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| author | Roger Frank <rfrank@pglaf.org> | 2025-10-15 02:34:55 -0700 |
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| committer | Roger Frank <rfrank@pglaf.org> | 2025-10-15 02:34:55 -0700 |
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diff --git a/27430-h/27430-h.htm b/27430-h/27430-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..eeb1529 --- /dev/null +++ b/27430-h/27430-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,11986 @@ +<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN" + "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd"> + +<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"> + <head> + <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html;charset=utf-8" /> + <title>The Critical Period of American History 1783–1789 | Project Gutenberg</title> + <style type="text/css"> +/*<![CDATA[ XML blockout */ +<!-- + p { margin-top: .75em; text-align: justify; + margin-bottom: .75em; text-indent: 1.25em; + line-height: 130%;} + p.oldeng {text-align: center; text-indent: 0em; font-family: "Old English Text MT", serif; + margin-top: 3px; font-size: 85%} + + h1,h2,h3 {text-align: center; clear: both; font-weight: normal;} + + hr {width: 50%; margin-top: 2em; margin-bottom: 2em; + margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; clear: both;} + + table {margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;} + .td1 {text-align: left; padding-left: 2em;} + tr {vertical-align: bottom;} + .tr1 td {padding-top: 2em;} + + body{margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 30%; } + + .pagenum {display: inline; font-size: 75%; text-align: right; + position: absolute; right: 2%; text-indent: 0em; + padding: 1px 1px; font-style: normal; line-height: 110%; + font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; text-decoration: none; + color: #444; background-color: #FF99CC;} + + .blockquot{margin-left: 5%; margin-right: 10%;} + .sidenote {width: 18%; padding-bottom: .5em; padding-top: .5em; text-indent: 0em; + padding-left: .5em; padding-right: .5em; margin-left: 1em; + position: absolute; right: 8%; margin-top: 1em; + font-size: smaller; color: black; background: #eeeeee; border: black solid 1px;} + + .center {text-align: center; text-indent: 0em;} + .smcap {font-variant: small-caps;} + .noin {text-indent: 0em;} + .index {margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 0%; text-indent: 0em; + font-size: 0.9em;} + .tn {background-color: #EEE; padding: 0.5em 1em 0.5em 1em;} + + .caption {font-weight: bold;} + + .figcenter {margin: auto; text-align: center;} + + .footnotes {border: dashed 1px;} + .footnote {margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-size: 0.9em;} + .footnote .label {position: absolute; right: 84%; text-align: right;} + .fnanchor {font-size: .8em; text-decoration: none;} + + // --> + /* XML end ]]>*/ + </style> + </head> +<body> +<div>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 27430 ***</div> + +<div class="tn"> +<p class="center"><big><b>Transcriber’s Note</b></big></p> + +<p class="noin">The punctuation and spelling from the original text have been faithfully preserved. Only obvious +typographical errors have been corrected.</p> + +</div> +<hr /> + + + +<h1>THE CRITICAL PERIOD OF<br /> + +AMERICAN HISTORY<br /> + +1783–1789<br /><br /></h1> + +<p class="center"><small>BY</small></p> + +<p class="center"><big>JOHN FISKE</big><br /><br /><br /><br /></p> + +<p class="center"><small>"I am uneasy and apprehensive, more so than during the war."<br /> +<span class="smcap">Jay to Washington</span>, <i>June</i> 27, 1786.</small><br /><br /><br /><br /></p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 100px;"> +<img src="images/003.jpg" width="100" height="124" alt="Insignia" title="" /> +</div> + +<p class="center"><small>BOSTON AND NEW YORK<br /> +HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN AND COMPANY</small></p> +<p class="oldeng">The Riverside Press, Cambridge +</p> + + + +<hr /> +<p class="center"><small><br /><br /><br />Copyright, 1888,<br /> + +<span class="smcap">By</span> JOHN FISKE.<br /><br /> + +<i>All rights reserved.</i></small><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> +</p> + +<p class="center"><small><i>The Riverside Press, Cambridge, Mass., U.S.A.</i><br /> +Electrotyped and Printed by H.O. Houghton & Co.</small><br /><br /><br /> +</p> + + + +<hr /> +<p class="center"><br /><br /><br /> +<small>To</small><br /> +<small>MY DEAR CLASSMATES,</small><br /> +FRANCIS LEE HIGGINSON<br /> +<small>AND</small><br /> +CHARLES CABOT JACKSON,<br /> +<small><i>I DEDICATE THIS BOOK.</i></small><br /><br /><br /> +</p> + + + +<hr /> +<h2><a name="PREFACE" id="PREFACE"></a>PREFACE.</h2> + + +<p><span class="smcap">This</span> book contains the substance of the course of lectures given in the +Old South Meeting-House in Boston in December, 1884, at the Washington +University in St. Louis in May, 1885, and in the theatre of the +University Club in New York in March, 1886. In its present shape it may +serve as a sketch of the political history of the United States from the +end of the Revolutionary War to the adoption of the Federal +Constitution. It makes no pretensions to completeness, either as a +summary of the events of that period or as a discussion of the political +questions involved in them. I have aimed especially at grouping facts in +such a way as to bring out and emphasize their causal sequence, and it +is accordingly hoped that the book may prove useful to the student of +American history.</p> + +<p>My title was suggested by the fact of Thomas Paine's stopping the +publication of the "Crisis," on hearing the news of the treaty of 1783, +with the remark, "The times that tried men's souls are over." Commenting +upon this, on page 55 of the present work, I observed that so far from +the crisis being over in 1783, the next five years were to be the most +critical time of all. I had not then seen Mr. Trescot's "Diplomatic +History of the Administrations of Washington and Adams," on page 9 of +which he uses almost the same words: "It must not be supposed that the +treaty of peace secured the national life. Indeed, it would be more +correct to say that the most critical period of the country's history +embraced the time between 1783 and the adoption of the Constitution in +1788."</p> + +<p>That period was preëminently the turning-point in the development of +political society in the western hemisphere. Though small in their mere +dimensions, the events here summarized were in a remarkable degree +germinal events, fraught with more tremendous alternatives of future +welfare or misery for mankind than it is easy for the imagination to +grasp. As we now stand upon the threshold of that mighty future, in the +light of which all events of the past are clearly destined to seem +dwindled in dimensions and significant only in the ratio of their +potency as causes; as we discern how large a part of that future must be +the outcome of the creative work, for good or ill, of men of English +speech; we are put into the proper mood for estimating the significance +of the causes which determined a century ago that the continent of North +America should be dominated by a single powerful and pacific federal +nation instead of being parcelled out among forty or fifty small +communities, wasting their strength and lowering their moral tone by +perpetual warfare, like the states of ancient Greece, or by perpetual +preparation for warfare, like the nations of modern Europe. In my book +entitled "American Political Ideas, viewed from the Standpoint of +Universal History," I have tried to indicate the pacific influence +likely to be exerted upon the world by the creation and maintenance of +such a political structure as our Federal Union. The present narrative +may serve as a commentary upon what I had in mind on page 133 of that +book, in speaking of the work of our Federal Convention as "the finest +specimen of constructive statesmanship that the world has ever seen." On +such a point it is pleasant to find one's self in accord with a +statesman so wise and noble as Mr. Gladstone, whose opinion is here +quoted on page 223.</p> + +<p>To some persons it may seem as if the years 1861–65 were of more +cardinal importance than the years 1783–89. Our civil war was indeed an +event of prodigious magnitude, as measured by any standard that history +affords; and there can be little doubt as to its decisiveness. The +measure of that decisiveness is to be found in the completeness of the +reconciliation that has already, despite the feeble wails of +unscrupulous place-hunters and unteachable bigots, cemented the Federal +Union so powerfully that all likelihood of its disruption may be said to +have disappeared forever. When we consider this wonderful harmony which +so soon has followed the deadly struggle, we may well believe it to be +the index of such a stride toward the ultimate pacification of mankind +as was never made before. But it was the work done in the years 1783–89 +that created a federal nation capable of enduring the storm and stress +of the years 1861–65. It was in the earlier crisis that the pliant twig +was bent; and as it was bent, so has it grown; until it has become +indeed a goodly and a sturdy tree.</p> + +<p><span class="smcap">Cambridge</span>, October 10, 1888.</p> + + + +<hr /> +<h2><a name="CONTENTS" id="CONTENTS"></a>CONTENTS.</h2> + + + +<div class='center'> +<table border="0" width="100%" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" summary="Contents."> +<tr> + <td align='center' colspan='2'>CHAPTER I.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='center' colspan='2'><small>RESULTS OF YORKTOWN.</small></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right' colspan='2'><small>PAGE</small></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left' style="width:80%;">Fall of Lord North's ministry</td> + <td align='right' style="width:20%;"><a href="#Page_1">1</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Sympathy between British Whigs and the revolutionary party in America</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_2">2</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>It weakened the Whig party in England</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_3">3</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Character of Lord Shelburne</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_4">4</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Political instability of the Rockingham ministry</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_5">5, 6</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Obstacles in the way of a treaty of peace</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_7">7, 8</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Oswald talks with Franklin</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_9">9–11</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Grenville has an interview with Vergennes</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_12">12</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Effects of Rodney's victory</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_13">13</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Misunderstanding between Fox and Shelburne</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_14">14</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Fall of the Rockingham ministry</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_15">15</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Shelburne becomes prime minister</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_16">16</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Defeat of the Spaniards and French at Gibraltar</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_17">17</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>French policy opposed to American interests</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_18">18</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The valley of the Mississippi; Aranda's prophecy</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_19">19</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The Newfoundland fisheries</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_20">20</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Jay detects the schemes of Vergennes</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_21">21</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>And sends Dr Vaughan to visit Shelburne</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_22">22</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>John Adams arrives in Paris and joins with Jay in insisting upon a separate negotiation with England</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_23">23, 24</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The separate American treaty, as agreed upon:</td> + <td></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td class="td1">1. Boundaries</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_25">25</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td class='td1'>2. Fisheries; commercial intercourse</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_26">26</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td class='td1'>3. Private debts</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_27">27</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td class='td1'>4. Compensation of loyalists</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_28">28–32</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Secret article relating to the Yazoo boundary</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_33">33</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Vergennes does not like the way in which it has been done</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_33">33</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>On the part of the Americans it was a great diplomatic victory</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_34">34</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Which the commissioners won by disregarding the instructions of Congress and acting on their own responsibility</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_35">35</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The Spanish treaty</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_36">36</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The French treaty</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_37">37</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Coalition of Fox with North</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_38">38–42</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>They attack the American treaty in Parliament</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_43">43</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>And compel Shelburne to resign</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_44">44</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Which leaves England without a government, while for several weeks the king is too angry to appoint ministers</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_44">44</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Until at length he succumbs to the coalition, which presently adopts and ratifies the American treaty</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_45">45</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The coalition ministry is wrecked upon Fox's India Bill</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_46">46</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Constitutional crisis ends in the overwhelming victory of Pitt in the elections of May, 1784</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_47">47</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>And this, although apparently a triumph for the king, was really a death-blow to his system of personal government</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_48">48, 49</a></td> +</tr> +<tr class='tr1'> + <td align='center' colspan='2'>CHAPTER II.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='center' colspan='2'><small>THE THIRTEEN COMMONWEALTHS.