The Gentlemen provided at Faneul Hall some bis
cuit & cheese four q' Casks of wine three barrels &
two hog- of punch the moment they found that the
people had drank sufficiently means were taken to
overset the two hog' punch this being done the com
pany dispersed and the day ended most agreeably.^
Maryland came next. When the Federal Con
vention was breaking up, Luther Martin was
speaking of the new system of government to his
colleague, Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer, and ex
claimed: "I'll be hanged if ever the people of
Maryland agree to it!" To which his colleague
'Documentary History, vol. iv, pp. 488-490. ^ Ibid.

154 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
retorted: "I advise you to stay in Philadelphia, lest
you should be hanged." And Jenifer proved to be
right, for in Maryland the Federalists obtained
control of the convention and, by a vote of 63 to 11,
ratified the Constitution on the 26th of April.
In South Carolina, which was the Southern State
next in importance to Virginia, the compromise on
the slave trade proved to be one of the deciding
factors in determining public opinion. When the
elections were held, they resulted in an overwhelm
ing majority for the Federalists, so that after a ses
sion of less than two weeks the convention ratified
the Constitution, on the 28th of May, by a vote of
over two to one.
The only apparent setback which the adoption of
the Constitution had thus far received was in New
Hampshire, where the convention met early in
February and then adjourned until June to see
what the other States might do. But this delay
proved to be of no consequence for, when the time
came for the second meeting of the New Hamp
shire delegates, eight States had already acted fa
vorably and adoption was regarded as a certainty.
This was sufficient to put a stop to any further
waiting, and New Hampshire added its name to the
list on the 21st of June; but the division of opinion

FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION.
PLATE VIII
RICHARD DOBBS SPAIGHT
• HUGH WILLIAMSON ' - :f*;
JOHN RUTLEDGE
CHARLES COTESWORTH PINCKNEY
From the Thomas A. Emmet Coflection in the New York Public
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\ THE UNION ESTABLISHED-
was fairly well represented by the smallness Oj
majority, the vote standing 57 to 46.
Nine States had now ratified the Constitution
and it was to go into effect among them. But the
support of Virginia and New York was of so much
importance that their decisions were awaited with
uneasiness. In Virginia, in spite of the support of
such mpn as Washington and Madison, the senti
ment for and against the Constitution was fairly
evenly divided, and the opposition numbered in its
ranks other names of almost equal influence, such
as Patrick Henry and George Mason. Feeling ran
high; the contest was a bitter one and, even after
the elections had been held and the convention had
opened, early in June, the decision was in doubt
and remained in doubt until the very end. The
situation was, in one respect at least, similar to that
which had existed in Massachusetts, in that it was
possible to get a substantial majority in favor of the
Constitution provided certain amendments were
made. The same arguments were used, strength
ened on the one side by what other States had done,
and on the other side by the plea that now was the
time to hold out for amendments. The example of
Massachusetts, however, seems to have been de
cisive, and on the 25th of June, four days later than

-x'HERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
/ Hampshire, the Virginia convention voted to
.atify, "under the conviction that whatsoever im
perfections may exist in the Constitution ought
rather to be examined in the mode prescribed there
in, than to bring the Union into danger by delay,
with a hope of obtaining amendments previous to
the ratification."
When the New York convention began its ses
sions on the 17th of June, it is said that more than
two-thirds of the delegates were Anti-Federalist in
sentiment. How a majority in favor of the Con
stitution was obtained has never been adequately
explained, but it is certain that the main credit for
the achievement belongs to Alexander Hamilton.
He had early realized how greatly it would help the
prospects of the Constitution if thinking people
could be brought to an appreciation of the import
ance and value of the new form of government. In
order to reach the intelligent public everywhere,
but particularly in New York, he projected a series
of essays which should be published in the news
papers, setting forth the aims and purposes of the
Constitution. He secured the assistance of Madi
son and Jay, and before the end of October, 1787,
published the first essay in The Independent Gazet
teer. From that time on these papers continued to

.lE UNION ESTABLISHED 157
ued over the signature of "Publius," some-
.<js as many as three or four in a week. There
were eighty-five numbers altogether, which have
ever since been known as The Federalist. Of these
approximately fifty were the work of Hamilton,
Madison wrote about thirty and Jay five. Al
though the essays were widely copied in other
journals, and form for us the most important com
mentary on the Constitution, making what is re
garded as one of America's greatest books, it is
doubtful how much immediate influence they had.
Certainly in the New York convention itself Ham-
Uton's personal influence was a stronger force. His
arguments were both eloquent and cogent, and met
every objection; and his efforts to win over the op
position were imremitting. The news which came
by express riders from New Hampshire and then
from Virginia were also deciding factors, for New
York could not afford to remain out of the new
Union if it was to embrace States on either side.
And yet the debate continued, as the opposition was
putting forth every effort to make ratification con
ditional upon certain amendments being adopted.
But Hamilton resolutely refused to make any con
cessions and at length was successful in persuading
the New York convention, by a vote of 30 against

158 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
27, on the 26th of July, to follow the example of
Massachusetts and Virginia and to ratify the Con
stitution with merely a recommendation of future
amendments. The satisfaction of the country at the outcome of
the long and momentous struggle over the adoption
of the new government was unmistakable. Even
before the action of New York had been taken, the
Fourth of July was made the occasion for a great
celebration throughout the United States, both as
the anniversary of independence and as the con
summation of the Union by the adoption of the
Constitution. The general rejoicing was somewhat tempered,
however, by the reluctance of North Carolina
and Rhode Island to come under "the new roof."
Had the convention which met on the 21st of
July in North Carolina reached a vote, it would
probably have defeated the Constitution, but it was
doubtless restrained by the action of New York
and adjourned without coming to a decision. A
second convention was called in September, 1789,
and in the meantime the new government had come
into operation and was bringing pressure to bear
upon the recalcitrant States which refused to aban
don the old union for the new. One of the earliest

THE UNION ESTABLISHED 159
acts passed by Congress was a revenue act, levying
duties upon foreign goods imported, which were
made specifically to apply to imports from Rhode
Island and North Carolina. This was sufficient
for North Carolina, and on November 21, 1789, the
convention ratified the Constitution. But Rhode
Island still held out. A convention of that State
was finaUy called to meet in March, 1790, but ac
complished nothing and avoided a decision by ad
journing until May. The Federal Government
then proceeded to threaten drastic measures by
taking up a bill which authorized the President to
suspend all commercial intercourse with Rhode
Island and to demand of that State the payment
of its share of the Federal debt. The bill passed
the Senate but stopped there, for the State gave in
and ratified the Constitution on the 29th of May.
Two weeks later Ellsworth, who was now United
States Senator from Connecticut, wrote that
Rhode Island had been "brought into the Union,
and by a pretty cold measure in Congress, which
would have exposed me to some censure, had it not
produced the effect which I expected it would and
which in fact it has done. But 'all is well that ends
weU.' The Constitution is now adopted by all the
States and I have much satisfaction, and perhaps

160 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
some vanity, in seeing, at length, a great work fin
ished, for which I have long labored incessantly." '
Perhaps the most striking feature of these con
ventions is the trivial character of the objections
that were raised. Some of the arguments, it is
true, went to the very heart of the matter and con
sidered the fundamental principles of government.
It is possible to tolerate and even to sympathize
with a man who declared :
Among other deformities the Constitution has an aw
ful squinting. It squints toward monarchy; . . .
your president may easily become a king. ... If
your American chief be a man of ambition and ability
how easy it is for him to render himself absolute. We
shall have a king. The army will salute him monarch. '
But it is hard to take seriously a delegate who
asked permission "to make a short apostrophe to
liberty," and then delivered himself of this bathos:
O liberty ! — thou greatest good — thou fairest prop
erty — with thee I wish to live — with thee I wish to
die ! — Pardon me if I drop a tear on the peril to which
she is exposed; I cannot, sir, see this brightest of jewels
tarnished! a jewel worth ten thousand worlds! and
shall we part with it so soon.? Ono!^
' " Connecticut's Ratification pf the Federal Constitution,"
by B. C. Steiner, in Proceedings of the American Antiquarian
Society, April, 1915, pp. 88-89.
' Elliot's Debates on the Federal Constitution, vol. iii, p. 144.

FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION.
PLATE IX
CHARLES PINCKNEY
PIERCE BUTLER
WILLIAM FEW
ABRAHAM BALDWIN
From the Thomas A. Emmet Collection in the New York Public
Library.

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THE UNION ESTABLISHED 161
There might be some reason in objecting to the
excessive power vested in Congress; but what is one
to think of the fear that imagined the greatest point
of danger to lie in the ten miles square which later
became the District of Columbia, because the Gov
ernment might erect a fortified stronghold which
would be invincible? Again, in the light of subse
quent events it is laughable to find many protesting
that, although each house was required to keep a
journal of proceedings, it was only required "from
time to time to publish the same, excepting such parts
as may in their judgment require secrecy." All sorts
of personal charges were made against those who
were responsible for the framing of the Constitution.
Hopkinson wrote to Jefferson in April, 1788:
You will be surprised when I tell you that our public
News Papers have anounced General Washington to be
a Fool influenced & lead by that Knave Dr. Franklin,
who is a public Defaulter for Millions of Dollars, that
Mr. Morris has defrauded the Public out of as many
Millions as you please & that they are to cover their
frauds by this new Government.'
All things considered,-it is difficult to avoid the con
clusion that such critics and detractors were trying
to find excuses for their opposition.
' Documentary History of the Constitution, vol. iv, p. 563.

162 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
The majorities in the various conventions can
hardly be said really to represent the people of their
States, for only a small percentage of the people
had voted in electing them; they were representa
tive rather of the propertied upper class. This cir
cumstance has given rise to the charge that the
Constitution was framed and adopted by men who
were interested in the protection of property, in the
maintenance of the value of government securities,
and in the payment of debts which had been in
curred by the individual States in the course of the
Revolution. Property-holders were unquestion
ably assisted by the mere establishment of a strong
government. The creditor class seemed to require
some special provision and, when the powers of
Congress were under consideration in the Federal
Convention, several of the members argued strong
ly for a positive injunction on Congress to assume
obligations of the States. The chief objection to
this procedure seemed to be based upon the fear of
benefiting speculators rather than the legitimate
creditors, and the matter was fijially compromised
by providing that all debts should be "as valid
against the United States under this Constitution
as under the Confederation."' The charge that the
Constitution was framed and its adoption obtained

THE UNION ESTABLISHED 163
by men of property and wealth is undoubtedly
true, but it is a mistake to attribute unworthy mo
tives to them. The upper classes in the United
States were generally people of wealth and so
would be the natural holders of government secur
ities. They were undoubtedly acting in self-pro
tection, but the responsibility rested upon them
to take the lead. They were acting indeed for
the public interest in the largest sense, for condi
tions in the United States were such that every
man inight become a landowner and the people in
general therefore wished to have property rights
protected. In the autumn of 1788 the Congress of the old
Confederation made testamentary provision for its
heir by voting that presidential electors should be
chosen on the first Wednesday in January, 1789;
that these electors should meet and cast their votes
for President on the first Wednesday in February;
and that the Senate and House of Representatives
should assemble on the first Wednesday in March.
It was also decided that the seat of government
should be in the City of New York until otherwise
ordered by Congress. In accordance with this pro
cedure, the requisite elections were held, and the
new govemment was duly instaUed. It happened

164 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
in 1789 that the first Wednesday in March was
the fourth day of that month, which thereby be
came the date for the beginning of each subsequent
administration.
The acid test of efficiency was still to be applied
to the new machinery of government. But Amer
icans then, as now, were an adaptable people, with
political genius, and they would have been able to
make almost any form of government succeed. If
the Federal Convention had never met, there is
good reason for believing that the Articles of Con
federation, with some amendments, would have
been made to work. The success of the new gov
ernment was therefore in a large measure depend
ent upon the favor of the people. If they wished
to do so, they could make it win out in spite of ob
stacles. In other words, the new government would
succeed exactly to the extent to which the people
stood back of it. This was the critical moment
when the slowly growing prosperity, described at
length and emphasized in the previous chapters,
produced one of its most important effects. In
June, 1788, Washington wrote to Lafayette:
I expect, that many blessings will be attributed to
our new government, which are now taking their rise
from that industry and frugality into the practice of

FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION.
PLATE X
WILLIAM JACKSON, SECRETARY OF THE FEDERAL
CONVmTION
DAVID BREARLEY {Signature Only)
THOM.iS FITZSIMONS (Signature Only)
JACOB BROOM {Signature Only)
From the Thomas A. Emmet Collection in the New York Public
Library.

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THE UNION ESTABLISHED 165
which the people have been forced from necessity. I
really believe that there never was so much labour and
economy to be found before in the country as at the
present moment. If they persist in the habits they are
acquiring, the good effects will soon be distinguishable.
When the people shall find themselves secure under an
energetic government, when foreign Nations shall be
disposed to give us equal advantages in commerce from
dread of retaliation, when the burdens of the war shall
be in a manner done away by the sale of western lands,
when the seeds of happiness which are sown here shall
begin to expand themselves, and when every one (un
der his own vine and fig-tree) shall begin to taste the
fruits of freedom — then all these blessings (for all
these blessings will come) will be referred to the foster
ing influence of the new government. Whereas many
causes will have conspired to produce them.
A few months later a similar opinion was expressed
by Crevecoeur in writing to Jefferson :
Never was so great a change in the opinion of the
best people as has happened these five years; almost
everybody feels the necessity of coercive laws, gov
ernment, union, industry, and labor. . . The ex
ports of this country have singularly increased within
these two years, and the imports have decreased in
proportion.The new Federal Government was fortunate in be
ginning its career at the moment when returning

166 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
prosperity was predisposing the people to think
well of it. The inauguration of Washington marked
the opening of a new era for the people of the
United States of America.