</small></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Cessation of hostilities in America</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_50">50</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Departure of the British troops</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_51">51</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Washington resigns his command</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_52">52</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>And goes home to Mount Vernon</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_53">53</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>His "legacy" to the American people</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_54">54</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The next five years were the most critical years in American history</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_55">55</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Absence of a sentiment of union, and consequent danger of anarchy</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_56">56, 57</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>European statesmen, whether hostile or friendly, had little faith in the stability of the Union</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_58">58</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>False historic analogies</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_59">59</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Influence of railroad and telegraph upon the perpetuity of the Union</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_60">60</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Difficulty of travelling a hundred years ago</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_61">61</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Local jealousies and antipathies, an inheritance from primeval savagery</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_62">62, 63</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Conservative character of the American Revolution</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_64">64</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>State governments remodelled; assemblies continued from colonial times</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_65">65</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Origin of the senates in the governor's council of assistants</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_66">66</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Governors viewed with suspicion</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_67">67</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Analogies with British institutions</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_68">68</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The judiciary</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_69">69</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Restrictions upon suffrage</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_70">70</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Abolition of primogeniture, entails, and manorial privileges</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_71">71</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Steps toward the abolition of slavery and the slave-trade</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_72">72–75</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Progress toward religious freedom</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_76">76, 77</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Church and state in Virginia</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_78">78, 79</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Persecution of dissenters</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_80">80</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Madison and the Religions Freedom Act</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_81">81</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Temporary overthrow of the church</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_82">82</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Difficulties in regard to ordination; the case of Mason Weems</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_83">83</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Ordination of Samuel Seabury by non-jurors at Aberdeen</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_84">84</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Francis Asbury and the Methodists</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_85">85</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Presbyterians and Congregationalists</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_86">86</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Roman Catholics</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_87">87</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Except in the instance of slavery, all the changes described in this chapter were favourable to the union of the states</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_88">88</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>But while the state governments, in all these changes, are seen working smoothly, we have next to observe, by contrast, the clumsiness and inefficiency of the federal government</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_89">89</a></td> +</tr> +<tr class='tr1'> + <td align='center' colspan='2'>CHAPTER III.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='center' colspan='2'><small>THE LEAGUE OF FRIENDSHIP.</small></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The several states have never enjoyed complete sovereignty</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_90">90</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>But in the very act of severing their connection with Great Britain, they entered into some sort of union</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_91">91</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Anomalous character of the Continental Congress</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_92">92</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The articles of confederation; they sought to establish a "league of friendship" between the states</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_93">93–97</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>But failed to create a federal government endowed with real sovereignty</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_98">98–100</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Military weakness of the government</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_101">101–103</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Extreme difficulty of obtaining a revenue</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_104">104, 105</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Congress, being unable to pay the army, was afraid of it</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_106">106</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Supposed scheme for making Washington king</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_107">107</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Greene's experience in South Carolina</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_108">108</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Gates's staff officers and the Newburgh address</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_109">109</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The danger averted by Washington</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_110">110, 111</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Congress driven from Philadelphia by mutinous soldiers</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_112">112</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The Commutation Act denounced in New England</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_113">113</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Order of the Cincinnati</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_114">114–117</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Reasons for the dread which it inspired</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_118">118</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Congress finds itself unable to carry out the provisions of the treaty with Great Britain</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_119">119</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Persecution of the loyalists</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_120">120, 121</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>It was especially severe in New York</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_122">122</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Trespass Act of 1784 directed against the loyalists</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_123">123</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Character and early career of Alexander Hamilton</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_124">124–126</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The case of Rutgers <i>v.</i> Waddington</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_127">127, 128</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Wholesale emigration of Tories</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_129">129, 130</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Congress unable to enforce payment of debts to British creditors</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_131">131</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>England retaliates by refusing to surrender the fortresses on the northwestern frontier</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_132">132, 133</a></td> +</tr> +<tr class='tr1'> + <td align='center' colspan='2'>CHAPTER IV.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='center' colspan='2'><small>DRIFTING TOWARD ANARCHY.</small></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The barbarous superstitions of the Middle Ages concerning trade were still rife in the eighteenth century</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_134">134</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The old theory of the uses of a colony</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_135">135</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Pitt's unsuccessful attempt to secure free trade between Great Britain and the United States</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_136">136</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Ship-building in New England</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_137">137</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>British navigation acts and orders in council directed against American commerce</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_138">138</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>John Adams tried in vain to negotiate a commercial treaty with Great Britain</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_139">139, 140</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>And could see no escape from the difficulties except in systematic reprisal</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_141">141</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>But any such reprisal was impracticable, for the several states imposed conflicting duties</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_142">142</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Attempts to give Congress the power of regulating commerce were unsuccessful</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_143">143, 144</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>And the several states began to make commercial war upon one another</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_145">145</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Attempts of New York to oppress New Jersey and Connecticut</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_146">146</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Retaliatory measures of the two latter states</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_147">147</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The quarrel between Connecticut and Pennsylvania over the possession of the valley of Wyoming</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_148">148–150</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The quarrel between New York and New Hampshire over the possession of the Green Mountains</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_151">151–153</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Failure of American diplomacy because European states could not tell whether they were dealing with one nation or with thirteen</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_154">154, 155</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Failure of American credit; John Adams begging in Holland</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_156">156, 157</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The Barbary pirates</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_158">158</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>American citizens kidnapped and sold into slavery</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_159">159</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Lord Sheffield's outrageous pamphlet</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_160">160</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Tripoli's demand for blackmail</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_161">161</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Congress unable to protect American citizens</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_162">162</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Financial distress after the Revolutionary War</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_163">163, 164</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>State of the coinage</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_165">165</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Cost of the war in money</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_166">166</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Robert Morris and his immense services</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_167">167</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The craze for paper money</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_168">168</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Agitation in the southern and middle states</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_169">169–171</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Distress in New England</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_172">172</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Imprisonment for debt</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_173">173</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Rag-money victorious in Rhode Island; the "Know Ye" measures</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_174">174–176</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Rag-money defeated in Massachusetts; the Shays insurrection</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_177">177–181</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The insurrection suppressed by state troops</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_182">182</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Conduct of the neighbouring states</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_183">183</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The rebels pardoned</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_184">184</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Timidity of Congress</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_185">185, 186</a></td> +</tr> +<tr class='tr1'> + <td align='center' colspan='2'>CHAPTER V.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='center' colspan='2'><small>GERMS OF NATIONAL SOVEREIGNTY.