APPENDIX'
THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE —
1776
In Congress, July 4, 1776
The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States
of America
When in the Course of human events, it becomes
necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands
which have connected them with another, and to as
sume among the Powers of the earth, the separate and
equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Na
ture's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opin
ions of mankind requires that they should declare the
causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men
are created equal, that they are endowed by their Crea
tor with certain unalienable Rights, that among these
are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That
to secure these rights, Governments are instituted
among Men, deriving their just powers from the con
sent of the governed. That whenever any Form of Gov
ernment becomes destructive of these ends, it is the
' The documents in this Appendix follow the text of the Revised
Statutes of the United States, Second Edition, 1878.
167

168 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to in
stitute new Government, laying its foundation on such
principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to
them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and
Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Gov
ernments long established should not be changed for
light and transient causes; and accordingly all expe
rience hath shown, that mankind are more disposed to
suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right them
selves by abolishing the forms to which they are accus
tomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpa
tions, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a
design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is
their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Govern
ment, and to provide new Guards for their future se
curity. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these
Colonies; and such is now the necessity which con
strains them to alter their former Systems of Govern
ment. The history of the present King of Great Brit
ain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations,
all having in direct object the establishment of an ab
solute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let
Facts be submitted to a candid world.
He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most whole
some and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of im
mediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in
their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and
when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend
to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommo
dation of large districts of people, unless those people
would relinquish the right of Representation in the

DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE 169
Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable
to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places
unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the deposi
tory of their Public Records, for the sole purpose of
fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly,
for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the
rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolu
tions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legis
lative Powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned
to the People at large for their exercise; the State re
maining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers
of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavoured to prevent the population of
these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for
Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others
to encourage their migration hither, and raising the
conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by
refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary
Powers. He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone,
for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and
payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent
hither swarms of Officers to harrass our People, and eat
out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing
Armies without the Consent of our legislature.
He has affected to render the Military independent
of and superior to the Civil Power.

170 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
He has combined with others to subject us to a juris
diction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowl
edged by our laws; giving his Assent to their acts of
pretended Legislation :
For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us :
For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from Punish
ment for any Murders which they should commit on
the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world :
For imposing taxes on us without our Consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of
Trial by Jury:
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for
pretended offences :
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a
neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbi
trary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as
to render it at once an example and fit instrument for
introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies :
For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most
valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms
of our Government :
For suspending our own Legislature, and declaring
themselves invested with Power to legislate for us in
all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us
out of his Protection and waging War against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts,
burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign
mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desola
tion and tyranny, already begun with circumstances
of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most

DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE 171
barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a
civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Cap
tive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Coun
try, to become the executioners of their friends and
Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us,
and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our
frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known
rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all
ages, sexes and conditions.
In every stage of these Oppressions We have Peti
tioned for Redress in the most humble terms : Our re
peated Petitions have been answered only by repeated
injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by
every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the
ruler of a free People.
Nor have We been wanting in attention to our Brit-
tish brethren. We have warned them from time to
time of attempts by their legislature to extend an un
warrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded
them of the circumstances of our emigration and settle
ment here. We have appealed to their native justice
and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the
ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpa
tions, which, would inevitably interrupt our connec
tions and correspondence[.] They too have been deaf
to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must,
therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces
our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of
mankind. Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.
We, therefore, the Representative of the united
States of America, in General Congress, Assembled,

172 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the
rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by
Authority of the good People of these Colonies, sol
emnly publish and declare. That these United Colonies
are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent
States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to
the British Crown, and that all political connection be
tween them and the State of Great Britain, is and
ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and In
dependent States, they have full Power to levy War,
conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Com
merce, and to do all other Acts and Things which
Independent States may of right do. And for the
support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance
on the Protection of Divine Providence, we mutually
pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our
sacred Honor.
John Hancock.
New Hampshire.
Josiah Bahtlett, Matthew Thornton.
Wm. Whipple,
Massachusetts Bay.
Saml. Aoams, Robt. Treat Paine,
John Adams, Elbridge Gerby.
Rhode Island,
Step. Hopkins, William Elleby.
Connecticut.
Rogeb Sherman, Wm. Williams,
Sam'el Huntington, Oliver Wolcott.

DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE 173
New York.

Wm. Floyd,
Phil. Livingston,

Fbans. Lewis,
Lewis Moebis.

New Jersey.

Richd. Stockton,
Jno. Witherspoon,
Fras. Hopkinson,

John Hart,
Abra. Clark.

Pennsylvania.

Robt. Mobbis,
Benjamin Rush,
Benja. Franklin,
John Morton,
Geo. Clymer,

CiESAB Rodney,
Geo. Read,

Samuel Chase,
Wm. Paca,

Jas. Smith,
Geo. Taylor,
James Wilson,
Geo. Ross.

Delaware.
Tho. M'Kean.

Maryland.

Thos. S'tone,
Charles Cabboll of Car
roll ton.

Virginia.

George Wythe,
Richabd Henby Lee,
Th. Jefferson,
Benja. Harrison,

Thos. Nelson, Jr.,
Feancis Lightfoot Lee,
Cabteb Braxton.

174 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
North Carolina.
Wm. Hooper, John Penn.
Joseph Hewes,
South Carolina.
Edward Rutledge, Thomas Lynch, Junk.,
Thos. Heywaed, June., Aethue Middleton.
Georgia.
Button Gwinnett, Geo. Walton.
Lyman Hall,
Note. — Mr. Ferdinand Jefferson, Keeper of the Rolls in the
Department of State, at Washington, says: "The names of
the signers are spelt above as in the fac-simile of the original,
but the punctuation of them is not always the same; neither do
the names of the States appear in the fac-simile of the original.
The names of the signers of each State are grouped together
in the fac-simile of the original, except the name of Matthew
Thornton, which follows that of Oliver Wolcott."

ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION — 1777.
To all to whom these Presents shall come, we the under-
signed Delegates of the States affixed to our Names
send greeting.
Whebeas the Delegates of the United States of
- -.  .i-iiiiiii-i  ''¦ •^11  »riniiiii«inniiiiiiMiiiiiiu»i«ru«iinni»— iMilii-iiiiiiHi
America in Congress assembled did on the fifteenth.
day of November in the Year of our Lord One
Thousand ^e^sa- HludJCaL.aB4...§eS£^ and
in the Second Year of the Independence of America
agree to certain articles of Confederation and per
petual Union between the States of Newhampshire,
Massachusetts-bay, Rhodeisland and ProvidenSg'
Plantations, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey,
Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North-
Carolina, South-Carolina and Georgia in the Words
following, viz.
"Articles of Confederation and ferpetual Union between
the States of Newhampshire, MassacKuseUs-day,
Rhodeisland and Providence Plantations, Con
necticut, New-York, New- Jersey, Pennsylvania,
Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North-Carolina,
South-Carolina and Georgia.
Aeticle I. The stile of this confederacy shall be
"The United States of America."

176 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
Abticle II. Each State retains its sovereignty,
freedom and independence, and every power, juris
diction and right, which is not by this confederation
expressly delegated to the United States, in Congress
assembled. Aeticle TTT. The said States hereby severally
enter into a'firmUeague^f friendship with each other,
for their commondefence. the security of their liber-
ties, and their mutual and general welfare, binding
themselve^J;Q.agdslsadLQthfci;^againstan^ offered
to, or attacks made upon them, or any of them, on
account of religion, sovereignty, trade, or any other
pretence whatever.
Aeticle IV. The better to secure and perpetuate
mutual friendship and intercourse among the people of
the different States in this Union, the free inhabitants
of each of these States, paupers, vagabonds andfugi^
tives from justice excepted, shall be entitled to all priv-
iljSgg-asydJffimuBiJ4es»of«fj!jee,jGitizeB5JE2E ^taJea; and the people of each State shall have free in
gress and regress to and from any other State, and shall
enjoy therein all the privileges of trade and commerce,
subject to the same duties, impositions andlfesl^cfions
as the inhabitants thereof respectively, pro^Hecf^EKat
such restrictions shall not extend soj .ar as to prey ent
the removal of property imported into any State, to
any other State of which the owner is an inhabitant;
provided also that no imposition, duties or restriction
shall be laid by any State, on the property of the
United States, or either of them.
If any person guilty of, or charged with treason, fel
ony, or other high mij„demea|i,2j^n^^
from justice, and be found in any of the United States,

ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION 177
he shall upon demand of the Governor or Executive

;.-i.5; :--^>**nJni^5«j«

power, of the State from wWdi h¥^ iSedTbeSenvered
up and removed to the State having jurisdiction of
his offence.
EuU faith and credit sha^ be given in each of these
States to the records, acts and judicial proceedings of
the fflMta ^iP.dnmHsistri'lrfis' i^f.ryfiry jihsx^^''^''
Aeticle V. For the more convenient management
of the general interests of the United States, delegates
shall be annually a,pppinted in suchjuanner as the leg-
islature qf^each State shall direct, to meet in Congress
on the first MondayJnN^ggiJ^r^ in eveiyyearrwrni
a power reserved to each State, to recall its delegates,
or any of them, at any time within the year, and to
send others in their stead, for the remainder of the year.
% -State .ahalLh£L-repi:ftae.n.t.Rd. in-Coneress bv less
than two, nor by more than seven members; and no
person shall be capable of bemg a deleigate f or more
than three year^m ajiy |g|;a,Qfj^years; nor shall a^ay
person, being a delegate, be capable of holding any of
fice under the United States, for which he, or another
for his benefit receives any salary, fees or emolument
of any kind.
Each State shall maintain its own delegates in a
meeting of the States, and while they act as members
of the committee of the States.
In determining questions in the United States, in
Congress assembled, each State shall haye onexQte.
Freedom of speech and debate in Congress shall Jiot„
be impea^L&d or fluestioned in any court, or place out
of Congress, and the members of Congress shall be
protected in their persons from arrests and imprison
ments, during the time of their going^TolindTFromrand

178 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
attendance on Congress, except for treason, felony, or
breach of the peace.
Abticle VI. No gtate ;withpuL.tlije.jCQ,PiSfiBitwflLtbe
United .States in Congress assembled, shall send any
embassy to, or receive any embassy from, or enter into
any conference, a^Teementj^^^^Qii^j^;j,Sea^^^^^^y
king prince or state; nor shall any person holding any
office of profit or trust under the United States, or any
of them, accept of any present, emolument, office or
title of any kind whatever fromany king, prince or
foreign state; nor shall the United States in Congress
assembled, or any of them, griaJ^afljOitkaUQJaJllty-
No^iS^_^„j^pe,,Stets§^ mim iato«aflK,isggiy.
confederation or alliance whatever between them.
Without the consent otIteJUmteLd States m Congress
assembled, specifying accurately the purpos^^or
which the same is to be entered into, and how long it
shall continue.
No state shall lay any imposts or duties, which may
interfere with any stipulations in treaties, entered into
by the United States in Congress assembled, ^j^^ny
king, Bjince or^^gjje;^ in pursuance of any treaties al
ready proposed by Congress, to the courts of France
and Spain.
No vessels of war shall be kept up in time of peace
^yjany^. Slate, except such number only, as shall be
de^medjij.Qfes§ary |j.,^^ia,^4^4^tes in Congress
assembled, for |he^^g|fiBCfe^L§UiA..^ate, or its trade;
nor shall any body of forces be kept up by any State,
iiTtime or peace, e^^gt^uch number only, as in the
judgment of the United States, in Congress assembled,
shall be deemed requisite to garrison the fortsneces-
sary for the defence of such State ; but every State shall

ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION 179
always keep up a well regulated and disciplined militia,
sufficiently armed an3^ accouterecC and shall provide
and constantly have ready for use, in public stores, a
due number of field pieces and tents, and a proper
quantity of arms, ammunition and camp equipage.
No State shall engage in any war without the con-
s§iit.of,the.|I|dJgi^§,t|ite.s,iiisuch State be actually invaded by enemies,^ or shall
have received certain advice of a resolution being
formed by some nation of Indians to invade such State,
and the dgnger is so imminent as not to admit of a de
lay, till the llhited States'in Congress assembled can
be consulted : nor shall any State grant commissions to
any ships or vesselsoFwarTnor letters of marque or re-
^»yi„llWMW,,lil»»a«W*<ilWWMBgi^-a'.: : vqWJB^MHMIM; 11,. li 1 ,
prisai, except it be after a declaration of war by the
United States in Cgngress- assembled, and then only
against the kingdom or state and the subjects thereof,
against which war has been so declared, and under
such regulations as shall be established by the United
States in Congress assembled, unless such State be in-
f^stgd .by pirates, in which case vessels of war may be
fitted out for that occasion, and kept so long as the
danger shall continue, or until the United States in
Congress assembled shall determine otherwise.
Aeticle VII. When land-forces are raised by any
State for the common defence, ^ officers,jg{42r.,uader
the ranfc ofcolonel, shall be appointed by the Legisla-
tjuTg^ipf^cK^StSe respectively by whom such forces
shall be raised, or in such manner as such otate snail
direct, and all vacancies shall be filled up by the State
which first made the appointment.
Article VIII. All charges of war, and all other ex
penses that shall be incurred for the common defence

180 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION

or general welfare, and allowed by the United States
in Congress assembled, .shall be defrayed out of a com-
mrar^ea^u^j^ which shallbe su,g}iii|^^,^YJth£.gfiMfiTa^
/States^ is. proportiqnJaJft&^iAH&JSLa^^
leach State, granted to or surveyed for any person, as
OTch land and the buildings and improvements thereon
shall be estimated according to such mode as the
United States in Congress assembled, shall from time
to time direct and appoint.
The,t2^£for^gajQng^tibat,.KgB2^^
and levied by the authority and direction of the Legis-
latures of the several States within the time agreed
uponTyHS^TInitea'Sfafesm Congress assembled.
Abticle IX. The United States ijQjQgjjgjUl as
sembled, shall have tEe''''solie^|^!3^^^^^^ ^!t?^^ ^^^
power of determining on Deacej^dwarTexcq^in the
cases mentioned in the sixth article — of sending and
' receiving ambassadors — e^g^g^agiatoAEeaifes and al
liances, provided that no treaty of commerce shall be
made whereby the legislative power of'the' respecliv'e
States shall be restrained from imposing such imposts
and duties on foreigners, as their own people are sub
jected to, or from prohibiting the exportation or im-
pprtation.of any spe.ci<S?.of,goods or commodities what-
of establishing rules for deciding in all cases,
O^.B.kML^«ffiaiSEjaiUiSsJsS^I. and in
what manner prizes taken by land or naval forces in
, nt ""'"I i'i[[Bni 1,11^,1 iijiiii 1111*1 'i^i — r — -• ^ ^
the service of the United states shall be diyide-d or ap
propriated — of granting letter-S-.oj,^jmAr.gue,,ftnd^^e-
^sal in times of peace — appointing courts for the
trial''of piracies and feloniescqm^^^cl^qn, the high
gggil^nd establishing courts for receiving and deter
mining finally appeals in aU cases of captures, provided

ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION 181

that no member of Congress shall be appointed a judge
of any of the said courts.
The United States in Congress assembled shall also
be the Jast resort on appeaHna^^^ and differ
ences now siibsistiiigorthat h^^ arise be
tween two or more States concerning boundary, juris
diction or any other cause whatever; which authority
shall always be exercised in the manner following.
Whenever the legislative or executive authority_or
lawful agent of any State in controversy withanother
shall present a petition to Congress^ the matter
in question and praying for a hearing, notice thereof
shall be given by order of Congress tothelegislatiye
^ ^1  1  Iil'iii.  wi.WArfffnilWMWWWiBWIWIIIIIMIMNIIilMIWliWMIHIIWWWIIIIWI
or executive authority of the other State in contro-
versy, and a day assignedJgjJ^gjiPijgaBan^^
parties by their lawful agents, who shall then be di
rected to appoint by joint consent, commissioners or
judges to constitute a"^6urt for heariiig'andBeterih
ing'tiie' maTirer"ih question: but if they cannot agree,
Congress shall name three persons out of each of the
United States, and from the list of such persons each
party shall alternately strike out one, the petitioners
beginning, until the number shall be reduced to thir-
teen; and from that number not less than seven, nor
more than nine names as Congress shall direct, shall
in the presence of Congress be drawn out by lot, and
the persons whose names shall be so drawn or any five
of them, shall be commissioners or jud^s^to hear and
^miS~M^Sm3M^^^SSil» so always ai-STna=p"
jor part of the judges who shall hear the cause shall
agree in the determination: and if either party shall
neglect to attend at the day appointed, without show
ing reasons, which Congress shall judge sufficient, or

182 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
being present shall refuse to strike, the Congress shall
proceed to nominate three persons oi;it_of each State.
and the Secretary of Congress shall strike in behalf of
such party absent or refusing; and the judgment and
sentence of the court to be appointed, in the manner
before prescribed, shall be_fiMlj!!Bd.coi^gliisive.; and if
any of the parties shall refuse to submit to the author-
ity of such court, or to appear or defend their claim or
cause, the court shall nevertheless -Proceed to oro-
nounce sentence, or judgment, which shall in like man-
Sr'(^'e'5riai!['"a(^Lieci^e, the judgment or sentence and
other proceedings being in either case transmitted to
Congress, and lodged among the acts of Congress for
the security of the parties concerned: provided that
Qvery commissioner, before he sits in judgment, shall
take an oath tob^ administered by one of the judges of
the supreme or superior court of the State where the
cause shall be tried, "well and truly to hear and deter-
mine the mattgr in question, according to the best of
ms judgment, without favour, affection or hope of re
ward : " provided also that no State shall be deprived
of territory for the benefit of the United States.
All controversies concerning thejgrrrat£rightofsoil
claimed under different grants of two or more States,
whose jurisdiction as they may respect such lands, and
the States which passed such grants are adjusted, the
said grants or either of them being at the same time
claimed to have originated antecedent to such settle
ment of jurisdiction, shall on the petition of either
party to the Congress of the Tfnlted States, Dennally
determined as near as may be m the same manner
ag.LS-before pre-Scribed for deciding disputes respecting
territorial-Jurisdiction between different States.

ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION 183

The Uffited^St^aJf^ffl,,^(^i^^ assembled shall also
have thegQig,jffii,^ij^3^ja^[iii,Sadj^ of '^^g^^^-
ing the alloy and value of coin strucKby their" own
authority, or by that of the respective States. — fixing
the standard of weights^and fflgggisei throughout the
United States. — regidatrngj^^^^^^^^ean^^
all affairs with the Indians, not members of any of the
States, provided that the legislative right of any State
within its own limits be not infringed or violated —
establishing and regulatiELg_post-officea from one State
to another, throughout all the United States, and ex
acting such postage on the papers passing thro' the
same as may be requisite to defray the expenses of the
said office — appointing all officers of the land forces,
in the service of the United States, excepting regimen
tal officers — appointing all the officers of the naval
y*.;  ¦; I y ,ii.iii;riiMiii.iiiiiriiniiiiiiii»iiiiiiiii«»miiMiiiiimaiiiiffliM«tii
forces, and commissioning all officers whatever in the
service of the United States — making rules for the
government and regulation of the said land and naval
forces, and directing their operations.
The United States in Congress assembled shall have
authority to appoint a committee, to sit in the recess of
¦.-^^  — '"^ ril|||i^'^il^l,HB|(HIMiBl!Mi|lHM|lllllllll»llT*tll|WIIIIII ^-^ .
Congress, fo be denominated "a Committee of the
States," and to consist of one delegate from each State;
"^'Tf^^WMi^iiiiiiigiMirMyjntftf^Wi**^^''*'''^'"'^'"'"''"'^^'''^''^^^^^^^ .'-1 '-'. . *i I'y^ i^-.'
and to appoint sucn other committees and civil omcers
as may be necessary for uianagmg the j

general affairs of
the United States under their direction — to appoint
one of their number'to preside, provided that no person
be allowed to serve in the office of president mgre_than
nj)Rj^ea.r in any term of three years; to ascertain the
necessarv aums of money to be raised for the service of
the United States, and to appropriate and apply the
same for defraying the public expenses — to borrow

184 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION

money, or emit bills on the credit of the United States,
transmitting every, half vear- to the respective States
an account of the sums of money so
to build and equip a navy

emitted.

borrowed or
to agree up

on the number onandTOTces. and to make rfif||]ififliWBi°
from each State for its c^ in proportion to the num-
ber oi white mhabitants m such State; which requisi
tion .sh j|y^|),^ l^lqfiiqg. and thereupon the Legislature of
each State shall appoint the regimental officers, raise
the men and cloath, arm and equip them in a soldier
like manner, at the expense of the Unitec

states; anc
the officers and men so cloathed, arme J and equipped
shall march to the place appointed, and within the
time agreed on by the United States in Congress as
sembled: but if the United States in Congress as
sembled shall, on consideration of cijijgumstancesjudge
proper that any State should not raisem^nTor sEould
raise a sjmaller number than its quota, and that any
other State should raise a greater number of men than
the quota thereof, such extra number shall be raised,
officered, cloathed, armed and equipped in the same
manner as the quota of such State, unless the legisla-
,fure of such State shall judge that such extra number
I cannot be safelv-Anaied-QuEmLthe-sajne. in whicS^se
they shall raise officer, cloath, arm and equip as njany
of such extra number as they judge can be safely
spared. And the officers and men so cloathed, armed
and equipped, shall march to the place appointed, and
within the time agreed on by the United States in
Congress assembled.
The United States in Congress assembled shall never
engagemaw^, nor grant letters of marque and re-
prisaTm timeof peace, nor enter into any treaties or

ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION 185
alliances, nor coin money, nor regulate the value there
of, nor ascertain tFesums and expenses necessary for
the defence and w^ any of
them, nor emit bills, nor borrow money on the credit
of the United States, nor appropriate money, Dor agree
upon the number of vessels of war, to be built or pur
chased, or the number of land or sea forces to be raised,
nor appoint a commander in chief of the army or navy,
unless nine States assent to the same : nor shall a ques-
-¦. ¦ — - — I  nii-iimiHii  ¦ii»yw  --
tion on any other point, except for adjourning from
day to day be determined,' unless by the votes of a
majority of the United States in Congress assembled.
The Congress of the United States shall havepower
to adjourn to any time within the year^^and :S^^
g]lace,.mthin the^Um^^ that no period of
adjournment be for a longer duration than the space
of six months, and shall publish the journal of their
proceedings niaa.thLY...except such parts thereof relat
ing to treaties, alliances or military operations, as in
their judgment require secresy ; and the yeas and nays
of the delegates of each State on any question shall be
entered on the journal, when it is desired by any delegate ;
and the delegates of a State, or any of them, at his or
their request shall be furnished with a transcript of the
said journal, except such parts as are above excepted,
to lay before the Legislatures of the several States.
Abticle X. The committee of the States, or any
nine of them, shaETBe'aufBonzeatc) execute, in the re-
''^aipmmmMa^iMa<iii'ii»iii»i>"^*jw..tf«ii^«'a'"*"^iii«wuwwi'»'>'''"i^'*'"|«''"'|" iMiMi-.^»Y«'g«B
Qess of Congress, such of uie powers of C^^^ as the
Uiirtea States in CongreSas^mbledrbyBMConsent of
nine States, shall from time to time think exnedJent to
vpst- t.hfim wjth : provided that no power be delegated
to the said committee, for the exercise of whieh, by the

186 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
articles of confederation, the voice of nine States in the
Congress of the United States assembled is requisite.
Aeticle XI. C,gnada,j£ceding to this confedera
tion, and joining in the measures of the United States,
sha,ll be adjBJltedJMSjJ^^
tages of th-is.JLImQai.but no other colony shall be ad
mitted into the same, unless such admission be agreed
to by nine States.
Aeticle XII. All bills of credit emitted, monies
bOTro^gj.a;ndBSS^i.s^^^^SSfl.*&y» ^^ under the au
thority of Congress, before the ^^,s,^mbling of the
T^|tedStates, in pursuance of the present confedera
tion, shall be deemed and co]5,sJ4erg.d-j;§, ftcj^ij^^
against the United States, for payment and satisfac-
tion whereof the said United States, and the public
faith are hereby solemnly pledged.
Aeticle XIII. ^S^S^ta^J^4lf]M&JssJk^
terminations of the United States in Congress as-
sembled, on all questions which by this confederation
are submitted to them. And the articles of this con-
./f ederation shall be inyiQlably observed by every State,
\afii.ykSo^imiM;^g^SEB^^a;ii; nor shall any altera
tion at any time hereafter be made in any of them; un
less such alteration be ggff^ toJnaCongress of the
fUnited Sta.t£a>-iadI£j^!!Sfaimar<K""e^^
j^i Legislatures of every State.
niSffangmMiMi III.! wfimnii riffwriiriirniiiHiiTtTira - -- -

^^wpi.iiSh yimiMiMiMi III.I wfimnii riffwriiri'riiiinidniiian nim
And whereas it has pleased the Great Governor of
the world to incline the hearts of the Legislatures we
respectively represent in Congress, to approve of, and
to authorize us to ratify the said articles of confed-
iniiMli ilfiii^i— ¦^.HMUMMfiffifminifuri I I 1 .iirai.TmwItMiHfWBIIt
eration and perpetual union. Know ye that we the
undersigned delegates, by virtue of the power and
authority to us given for that purpose, do by these

AK,riCL,ES OF CONFEDERATION 187
presents, in the name and in behalf of our respective
constituents, fully and entirely ratify and confirm each
and every of the said articles of confederation and per-
petual union, and all and singular the matters and
things therein contained : and we do further solemnly
plight and engage the faith of our respective con
stituents, that they shall abide by the determinations
of the United States in Congre^""asseinhre3, onaU
questions, which by the said confederation are sub
mitted to them. And that the articles thereof shall
be inviolably observed by the States we re[s]pectively
represent, and that the Union shall be perpetual.
In witness whereof we have hereunto set our hands
in Congress. Done g,t Philadelphia in the State
of Pennsylvania the ninth day of July in the
year of our Lord one thousand se^n hundred
and seventy-eight, and in the third year of the
independence of America.^
On the part & behalf of the State of New Hampshire.
Josiah Babtlett, John Wentwoeth, Junk.,
August 8th, 1778.
On the part and behalf of the State of Massachusetts Bay,
John Hancock, Fbancis Dana,
Samuel Aoams, James Lovell,
ELOBEinGE Geebt, Samuel Holten.
¦ From the circumstances of delegates from the same State hav
ing signed the Articles of Confederation at different ' times, as
appears by the dates, it is probable they affixed their names as
they happened to be present in Congress, after they had been
authorized by their constituents.

188 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
On the part and behalf of the State of Rhode Island and
Providence Plantations,
Williams Elleby, John Collins.
Heney Maechant,
On the part and behalf of the Stale of Connecticut,
RoGEE Shebman, Titus Hosmeb,
Samuel Huntington, Andbew Aoams.
Olivee Wolcott,
On the part and behalf of the State of New Yorfe.
Jas. Duane, Wm. Duee,
Fba. Lewis, Gouv. Moeeis.
On the part and in behalf of the State of New Jersey,
Novr. 26, 1778.
Jno. Withebspoon, Nathl. SjCIUUIeb.
On the part and behalf of the State of Pennsylvania.
Robt. Mobbis, William Clingan,
Daniel Robeboeau, Joseph Reeo, 22d July,
Jona. Bayaeo Smith, 1778.
On the part & behalf of the State of Delaware.
Tho. M'Kean, Feby. 12, Nicholas Van Dyke.
1779.
John Dickinson, May 5,
1779.
On the part and behalf of the State of Maryland.
John Hanson, March 1, Daniel Cabboll, Mar. 1,
1781. 1781.

ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION 189
On the part and behalf of the State of Virginia.
Richaed Heney Lee, Jno. Habvie,
John Banisteb, Feancis Lightfoot Lee.
Thomas Adams,
On the part and behalf of the State of No. Carolina.
John Penn, July 21st, Jno. Williams.
1778.
COENS. Haenett,
On the part t& behalf of the State of South Carolina.
Henby Laubens, Richd. Hutson,
William Heney Dbay- Thos. Heywaed, Junb.
ton,
Jno. Mathews,
On the part d behalf of the State of Georgia.
Jno. Walton, 24th July, Edwd. Langwobthy.
1778.
Edwd. Telfaie,

THE NORTHWEST TERRITORIAL
GOVERNMENT — 1787.
The Confedebate Congeess, July 13, 1787.
An Ordinance for the government of the territory of the
United States northwest of the river Ohio.
Section 1. Be it ordained by the United States in
Congress assembled. That the said territory, for the
purpose of temporary government, be one district,
subject, however, to be divided into two districts, as
future circumstances may, in the opinion of Congress,
make it expedient.
Sec 2. Be it ordained by the authority aforesaid.
That the estates both of resident and non-resident pro
prietors in the said territory, dying intestate, shall de
scend to, and be distributed among, their children and
the descendants of a deceased child in equal parts, the
descendants of a deceased child or grandchild to take
the share of their deceased parent in equal parts among
them; and where there shall be no children or descend
ants, then in equal parts to the next of kin, in equal de
gree; and among collaterals, the children of a deceased
brother or sister of the intestate shall have, in equal
parts among them, their deceased parent's share; and
there shall, in no case, be a distinction between kindred
of the whole and half blood; saving in all cases to the
190

NORTHWEST GOVERNMENT 191
widow of the intestate, her third part of the real estate
for life, and one-third part of the personal estate; and
this law relative to descents and dower, shall remain in
full force until altered by the legislature of the district.
And until the governor and judges shall adopt laws as
hereinafter mentioned, estates in the said territory
may be devised or bequeathed by wills in writing,
signed and sealed by him or her in whom the estate
may be, (being of full age,) and attested by three wit
nesses; and real estates may be conveyed by lease and
release, or bargain and sale, signed, sealed, and deliv
ered by the person, being of full age, in whom the es
tate may be, and attested by two witnesses, provided
such wills be duly proved, and such conveyances be
acknowledged, or the execution thereof duly proved,
and be recorded within one year after proper magis
trates, courts, and registers, shall be appointed for
that purpose; and personal property may be trans
ferred by delivery, saving, however, to the French and
Canadian inhabitants, and other settlers of the Kas-
kaskias, Saint Vincents, and the neighboring villages,
who have heretofore professed themselves citizens of
Virginia, their laws and customs now being in force
among them, relative to the descent and conveyance
of property.
Sec. 3. Be it ordained by the authority aforesaid.
That there shall be appointed, from time to time, by
Congress, a governor, whose commission shall continue
in force for the term of three years, unless sooner re
voked by Congress; he shall reside in the district, and
have a freehold estate therein, in one thousand acres
of land, while in the exercise of his office.
Sec. 4. There shall be appointed from time to time,