</small></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Creation of a national domain beyond the Alleghanies</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_187">187, 188</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Conflicting claims to the western territory</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_189">189</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Claims of Massachusetts and Connecticut</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_189">189, 190</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Claims of New York</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_190">190</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Virginia's claims</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_191">191</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Maryland's novel and beneficent suggestion</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_192">192</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The several states yield their claims in favour of the United States</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_193">193, 194</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Magnanimity of Virginia</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_195">195</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Jefferson proposes a scheme of government for the northwestern territory</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_196">196</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Names of the proposed ten states</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_197">197</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Jefferson wishes to prohibit slavery in the national domain</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_198">198</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>North Carolina's cession of western lands</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_199">199</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>John Sevier and the state of Franklin</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_200">200, 201</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The northwestern territory</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_202">202</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Origin of the Ohio company</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_203">203</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The Ordinance of 1787</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_204">204–206</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Theory of folkland upon which the ordinance was based</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_207">207</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Spain, hearing of the secret article in the treaty of 1783, loses her temper and threatens to shut up the Mississippi River</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_208">208, 209</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Gardoqui and Jay</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_210">210</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Threats of secession in Kentucky and New England</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_211">211</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Washington's views on the political importance of canals between east and west</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_212">212</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>His far-sighted genius and self-devotion</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_213">213</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Maryland confers with Virginia regarding the navigation of the Potomac</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_214">214</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The Madison-Tyler motion in the Virginia legislature</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_215">215</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Convention at Annapolis, Sept 11, 1786</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_216">216</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Hamilton's address calling for a convention at Philadelphia</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_217">217</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The impost amendment defeated by the action of New York; last ounce upon the camel's back</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_218">218–220</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Sudden changes in popular sentiment</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_221">221</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The Federal Convention meets at Philadelphia, May, 1787</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_222">222</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Mr. Gladstone's opinion of the work of the convention</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_223">223</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The men who were assembled there</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_224">224, 225</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Character of James Madison</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_226">226, 227</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The other leading members</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_228">228</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Washington chosen president of the convention</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_229">229</a></td> +</tr> +<tr class='tr1'> + <td align='center' colspan='2'>CHAPTER VI.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='center' colspan='2'><small>THE FEDERAL CONVENTION.</small></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Why the proceedings of the convention were kept secret for so many years</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_230">230</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Difficulty of the problem to be solved</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_231">231</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Symptoms of cowardice repressed by Washington's impassioned speech</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_232">232</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The root of all the difficulties; the edicts of the federal government had operated only upon states, not upon individuals, and therefore could not be enforced without danger of war</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_233">233–233</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The Virginia plan, of which Madison was the chief author, offered a radical cure</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_236">236</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>And was felt to be revolutionary in its character</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_237">237–239</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Fundamental features of the Virginia plan</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_240">240, 241</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>How it was at first received</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_242">242</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The House of Representatives must be directly elected by the people</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_243">243</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Question as to the representation of states brings out the antagonism between large and small states</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_244">244</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>William Paterson presents the New Jersey plan; not a radical cure, but a feeble palliative</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_245">245</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Straggle between the Virginia and New Jersey plans</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_246">246–249</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The Connecticut compromise, according to which the national principle is to prevail in the House of Representatives, and the federal principle in the Senate, meets at first with fierce opposition</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_250">250, 251</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>But is at length adopted</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_252">252</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>And proves a decisive victory for Madison and his methods</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_253">253</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>A few irreconcilable members go home in dudgeon</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_254">254</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>But the small states, having been propitiated, are suddenly converted to Federalism, and make the victory complete</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_255">255</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Vague dread of the future west</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_255">255</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The struggle between pro-slavery and anti-slavery parties began in the convention, and was quieted by two compromises</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_256">256</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Should representation be proportioned to wealth or to population?</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_257">257</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Were slaves to be reckoned as persons or as chattels?</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_258">258</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Attitude of the Virginia statesmen</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_259">259</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>It was absolutely necessary to satisfy South Carolina</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_260">260</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The three fifths compromise, suggested by Madison, was a genuine English solution, if ever there was one</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_261">261</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>There was neither rhyme nor reason in it, but for all that, it was the best solution attainable at the time</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_262">262</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The next compromise was between New England and South Carolina as to the foreign slave-trade and the power of the federal government over commerce</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_263">263</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>George Mason calls the slave-trade an "infernal traffic"</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_264">264</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>And the compromise offends and alarms Virginia</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_265">265</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Belief in the moribund condition of slavery</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_266">266</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The foundations of the Constitution were laid in compromise</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_267">267</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Powers granted to the federal government</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_268">268</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Use of federal troops in suppressing insurrections</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_269">269</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Various federal powers</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_270">270</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Provision for a federal city under federal jurisdiction</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_271">271</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The Federal Congress might compel the attendance of members</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_272">272</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Powers denied to the several states</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_272">272</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Should the federal government he allowed to make its promissory notes a legal tender in payment of debts? powerful speech of Gouverneur Morris</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_273">273</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Emphatic and unmistakable condemnation of paper money by all the leading delegates</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_274">274</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The convention refused to grant to the federal government the power of issuing inconvertible paper, but did not think an express prohibition necessary</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_275">275</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>If they could have foreseen some recent judgments of the supreme court, they would doubtless have made the prohibition explicit and absolute</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_276">276</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Debates as to the federal executive</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_277">277</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Sherman's suggestion as to the true relation of the executive to the legislature</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_278">278</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>There was to be a single chief magistrate, but how should he be chosen?</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_279">279</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Objections to an election by Congress</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_280">280</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Ellsworth and King suggest the device of an electoral college, which is at first rejected</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_281">281</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>But afterwards adopted</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_282">282</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Provisions for an election by Congress in the case of a failure of choice by the electoral college</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_283">283</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Provisions for counting the electoral votes</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_284">284</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>It was not intended to leave anything to be decided by the president of the Senate</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_285">285</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The convention foresaw imaginary dangers, but not the real ones</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_286">286</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Hamilton's opinion of the electoral scheme</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_287">287</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>How it has actually worked</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_288">288</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>In this part of its work the convention tried to copy from the British Constitution</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_289">289</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>In which they supposed the legislative and executive departments to be distinct and separate</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_290">290</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Here they were misled by Montesquieu and Blackstone</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_291">291</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>What our government would be if it were really like that of Great Britain</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_292">292–294</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>In the British government the executive department is not separated from the legislative</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_295">295</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Circumstances which obscured the true aspect of the case a century ago</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_296">296–298</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The American cabinet is analogous, not to the British cabinet, but to the privy council</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_299">299</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The federal judiciary, and its remarkable character</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_300">300–301</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Provisions for amending the Constitution</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_302">302</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The document is signed by all but three of the delegates</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_303">303</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>And the convention breaks up</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_304">304</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>With a pleasant remark from Franklin</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_305">305</a></td> +</tr> +<tr class='tr1'> + <td align='center' colspan='2'>CHAPTER VII.