192 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
by Congress, a secretary, whose commission shall con
tinue in force for four years, unless sooner revoked; he
shall reside in the district, and have a freehold estate
therein, in five hundred acres of land, while in the cxt
ercise of his office. It shall be his duty to keep and
preserve the acts and laws passed by the legislature,
and the public records of the district, and the proceed
ings of the governor in his executive department, and
transmit authentic copies of such acts and proceedings
every six months to the Secretary of Congress. There
shall also be appointed a court, to consist of three
judges, any two of whom to form a court, who shall
have a common-law jurisdiction, and reside in the dis
trict, and have each therein a freehold estate, in five
hundred acres of land, while in the exercise of their
offices; and their commissions shall continue in force
during good behavior.
Sec 5. The governor and judges, or a majority of
them, shall adopt and publish in the distric[t] such
laws of the original States, criminal and civil, as may
be necessary, and best suited to the circumstances of
the district, and report them to Congress from time to
time, which laws shall be in force in the district until
the organization of the general assembly therein, un
less disapproved of by Congress; but afterwards the
legislature shall have authority to alter them as they
shall think fit.
Sec. 6. The governor, for the time being, shall be
commander-in-chief of the militia, appoint and com
mission all officers in the same below the rank of gen
eral officers; all general officers shall be appointed and
commissioned by Congress.
Sec. 7. Previous to the organization of the general

NORTHWEST GOVERNMENT 193
assembly the governor shall appoint such magistrates,
and other civil officers, in each county or township, as
he shall find necessary for the preservation of the peace
and good order in the same. After the general as
sembly shall be organized the powers and duties of
magistrates and other civil officers shall be regulated
and defined by the said assembly; but all magis
trates and other civil officers, not herein otherwise di
rected, shall, during the continuance of this temporary
government, be appointed by the governor.
Sec 8. For the prevention of crimes and injuries,
the laws to be adopted or made shall have force in all
parts of the district, and for the execution of process,
criminal and civil, the governor shall make proper di
visions thereof; and he shall proceed, from time to
time, as circumstances may require, to lay out the
parts of the district in which the Indian titles shall
have been extinguished, into counties and townships,
subject, however, to such alterations as may thereafter
be made by the legislature.
Sec 9. So soon as there shall be five thousand free
male inhabitants, of full age, in the district, upon giv
ing proof thereof to the governor, they shall receive
authority, with time and place, to elect representatives
from their counties or townships, to represent them in
the general assembly: Provided, That for every five
hundred free male inhabitants there shall be one repre
sentative, and so on, progressively, with the number of
free male inhabitants, shall the right of representation
increase, until the number of representatives shall
amount to twenty -five; after which the number and
proportion of representatives shall be regulated by the
legislature: Provided, That no person be eligible or

194 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
qualified to act as a representative, unless he shall
have been a citizen of one of the United States three
years, and be a resident in the district, or unless he
shall have resided in the district three years; and,
in either case, shall likewise hold in his own right,
in fee-simple, two hundred acres of land within the
same : Provided also, That a freehold in fifty acres of
land in the district, having been a citizen of one of
the States, and being resident in the district, or the
like freehold and two years' residence in the district,
shall be necessary to qualify a man as an elector of
a representative. Sec 10. The representatives thus elected shall
serve for the term of two years ; and in case of the death
of a representative, or removal from office, the gov
ernor shall issue a writ to the county or township, for
which he was a member, to elect another in his stead,
to serve for the residue of the term.
Sec 11. The general assembly, or legislature, shall
consist of the governor, legislative council, and a house
of representatives. The legislative council shall con
sist of five members, to continue in office five years,
unless sooner removed by Congress; any three of whom
to be a quorum; and the members of the council shall
be nominated and appointed in the following manner,
to wit: As soon as representatives shall be elected
the governor shall appoint a time and place for them
to meet together, and when met they shall nominate
ten persons, resident in the district, and each possessed
of a freehold in five hundred acres of land, and return
their names to Congress, five of whom Congress shall
appoint and commission to serve as aforesaid; and
whenever a vacancy shall happen in the council, by

NORTHWEST GOVERNMENT 195
death or removal from office, the house of representa
tives shall nominate two persons, qualified as aforesaid,
for each vacancy, and return their names to Congress,
one of whom Congress shall appoint and commission
for the residue of the term; and every five years, four
months at least before the expiration of the time of
service of the members of the council, the said house
shall nominate ten persons, qualified as aforesaid, and
return their names to Congress, five of whom Congress
shall appoint and commission to serve as members of
the council five years, unless sooner removed. And
the governor, legislative council, and house of repre
sentatives shall have authority to make laws in all
cases for the good government of the district, not re
pugnant to the principles and articles in this ordinance
established and declared. And all bills, having passed
by a majority in the house, and by a majority in the
council, shall be referred to the governor for his assent;
but no bill, or legislative act whatever, shall be of any
force without his assent. The governor shall have
power to convene, prorogue, and dissolve the general
assembly when, in his opinion, it shall be expedient.
Sec 12. The governor, judges, legislative council,
secretary, and such other officers as Congress shall ap
point in the district, shall take an oath or affirmation of
fidelity, and of office ; the governor before the President
of Congress, and all other officers before the governor.
As soon as a legislature shall be formed in the district,
the council and house assembled, in one room, shall
have authority, by joint ballot, to elect a delegate
to Congress, who shall have a seat in Congress, with
a right of debating, but not of voting, during this
temporary government.

196 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
Sec 13. And for extending the fundamental prin
ciples of civil and religious liberty, which form the
basis whereon these republics, their laws and constitu
tions, are erected; to fix and establish those principles
as the basis of all laws, constitutions, and governments,
which forever hereafter shall be formed in the said
territory; to provide, also, for the establishment of
States, and permanent government therein, and for
their admission to a share in the Federal councils on an
equal footing with the original States, at as early pe
riods as may be consistent with the general interest:
Sec 14. It is hereby ordained and declared, by the
authority aforesaid, that the following articles shall be
considered as articles of compact, between the original
States and the people and States in the said territory,
and forever remain unalterable, unless by common
consent, to wit : ARTICLE I.
No person, demeaning himself in a peaceable and
orderly manner, shall ever be molested on account of
his mode of worship, or religious sentiments, in the
said territories. ARTICLE II.
The inhabitants of the said territory shall always be
entitled to the benefits of the writs of habeas corpus,
and of the trial by jury; of a propo[r]tionate represen
tation of the people in the legislature, and of judicial
proceedings according to the course of the common
law. All persons shall be bailable, unless for capital
offences, where the proof shall be evident, or the pre
sumption great. All fines shall be moderate; and no

NORTHWEST GOVERNMENT 197
cruel or unusual punishments shall be inflicted. No
man shall be deprived of his liberty or property, but by
the judgment of his peers, or the law of the land, and
should the public exigencies make it necessary, for the
common preservation, to take any person's property,
or to demand his particular services, full compensa
tion shall be made for the same. And, in the just
preservation of rights and property, it is understood
and declared, that no law ought ever to be made or
have force in the said territory, that shall, in any
manner whatever, interfere with or affect private con
tracts, or engagements, bona fide, and without fraud
previously formed. ARTICLE III.
Religion, morality, and knowledge being necessary
to good government and the happiness of mankind,
schools and the means of education shall forever be
encouraged. The utmost good faith shall always be
observed towards the Indians; their lands and prop
erty shall never be taken from them without their con
sent; and in their property, rights, and liberty they
never shall be invaded or disturbed, unless in just and
lawful wars authorized by Congress; but laws founded
in justice and humanity shall, from time to time, be
made, for preventing wrongs being done to them, and
for preserving peace and friendship with them.
ARTICLE IV.
The said territory, and the States which may be
formed therein, shall forever remain a part of this con
federacy of the United States of America, subject to
the Articles of Confederation, and to such alterations

198 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
therein as shall be constitutionally made; and to all the
acts and ordinances of the United States in Congress
assembled, conformable thereto. The inhabitants and
settlers in the said territory shall be subject to pay a
part of the Federal debts, contracted, or to be con
tracted, and a proportional part of the expenses of
government to be apportioned on them by Congress,
according to the same common rule and measure by
which apportionments thereof shall be made on the
other States; and the taxes for paying their proportion
shall be laid and levied by the authority and direction
of the legislatures of the district, or districts, or new
States, as in the original States, within the time agreed
upon by the United States in Congress assembled.
The legislatures of those districts, or new States, shall
never interfere with the primary disposal of the soil by
the United States in Congress assembled, nor with any
regulations Congress may find necessary for securing
the title in such soil to the bona-fide purchasers. No
tax shall be imposed on lands the property of the
United States; and in no case shall non-resident pro
prietors be taxed higher than residents. The navi
gable waters leading into the Mississippi and Saint
Lawrence, and the carrying places between the same,
shall be common highways, and forever free, as well to
the inhabitants of the said territory as to the citizens
of the United States, and those of any other States
that may be admitted into the confederacy, without
any tax, impost, or duty therefor.
ARTICLE V.
There shall be formed in the said territory not less
than three nor more than five States; and the bound-

NORTHWEST GOVERNMENT 199
aries of the States, as soon as Virginia shall alter her
act of cession and consent to the same, shall become
fixed and established as follows, to wit: The western
State, in the said territory, shall be bounded by the
Mississippi, the Ohio, and the Wabash Rivers; a direct
line drawn from the Wabash and Post Vincents, due
north, to the territorial line between the United States
and Canada; and by the said territorial line to the
Lake of the Woods and Mississippi. The middle State
shall be bounded by the said direct line, the Wabash
from Post Vincents to the dhio, by the Ohio, by a di
rect line drawn due north from the mouth of the Great
Miami to the said territorial line, and by the said terri
torial line. The eastern State shall be bounded by the
last-mentioned direct line, the Ohio, Pennsylvania, and
the said territorial line: Provided, however. And it is
further understood and declared, that the boundaries
of these three States shall be subject so far to be al
tered, that, if Congress shall hereafter find it expe
dient, they shall have authority to form one or two
States in that part of the said territory which lies north
of an east and west line drawn through the southerly
bend or extreme of Lake Michigan. And whenever
any of the said States shall have sixty thousand free
inhabitants therein, such State shall be admitted, by
its delegates, into the Congress of the United States,
on an equal footing with the original States, in all re
spects whatever; and shall be at liberty to form a per
manent constitution and State government: Provided,
The constitution and government, so to be formed,
shall be republican, and in conformity to the principles
contained in these articles, and, so far as it can be
consistent with the general interest of the confederacy.

200 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
such admission shall be allowed at an earlier period, and
when there may be a less number of free inhabitants
in the State than sixty thousand.
ARTICLE VI.
There shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servi
tude in the said territory, otherwise than in the pun
ishment of crimes, whereof the party shall have been
duly convicted : Provided always, That any person es
caping into the same, from whom labor or service is
lawfully claimed in any one of the original States, such
fugitive may be lawfully reclaimed, and conveyed
to the person claiming his or her labor or service as
aforesaid. Be it ordained by the authority aforesaid. That the
resolutions of the 23d of April, 1784, relative to the
subject of this ordinance, be, and the same are hereby,
repealed, and declared null and void.
Done by the United States, in Congress assembled,
the 13th day of July, in the year of our Lord 1787, and
of their sovereignty and independence the twelfth.

CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES —
1787.
We the people of the United States, in Order to form
a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure do
mestic Tranquility, provide for the common de
fence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the
Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Poster
ity, do ordain and establish this constitution for
the United States of America.
ARTICLE I.
Section. 1. All legislative Powers herein grant
ed shall be vested in a Congress of the United
States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of
Representatives. Section. 2. ' The House of Representatives shall
be composed of Members chosen every second Year
by the People of the several States, and the Electors
in each State shall have the Qualifications requisite
for Electors of the most numerous Branch of the
State Legislature.
' No Person shall be a Representative who shall not
have attained to the Age of twenty-five Years, and
been seven Years a Citizen of the United States, and
who shall not, when elected, be an Inhabitant of that
State in which he shall be chosen.
201

202 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
3 [Representatives and direct Taxes shall be appor
tioned among the several States which may be included
within this Union, according to their respective Num
bers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole
Number of free Persons, including those bound to Ser
vice for a Term of Years, and excluding Indians not
taxed, three fifths of all other Persons.] The actual
Enumeration shall be made within three Years after
the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States,
and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in
such Manner as they shall by Law direct. The Num
ber of Representatives shall not exceed one for every
thirty Thousand, but each State shall have at Least
one Representative; and until such enumeration shall
be made, the State of New Hampshire shall be entitled
to chuse three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode-Island and
Providence Plantations one, Connecticut five, New-
York six. New Jersey four, Pennsylvania eight, Dela
ware one, Maryland six, Virginia ten. North Carolina
five. South Carolina five, and Georgia three.
¦• When vacancies happen in the Representation
from any State, the Executive Authority thereof shall
issue Writs of Election to fill such Vacancies.
5 The House of Representatives shall chuse their
Speaker and other Officers; and shall have the sole
Power of Impeachment.
Section. 3. ^ The Senate of the United States shall
be composed of two Senators from each State, chosen
by the Legislature thereof, for six Years; and each
Senator shall have one Vote.
' Immediately after they shall be assembled in Con
sequence of the first Election, they shall be divided as
equally as may be into three Classes. The Seats of the

CONSTITUTION OF UNITED STATES 203
Senators of the first Class shall be vacated at the Ex
piration of the second year, of the second Class at the
Expiration of the fourth Year, and of the third Class
at the Expiration of the sixth Year, so that one-third
may be chosen every second Year; and if Vacancies
happen by Resignation, or otherwise, during the Re
cess of the Legislature of any State, the Executive
thereof may make temporary Appointments until the
next Meeting of the Legislature, which shall then fill
such Vacancies.
^ No Person shall be a Senator who shall not have at
tained to the Age of thi[r]ty Years, and been nine Years
a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when
elected, be an Inhabitant of that State for which he
shall be chosen.
"• The Vice President of the United States shall be
President of the Senate, but shall have no Vote, unless
they be equally divided.
s The Senate shall chuse their other Officers, and
also a President pro tempore, in the Absence of the
Vice President, or when he shall exercise the Office of
President of the United States.
* The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Im
peachments. When sitting for that Purpose, they
shall be on Oath or Affirmation. When the President
of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall pre
side: And no Person shall be convicted without the
Concurrence of two thirds of the Members present.
"> Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall not ex
tend further than to removal from Office, and dis
qualification to hold and enjoy any Office of honor.
Trust or Profit under the United States: but the Party
convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to

204 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
Indictment, Trial, Judgment and Punishment, accord
ing to Law.
Section. 4. ' The Times, Places and Manner of
holding Elections for Senators and Representatives,
shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature
thereof; but the Congress may at any time by Law
make or alter such Regulations, except as to the Places
of chusing Senators.
^ The Congress shall assemble at least once in every
Year, and such Meeting shall be on the first Monday
in December, unless they shall by Law appoint a
different Day.
Section. 5. ¦' Each House shall be the Judge of the
Elections, Returns and Qualifications of its own Mem
bers, and a Majority of each shall constitute a Quorum
to do Business; but a smaller Number may adjourn
from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the
Attendance of absent Members, in such Manner, and
under such Penalties as each House may provide.
^ Each House may determine the Rules of its Pro
ceedings, punish its Members for disorderly Behavior,
and, with the Concurrence of two thirds, expel a
Member. ^ Each House shall keep a Journal of its Proceedings,
and from time to time publish the same, excepting
such Parts as may in their Judgment require Secrecy;
and the Yeas and Nays of the Members of either House
on any question shall, at the Desire of one fifth of those
present, be entered on the Journal.
" Neither House, during the Session of Congress,
shall, without the Consent of the other, adjourn for
more than three days, nor to any other Place than that
in which the two Houses shall be sitting.

CONSTITUTION OF UNITED STATES 205
Section. 6. ' The Senators and Representatives
shall receive a Compensation for their Services, to be
ascertained by Law, and paid out of the Treasury of
the United States. They shall in all Cases, except
Treason, Felony and Breach of the Peace, be privileged
from Arrest during their Attendance at the Session of
their respective Houses, and in going to and returning
from the same; and for any Speech or Debate in either
House, they shall not be questioned in any other Place.
^ No Senator or Representative shall, during the
Time for which he was elected, be appointed to any
civil Office under the Authority of the United States,
which shall have been created, or the Emoluments
whereof shall have been encreased during such time;
and no Person holding any Office under the United
States, shall be a Member of either House during his
Continuance in Office.
Section. 7. ' All Bills for raising Revenue shall
originate in the House of Representatives; but the
Senate may propose or concur with Amendments as on
other Bills.
" Every Bill which shall have passed the House of
Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it be
come a Law, be presented to the President of the
United States; If he approve he shall sign it, but if not
he shall return it, with his Objections to that House in
which it shall have originated, who shall enter the Ob
jections at large on their Journal, and proceed to re
consider it. If after such Reconsideration two thirds
of that House shall agree to pass the Bill, it shall be
sent, together with the Objections, to the other House,
by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if ap
proved by two thirds of that House, it shall become a

206 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
Law. But in all such Cases the Votes of both Houses
shall be determined by Yeas and Nays, and the Names
of the Persons voting for and against the Bill shall be
entered on the Journal of each House respectively. If
any Bill shall not be returned by the President within
ten Days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have been
presented to him, the Same shall be a Law, in like
Manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress by
their Adjournment prevent its Return, in which Case
it shall not be a Law.
^ Every Order, Resolution, or Vote to which the
Concurrence of the Senate and House of Representa
tives may be necessary (except on a question of Ad
journment) shall be presented to the President of the
United States; and before the Same shall take Effect,
shall be approved by him, or being disapproved by him,
shall be repassed by two thirds of the Senate and
House of Representatives, according to the Rules and
Limitations prescribed in the Case of a Bill.
Section. 8. ' The Congress shall have Power To
lay and collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to
pay the Debts and provide for the common Defence
and general Welfare of the United States; but all Du
ties, Imposts and Excises shall be uniform throughout
the United States;
''To borrow Money on the credit of the United
States; ^ To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and
among the several States, and with the Indian Tribes;
" To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization,
and uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies
throughout the United States;
* To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of

CONSTITUTION OF UNITED STATES 207
foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and
Measures; * To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting
the Securities and current Coin of the United States;
' To establish Post Offices and post Roads;
' To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts,
by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inven
tors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings
and Discoveries;
' To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme
Court; " To define and punish Piracies and Felonies com
mitted on the high Seas, and Offences against the Law
of Nations;
" To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Re
prisal, and make Rules concerning Captures on Land
and Water;
" To raise and support Armies, but no Appropria
tion of Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term
than two Years;
" To provide and maintain a Navy;
'^ To make Rules for the Government and Regula
tion of the land and naval Forces;
'5 To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute
the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and
repel Invasions;
'' To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplin
ing, the Militia, and for governing such Part of them
as may be employed in the Service ofthe United States,
reserving to the States respectively, the Appointment
of the Officers, and the Authority of training the Mili
tia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;
'' To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases

208 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
whatsoever, over such District (not exceeding ten
Miles square) as may, by Cession of particular States,
and the Acceptance of Congress, become the Seat of
the Government of the United States, and to exercise
like Authority over all places purchased by the Con
sent of the Legislature of the State in which the
Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines,
Arsenals, dock- Yards, and other needful Buildings;
— And
'^ To make all Laws which shall be necessary and
proper for carrying into Execution the foregoing Pow
ers, and all other Powers vested by this Constitution
in the Government of the United States, or in any
Department or Officer thereof.
Section. 9. ^ The Migration or Importation of such
Persons as any of the States now existing shall think
proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Con
gress prior to the Year one thousand eight hundred
and eight, but a Tax or duty may be imposed on
such Importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each
person. ^ The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall
not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or
Invasion the public Safety may require it.
' No Bill of Attainder or expost facto Law shall be
passed. ^ No Capitation, or other direct, tax shall be laid,
unless in Proportion to the Census or Enumeration
herein before directed to be taken.
5 No Tax or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported
from any State.
* No Preference shall be given by any Regulation of
Commerce or Revenue to the Ports of one State over

CONSTITUTION OF UNITED STATES 209
those of another: nor shall Vessels bound to, or from,
one State, be obliged to enter, clear, or pay Duties
in another.
' No Money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but
in Consequence of Appropriations made by Law; and
a regular Statement and Account of the Receipts and
Expenditures of all public Money shall be published
from time to time.
* No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United
States : And no Person holding any Office of Profit or
Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the
Congress, accept of any present. Emolument, Office, or
Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or
foreign State.
Section. 10. ' No State shall enter into any Trea
ty, Alliance, or Confederation; grant Letters of
Marque or Reprisal; coin Money; emit Bills of Credit;
make any Thing but gold and silver Coin a Tender
in Payment of Debts; pass any Bill of Attainder, ex
post facto Law, or Law impairing the Obligation of
Contracts, or grant any Title of Nobility.
^ No State shall, without the Consent of the Con
gress, lay any Imposts or Duties on imports or Ex
ports, except what may be absolutely necessary for ex
ecuting it's inspection Laws : and the net Produce of all
Duties and Imposts, laid by any State on Imports or
Exports, shall be for the Use of the Treasury of the
United States; and all such Laws shall be subject to the
Revision and Controul of the Congress.
3 No State shall, without the Consent of Congress,
lay any Duty of Tonnage, keep Troops, or Ships of
War in time of Peace, enter into any Agreement or
Compact with another State^ or with a foreign Power,

210 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
or engage in War, unless actually invaded, or in such
imminent Danger as will not admit of delay.
ARTICLE. II.
Section. 1. ' The executive Power shall be vested
in a President of the United States of America. He
shall hold his Office during the Term of four Years,
and, together with the Vice President, chosen for the
same Term, be elected, as follows
'' Each State shall appoint, in such Manner as the
Legislature thereof may direct, a Number of Electors,
equal to the whole Number of Senators and Repre
sentatives to which the State may be entitled in the
Congress: but no Senator or Representative, or Person
holding an Office of Trust or Profit under the United
States, shall be appointed an Elector.
^ The Congress may determine the Time of chusing
the Electors, and the Day on which they shall give
their Votes; which Day shall be the same throughout
the United States.
"• No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a Citi
zen of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of
this Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of Presi
dent; neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office
who shall not have attained to the Age of thirty five
Years, and been fourteen Years a Resident within the
United States.
' In Case of the Removal of the President from Of
fice, or of his Death, Resignation, or Inability to dis
charge the Powers and Duties of the said Office, the
same shall devolve on the Vice President, and the Con
gress may by Law provide for the Case of Removal,

CONSTITUTION OF UNITED STATES 211
Death, Resignation, or Inability, both of the President
and Vice President, declaring what Officer shall then
act as President, and such Officer shall act accordingly,
until the Disability be removed, or a President shall
be elected.
* The President shall, at stated Times, receive for
his Services, a Compensation, which shall neither be
encreased nor dimished during the Period for which he
shall have been elected, and he shall not receive within
that Period any other Emolument from the United
States, or any of them.
' Before he enter on the Execution of his Office, he
shall take the following Oath or Affirmation: — "I do
solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute
the Office of the President of the United States, and
will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and
defend the Constitution of the United States."
Section. 2. ' The President shall be Commander
in Chief of the Army and Navy of the United States,
and of the Militia of the several States, when called in
to the actual Service of the United States; he may re
quire the Opinion, in writing, of the principal Officer in
each of the executive Departments, upon any Subject
relating to the Duties of their respective Offices, and
he shall have Power to grant Reprieves and Pardons
for Offences against the United States, except in Cases
of Impeachment.
' He shall have Power, by and with the Advice and
Consent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two
thirds of the Senators present concur; and he shall
nominate, and by and with the Advice and Consent of
the Senate, shall appoint Ambassadors, other public
Ministers and Consuls, Judges of the supreme Court,

212 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
and all other Officers of the United States, whose Ap
pointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and
which shall be established by Law: but the Congress
may by Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Of
ficers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in
the Courts of Law, or in the Heads of Departments.
^ The President shall have Power to fill up all Vacan
cies that may happen during the Recess of the Senate,
by granting Commissions which shall expire at the End
of their next Session.
Section. 3. He shall from time to time give to the
Congress Information of the State of the Union, and
recommend to their Consideration such Measures as
he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on ex
traordinary Occasions, convene both Houses, or either
of them, and in Case of Disagreement between them,
with Respect to the Time of Adjournment, he may ad
journ them to such Time as he shall think proper; he
shall receive Ambassadors and other public Minis
ters; he shall take Care that the Laws be faithfully ex
ecuted, and shall Commission all the Officers of the
United States.
Section. 4. The President, Vice President and
all civil Officers of the United States, shall be re
moved from Office on Impeachment for, and Convic
tion of. Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and
Misdemeanors. ARTICLE III.
Section. 1. The judicial Power of the United
States, shall be vested in one supreme Court, and in
such inferior Courts as the Congress may from time to

CONSTITUTION OF UNITED STATES 213
time ordain and establish. The Judges, both of the
supreme and inferior Courts, shall hold their Offices
during good Behaviour, and shall, at stated Times, re
ceive for their Services, a Compensation, which shall
not be diminished during their Continuance in Office.
Section. 2. ' The judicial Power shall extend to all
Cases, in Law and Equity, arising under this Constitu
tion, the Laws of the United States, and Treaties
made, or which shall be made, under their Authority;
— to all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public
Ministers and Consuls; — to all Cases of admiralty
and maritime Jurisdiction; — to Controversies to
which the United States shall be a Party; — to Con
troversies between two or more States; — between a
State and Citizens of another State — between Citi
zens of different States, — between Citizens of the
same State claiming Lands under Grants of different
States, and between a State, or the Citizens thereof,
and foreign States, Citizens or Subjects;
^ In all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public
Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a State
shall be Party, the supreme Court shall have original
Jurisdiction. In all the other Cases before mentioned,
the supreme Court shall have appellate Jurisdiction,
both as to Law and Fact, with such Exceptions, and
under such Regulations as the Congress shall make.
3 The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of Im
peachment, shall be by Jury; and such Trial shall be
held in the State where the said Crimes shall have been
committed; but when not committed within any State,
the Trial shall be at such Place or Places as the
Congress may by Law have directed.
Section. 3. ' Treason against the United States,

214 'FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
shall consist only in levying War against them, or in
adhering to their Enemies, giving them Aid and Com
fort. No Person shall be convicted of Treason unless
on the Testimony of two Witnesses to the same overt
Act, or on Confession in open Court.
* The Congress shall have Power to declare the Pun
ishment of Treason, but no Attainder of Treason shall
work Corruption of Blood, or Forfeiture except during
the Life of the Person attainted.
ARTICLE IV.
Section. 1. Full Faith and Credit shall be given in
each State to the public Acts, Records, and judicial
Proceedings of every other State. And the Congress
may by general Laws prescribe the Manner in which
such Acts, Records and Proceedings shall be proved,
and the Effect thereof.
Section. 2. ' The Citizens of each State shall be
entitled to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in
the several States.
' A person charged in any State with Treason, Fel
ony, or other Crime, who shall flee from Justice, and
be found in another State, shall on Demand of the
Executive Authority of the State from which he fled,
be delivered up to be removed to the State having
jurisdiction of the Crime.
5 No Person held to Service or Labour in one State,
under the Laws thereof, escaping into another, shall,
in Consequence of any Law or Regulation therein, be
discharged from such Service or Labour, but shall
be delivered up on Claim of the Party to whom such
Service or Labour may be due.

CONSTITUTION OF UNITED STATES 215
Section. 3. ' New States may be admitted by the
Congress into this Union; but no new State shall be
formed or erected within the Jurisdiction of any other
State; nor any State be formed by the Junction of two
or more States, or Parts of States, without the Consent
of the Legislature of the States concerned as well as of
the Congress.
' The Congress shall have Power to dispose of and
make all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the
Territory or other Property belonging to the United
States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so
construed as to Prejudice any Claims of the United
States, or of any particular State.
Section 4. The United States shall guarantee to
every State in this Union a Republican Form of Gov
ernment, and shall protect each of them against Inva
sion; and on Application of the Legislature, or of the
Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened)
against domestic Violence.
ARTICLE V.
The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses
shall deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to
this Constitution, or, on the Application of the Legis
latures of two thirds of the several States, shall call a
Convention for proposing Amendments, which, in
either Case, shall be valid to all Intents and Purposes,
as Part of this Constitution, when ratified by the Leg
islatures of three fourths of the several States, or by
Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the
other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the
Congress; Provided that no Amendment which may be

216 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
made prior to the Year One thousand eight hundred
and eight shall in any Manner affect the first and
fourth Clauses in the Ninth Section of the first Article;
and that no State, without its Consent, shall be de
prived of its equal Suffrage in the Senate.
ARTICLE. VI.
' All Debts contracted and Engagements entered
into, before the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be
as valid against the United States under this Constitu
tion, as under the Confederation.
^ This Constitution, and the Laws of the United
States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and
all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the
Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme
Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall
be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution or
Laws of any States to the Contrary notwithstanding.
^ The Senators and Representatives before men
tioned, and the Members of the several State Legisla
tures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of
the United States and of the several States, shall be
bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Con
stitution; but no religious Test shall ever be required
as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under
the United States. ARTICLE VII.
The Ratification of the Conventions of nine States,
shall be sufficient for the Establishment of this Con
stitution between the States so ratifying the Same.