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='center' colspan='2'><small>CROWNING THE WORK.</small></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Franklin lays the Constitution before the legislature of Pennsylvania</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_306">306</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>It is submitted to Congress, which refers it to the legislatures of the thirteen states, to be ratified or rejected by the people in conventions</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_307">307</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>First American parties, Federalists and Antifederalists</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_308">308, 309</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The contest in Pennsylvania</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_310">310</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>How to make a quorum</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_311">311</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>A war of pamphlets and newspaper squibs</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_312">312, 313</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Ending in the ratification of the Constitution by Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_314">314</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Rejoicings and mutterings</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_315">315</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Georgia and Connecticut ratify</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_316">316</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The outlook in Massachusetts</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_317">317, 318</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The Massachusetts convention meets</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_319">319</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>And overhauls the Constitution clause by clause</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_320">320</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>On the subject of an army Mr. Nason waxes eloquent</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_321">321</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The clergymen oppose a religious test</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_322">322</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>And Rev. Samuel West argues on the assumption that all men are not totally depraved</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_323">323</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Feeling of distrust in the mountain districts</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_324">324</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Timely speech of a Berkshire farmer</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_325">325, 326</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Attitude of Samuel Adams</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_326">326, 327</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Meeting of mechanics at the Green Dragon</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_327">327</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Charges of bribery</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_328">328</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Washington's fruitful suggestion</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_329">329</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Massachusetts ratifies, but proposes amendments</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_330">330</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The Long Lane has a turning and becomes Federal Street</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_331">331</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>New Hampshire hesitates, but Maryland ratifies, and all eyes are turned upon South Carolina</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_332">332</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Objections of Rawlins Lowndes answered by Cotesworth Pinckney</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_333">333</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>South Carolina ratifies the Constitution</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_334">334</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Important effect upon Virginia, where thoughts of a southern confederacy had been entertained</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_335">335, 336</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Madison and Marshall prevail in the Virginia convention, and it ratifies the Constitution</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_337">337</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>New Hampshire had ratified four days before</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_338">338</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Rejoicings at Philadelphia; riots at Providence and Albany</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_339">339</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>The struggle in New York</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_340">340</a></td></tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Origin of the "Federalist"</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_341">341–343</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Hamilton wins the victory, and New York ratifies</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_344">344</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>All serious anxiety is now at an end; the laggard states, North Carolina and Rhode Island</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_345">345</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>First presidential election, January 7, 1789; Washington is unanimously chosen</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_346">346</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Why Samuel Adams was not selected for vice-president</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_347">347</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Selection of John Adams</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_348">348</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Washington's journey to New York, April 16–23</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_349">349</a></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>His inauguration</td> + <td align='right'><a href="#Page_350">350</a></td> +</tr> +</table></div> + + + +<hr /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1">[Pg 1]</a></span></p> +<h1>THE CRITICAL PERIOD OF<br /> AMERICAN HISTORY.</h1> + + + +<hr /> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_I" id="CHAPTER_I"></a>CHAPTER I.</h2> + +<h3>RESULTS OF YORKTOWN.</h3> + + +<div class="sidenote">Sympathy between British Whigs and the revolutionary party in +America.</div> + +<p><span class="smcap">The</span> 20th of March, 1782, the day which witnessed the fall of Lord +North's ministry, was a day of good omen for men of English race on both +sides of the Atlantic. Within two years from this time, the treaty which +established the independence of the United States was successfully +negotiated at Paris; and at the same time, as part of the series of +events which resulted in the treaty, there went on in England a rapid +dissolution and reorganization of parties, which ended in the +overwhelming defeat of the king's attempt to make the forms of the +constitution subservient to his selfish purposes, and established the +liberty of the people upon a broader and sounder basis than it had ever +occupied before. Great indignation was expressed at the time, and has +sometimes been echoed by British historians, over the conduct of those +Whigs who never lost an opportunity of expressing their approval of the +American revolt. The Duke of Richmond, at the beginning of the contest,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2">[Pg 2]</a></span> +expressed a hope that the Americans might succeed, because they were in +the right. Charles Fox spoke of General Howe's first victory as "the +terrible news from Long Island." Wraxall says that the celebrated buff +and blue colours of the Whig party were adopted by Fox in imitation of +the Continental uniform; but his unsupported statement is open to +question. It is certain, however, that in the House of Commons the Whigs +habitually alluded to Washington's army as "our army," and to the +American cause as "the cause of liberty;" and Burke, with characteristic +vehemence, declared that he would rather be a prisoner in the Tower with +Mr. Laurens than enjoy the blessings of freedom in company with the men +who were seeking to enslave America. Still more, the Whigs did all in +their power to discourage enlistments, and in various ways so thwarted +and vexed the government that the success of the Americans was by many +people ascribed to their assistance. A few days before Lord North's +resignation, George Onslow, in an able defence of the prime minister, +exclaimed, "Why have we failed so miserably in this war against America, +if not from the support and countenance given to rebellion in this very +House?"</p> + +<div class="sidenote">It weakened the Whigs in England.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">Character of Lord Shelburne.</div> + +<p>Now the violence of party leaders like Burke and Fox owed much of its +strength, no doubt, to mere rancorousness of party spirit. But, after +making due allowance for this, we must admit that it was essentially +based upon the intensity of their conviction that the cause of English +liberty was inseparably bound up with the defeat of the king's<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[Pg 3]</a></span> attempt +upon the liberties of America. Looking beyond the quarrels of the +moment, they preferred to have freedom guaranteed, even at the cost of +temporary defeat and partial loss of empire. Time has shown that they +were right in this, but the majority of the people could hardly be +expected to comprehend their attitude. It seemed to many that the great +Whig leaders were forgetting their true character as English statesmen, +and there is no doubt that for many years this was the chief source of +the weakness of the Whig party. Sir Gilbert Elliot said, with truth, +that if the Whigs had not thus to a considerable extent arrayed the +national feeling against themselves, Lord North's ministry would have +fallen some years sooner than it did. The king thoroughly understood the +advantage which accrued to him from this state of things; and with that +short-sighted shrewdness of the mere political wire-puller, in which few +modern politicians have excelled him, he had from the outset preferred +to fight his battle on constitutional questions in America rather than +in England, in order that the national feeling of Englishmen might be +arrayed on his side. He was at length thoroughly beaten on his own +ground, and as the fatal day approached he raved and stormed as he had +not stormed since the spring of 1778, when he had been asked to entrust +the government to Lord Chatham. Like the child who refuses to play when +he sees the game going against him, George threatened to abdicate the +throne and go over to Hanover, leaving his son to get along with the +Whig statesmen. But presently<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[Pg 4]</a></span> he took heart again, and began to resort +to the same kind of political management which had served him so well in +the earlier years of his reign. Among the Whig statesmen, the Marquis of +Buckingham had the largest political following. He represented the old +Whig aristocracy, his section of the party had been first to urge the +recognition of American independence, and his principal followers were +Fox and Burke. For all these reasons he was especially obnoxious to the +king. On the other hand, the Earl of Shelburne was, in a certain sense, +the political heir of Lord Chatham, and represented principles far more +liberal than those of the Old Whigs. Shelburne was one of the most +enlightened statesmen of his time. He was an earnest advocate of +parliamentary reform and of free trade. He had paid especial attention +to political economy, and looked with disgust upon the whole barbaric +system of discriminative duties and commercial monopolies which had been +so largely instrumental in bringing about the American Revolution. But +being in these respects in advance of his age, Lord Shelburne had but +few followers. Moreover, although a man of undoubted integrity, quite +exempt from sordid or selfish ambition, there was a cynical harshness +about him which made him generally disliked and distrusted. He was so +suspicious of other men that other men were suspicious of him; so that, +in spite of many admirable qualities, he was extremely ill adapted for +the work of a party manager.</p> + +<p>It was doubtless for these reasons that the king,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[Pg 5]</a></span> when it became clear +that a new government must be formed, made up his mind that Lord +Shelburne would be the safest man to conduct it. In his hands the Whig +power would not be likely to grow too strong, and dissensions would be +sure to arise, from which the king might hope to profit. The first place +in the treasury was accordingly offered to Shelburne; and when he +refused it, and the king found himself forced to appeal to Lord +Rockingham, the manner in which the bitter pill was taken was quite +characteristic of George III. He refused to meet Rockingham in person, +but sent all his communications to him through Shelburne, who, thus +conspicuously singled out as the object of royal preference, was certain +to incur the distrust of his fellow ministers.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Political instability of the Rockingham ministry.</div> + +<p>The structure of the new cabinet was unstable enough, however, to have +satisfied even such an enemy as the king. Beside Rockingham himself, +Lord John Cavendish, Charles Fox, Lord Keppel, and the Duke of Richmond +were all Old Whigs. To offset these five there were five New Whigs, the +Duke of Grafton, Lords Shelburne, Camden, and Ashburton, and General +Conway; while the eleventh member was none other than the Tory +chancellor, Lord Thurlow, who was kept over from Lord North's ministry. +Burke was made paymaster of the forces, but had no seat in the cabinet. +In this curiously constructed cabinet, the prime minister, Lord +Rockingham, counted for little. Though a good party leader, he was below +mediocrity as a statesman, and his health was failing, so that he could +not <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[Pg 6]</a></span>attend to business. The master spirits were the two secretaries of +state, Fox and Shelburne, and they wrangled perpetually, while Thurlow +carried the news of all their quarrels to the king, and in cabinet +meetings usually voted with Shelburne. The ministry had not lasted five +weeks when Fox began to predict its downfall. On the great question of +parliamentary reform, which was brought up in May by the young William +Pitt, the government was hopelessly divided. Shelburne's party was in +favour of reform, and this time Fox was found upon the same side, as +well as the Duke of Richmond, who went so far as to advocate universal +suffrage. On the other hand, the Whig aristocracy, led by Rockingham, +were as bitterly opposed as the king himself to any change in the method +of electing parliaments; and, incredible as it may seem, even such a man +as Burke maintained that the old system, rotten boroughs and all, was a +sacred part of the British Constitution, which none could handle rudely +without endangering the country! But in this moment of reaction against +the evil influences which had brought about the loss of the American +colonies, there was a strong feeling in favour of reform, and Pitt's +motion was only lost by a minority of twenty in a total vote of three +hundred. Half a century was to elapse before the reformers were again to +come so near to victory.