CONSTITUTION OF UNITED STATES 217

Done in Convention by the Unanimous Consent of the
States present the Seventeenth Day of September
in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hun
dred and Eighty seven, and of the Independance
of the United States of America the Twelfth In
Witness whereof We have hereunto subscribed
our Names, G° : Washington —
Presidt, and Deputy from Virginia,

John Langdon

New Hampshire,
Nicholas Gilman
Massachusetts,
Nathaniel Gobham Rufus King
Connecticut,
Wm. Saml. Johnson Roger Shebman
New York.
Alexandeb Haihlton
New Jersey,

Wil: Livingston
David Bbeabley

B. Fbanklin
Thomas Mifflin
Robt. Moeeis
Geo. Clymek

Wm. Patebson
Jona: Dayton

Pennsylvania.

Thos. Fitzsimons
Jabed Ingersoll
James Wilson
Gouv Mobbis

218 FATHERS OF THE CONSTITUTION
Delaware.
Geo: Read Richabd Bassett
Gunning Bedfoed Jun Jaco: Bboom
John Dickinson
Maryland.
James McHenby Danl. Cabboll
Dan of St Thos Jenifee
Virginia.
John Blaie — James Madison Jb.
North Carolina.
Wm., Blount Hu Williamson
Richd. Dobbs Spaight
South Carolina.
J. Rutledge, Chaeles Pinckney
Chables Coteswoeth Pieece Butleb
Pinckney
Georgia.
William Few Abb Baldwin
Attest William Jackson Secretary

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
Thebe are many comprehensive histories which in
clude the period covered by the present volume, of
which a few — without disparaging the others — are
deserving of mention for some particular reason.
David Ramsay's History of the American Revolution,
2 vols. (1789, and subsequently reprinted), gives but
little space to this particular period, but it reveals the
contemporary point of view. Richard Hildreth's His
tory ofthe United States, 6 vols. (1849-1852), is another
early work that is still of value, although it is written
with a Federalist bias. J. B. McMaster's History of
the People ofthe United States from the Revolution to the
Civil War, 8 vols. (1883-1913), presents a kaleido
scopic series of pictures gathered largely from contem
porary newspapers, throwing light upon, and add
ing color to the story. E. M. Avery's History of the
United States, of which seven volumes have been pub-
fished (1904-1910), is remarkable for its illustrations
and reproductions of prints, documents, and maps.
Edward Channing's History of the United States, of
which four volumes have appeared (1905-1917), is
the latest, most readable, and probably the best of
these comprehensive histories.
Although it was subsequently published as Volume
VI in a revised edition of his History of the United States
219

220 BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
of America, George Bancroft's History ofthe Formation
ofthe Constitution, 2 vols. (1882), is really a separate
work. The author appears at his best in these vol
umes and has never been entirely superseded by later
writers. G. T. Curtis's History ofthe Constitution ofthe
United States, 2 vols. (1854), which also subsequently
appeared as Volume i of his Constitutional History of
the United States, is one of the standard works, but
does not retain quite the same hold that Bancroft's
volumes do.
Of the special works more nearly covering the same
field as the present volume, A. C. McLaughlin's The
Confederation and the Constitution (1905), in the Amer
ican Nation, is distinctly the best. John Fiske's Criti
cal Period of American History (1888), written with
the clearness of presentation and charm of style which
are characteristic of the author, is an interesting and
readable comprehensive account. Richard Frothing-
ham's Rise of the Republic of the United States (1872;
6th ed. 1895), tracing the two ideas of local self-govern
ment and of union, begins with early colonial times
and culminates in the Constitution.
The treaty of peace opens up the whole field of diplo
matic history, which has a bibliography of its own.
But E. S. Corwin's French Policy and the American Al
liance (1916) should be mentioned as the latest and
best work, although it lays more stress upon the phases
indicated by the title. C. H. Van Tyne's Loyalists in
the American Revolution (1902) remains the standard
work on this subject, but special studies are appearing
from time to time which are changing our point of view.
The following books on economic and industrial as
pects are not for popular reading, but are rather for

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE 221
reference : E. R. Johnson et al.. History of the Domestic
andForeignCommerceofthe UnitedStates, 2vols. (1915) ;
V. S. Clark, History of the Manufactures of the United
States, 1607-1860 (1916). G. S. CaUender has written
short introductions to the various chapters of his Selec
tions from the Economic History of the United States
(1909), which are brilliant interpretations of great
value. P. J. Treat's The National Land System, 1785-
1820 (1910), gives the most satisfactory account of the
subject indicated by the title. Of entirely different
character is Theodore Roosevelt's Winning ofthe West,
4 vols. (1889-96; published subsequently in various
editions), which is both scholarly and of fascinating
interest on the subject of the early expansion into
the West.
On the most important subject of all, the formation
of the Constitution, the material ordinarily wanted
can be found in Max Farrand's Records of the Federal
Convention, 3 vols. (1910), and the author has sum
marized the results of his studies in The Framing of the
Constitution (1913). C. A. Beard's An Economic In
terpretation ofthe Constitution of theUnited States (1913)
gives some interesting and valuable facts regarding
economic aspects of the formation of the Constitution,
and particularly on the subject of investments in
government securities. There is no satisfactory ac
count of the adoption of the Constitution, but the de
bates in many of the State conventions are included
in Jonathan Elliot's Debates on the Federal Constitu
tion, 5 vols. (1836-1845, subsequently reprinted in
many editions).
A few special works upon the adoption of the Con
stitution in the individual States may be mentioned:

222 BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE
H. B. Grigsby's History of the Virginia Federal Con-
vention of 1788, Virginia Historical Society Collections,
N. S., IX and x (1890-91); McMaster and Stone's
Pennsylvania and the Federal Constitution, 1787-88
(1888) ; S. B. Harding's Contest over the Ratification of
the Federal Constitution in the State of Massachusetts
(1896); O. G. Libby's The Geographical Distribution of
the Vote ofthe Thirteen States on the Federal Constitution,
1787-1788 (University of Wisconsin, Bulletin, Econom
ics, Political Science, and History Series, i. No. 1, 1894).
Contemporary differences of opinion upon the Con
stitution will be found in P. L. Ford's Pamphlets on the
Constitution, etc. (1888) . The most valuable commen
tary on the Constitution, The Federalist, is to be found
in several editions of which the more recent are by E.
H. Scott (1895) and P. L. Ford (1898).
A large part of the so-called original documents or
first-hand sources of information is to be found in let
ters and private papers of prominent men. For most
readers there is nothing better than the American States
men Series, from which the following might be selected :
H. C. Lodge's George Washington (2 vols., 1889) and
Alexander Hamilton (1882); J. T. Morse's Benjamin
Franklin (1889), John Adams (1885), andThomas Jef
ferson (1883) ; Theodore Roosevelt's Gouverneur Morris,
(1888). Other readable volumes are P. L. Ford's The
True George Washington (1896) and The Many-sided
Franklin (1899) ; F. S. Oliver's Alexander Hamilton, An
Essay on American Union (New ed. London, 1907) ; W.
G. Brown's Life of Oliver Ellsworth (1905); A. McL.
Hamilton's The Intimate Life of Alexander Hamilton
(1910); James Schouler's Thomas Jefferson (1893);
Gaillard Hunt's Life of James Madison (1902).

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE 223
Of the collections of documents it may be worth
while to notice : Documentary History of the Constitu
tion of the United States, 5 vols. (1894-1905); B. P.
Poore's Federal and State Constitutions, Colonial Char
ters, etc., 2 vols. (1877) ; F. N. Thorpe's The Federal and
State Constitutions, Colonial Charters, and other Organic
Laws, 7 vols. (1909) ; and the Journals of the Conti
nental Congress (1904-1914), edited from the original
records in the Library of Congress by Worthington C.
Ford and Gaillard Hunt, of which 23 volumes have
appeared, bringing the records down through 1782.

NOTES ON THE PORTRAITS OF MEMBERS
OF THE FEDERAL CONVENTION WHO
SIGNED THE CONSTITUTION
By Victoe Hugo Paltsits
FoETY signatures were attached to the Constitution
of the United States in the Federal Convention on
September 17, 1787, by thirty-nine delegates, repre
senting twelve States, and the secretary of the Con
vention, as the attesting officer. George Washing
ton, who signed as president of the Convention, was
a delegate from Virginia. There are reproduced in
this volume the effigies or pretended effigies of thirty-
seven of them, from etchings by Albert Rosenthal
in an extra-illustrated volume devoted to the Mem
bers of the Federal Convention, 1787, in the Thomas
Addis Emmet Collection owned by the New York
Public Library. The autographs are from the same
source. This series presents no portraits of David
Brearley of New Jersey, Thomas Fitzsimons of Pennsyl
vania, and Jacob Broom of Delaware. With respect
to the others we give such information as Albert Ro
senthal, the Philadelphia artist, inscribed on each por
trait and also such other data as have been unearthed
from the correspondence of Dr. Emmet, preserved in the
Manuscript Division of the New York Public Library.
Considerable controversy has raged, on and off, but
especially of late, in regard to the painted and etched
IS 225

226 NOTES ON PORTRAITS
portraits which Rosenthal produced nearly a gener
ation ago, and in particular respecting portraits which
were hung in Independence Hall, Philadelphia. State
ments in the case by Rosenthal and by the late Charles
Henry Hart are in the American Art News, March 3,
1917, p. 4. See also Hart's paper on bogus American
portraits in Annual Report, 1913, of the American His
torical Association. To these may be added some
interesting facts which are not sufficiently known by
American students.
In the ninth decade of the nineteenth century,
principally from 1885 to 1888, a few collectors of
American autographs united in an informal association
which was sometimes called a " Club," for the purpose
of procuring portraits of American historical char
acters which they desired to associate with respective
autographs as extra-illustrations. They were pioneers
in their work and their purposes were honorable.
They cooperated in effort and expenses, in a most
commendable mutuality. Prime movers and workers
were the late Dr. Emmet, of New York, and Simon
Gratz, Esq., still active in Philadelphia. These men
have done much to stimulate appreciation for and the
preservation of the fundamental sources of American
history. When they began, and for many years
thereafter, not the same critical standards reigned
among American historians, much less among Ameri
can collectors, as the canons now require. The mem
bers of the "Club" entered into an extensive cor
respondence with the descendants of persons whose
portraits they wished to trace and then have repro
duced. They were sometimes misled by these descend
ants, who themselves, often great-grandchildren or

NOTES ON PORTRAITS 227
more removed by ties and time, assumed that a given
portrait represented the particular person in demand,
because in their own uncritical minds a tradition was
as good as a fact.
The members of the " Club," then, did the best they
could with the assistance and standards of their time.
The following extract fi:om a letter written by Gratz
to Emmet, November 10, 1885, reveals much that
should be better known. He wrote very frankly as
follows: "What you say in regard to Rosenthal's work
is correct: but the fault is not his. Many of the
photographs are utterly wanting in expression or
character; and if the artist were to undertake to cor
rect these deficiencies by making the portrait what
he may suppose it should be, his production (while
presenting a better appearance artistically) might be
very much less of a likeness than the photograph from
which he works. Rosenthal always shows me a rough
proof of the unfinished etching, so that I may advise
him as to corrections & additions which I may consider
justifiable & advisable."
Oth^r correspondence shows that Rosenthal re
ceived about twenty dollars for each plate which he
etched for the "Club."
The following arrangement of data follows the order
of the names as signed to the Constitution. The
Emmet numbers identify the etchings in the bound
volume from which they have been reproduced.
1. George Washington, President (also delegate from
Virginia), Emmet 9497, inscribed "Joseph
Wright Pinxit Phila. 1784. Albert Rosenthal
Phila. 1888. Aqua fortis."

NOTES ON PORTRAITS
NEW HAMPSHIRE
2. John Langdon, Emmet 9439, inscribed "Etched
by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888 after Painting
by Trumbull."
Mr. Walter Langdon, of Hyde Park, N. Y.,
in January, 1885, sent to Dr. Emmet a photo
graph of a "portrait of Governor John Lang
don LL.D." An oil miniature painted on
wood by Col. John Trumbull, in 1792, is in
the Yale School of Fine Arts.' There is also a
painting of Langdon in Independence Hall, by
James Sharpless.
3. Nicholas Gilman, Emmet 9441, inscribed "Etched
by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888." A drawing
by the same artist formerly hung in Independ
ence Hall. The two are not at all alike. No
contemporary attribution is made and the
Emmet correspondence reveals nothing.
MASSACHUSETTS
4. Nathaniel Gorham, Emmet 9443. It was etched
by Albert Rosenthal but without inscription of
any kind or date. A painting by him, in like
ness identical, formerly hung in Independence
Hall. No evidence in Emmet correspondence.
5. Rufus King, Emmet 9445, inscribed "Etched by
Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888 after Painting by
Trumbull." King was painted by Col. John
Trumbull from life and the portrait is in the
Yale School of Fine Arts. Gilbert Stuart
painted a portrait of King and there is one by
Charles Willson Peale in Independence Hall.

NOTES ON PORTRAITS 229
CONNECTICUT
6. William Samuel Johnson, Emmet 9447, inscribed
"Etched by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888 from
Painting by Gilbert Stuart." A painting by
Rosenthal after Stuart hung in Independence
Hall. Stuart's portrait of Dr. Johnson "was
one of the first, if not the first, painted by
Stuart after his return from England." Dated
on back 1792. Also copied by Graham. —
Mason, Lif e of Stuart, 208.
7. Roger Sherman, Emmet 9449, inscribed "Etched
by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888 after Painting
by Earle." The identical portrait copied by
Thomas Hicks, after Ralph Earle, is in Inde
pendence Hall.
NEW YORK
8. Alexander Hamilton, Emmet 9452, inscribed
" Etched by Albert Rosenthal 1888 after Trum
bull." A full length portrait, painted by Col.
John Trumbull, is in the City Hall, New York.
Other Hamilton portraits by Trumbull are in
the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York,
the Boston Museum of Art, and in private
possession. NEW JERSEY
9. William Livingston, Emmet 9454, inscribed
"Etched by Albert Rosenthal Phila., 1888." A
similar portrait, painted by Rosenthal, formerly
hung in Independence Hall. No correspondence
relating to it is in the Emmet Collection.

NOTES ON PORTRAITS
10. David Brearley. There is no portrait. Emmet
9456 is a drawing of a Brearley coat-of-arms
taken from a book-plate.
11. William Paterson, Emmet 9458, inscribed "Albert
Rosenthal Phila. 1888." A painted portrait
by an unknown artist was hung in Independ
ence Hall. The Emmet correspondence re
veals nothing.
12. Jonathan Dayton, Emmet 9460, inscribed "Albert
Rosenthal." A painting by Rosenthal also
formerly hung in Independence Hall. The
two are dissimilar. The etching is a profile,
but the painting is nearly a ftdl-face portrait.
The Emmet correspondence reveals no evidence.
PENNSYLVANIA
13. Benjamin Franklin, Emmet 9463, inscribed "C.
W. Peale Pinxit. Albert Rosenthal Sc."
14. Thomas Mifflin, Emmet 9466, inscribed "Etched
by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888 after Painting
by Gilbert Stuart." A portrait by Charles
Willson Peale, in civilian dress, is in Independ
ence Hall. The Stuart portrait shows Mifflin
in military uniform.
15. Robert Morris, Emmet 9470, inscribed "Gilbert
Stuart Pinxit. Albert Rosenthal Sc." The
original painting is in the Historical Society of
Pennsylvania. Stuart painted Morris in 1795.
A copy was owned by the late Charles Henry
Hart; a replica also existed in the possession
of Morris's granddaughter. — Mason, Life of
Stuart, 225.

NOTES ON PORTRAITS 231
16. George Clymer, Emmet 9475, inscribed "Etched
by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888 after Painting
by C. W. Peale." There is a similar type
portrait, yet not identical, in Independence
Hall, where the copy was attributed to Dalton
Edward Marchant.
17. Thomas Fitzsimons. There is no portrait and the
Emmet correspondence offers no information.
18. Jared Ingersoll, Emmet 9468, inscribed "Etched
by Albert Rosenthal after Painting by C. W.
Peale." A portrait of the same origin, said to
have been copied by George Lambdin, "after
Rembrandt Peale," hung in Independence
Hall.
19. James Wilson, Emmet 9472, inscribed "Etched
by Albert Rosenthal 1888." Seems to have
been derived from a painting by Charles Will-
son Peale in Independence Hall.
20. Gouverneur Morris, Emmet 9477, inscribed
" Etched by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888 after a
copy by Marchant from Painting by T. Sully."
The Emmet correspondence has no reference
to it.
DELAWARE
21. George Read, Emmet 9479, inscribed "Etched by
Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888." There is in
Emmet 9481 a stipple plate " Engraved by J. B.
Longacre from a Painting by  Pine." It
is upon the Longacre-Pine portrait that Rosen
thal and others, like H. B. Hall, have depended
for their portrait of Read.

232 NOTES ON PORTRAITS
22. Gunning Bedford, Jr., Emmet 9483, inscribed
"Etched by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888."
Rosenthal also painted a portrait, "after
Charles Willson Peale," for Independence Hall.
The etching is the same portrait. On May 13,
1883, Mr. Simon Gratz wrote to Dr. Emmet:
"A very fair lithograph can, I think, be made
from the photograph of Gunning Bedford, Jun. ;
which I have just received from you. I shall
call the artist's attention to the excess of
shadow on the cravat." The source was a
photograph furnished by the Bedford de
scendants.
23. John Dickinson, Emmet 9485, inscribed "Etched
by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888 after Painting
by C. W. Peale." The Peale painting is in
Independence Hall.
24. Richard Bassett, Emmet 9487, inscribed "Albert
Rosenthal." There was also a painting by
Rosenthal in Independence Hall. While simi
lar in type, they are not identical. They vary
in physiognomy and arrangement of hair.
There is nothing in the Emmet correspondence
about this portrait.
25. Jacob Broom. There is no portrait and no infor
mation in the Emmet correspondence.
MARYLAND
26. James McHenry, Emmet 9490, inscribed "Etched
by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888." Rosenthal
also painted a portrait for Independence Hall
" after Saint-Memin." They are not alike. The

NOTES ON PORTRAITS 233
etching faces three-quarters to the right, whilst
the St. Memin is a profile portrait. In Janu
ary, 1885, Henry F. Thompson, of Baltimore,
wrote to Dr. Emmet: "If you wish them, you
can get Portraits and Memoirs of James Mc
Henry and John E. Howard from their grand
son J. Howard McHenry whose address is No.
48 Mount Vernon Place, Baltimore."
27. Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer, Emmet 9494, in
scribed "Etched by Albert Rosenthal Phila.
1888 after Trumbull." Rosenthal also painted
a portrait for Independence Hall. They are not
identical. A drawn visage is presented in the
latter. In January, 1885, Henry F. Thompson
of Baltimore, wrote to Dr. Emmet : "Mr. Daniel
Jenifer has a Portrait of his Grand Uncle Daniel
of St. Thomas Jenifer and will be glad to make
arrangements for you to get a copy of it. . . .
His address is No. 281 Linden Ave, Baltimore."
In June, of the same year, Simon Gratz wrote
to Emmet: "The Dan. of St. Thos. Jenifer is so
bad, that I a,m almost afraid to give it to Rosen
thal. Have you a better photograph of this
man (from the picture in Washington [sic.]),
spoken of in one of your letters?"
28. Daniel Carroll, Emmet 9492, inscribed " Etched by
Albert Rosenthal, Phila. 1888." Henry F.
Thompson, of Baltimore, in January, 1885,
wrote to Dr. Emmet: "If you will write to
Genl. John Carroll No. 61 Mount Vernon
Place you can get a copy of Mr. Carroll's
(generaUy known as Barrister Carroll) Por
trait."

234 NOTES ON PORTRAITS
VIRGINIA
29. John Blair, Emmet 9500, inscribed "Albert
Rosenthal Etcher." He also painted a por
trait for Independence Hall. The two are of
the same type but not alike. The etching is a
younger looking picture. There is no evidence
in the Emmet correspondence.
30. James Madison, Jr., Emmet 9502, inscribed
"Etched by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888 after
Painting by G. Stuart." Stuart painted sev
eral paintings of Madison, as shown in Mason,
Life of Stuart, pp. 218-9. Possibly the Rosen
thal etching was derived from the picture in the
possession of the Coles family of Philadelphia.
NORTH CAROLINA
31. William Blount, Emmet 9504, inscribed "Etched
by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888." He also
painted a portrait for Independence Hall.
The two are alike. In Novemberj 1885, Moses
White, of Knoxville, Tenn., wrote thus: Genl.
Marcus J. Wright, published, last year, a life
of Wm. Blount, which contains a likeness of
him. . . . This is the only likeness of Gov.
Blount that I ever saw." This letter was
written to Mr. Bathurst L. Smith, who for
warded it to Dr. Emmet.
32. Richard Dobbs Spaight, Emmet 9506, inscribed
"Etched by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1887."
In Independence Hall is a portrait painted by
James Sharpless. On comparison these two
are of the same type but not alike. The

NOTES ON PORTRAITS 235
etching presents an older facial appearance.
On November 8, 1«86, Gen. John Meredith
Read, writing from Paris, said he had found in
the possession of his friend in Paris, J. R. D.
Shepard, "St. Memin's engraving of his great
grandfather Governor Spaight of North Caro
lina." In 1887 and 1888, Dr. Emmet and Mr.
Gratz were jointly interested in having Albert
Rosenthal engrave for them a portrait of
Spaight. On December 9, 1887, Gratz wrote
to Emmet: "Spaight is worthy of being etched;
though I can scarcely agree with you that our
lithograph is not a portrait of the M. O. C. Is
it taken from the original Sharpless portrait,
which hangs in our old State House? . . .
However if you are sure you have the right man
in the photograph sent, we can afford to ignore
the lithograph."
33. Hugh Williamson, Emmet 9508, inscribed
"Etched by Albert Rosenthal after Painting
by J. Trumbull Phila. 1888," Rosenthal also
painted a copy "after John Wesley Jarvis" for
Independence Hall. The two are undoubtedly
from the same original source. The Emmet
correspondence presents no information on this
subject. SOUTH CAROLINA
84. John Rutledge, Emmet 9510, inscribed "Etched
by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888 after J. Trum
bull." The original painting was owned by the
Misses Rutledge, of Charleston, S. C

236 NOTES ON PORTRAITS
35. Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, Enimet 9512, in
scribed "Etched by Albert Rosenthal Phila.
1888. Painting by Trumbull." An oil minia
ture on wood was painted by Col. John Trum
bull, in 1791, which is in the Yale School of
Fine Arts. Pinckney was also painted by
Gilbert Stuart and the portrait was owned by
the family at Runnymeade, S. C. Trumbull's
portrait shows a younger face.
36. Charles Pinckney, Emmet 95 14, inscribed " Etched
by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888." He also
painted a portrait for Independence Hall.
They are alike. In the Emmet correspondence
the following information, furnished to Dr.
Emmet, is found: "Chas. Pinckney — Mr.
Henry L. Pinckney of Stateburg [S. C] has a
picture of Gov. Pinckney." The owner of this
portrait was a grandson of the subject. On
January 12, 1885, P. G. De Saussure wrote to.
Emmet: "Half an hour ago I received from the
Photographer two of the Pictures [one being]
Charles Pinckney copied from a portrait owned
by Mr. L. Pinckney — who lives in Stateburg,
S. C." The owner had put the portrait at Dr.
Emmet's disposal, in a letter of December
4, 1884, in which he gave its dimensions as
"about 3 ft. nearly square," and added, "it is
very precious to me."
37. Pierce Butler, Emmet 9516, inscribed "Etched by
Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888." He also
painted a portrait for Independence Hall.
They are dissimilar and dubious. Three let
ters in the Emmet correspondence refer to the

NOTES ON PORTRAITS 237
Butler portraiture. On January 31, 1887,
Mrs. Sarah B. Wister, of Philadelphia, wrote
to Dr. Emmet: "I enclose photograph copies
of two miniatures of Maj. Butler wh. Mr.
Louis Butler [a bachelor then over seventy
years old living in Paris, France] gave me not
long ago : I did not know of their existence until
1882, & never heard of any likeness of my great
grandfather, except an oil-portrait wh. was last
seen more than thirty years ago in a lumber
room in his former house at the n. w. corner of
8th & Chestnut streets [Phila.], since then
pulled down." On February 8th, Mrs. Wister
wrote: "I am not surprised that the two minia
tures do not strike you as being of the same
person. Yet I believe there is no doubt of it;
my cousin had them from his father who was
Maj. Butler's son. The more youthful one is
evidently by a poor artist, & therefore probably
was a poor likeness." In her third letter to
Dr. Emmet, on April 5, 1888, Mrs. Wister
wrote: "I sent you back the photo, from the
youthful miniature of Maj. Butler & regret
very much that I have no copy of the other
left; but four sets were made of wh. I sent
you one & gave the others to his few living
descendants. I regret this all the more as
I am reluctant to trust the miniature again
to a photographer. I live out of town so that
there is some trouble in sending & calling for
them; (I went personally last time, & there
are no other hkenesses of my great grandfather
extant."

238 NOTES ON PORTRAITS
GEORGIA
38. William Few, Emmet 9518, inscribed "Etched by
Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888." He also
painted a portrait "after John Ramage," for
Independence Hall. They are identical.
39. Abraham Baldwin, Emmet 9520, inscribed " Etched
by Albert Rosenthal Phila. 1888." There is
also a painting "after Fulton" in Independ
ence Hall. They are of the same type but not
exactly alike, yet likely from the same original.
The variations may be just artist's vagaries.
There is no information in the Emmet corre
spondence.
40. William Jackson, Secretary, Emmet 9436, in
scribed "Etched by Albert Rosenthal Phila.
1888 after Painting by J. Trumbull." Rosen
thal also painted a copy after Trumbull for
Independence Hall. They are identical.

INDEX

Adams, John, on American
Peace Commission, 9 et seq.;
personal characteristics, 10;
negotiates commercial treaty
with the Netherlands, 11;
on fisheries question, 13-14;
on settlement of commer
cial indebtedness, 14-15; on
granting compensation to
Loyalists, 20; complains of
trade restrictions for New
England, 26
Adams, Samuel, and the Con
stitution, 151, 152
Albany Congress (1754), 49,
50
Annapolis Trade Convention
(1786), 100-06
Anti-Federalist party, 147
Articles of Confederation, adop
tion (1777), 49-50; ratifica
tion (1781), 60, 57-59; based
on Franklin's plan of union,
51-52; provisions, 52-54, 67-
68, 86, 100; questions of land
ownership delay ratification,
56-57, 58; financial power of
Congress under, 86; failure
of Commercial amendment
of 1784, 99; relation to
Constitution, 125, 131, 144;
defects corrected in Con
stitution, 142; attempt at
revision, 144-45; text, 175-
189
Assenisipia, 69

B
Bancroft, George, History of
the Formation of the Con-
sitution, cited, 103 (note)
Biddle, Charles, Autobiogra
phy, on the Constitution
141
Bowdoin, James, Governor of
Massachusetts, and Shays'
Rebellion, 94, 95
Bryce, Lord, cited, 13 (note)

Cambridge (Mass.), Shays' Re
bellion at, 94
Canada^ Loyalists go to, 19;
Articles of Confederation on
admitting, 67
Channing, Edward, History of
the United States, cited, 21
(note), 61 (note)
Cherronesus, 69
China, trade with, 28
Combe, George, Tour of the
United States, quoted, 45
Commerce, before Revolution,
24; conditions after B-evo-
lution, 24-27; commercial
treaties, 26; development of
trade with Far East, 28;
phases of United States
foreign trade, 28-29; domes
tic trade, 29-30; policy of
reprisal, 97-99
Committees of Correspond
ence, 49

239

240

INDEX

Confederation, the, 35 et seq.,
108; see also Articles of
Confederation
Congress, Continental, advises
States to adopt governments,
38; prints constitutions, 41;
Declaration of Independ
ence, 49, 63, 143-44, 167-74;
Articles of Confederation,
49-50, 51; see also Articles of
Confederation; Franklin's
plan of union, 50-51; com
position, 85; financial prob
lem, 85-86
Cpngress, Federal, 52-53; pow
ers and duties, 53-54; and
Northwest Territory, 62;
national system of coinage,
63-64; Land Ordinance
(1785), 64-66, 71; Jefferson's
Ordinance of 1784, 69-71, 75;
Ordinance of 1787, 72-80,
190-200; inefficiency, 81-84,
127; Revenue Amendment,
87; financial crisis, 87-88;
commercial amendment of
1784. 98-99; calls Federal
Convention, 106; reception
of Constitution, .145-46;
votes that presidential elec
tors be chosen (1788), 163
Congress, United States, Con
stitutional powers and limi
tations, 127-29, 130, 131,
136; objection to excessive
power of, 161; revenue act
(1789), 159
Connecticut, State govern
ment, 44; ratification of Con
stitution, 149-50
Constitution, development of,
108 et seq., 125 et seq.% great
compromise of, 121-23, 127;
transmitted to Congress,
145-46; contest over ratifi
cation, 146 et seg.; framed by
propertied interests, 162-
163; text, 201-18; bibliog
raphy, 221-22