</p> + +<p>But Lord Rockingham's weak and short-lived ministry was nevertheless +remarkable for the amount of good work it did in spite of the king's +dogged opposition. It contained great administrative talent, which made +itself felt in the most<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[Pg 7]</a></span> adverse circumstances. To add to the +difficulty, the ministry came into office at the critical moment of a +great agitation in Ireland. In less than three months, not only was the +trouble successfully removed, but the important bills for disfranchising +revenue officers and excluding contractors from the House of Commons +were carried, and a tremendous blow was thus struck at the corrupt +influence of the crown upon elections. Burke's great scheme of +economical reform was also put into operation, cutting down the pension +list and diminishing the secret service fund, and thus destroying many +sources of corruption. At no time, perhaps, since the expulsion of the +Stuarts, had so much been done toward purifying English political life +as during the spring of 1782. But during the progress of these important +measures, the jealousies and bickerings in the cabinet became more and +more painfully apparent, and as the question of peace with America came +into the foreground, these difficulties hastened to a crisis.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Obstacles in the way of a treaty of peace.</div> + +<p>From the policy which George III. pursued with regard to Lord Shelburne +at this time, one would suppose that in his secret heart the king +wished, by foul means since all others had failed, to defeat the +negotiations for peace and to prolong the war. Seldom has there been a +more oddly complicated situation. Peace was to be made with America, +France, Spain, and Holland. Of these powers, America and France were +leagued together by one treaty of alliance, and France and Spain by +another, and these treaties in some respects conflicted with one another +in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[Pg 8]</a></span> the duties which they entailed upon the combatants. Spain, though at +war with England for purposes of her own, was bitterly hostile to the +United States; and France, thus leagued with two allies which pulled in +opposite directions, felt bound to satisfy both, while pursuing her own +ends against England. To deal with such a chaotic state of things, an +orderly and harmonious government in England should have seemed +indispensably necessary. Yet on the part of England the negotiation of a +treaty of peace was to be the work of two secretaries of state who were +both politically and personally hostile to each other. Fox, as secretary +of state for foreign affairs, had to superintend the negotiations with +France, Spain, and Holland. Shelburne was secretary of state for home +and colonial affairs; and as the United States were still officially +regarded as colonies, the American negotiations belonged to his +department. With such a complication of conflicting interests, George +III. might well hope that no treaty could be made.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Oswald talks with Franklin.</div> + +<p>The views of Fox and Shelburne as to the best method of conceding +American independence were very different. Fox understood that France +was really in need of peace, and he believed that she would not make +further demands upon England if American independence should once be +recognized. Accordingly, Fox would have made this concession at once as +a preliminary to the negotiation. On the other hand, Shelburne felt sure +that France would insist upon further concessions, and he thought it +best to hold in reserve the recognition of independence as a +consideration to be bargained<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[Pg 9]</a></span> for. Informal negotiations began between +Shelburne and Franklin, who for many years had been warm friends. In +view of the impending change of government, Franklin had in March sent a +letter to Shelburne, expressing a hope that peace might soon be +restored. When the letter reached London the new ministry had already +been formed, and Shelburne, with the consent of the cabinet, answered it +by sending over to Paris an agent, to talk with Franklin informally, and +ascertain the terms upon which the Americans would make peace. The +person chosen for this purpose was Richard Oswald, a Scotch merchant, +who owned large estates in America,—a man of very frank disposition and +liberal views, and a friend of Adam Smith. In April, Oswald had several +conversations with Franklin. In one of these conversations Franklin +suggested that, in order to make a durable peace, it was desirable to +remove all occasion for future quarrel; that the line of frontier +between New York and Canada was inhabited by a lawless set of men, who +in time of peace would be likely to breed trouble between their +respective governments; and that therefore it would be well for England +to cede Canada to the United States. A similar reasoning would apply to +Nova Scotia. By ceding these countries to the United States it would be +possible, from the sale of unappropriated lands, to indemnify the +Americans for all losses of private property during the war, and also to +make reparation to the Tories, whose estates had been confiscated. By +pursuing such a policy, England, which had made war on<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[Pg 10]</a></span> America +unjustly, and had wantonly done it great injuries, would achieve not +merely peace, but reconciliation, with America; and reconciliation, said +Franklin, is "a sweet word." No doubt this was a bold tone for Franklin +to take, and perhaps it was rather cool in him to ask for Canada and +Nova Scotia; but he knew that almost every member of the Whig ministry +had publicly expressed the opinion that the war against America was an +unjust and wanton war; and being, moreover, a shrewd hand at a bargain, +he began by setting his terms high. Oswald doubtless looked at the +matter very much from Franklin's point of view, for on the suggestion of +the cession of Canada he expressed neither surprise nor reluctance. +Franklin had written on a sheet of paper the main points of his +conversation, and, at Oswald's request, he allowed him to take the paper +to London to show to Lord Shelburne, first writing upon it a note +expressly declaring its informal character. Franklin also sent a letter +to Shelburne, describing Oswald as a gentleman with whom he found it +very pleasant to deal. On Oswald's arrival in London, Shelburne did not +show the notes of the conversation to any of his colleagues, except Lord +Ashburton. He kept the paper over one night, and then returned it to +Franklin without any formal answer. But the letter he showed to the +cabinet, and on the 23d of April it was decided to send Oswald back to +Paris, to represent to Franklin that, on being restored to the same +situation in which she was left by the treaty of 1763, Great Britain +would be willing to recognize the independence of the United<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[Pg 11]</a></span> States. +Fox was authorized to make a similar representation to the French +government, and the person whom he sent to Paris for this purpose was +Thomas Grenville, son of the author of the Stamp Act.</p> + +<p>As all British subjects were prohibited from entering into negotiations +with the revolted colonies, it was impossible for Oswald to take any +decisive step until an enabling act should be carried through +Parliament. But while waiting for this he might still talk informally +with Franklin. Fox thought that Oswald's presence in Paris indicated a +desire on Shelburne's part to interfere with the negotiations with the +French government; and indeed, the king, out of his hatred of Fox and +his inborn love of intrigue, suggested to Shelburne that Oswald "might +be a useful check on that part of the negotiation which was in other +hands." But Shelburne paid no heed to this crooked advice, and there is +nothing to show that he had the least desire to intrigue against Fox. If +he had, he would certainly have selected some other agent than Oswald, +who was the most straightforward of men, and scarcely close-mouthed +enough for a diplomatist. He told Oswald to impress it upon Franklin +that if America was to be independent at all she must be independent of +the whole world, and must not enter into any secret arrangement with +France which might limit her entire freedom of action in the future. To +the private memorandum which desired the cession of Canada for three +reasons, his answers were as follows: "1. <i>By way of +reparation.</i>—Answer. No reparation can be heard<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[Pg 12]</a></span> of. 2. <i>To prevent +future wars.</i>—Answer. It is to be hoped that some more friendly method +will be found. 3. <i>As a fund of indemnification to loyalists.</i>—Answer. +No independence to be acknowledged without their being taken care of." +Besides, added Shelburne, the Americans would be expected to make some +compensation for the surrender of Charleston, Savannah, and the city of +New York, still held by British troops. From this it appears that +Shelburne, as well as Franklin, knew how to begin by asking more than he +was likely to get.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Grenville has an interview with Vergennes.</div> + +<p>While Oswald submitted these answers to Franklin, Grenville had his +interview with Vergennes, and told him that, if England recognized the +independence of the United States, she should expect France to restore +the islands of the West Indies which she had taken from England. Why +not, since the independence of the United States was the sole avowed +object for which France had gone to war? Now this was on the 8th of May, +and the news of the destruction of the French fleet in the West Indies, +nearly four weeks ago, had not yet reached Europe. Flushed with the +victories of Grasse, and exulting in the prowess of the most formidable +naval force that France had ever sent out, Vergennes not only expected +to keep the islands which he had got, but was waiting eagerly for the +news that he had acquired Jamaica into the bargain. In this mood he +returned a haughty answer to Grenville. He reminded him that nations +often went to war for a specified object, and yet seized twice as<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[Pg 13]</a></span> much +if favoured by fortune; and, recurring to the instance which rankled +most deeply in the memories of Frenchmen, he cited the events of the +last war. In 1756 England went to war with France over the disputed +right to some lands on the Ohio River and the Maine frontier. After +seven years of fighting she not only kept these lands, but all of +Canada, Louisiana, and Florida, and ousted the French from India into +the bargain. No, said Vergennes, he would not rest content with the +independence of America. He would not even regard such an offer as a +concession to France in any way, or as a price in return for which +France was to make a treaty favourable to England. As regards the +recognition of independence, England must treat directly with America.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Effects of Rodney's victory.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">Fall of the Rockingham ministry, July 1, 1782.</div> + +<p>Grenville was disappointed and chagrined by this answer, and the +ministry made up their minds that there would be no use in trying to get +an honourable peace with France for the present. Accordingly, it seemed +better to take Vergennes at his word, though not in the sense in which +he meant it, and, by granting all that the Americans could reasonably +desire, to detach them from the French alliance as soon as possible. On +the 18th of May there came the news of the stupendous victory of Rodney +over Grasse, and all England rang with jubilee. Again it had been shown +that "Britannia rules the wave;" and it seemed that, if America could be +separately pacified, the House of Bourbon might be successfully defied. +Accordingly, on the 23d, five days after the news of victory, the +ministry decided "to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[Pg 14]</a></span> propose the independence of America in the first +instance, instead of making it the condition of a general treaty." Upon +this Fox rather hastily maintained that the United States were put at +once into the position of an independent and foreign power, so that the +business of negotiating with them passed from Shelburne's department +into his own. Shelburne, on the other hand, argued that, as the +recognition of independence could not take effect until a treaty of +peace should be concluded, the negotiation with America still belonged +to him, as secretary for the colonies. Following Fox's instructions, +Grenville now claimed the right of negotiating with Franklin as well as +with Vergennes; but as his written credentials only authorized him to +treat with France, the French minister suspected foul play, and turned a +cold shoulder to Grenville. For the same reason, Grenville found +Franklin very reserved and indisposed to talk on the subject of the +treaty. While Grenville was thus rebuffed and irritated he had a talk +with Oswald, in the course of which he got from that simple and +high-minded gentleman the story of the private paper relating to the +cession of Canada, which Franklin had permitted Lord Shelburne to see. +Grenville immediately took offence; he made up his mind that something +underhanded was going on, and that this was the reason for the coldness +of Franklin and Vergennes; and he wrote an indignant letter about it to +Fox. From the wording of this letter, Fox got the impression that +Franklin's proposal was much more serious than it really was. It +naturally puzzled him and made him angry, for the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[Pg 15]</a></span> attitude of America +implied in the request for a cession of Canada was far different from +the attitude presumed by the theory that the mere offer of independence +would be enough to detach her from her alliance with France. The plan of +the ministry seemed imperilled. Fox showed Grenville's letter to +Rockingham, Richmond, and Cavendish; and they all inferred that +Shelburne was playing a secret part, for purposes of his own. This was +doubtless unjust to Shelburne. Perhaps his keeping the matter to himself +was simply one more illustration of his want of confidence in Fox; or, +perhaps he did not think it worth while to stir up the cabinet over a +question which seemed too preposterous ever to come to anything. Fox, +however, cried out against Shelburne's alleged duplicity, and made up +his mind at all events to get the American negotiations transferred to +his own department. To this end he moved in the cabinet, on the last day +of June, that the independence of the United States should be +unconditionally acknowledged, so that England might treat as with a +foreign power. The motion was lost, and Fox announced that he should +resign his office. His resignation would probably of itself have broken +up the ministry, but, by a curious coincidence, on the next day Lord +Rockingham died; and so the first British government begotten of +Washington's victory at Yorktown came prematurely to an end.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Shelburne prime minister.</div> + +<p>The Old Whigs now found some difficulty in choosing a leader. Burke was +the greatest statesman in the party, but he had not the qualities of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[Pg 16]</a></span> a +party leader, and his connections were not sufficiently aristocratic. +Fox was distrusted by many people for his gross vices, and because of +his waywardness in politics. In the dissipated gambler, who cast in his +lot first with one party and then with the other, and who had shamefully +used his matchless eloquence in defending some of the worst abuses of +the time, there seemed as yet but little promise of the great reformer +of later years, the Charles Fox who came to be loved and idolized by all +enlightened Englishmen. Next to Fox, the ablest leader in the party was +the Duke of Richmond, but his advanced views on parliamentary reform put +him out of sympathy with the majority of the party. In this +embarrassment, the choice fell upon the Duke of Portland, a man of great +wealth and small talent, concerning whom Horace Walpole observed, "It is +very entertaining that two or three great families should persuade +themselves that they have a hereditary and exclusive right of giving us +a head without a tongue!" The choice was a weak one, and played directly +into the hands of the king. When urged to make the Duke of Portland his +prime minister, the king replied that he had already offered that +position to Lord Shelburne. Hereupon Fox and Cavendish resigned, but +Richmond remained in office, thus virtually breaking his connection with +the Old Whigs. Lord Keppel also remained. Many members of the party +followed Richmond and went over to Shelburne. William Pitt, now +twenty-three years old, succeeded Cavendish as chancellor of the +exchequer; Thomas<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[Pg 17]</a></span> Townshend became secretary of state for home and +colonies, and Lord Grantham became foreign secretary. The closing days +of Parliament were marked by altercations which showed how wide the +breach had grown between the two sections of the Whig party. Fox and +Burke believed that Shelburne was not only playing a false part, but was +really as subservient to the king as Lord North had been. In a speech +ridiculous for its furious invective, Burke compared the new prime +minister with Borgia and Catiline. And so Parliament was adjourned on +the 11th of July, and did not meet again until December.