Cook, Captain James, 28
Cornwallis, General Edward,
surrender at Yorktown
(1781), 6
Crfevecoeur, letter to Jefferson,
165
Cutler, Manasseh, 73-74
D
Day, Clive, Encyclopedia of
American Government, cited,
26 (note)
Declaration of Independence,
adopted, 49; Jefferson drafts,
63; charges against the Eing,
143-44; text, 167-74
Delaware, and western land
policy, 57; Annapolis Trade
Convention, 100; ratifica
tion of Constitution, 149
Dickerson, Senator, of New
Jersey, quoted, 78
Dickinson, John, chairman of
committee to prepare Ar
ticles of Confederation, 49,
51, 114; against centralized
government, 114
District of Columbia, fear of a
fortified stronghold, 161
Duer, Colonel William, 74
Dunn, J. P., Jr., Indiana: A
Redemption from Slavery,
quoted, 71
Dunning, W. A., The British
Empire and the United States,
cited, 13 (note) E
Elliot's Debates on the Federal
Constitution, cited 160 (note)
Ellsworth,' Oliver, delegate to
Federal Convention, 115,
124; on slavery, 130; report
on Rhode Island's ratifica
tion of Constitution, 159
England, see Great Britain
Executive, see President

INDEX

241

F
Federal Convention, 106-07,
108 et seq.; Records, cited,
30 (note)
Federalist, The, 157
Federalist party, 147
Finance, questions of settle
ment of debts, 14-15, 147-
148; condition of currency,
31-32; national system of
coinage, 63-64; Revenue
Amendment, 87; financial
crisis, 87-88; revenue act
(1789), 159
Fish, C. R., American Diplo
macy, quoted, 27
Fisheries, 13-14, 25
Fiske, John, The Critical Pe
riod of American History,
quoted, 81
France, attitude toward United
States, 4-5; relationship of
United States with, 6-8;
treaty with United States
(1778), 7; excludes United
States shipping, 26-27
Franklin, Benjamin, author
ized to negotiate consular
convention with France, 5;
on Peace Commission, 8-9,
11-12, 21; personal charac
teristics, 9; on settlement of
debts, 14; Albany plan, 50;
presents plan of union to
Continental Congress (1775),
50-52; in Federal Conven
tion, 113, 120; on the new
republic, 134-35; personal
charge against, 161; bibliog
raphy, 222
French and Indian War, effect
on settlement, 56
G
Georgia, ratification of Con
stitution, 149
Germany, American mission
ary societies, 3
i6

Gerry, Elbridge, 115, 132, 135
Gorham, Nathaniel, 1 13-14, 124
Grayson, William, of Virginia,
64; quoted, 76-77
Great Britain, attitude toward
former colonies, 3; American
missionary societies, 3; ad
mits independence of colo
nies, 6; France and, 7; Spain
and, 7; and United States
boundary lines, 12-13; and
fisheries, 13-14; relation to
American trade, 24-28, 97-
98; compact theory of gov
ernment in, 39; military
posts retained by, 84-85
Grigsby, H. B., quoted, 15-16
H
Hamilton, Alexander, at Anna
polis Trade Convention, 104,
105; personal characteristics,
104-05; at Federal Conven
tion, 115-16, 120; on com
mittee to revise Constitu
tion, 140; and The Federalist,
156-57; influence in New
York convention, 157; bibli
ography, 222
Hancock, John, 150, 151-52
Henry, Prince, of Prussia, ap
proached on subject of be
coming king of United States,
134
Henry, Patrick, 61, 63, 155
Hopkinson, letter to Jefferson,
161
Hutchins, Thomas, Geographer
of the United States, 64
I
lUinoia, 69
Illinois admitted as State
(1818), 79
Independent Gazetteer, The, 156
Indian Queen Tavern, dele
gates to Federal Convention
at, 109

242

INDEX

Indiana admitted as State
(1816), 79

Jameson, J. F., quoted, 59-
60
Jay, John, on reciprocity of
consular convention with
France, 5; Peace Commis
sioner, 10, 11; personal char
acteristics, 10-11; sent to
Spain, 11; on settlement of
debts, 15; on compensation
to Loyalists, 20; and The
Federalist, 156-57
Jefferson, Ferdinand, quoted,
174 (note)
Jefferson, Thomas, on Peace
Commission, 10; and land
policy, 62-64; life and char
acteristics, 62-63; Ordinance
of 1784, 67, 69-71, 75; on
value of Continental scrip,
88-89; opinion of Federal
Convention, 1 09, 1 16 ; spokes
man for colonies, 143; on
ratification of Constitution,
152; Hopkinson's letter to,
161; Crevecoeur's letter to,
165; biWiography, 222
Jefferson's Ordinance of 1784,
see Ordinance of 1784
Jenifer, Daniel of St. Thomas,
153—54
Johnson. Dr. W. S., 115, 140
Judiciary, 131-33 K
Kent, Chancellor, 61
Kercheval, Samuel, History of
the Valley of Virginia, quoted,
33-34
King, Rufus, in Federal Con
vention, 113, 132, 140; on
three-fifths rule, 122; on
form of executive, 134
Knox, Henry, 61

Lafayette, Marquis de, Wash
ington's letter to, 164-65
La Luzerne, Chevalier de,
French Minister in Phila
delphia, 7
Land, question of ownership of
western, 56-57; cession to
United States by. States,
58-59; American interest in,
59-62; Jefferson and land
policy, 62-64; plan for sale
under Ordinance of 1785,
65-66
Land Ordinance of 1785, 64-66,
71
Lansing, John, 116
Laurens, Henry, 10
Lecky, W. E. H., The American
Revolution, cited, 32 (note)
Lincoln, General Benjamin,
and Shays' Rebellion, 94;
letter to Washington, 152-
153
Lingelbach, W. E., cited, 3
(note)
Loyalists, question of compen
sation of, 16-17, 19-20;
groups comprising, 17; treat
ment of, 18-19; Commis
sioners agree to restitution, 20
M
McMaster, J. B., History ofthe
People of the United States,
quoted, 31; Acquisition of
Industrial, Popular, and Po
litical Rights of Man in
America, quoted, 45
Madison, James, describes
trade situation, 30; on viola
tion of federal authority by
Virginia, 100-01; personal
characteristics, 103-04; and
Annapolis Trade Conven
tion, 104; quoted, 108; Wash
ington and. 111; for strong

INDEX

Madison, James — Continued
central government, 115;
in Federal Convention, 111,
132, 140; supports Con
stitution, 155; and The Fed
eralist, 156-57
Martin, Luther, 116, 132, 153
Maryland, and land claims, 57,
58; suggestion as to power of
Congress over western land,
68; agreement with Virginia,
100, 104; ratification of Con
stitution, 153-54
Mason, George, 112, 132, 155
Massachusetts, State Constitu
tion submitted to people for
approval, 46; Shays' Rebel
lion (1786), 91-96; ratifica-
tioB of Constitution, 150-53
Mayflower Compact, 40
Metropotamia, 69
Michigania, 69
Mississippi River, right of
navigation declared, 14
Monroe, James, invests in
western land, 61; Grayson
writes to, 76
Morris, Gouverneur, invests in
western land, 61; quoted,
108, 140; in Federal Con
vention, 112-13, 132, 140;
and Washington, 113 (note)
Morris, Robert, invests in
western land, 61
N
Navigation Acts, 24, 27
Netherlands, the, commercial
treaty with, 11
New England, prosperity due
to commerce, 24; effect of
trade restrictions on, 26;
"plantation covenants" 40;
system of land grant, 65;
interest in trade, 97; favors
navigation acts, 129
New England Confederation
(1643), 48

New Hampshire, Vermont
withdraws from New York
and, 68; and Federal Con
vention, 106-07; ratification
of Constitution, 154-55, 157
New Jersey, ratification of
Constitution, 149
New Jersey Plan, 118, 119,
121, 125-26
New York cession of western
land claims to United States,
58, 59; Vermont withdraws
from New Hampshire and,
68; refuses to accede to
Revenue Amendment, 88;
ratification of Constitution,
150, 156-58
New York City chosen as seat
of government, 163
Newburg on the Hudson, mu
tinous Revolutionary sol
diers at, 81-82
Newfoundland, fisheries, 13
North Carolina, ratification of
Constitution, 158
Northwest Ordinance, 55 et
seq.; see also Land Ordinance
of 1785, Ordinance of 1784,
Ordinance of 1787
Northwest Territory, settle
ment, 55-66; States relin
quish claims, 57-59; ques
tions of land sale and govern
ment, 62 et seq. O
Ohio admitted as State (1802),
78
OhioCompanyof Associates, 72
Ordinance of 1784, 67, 69-71,75
Ordinance of 1785, see Land
Ordinance of 1785
Ordinance of 1787, Congress
adopts, 72; stimulus from
Ohio Company, 72-74; au
thorship, 75; provisions, 75-
77; successful operation, 77-
80; text, 190-200

INDEX

Oregon, question of military
occupation (1825), 77-78
Otto, Louis, French Charge
d'Affaires, letter to Ver
gennes, 101-03

Panic of 1785, 30-31
Paterson, William, against plan
of centralized government,
114
Pelisipia, 69
Pennsylvania, invited to form
commercial policy with other
States, 100; ratification of
Constitution, 148-49
Philadelphia, enthusiasm for
Constitution in, 148, 149
Philadelphia Convention, see
Federal Convention
Pilgrim Fathers, Mayflower
Compact, 40
Pinckney, Charles, 114, 126
Pinckney, General C. C, 114
Political parties, 146-47; see
also names of parties
Polypotamia, 69
Pontiac's Conspiracy, effect
on settlement, 56
Potomac River, agreement be
tween Virginia and Mary
land regarding, 100
President, creation of office,
133-34; presidency modeled
after State governorships,
134; election of, 136-37;
third term, 137-38; powers,
138; Washington chosen as
first, 138-39
Princeton, Congress flees to,
84
Proclamation of 1763, 56, 57
R
Randolph, Edmund, 112, 124;
quoted, 134
Read, W. T., Life and Corre

spondence of George Read,
quoted, 113 (note)
"Revolution of 1789," 144
Revolutionary War, effect on
American people, 22; eco
nomic conditions after, 23
et seq.
Rhode Island, State govern
ment, 44; and question of
western land ownership,
57; rejects tariff provision
(1782), 86; currency trouble
(1786), 89-90; attitude to
ward Shays' Rebellion, 95;
recognition of bad trade con
ditions, 96; and Federal
Convention, 106; ratifica
tion of Constitution, 158,
159
Roads, see Transportation
Rousseau, J. J., Contrat Social,
39-40
Russia, trade with, 28
Rutledge, John, 114, 124, 125

St. Clair, General Arthur, Cut
ler endorses for governorship
of New York, 74
Saratoga, 69
Scioto Associates, 74
Shays, Daniel, 94
Shays' Rebellion (1786), 91-96
Sherman, Roger, 115
Slavery, Ordinance of 1784 on,
70; Ordinance of 1787 on,
76-77; counting of slaves
in enumerating population,
121-22; attitude of Federal
Convention delegates to
ward, 130
Slave trade, compromise con
cerning, 129-30
South, system of land grant,
65; need for slaves, 129
South Carolina, class control
in, 45; ratification of Con
stitution, 154

INDEX

245

Spain, Prance and, 7-8; and
United States, 8; possessions
in America, 8; Jay sent to,
11; excludes United States
shipping, 26
Stamp Act Congress (1765),
49
Stark, J. H., quoted, 18-19
State governmants, establish
ment of, 88; constitutions,
41-43; identical with colon
ial, 44; aristocratic tenden
cies, 44-45, 47-48; demo
cratic tendencies, 46-47, 48
Steiner, B. C, Connecticut's
Ratification of the Federal
Constitution, quoted, 159-
160
Suffrage, 36-37, 45
Supreme Court established,
iSl; see also Judiciary
Sylvania, 69

Thieriot, Saxon Commis,sioner
of Commerce to America,
quoted, 3, 4-5
Tory party, 146
Transportation, 29-30; see also
Commerce
Treaty of Peace (1783), 1 et
seq.; ratified, 21; determines
boundaries, 12-13, 66; bibli
ography of diplomatic his
tory connected with, 220
Trevett vs. Weeden (1786), 90-
91
Tuckerman, Henry, America
and her Commentators, cited,
33 (note) U
United Empire Loyalists, 19
United States, named, 1; sta
tus as new republic, 1-5;
population, 2-3, 35, 55-66;
boundaries, 12-13, 56; eco

nomic condition after Revo
lution, 23 et seq.; commercial
treaties, 26; aristocratic con
trol in, 36. 44-45; suffrage
after the Revolution, 36-37;
political genius in, 37-38;
see also names of States,
State governments

Vergennes, Comte de, French
Minister, Franklin and, 21;
Otto's letter to, 101-03
Vermont, withdraws frora New
York and New Hampshire,
68; attitude in Shays' Re
bellion, 95
Vincennes, effect of Ordinance
of 1784 on, 71
Virginia, abolishes primogeni
ture, 46; cession of western
claims to United States, 58,
59, 62; agreement with
Maryland, 100; and Anna
polis Trade Convention,
100-01, 103-04; ratification
of Constitution, 150, 156-
156, 167
Virginia Plan, 117-19, 121-22,
123, 126-27, 144
Virginia Resolutions, see Vir
ginia Plan W
Warden, John, Grigsby's story
of, 16-16
Warville, Brissot de, quoted,
32-33
Washington, George, invests
in western land, 61; influ
ence over disaffected soldiers,
82-83; in Federal Conven
tion, 110-11; and Madison,
111; and Morris, 113 (note);
chosen as President, 139;
Lincoln's letter to, 162-53;

246

INDEX

Washington, George — Cont'd
supports Constitution, 165
personal charge against, 161
letter to Lafayette, 164-65
inauguration, 166
Washington, name given divi
sion of Northwest Territory,
69
Webster, Daniel, on Ordinance
of 1787, 79-80

West Indies, trade with, 23, 27,
97
Whig party, 146-47
Wilson, James, 61, 108, 112.
116, 124, 132
Wythe, George, 63, 112

Yates, Robert, 116

'!'•,. : ..-'W