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">French policy opposed to American interests.</div> + +<p>The task of making a treaty of peace was simplified both by this change +of ministry and by the total defeat of the Spaniards and French at +Gibraltar in September. Six months before, England had seemed worsted in +every quarter. Now England, though defeated in America, was victorious +as regarded France and Spain. The avowed object for which France had +entered into alliance with the Americans was to secure the independence +of the United States, and this point was now substantially gained. The +chief object for which Spain had entered into alliance with France was +to drive the English from Gibraltar, and this point was now decidedly +lost. France had bound herself not to desist from the war until Spain +should recover Gibraltar; but now there was little hope of accomplishing +this, except by some fortunate bargain in the treaty, and Vergennes +tried to persuade England to cede the great stronghold in exchange for +West Florida, which Spain had lately <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[Pg 18]</a></span>conquered, or for Oran or +Guadaloupe. Failing in this, he adopted a plan for satisfying Spain at +the expense of the United States; and he did this the more willingly as +he had no love for the Americans, and did not wish to see them become +too powerful. France had strictly kept her pledges; she had given us +valuable and timely aid in gaining our independence; and the sympathies +of the French people were entirely with the American cause. But the +object of the French government had been simply to humiliate England, +and this end was sufficiently accomplished by depriving her of her +thirteen colonies.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The valley of the Mississippi; Aranda's prophecy.</div> + +<p>The immense territory extending from the Alleghany Mountains to the +Mississippi River, and from the border of "West Florida to the Great +Lakes, had passed from the hands of France into those of England at the +peace of 1763; and by the Quebec Act of 1774 England had declared the +southern boundary of Canada to be the Ohio River. At present the whole +territory, from Lake Superior down to the southern boundary of what is +now Kentucky, belonged to the state of Virginia, whose backwoodsmen had +conquered it from England in 1779. In December, 1780, Virginia had +provisionally ceded the portion north of the Ohio to the United States, +but the cession was not yet completed. The region which is now Tennessee +belonged to North Carolina, which had begun to make settlements there as +long ago as 1758. The trackless forests included between Tennessee and +West Florida were still in the hands of wild tribes of Cherokees and +Choctaws, Chickasaws and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[Pg 19]</a></span> Creeks. Several thousand pioneers from North +Carolina and Virginia had already settled beyond the mountains, and the +white population was rapidly increasing. This territory the French +government was very unwilling to leave in American hands. The +possibility of enormous expansion which it would afford to the new +nation was distinctly foreseen by sagacious men. Count Aranda, the +representative of Spain in these negotiations, wrote a letter to his +king just after the treaty was concluded, in which he uttered this +notable prophecy: "This federal republic is born a pygmy. A day will +come when it will be a giant, even a colossus, formidable in these +countries. Liberty of conscience, the facility for establishing a new +population on immense lands, as well as the advantages of the new +government, will draw thither farmers and artisans from all the nations. +In a few years we shall watch with grief the tyrannical existence of +this same colossus." The letter went on to predict that the Americans +would presently get possession of Florida and attack Mexico. Similar +arguments were doubtless used by Aranda in his interviews with +Vergennes, and France, as well as Spain, sought to prevent the growth of +the dreaded colossus. To this end Vergennes maintained that the +Americans ought to recognize the Quebec Act, and give up to England all +the territory north of the Ohio River. The region south of this limit +should, he thought, be made an Indian territory, and placed under the +protection of Spain and the United States. A line was to be drawn from +the mouth of the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[Pg 20]</a></span>Cumberland River, following that stream about as far +as the site of Nashville, thence running southward to the Tennessee, +thence curving eastward nearly to the Alleghanies, and descending +through what is now eastern Alabama to the Florida line. The territory +to the east of this irregular line was to be under the protection of the +United States; the territory to the west of it was to be under the +protection of Spain. In this division, the settlers beyond the mountains +would retain their connection with the United States, which would not +touch the Mississippi River at any point. Vergennes held that this was +all the Americans could reasonably demand, and he agreed with Aranda +that they had as yet gained no foothold upon the eastern bank of the +great river, unmindful of the fact that at that very moment the +fortresses at Cahokia and Kaskaskia were occupied by American garrisons.</p> + +<div class="figcenter" style="width: 600px;"><a href="images/mapfull.jpg"> +<img src="images/map.jpg" width="600" height="910" alt="MAP OF NORTH AMERICA" title="" /></a> +<span class="caption">MAP OF NORTH AMERICA,<br /><br /> + +<small>Showing the Boundaries of the UNITED STATES, CANADA, and the SPANISH +POSSESSIONS, according to the proposals of the Court of France in +1782.</small></span> +</div> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[Pg 21]</a></span></p><div class="sidenote">The Newfoundland fisheries.</div> + +<p>Upon another important point the views of the French government were +directly opposed to American interests. The right to catch fish on the +banks of Newfoundland had been shared by treaty between France and +England; and the New England fishermen, as subjects of the king of Great +Britain, had participated in this privilege. The matter was of very +great importance, not only to New England, but to the United States in +general. Not only were the fisheries a source of lucrative trade to the +New England people, but they were the training-school of a splendid race +of seamen, the nursery of naval heroes whose exploits were by and by to +astonish the world. To deprive the Americans of their share in these +fisheries was to strike a serious blow at the strength and resources of +the new nation. The British government was not inclined to grant the +privilege, and on this point Vergennes took sides with England, in order +to establish a claim upon her for concessions advantageous to France in +some other quarter. With these views, Vergennes secretly aimed at +delaying the negotiations; for as long as hostilities were kept up, he +might hope to extort from his American allies a recognition of the +Spanish claims and a renouncement of the fisheries, simply by +threatening to send them no further assistance in men or money. In order +to retard the proceedings, he refused to take any steps whatever until +the independence of the United States should first be irrevocably +acknowledged by Great Britain, without reference to the final settlement +of the rest of the treaty. In this Vergennes was supported by Franklin, +as well as by Jay, who had lately arrived in Paris to take part in the +negotiations. But the reasons of the American commissioners were very +different from those of Vergennes. They feared that, if they began to +treat before independence was acknowledged, they would be unfairly dealt +with by France and Spain, and unable to gain from England the +concessions upon which they were determined.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Jay detects the schemes of Vergennes.</div> + +<p>Jay soon began to suspect the designs of the French minister. He found +that he was sending M. de Rayneval as a secret emissary to Lord +Shelburne under an assumed name; he ascertained that the right of the +United States to the Mississippi valley was to be denied; and he got +hold of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[Pg 22]</a></span> a dispatch from Marbois, the French secretary of legation at +Philadelphia, to Vergennes, opposing the American claim to the +Newfoundland fisheries. As soon as Jay learned these facts, he sent his +friend Dr. Benjamin Vaughan to Lord Shelburne to put him on his guard, +and while reminding him that it was greatly for the interest of England +to dissolve the alliance between America and France, he declared himself +ready to begin the negotiations without waiting for the recognition of +independence, provided that Oswald's commission should speak of the +thirteen United States of America, instead of calling them colonies and +naming them separately. This decisive step was taken by Jay on his own +responsibility, and without the knowledge of Franklin, who had been +averse to anything like a separate negotiation with England. It served +to set the ball rolling at once. After meeting the messengers from Jay +and Vergennes, Lord Shelburne at once perceived the antagonism that had +arisen between the allies, and promptly took advantage of it. A new +commission was made out for Oswald, in which the British government +first described our country as the United States; and early in October +negotiations were begun and proceeded rapidly. On the part of England, +the affair was conducted by Oswald, assisted by Strachey and +Fitzherbert, who had succeeded Grenville. In the course of the month +John Adams arrived in Paris, and a few weeks later Henry Laurens, who +had been exchanged for Lord Cornwallis and released from the Tower, was +added to the company.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[Pg 23]</a></span> Adams had a holy horror of Frenchmen in general, +and of Count Vergennes in particular. He shared that common but mistaken +view of Frenchmen which regards them as shallow, frivolous, and +insincere; and he was indignant at the position taken by Vergennes on +the question of the fisheries. In this, John Adams felt as all New +Englanders felt, and he realized the importance of the question from a +national point of view, as became the man who in later years was to earn +lasting renown as one of the chief founders of the American navy. His +behaviour on reaching Paris was characteristic. It is said that he left +Count Vergennes to learn of his arrival through the newspapers. It was +certainly some time before he called upon him, and he took occasion, +besides, to express his opinions about republics and monarchies in terms +which courtly Frenchmen thought very rude.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Franklin overruled by Jay and Adams.</div> + +<p>The arrival of Adams fully decided the matter as to a separate +negotiation with England. He agreed with Jay that Vergennes should be +kept as far as possible in the dark until everything was cut and dried, +and Franklin was reluctantly obliged to yield. The treaty of alliance +between France and the United States had expressly stipulated that +neither power should ever make peace without the consent of the other, +and in view of this Franklin was loth to do anything which might seem +like abandoning the ally whose timely interposition had alone enabled +Washington to achieve the crowning triumph of Yorktown. In justice to +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[Pg 24]</a></span>Vergennes, it should be borne in mind that he had kept strict faith +with us in regard to every point that had been expressly stipulated; and +Franklin, who felt that he understood Frenchmen better than his +colleagues, was naturally unwilling to seem behindhand in this respect. +At the same time, in regard to matters not expressly stipulated, +Vergennes was clearly playing a sharp game against us; and it is +undeniable that, without departing technically from the obligations of +the alliance, Jay and Adams—two men as honourable as ever lived—played +a very sharp defensive game against him. The traditional French subtlety +was no match for Yankee shrewdness. The treaty with England was not +concluded until the consent of France had been obtained, and thus the +express stipulation was respected; but a thorough and detailed agreement +was reached as to what the purport of the treaty should be, while our +not too friendly ally was kept in the dark. The annals of modern +diplomacy have afforded few stranger spectacles. With the indispensable +aid of France we had just got the better of England in fight, and now we +proceeded amicably to divide territory and commercial privileges with +the enemy, and to make arrangements in which the ally was virtually +ignored. It ceases to be a paradox, however, when we remember that with +the change of government in England some essential conditions of the +case were changed. The England against which we had fought was the +hostile England of Lord North; the England with which we were now +dealing was the friendly England of Shelburne and Pitt. For<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[Pg 25]</a></span> the moment, +the English race, on both sides of the Atlantic, was united in its main +purpose and divided only by questions of detail, while the rival +colonizing power, which sought to work in a direction contrary to the +general interests of English-speaking people, was in great measure +disregarded.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The separate American treaty, as agreed upon:<br /> +1. Boundaries;</div> + +<p>As soon as the problem was thus virtually reduced to a negotiation +between the American commissioners and Lord Shelburne's ministry, the +air was cleared in a moment. The principal questions had already been +discussed between Franklin and Oswald. Independence being first +acknowledged, the question of boundaries came up for settlement. England +had little interest in regaining the territory between the Alleghanies +and the Mississippi, the forts in which were already held by American +soldiers, and she relinquished all claim upon it. The Mississippi River +thus became the dividing line between the United States and the Spanish +possessions, and its navigation was made free alike to British and +American ships. Franklin's suggestion of a cession of Canada and Nova +Scotia was abandoned without discussion. It was agreed that the boundary +line should start at the mouth of the river St. Croix, and, running to a +point near Lake Madawaska in the highlands separating the Atlantic +watershed from that of the St. Lawrence, should follow these highlands +to the head of the Connecticut River, and then descend the middle of the +river to the forty-fifth parallel, thence running westward and through +the centre of the water communications of the Great Lakes to the Lake of +the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[Pg 26]</a></span> Woods, thence to the source of the Mississippi, which was supposed +to be west of this lake. This line was marked in red ink by Oswald on +one of Mitchell's maps of North America, to serve as a memorandum +establishing the precise meaning of the words used in the description. +It ought to have been accurately fixed in its details by surveys made +upon the spot; but no commissioners were appointed for this purpose. The +language relating to the northeastern portion of the boundary contained +some inaccuracies which were revealed by later surveys, and the map used +by Oswald was lost. Hence a further question arose between Great Britain +and the United States, which was finally settled by the Ashburton treaty +in 1842.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">2. Fisheries; commercial intercourse;</div> + +<p>The Americans retained the right of catching fish on the banks of +Newfoundland and in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, but lost the right of +drying their fish on the Newfoundland coast. On the other hand, no +permission was given to British subjects to fish on the coasts of the +United States. As regarded commercial intercourse, Jay sought to +establish complete reciprocal freedom between the two countries, and a +clause was proposed to the effect that "all British merchants and +merchant ships, on the one hand, shall enjoy in the United States, and +in all places belonging to them, the same protection and commercial +privileges, and be liable only to the same charges and duties as their +own merchants and merchant ships; and, on the other hand, the merchants +and merchant ships of the United States shall enjoy in all places +belonging to his Britannic Majesty the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[Pg 27]</a></span> same protection and commercial +privileges, and be liable only to the same charges and duties as British +merchants and merchant ships, saving always to the chartered trading +companies of Great Britain such exclusive use and trade, and the +respective ports and establishments, as neither the other subjects of +Great Britain nor any the most favoured nation participate in." +Unfortunately for both countries, this liberal provision was rejected on +the ground that the ministry had no authority to interfere with the +Navigation Act.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">3. Private debts;</div> + +<p>Only two questions were now left to be disposed of,—the question of +paying private debts, and that of compensating the American loyalists +for the loss of property and general rough treatment which they had +suffered. There were many old debts outstanding from American to British +merchants. These had been for the most part incurred before 1775, and +while many honest debtors, impoverished during the war, felt unable to +pay, there were doubtless many others who were ready to take advantage +of circumstances and refuse the payment which they were perfectly able +to make. It was scarcely creditable to us that any such question should +have arisen. Franklin, indeed, argued that these debts were more than +fully offset by damages done to private property by British soldiers: +as, for example, in the wanton raids on the coasts of Connecticut and +Virginia in 1779, or in Prevost's buccaneering march against Charleston. +To cite these atrocities, however, as a reason for the non-payment of +debts legitimately owed to innocent merchants in London and Glasgow<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[Pg 28]</a></span> was +to argue as if two wrongs could make a right. The strong sense of John +Adams struck at once to the root of the matter. He declared "he had no +notion of cheating anybody. The questions of paying debts and +compensating Tories were two." This terse statement carried the day, and +it was finally decided that all private debts on either side, whether +incurred before or after 1775, remained still binding, and must be +discharged at their full value in sterling money.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">4. Compensation of loyalists.</div> + +<p>The last question of all was the one most difficult to settle. There +were many loyalists in the United States who had sacrificed everything +in the support of the British cause, and it was unquestionably the duty +of the British government to make every possible effort to insure them +against further injury, and, if practicable, to make good their losses +already incurred. From Virginia and the New England states, where they +were few in number, they had mostly fled, and their estates had been +confiscated. In New York and South Carolina, where they remained in +great numbers, they were still waging a desultory war with the patriots, +which far exceeded in cruelty and bitterness the struggle between the +regular armies. In many cases they had, at the solicitation of the +British government, joined the invading army, and been organized into +companies and regiments. The regular troops defeated at King's Mountain, +and those whom Arnold took with him to Virginia, were nearly all +American loyalists. Lord Shelburne felt that it would be wrong to +abandon these unfortunate men to the vengeance of their<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[Pg 29]</a></span> fellow +countrymen, and he insisted that the treaty should contain an amnesty +clause providing for the restoration of the Tories to their civil +rights, with compensation for their confiscated property. However +disagreeable such a course might seem to the victorious Americans, there +were many precedents for it in European history. It had indeed come to +be customary at the close of civil wars, and the effect of such a policy +had invariably been good. Cromwell, in his hour of triumph, inflicted no +disabilities upon his political enemies; and when Charles II. was +restored to the throne the healing effect of the amnesty act then passed +was so great that historians sometimes ask what in the world had become +of that Puritan party which a moment before had seemed supreme in the +land. At the close of the war of the Spanish Succession, the rebellious +people of Catalonia were indemnified for their losses, at the request of +England, and with a similar good effect. In view of such European +precedents, Vergennes agreed with Shelburne as to the propriety of +securing compensation and further immunity for the Tories in America. +John Adams insinuated that the French minister took this course because +he foresaw that the presence of the Tories in the United States would +keep the people perpetually divided into a French party and an English +party; but such a suspicion was quite uncalled for. There is no reason +to suppose that in this instance Vergennes had anything at heart but the +interests of humanity and justice.</p> + +<p>On the other hand, the Americans brought forward very strong reasons why +the Tories should<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[Pg 30]</a></span> not be indemnified by Congress. First, as Franklin +urged, many of them had, by their misrepresentations to the British +government, helped to stir up the disputes which led to the war; and as +they had made their bed, so they must lie in it. Secondly, such of them +as had been concerned in burning and plundering defenceless villages, +and wielding the tomahawk in concert with bloodthirsty Indians, deserved +no compassion. It was rather for them to make compensation for the +misery they had wrought. Thirdly, the confiscated Tory property had +passed into the hands of purchasers who had bought it in good faith and +could not now be dispossessed, and in many cases it had been distributed +here and there and lost sight of. An estimate of the gross amount might +be made, and a corresponding sum appropriated for indemnification. But, +fourthly, the country was so impoverished by the war that its own +soldiers, the brave men whose heroic exertions had won the independence +of the United States, were at this moment in sore distress for the want +of the pay which Congress could not give them, but to which its honour +was sacredly pledged. The American government was clearly bound to pay +its just debts to the friends who had suffered so much in its behalf +before it should proceed to entertain a chimerical scheme for satisfying +its enemies. For, fifthly, any such scheme was in the present instance +clearly chimerical. The acts under which Tory property had been +confiscated were acts of state legislatures, and Congress had no +jurisdiction over such a matter. If restitution was to be made, it must +be made by<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[Pg 31]</a></span> the separate states. The question could not for a moment be +entertained by the general government or its agents.</p> + +<p>Upon these points the American commissioners were united and inexorable. +Various suggestions were offered in vain by the British. Their troops +still held the city of New York, and it was doubtful whether the +Americans could hope to capture it in another campaign. It was urged +that England might fairly claim in exchange for New York a round sum of +money wherewith the Tories might be indemnified. It was further urged +that certain unappropriated lands in the Mississippi valley might be +sold for the same purpose. But the Americans would not hear of buying +one of their own cities, whose independence was already acknowledged by +the first article of the treaty which recognized the independence of the +United States and as for the western lands, they were wanted as a means +of paying our own war debts and providing for our veteran soldiers. +Several times Shelburne sent word to Paris that he would break off the +negotiation unless the loyalist claims were in some way recognized. But +the Americans were obdurate. They had one advantage, and knew it. +Parliament was soon to meet, and it was doubtful whether Lord Shelburne +could command a sufficient majority to remain long in office. He was, +accordingly, very anxious to complete the treaty of peace, or at least +to detach America from the French alliance, as soon as possible. The +American commissioners were also eager to conclude the treaty. They had +secured very favourable terms, and were<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[Pg 32]</a></span> loth to run any risk of +spoiling what had been done. Accordingly, they made a proposal in the +form of a compromise, which nevertheless settled the point in their +favour. The matter, they said, was beyond the jurisdiction of Congress, +but they agreed that Congress should <i>recommend</i> to the several states +to desist from further proceedings against the Tories, and to reconsider +their laws on this subject; it should further recommend that persons +with claims upon confiscated lands might be authorized to use legal +means of recovering them, and to this end might be allowed to pass to +and fro without personal risk for the term of one year. The British +commissioners accepted this compromise, unsatisfactory as it was, +because it was really impossible to obtain anything better without +throwing the whole negotiation overboard. The constitutional difficulty +was a real one indeed. As Adams told Oswald, if the point were further +insisted upon, Congress would be obliged to refer it to the several +states, and no one could tell how long it might be before any decisive +result could be reached in this way. Meanwhile, the state of war would +continue, and it would be cheaper for England to indemnify the loyalists +herself than to pay the war bills for a single month. Franklin added +that, if the loyalists were to be indemnified, it would be necessary +also to reckon up the damage they had done in burning houses and +kidnapping slaves, and then strike a balance between the two accounts; +and he gravely suggested that a special commission might be appointed +for this purpose. At the prospect of endless discussion which this<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[Pg 33]</a></span> +suggestion involved, the British commissioners gave way and accepted the +American terms, although they were frankly told that too much must not +be expected from the recommendation of Congress. The articles were +signed on the 30th of November, six days before the meeting of +Parliament. Hostilities in America were to cease at once, and upon the +completion of the treaty the British fleets and armies were to be +immediately withdrawn from every place which they held within the limits +of the United States. A supplementary and secret article provided that +if England, on making peace with Spain, should recover West Florida, the +northern boundary of that province should be a line running due east +from the mouth of the Yazoo River to the Chattahoochee.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Vergennes does not like the way in which it has been done.</div> + +<p>Thus by skilful diplomacy the Americans had gained all that could +reasonably be asked, while the work of making a general peace was +greatly simplified. It was declared in the preamble that the articles +here signed were provisional, and that the treaty was not to take effect +until terms of peace should be agreed on between England and France. +Without delay, Franklin laid the whole matter, except the secret +article, before Vergennes, who forthwith accused the Americans of +ingratitude and bad faith. Franklin's reply, that at the worst they +could only be charged with want of diplomatic courtesy, has sometimes +been condemned as insincere, but on inadequate grounds. He had consented +with reluctance to the separate negotiation, because he did not wish to +give France any<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34">[Pg 34]</a></span> possible ground for complaint, whether real or +ostensible. There does not seem, however, to have been sufficient +justification for so grave a charge as was made by Vergennes. If the +French negotiations had failed until after the overthrow of the +Shelburne ministry; if Fox, on coming into power, had taken advantage of +the American treaty to continue the war against France; and if under +such circumstances the Americans had abandoned their ally, then +undoubtedly they would have become guilty of ingratitude and treachery. +There is no reason for supposing that they would ever have done so, had +the circumstances arisen. Their preamble made it impossible for them +honourably to abandon France until a full peace should be made, and more +than this France could not reasonably demand. The Americans had kept to +the strict letter of their contract, as Vergennes had kept to the strict +letter of his, and beyond this they meted out exactly the same measure +of frankness which they received. To say that our debt of gratitude to +France was such as to require us to acquiesce in her scheme for +enriching our enemy Spain at our expense is simply childish. Franklin +was undoubtedly right. The commissioners may have been guilty of a +breach of diplomatic courtesy, but nothing more. Vergennes might be +sarcastic about it for the moment, but the cordial relations between +France and America remained undisturbed.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">A great diplomatic victory.</div> + +<p>On the part of the Americans the treaty of Paris was one of the most +brilliant triumphs in the whole history of modern diplomacy. Had the +affair been managed by men of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[Pg 35]</a></span> ordinary ability, some of the greatest +results of the Revolutionary War would probably have been lost; the new +republic would have been cooped up between the Atlantic Ocean and the +Alleghany Mountains; our westward expansion would have been impossible +without further warfare in which European powers would have been +involved; and the formation of our Federal Union would doubtless have +been effectively hindered, if not, indeed, altogether prevented. To the +grand triumph the varied talents of Franklin, Adams, and Jay alike +contributed. To the latter is due the credit of detecting and baffling +the sinister designs of France; but without the tact of Franklin this +probably could not have been accomplished without offending France in +such wise as to spoil everything. It is, however, to the rare +discernment and boldness of Jay, admirably seconded by the sturdy Adams, +that the chief praise is due. The turning-point of the whole affair was +the visit of Dr. Vaughan to Lord Shelburne. The foundation of success +was the separate negotiation with England, and here there had stood in +the way a more formidable obstacle than the mere reluctance of Franklin. +The chevalier Luzerne and his secretary Marbois had been busy with +Congress, and that body had sent well-meant but silly and pusillanimous +instructions to its commissioners at Paris to be guided in all things by +the wishes of the French court. To disregard such instructions required +all the lofty courage for which Jay and Adams were noted, and for the +moment it brought upon them something like a rebuke from Congress, +conveyed in a letter<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[Pg 36]</a></span> from Robert Livingston. As Adams said, in his +vehement way, "Congress surrendered their own sovereignty into the hands +of a French minister. Blush! blush! ye guilty records! blush and perish! +It is glory to have broken such infamous orders." True enough; the +commissioners knew that in diplomacy, as in warfare, to the agent at a +distance from his principal some discretionary power must be allowed. +They assumed great responsibility, and won a victory of incalculable +grandeur.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The Spanish treaty.</div> + +<p>The course of the Americans produced no effect upon the terms obtained +by France, but it seriously modified the case with Spain. Unable to +obtain Gibraltar by arms, that power hoped to get it by diplomacy; and +with the support of France she seemed disposed to make the cession of +the great fortress an ultimatum, without which the war must go on. +Shelburne, on his part, was willing to exchange Gibraltar for an island +in the West Indies; but it was difficult to get the cabinet to agree on +the matter, and the scheme was violently opposed by the people, for the +heroic defence of the stronghold had invested it with a halo of romance +and endeared it to every one. Nevertheless, so persistent was Spain, and +so great the desire for peace on the part of the ministry, that they had +resolved to exchange Gibraltar for Guadaloupe, when the news arrived of +the treaty with America. The ministers now took a bold stand, and +refused to hear another word about giving up Gibraltar. Spain scolded, +and threatened a renewal of hostilities, but France was unwilling to +give further assistance, and the matter was settled<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[Pg 37]</a></span> by England's +surrendering East Florida, and allowing the Spaniards to keep West +Florida and Minorca, which were already in their hands.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The French treaty.</div> + +<p>By the treaty with France, the West India islands of Grenada, St. +Vincent, St. Christopher, Dominica, Nevis, and Montserrat were restored +to England, which in turn restored St. Lucia and ceded Tobago to France. +The French were allowed to fortify Dunkirk, and received some slight +concessions in India and Africa; they retained their share in the +Newfoundland fisheries, and recovered the little neighbouring islands of +St. Pierre and Miquelon. For the fourteen hundred million francs which +France had expended in the war, she had the satisfaction of detaching +the American colonies from England, thus inflicting a blow which it was +confidently hoped would prove fatal to the maritime power of her ancient +rival; but beyond this short-lived satisfaction, the fallaciousness of +which events were soon to show, she obtained very little. On the 20th of +January, 1783, the preliminaries of peace were signed between England, +on the one hand, and France and Spain, on the other. A truce was at the +same time concluded with Holland, which was soon followed by a peace, in +which most of the conquests on either side were restored.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Coalition of Fox with North.</div> + +<p>A second English ministry was now about to be wrecked on the rock of +this group of treaties. Lord Shelburne's government had at no time been +a strong one. He had made many enemies by his liberal and reforming +measures, and he had alienated most of his colleagues by his reserved +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[Pg 38]</a></span>demeanour and seeming want of confidence in them. In December several +of the ministers resigned. The strength of parties in the House of +Commons was thus quaintly reckoned by Gibbon: "Minister 140; Reynard 90; +Boreas 120; the rest unknown or uncertain." But "Reynard" and "Boreas" +were now about to join forces in one of the strangest coalitions ever +known in the history of politics. No statesman ever attacked another +more ferociously than Fox had attacked North during the past ten years. +He had showered abuse upon him; accused him of "treachery and +falsehood," of "public perfidy," and "breach of a solemn specific +promise;" and had even gone so far as to declare to his face a hope that +he would be called upon to expiate his abominable crimes upon the +scaffold. Within a twelvemonth he had thus spoken of Lord North and his +colleagues: "From the moment when I shall make any terms with one of +them, I will rest satisfied to be called the most infamous of mankind. I +would not for an instant think of a coalition with men who, in every +public and private transaction as ministers, have shown themselves void +of every principle of honour and honesty. In the hands of such men I +would not trust my honour even for a moment." Still more recently, when +at a loss for words strong enough to express his belief in the +wickedness of Shelburne, he declared that he had no better opinion of +that man than to deem him capable of forming an alliance with North. We +may judge, then, of the general amazement when, in the middle of +February, it turned out<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[Pg 39]</a></span> that Fox had himself done this very thing. An +"ill-omened marriage," William Pitt called it in the House of Commons. +"If this ill-omened marriage is not already solemnized, I know a just +and lawful impediment, and in the name of the public safety I here +forbid the banns." Throughout the country the indignation was great. +Many people had blamed Fox for not following up his charges by actually +bringing articles of impeachment against Lord North. That the two +enemies should thus suddenly become leagued in friendship seemed utterly +monstrous. It injured Fox extremely in the opinion of the country, and +it injured North still more, for it seemed like a betrayal of the king +on his part, and his forgiveness of so many insults looked +mean-spirited. It does not appear, however, that there was really any +strong personal animosity between North and Fox. They were both men of +very amiable character, and almost incapable of cherishing resentment. +The language of parliamentary orators was habitually violent, and the +huge quantities of wine which gentlemen in those days used to drink may +have helped to make it extravagant. The excessive vehemence of political +invective often deprived it of half its effect. One day, after Fox had +exhausted his vocabulary of abuse upon Lord George Germaine, Lord North +said to him, "You were in very high feather to-day, Charles, and I am +glad you did not fall upon me." On another occasion, it is said that +while Fox was thundering against North's unexampled turpitude, the +object of his furious tirade cosily dropped off to sleep. Gibbon, who +was the friend of both<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[Pg 40]</a></span> statesmen, expressly declares that they bore +each other no ill will. But while thus alike indisposed to harbour +bitter thoughts, there was one man for whom both Fox and North felt an +abiding distrust and dislike; and that man was Lord Shelburne, the prime +minister.</p> + +<p>As a political pupil of Burke, Fox shared that statesman's distrust of +the whole school of Lord Chatham, to which Shelburne belonged. In many +respects these statesmen were far more advanced than Burke, but they did +not sufficiently realize the importance of checking the crown by means +of a united and powerful ministry. Fox thoroughly understood that much +of the mischief of the past twenty years, including the loss of America, +had come from the system of weak and divided ministries, which gave the +king such great opportunity for wreaking his evil will. He had himself +been a member of such a ministry, which had fallen seven months ago. +When the king singled out Shelburne for his confidence, Fox naturally +concluded that Shelburne was to be made to play the royal game, as North +had been made to play it for so many years. This was very unjust to +Shelburne, but there is no doubt that Fox was perfectly honest in his +belief. It seemed to him that the present state of things must be +brought to an end, at whatever cost. A ministry strong enough to curb +the king could be formed only by a coalescence of two out of the three +existing parties. A coalescence of Old and New Whigs had been tried last +spring, and failed. It only remained now to try the effect of a +coalescence of Old Whigs and Tories.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[Pg 41]</a></span></p><p>Such was doubtless the chief motive of Fox in this extraordinary move. +The conduct of North seems harder to explain, but it was probably due to +a reaction of feeling on his part. He had done violence to his own +convictions out of weak compassion for George III., and had carried on +the American war for four years after he had been thoroughly convinced +that peace ought to be made. Remorse for this is said to have haunted +him to the end of his life. When in his old age he became blind, he bore +this misfortune with his customary lightness of heart; and one day, +meeting the veteran Barré, who had also lost his eyesight, he exclaimed, +with his unfailing wit, "Well, colonel, in spite of all our differences, +I suppose there are no two men in England who would be gladder to <i>see</i> +each other than you and I." But while Lord North could jest about his +blindness, the memory of his ill-judged subservience to the king was +something that he could not laugh away, and among his nearest friends he +was sometimes heard to reproach himself bitterly. When, therefore, in +1783, he told Fox that he fully agreed with him in thinking that the +royal power ought to be curbed, he was doubtless speaking the truth. No +man had a better right to such an opinion than he had gained through +sore experience. In his own ministry, as he said to Fox, he took the +system as he found it, and had not vigour and resolution enough to put +an end to it; but he was now quite convinced that in such a country as +England, while the king should be treated with all outward show of +respect, he ought on no account to be allowed to exercise any real +power.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[Pg 42]</a></span></p><p>Now this was in 1783 the paramount political question in England, just +as much as the question of secession was paramount in the United States +in 1861. Other questions could be postponed; the question of curbing the +king could not. Upon this all-important point North had come to agree +with Fox; and as the principal motive of their coalition may be thus +explained, the historian is not called upon to lay too much stress upon +the lower motives assigned in profusion by their political enemies. This +explanation, however, does not quite cover the case. The mass of the +Tories would never follow North in an avowed attempt to curb the king, +but they agreed with the followers of Fox, though not with Fox himself, +in holy horror of parliamentary reform, and were alarmed by a recent +declaration of Shelburne that the suffrage must be extended so as to +admit a hundred new county members. Thus while the two leaders were +urged to coalescence by one motive, their followers were largely swayed +by another, and this added much to the mystery and general +unintelligibleness of the movement. In taking this step Fox made the +mistake which was characteristic of the Old Whig party. He gave too +little heed to the great public outside the walls of the House of +Commons. The coalition, once made, was very strong in Parliament, but it +mystified and scandalized the people, and this popular disapproval by +and by made it easy for the king to overthrow it.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Fall of Shelburne's ministry.</div> + +<p>It was agreed to choose the treaty as the occasion for the combined +attack upon the Shelburne ministry. North, as the minister who had +conducted<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[Pg 43]</a></span> the unsuccessful war, was bound to oppose the treaty, in any +case. It would not do for him to admit that better terms could not have +been made. The treaty was also very unpopular with Fox's party, and with +the nation at large. It was thought that too much territory had been +conceded to the Americans, and fault was found with the article on the +fisheries. But the point which excited most indignation was the virtual +abandonment of the loyalists, for here the honour of England was felt to +be at stake. On this ground the treaty was emphatically condemned by +Burke, Sheridan, and Wilberforce, no less than by North. It was ably +defended in the Commons by Pitt, and in the Lords by Shelburne himself, +who argued that he had but the alternative of accepting the terms as +they stood, or continuing the war; and since it had come to this, he +said, without spilling a drop of blood, or incurring one fifth of the +expense of a year's campaign, the comfort and happiness of the American +loyalists could be easily secured. By this he meant that, should America +fail to make good their losses, it was far better for England to +indemnify them herself than to prolong indefinitely a bloody and ruinous +struggle. As we shall hereafter see, this liberal and enlightened policy +was the one which England really pursued, so far as practicable, and her +honour was completely saved. That Shelburne and Pitt were quite right +there can now be little doubt. But argument was of no avail against the +resistless power of the coalition. On the 17th of February Lord John +Cavendish moved an amendment to the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[Pg 44]</a></span> ministerial address on the treaty, +refusing to approve it. On the 21st he moved a further amendment +condemning the treaty. Both motions were carried, and on the 24th Lord +Shelburne resigned. He did not dissolve Parliament and appeal to the +country, partly because he was aware of his personal unpopularity, and +partly because, in spite of the general disgust at the coalition, there +was little doubt that on the particular question of the treaty the +public opinion agreed with the majority in Parliament, and not with the +ministry. For this reason, Pitt, though personally popular, saw that it +was no time for him to take the first place in the government, and when +the king proceeded to offer it to him he declined.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The king's wrath.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">The treaty is adopted, after all, by the coalition ministry, +which presently falls.</div> + +<p>For more than five weeks, while the treasury was nearly empty, and the +question of peace or war still hung in the balance, England was without +a regular government, while the angry king went hunting for some one who +would consent to be his prime minister. He was determined not to submit +to the coalition. He was naturally enraged at Lord North for turning +against him. Meeting one day North's father, Lord Guilford, he went up +to him, tragically wringing his hands, and exclaimed in accents of woe, +"Did I ever think, my Lord Guilford, that your son would thus have +betrayed me into the hands of Mr. Fox?" He appealed in vain to Lord +Gower, and then to Lord Temple, to form a ministry. Lord Gower suggested +that perhaps Thomas Pitt, cousin of William, might be willing to serve. +"I desired him," said the king, "to apply to Mr. Thomas Pitt,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[Pg 45]</a></span> or Mr. +Thomas anybody." It was of no use. By the 2d of April Parliament had +become furious at the delay, and George was obliged to yield. The Duke +of Portland was brought in as nominal prime minister, with Fox as +foreign secretary, North as secretary for home and colonies, Cavendish +as chancellor of the exchequer, and Keppel as first lord of the +admiralty. The only Tory in the cabinet, excepting North, was Lord +Stormont, who became president of the council. The commissioners, +Fitzherbert and Oswald, were recalled from Paris, and the Duke of +Manchester and David Hartley, son of the great philosopher, were +appointed in their stead. Negotiations continued through the spring and +summer. Attempts were made to change some of the articles, especially +the obnoxious article concerning the loyalists, but all to no purpose. +Hartley's attempt to negotiate a mutually advantageous commercial treaty +with America also came to nothing. The definitive treaty which was +finally signed on the 3d of September, 1783, was an exact transcript of +the treaty which Shelburne had made, and for making which the present +ministers had succeeded in turning him out of office. No more emphatic +justification of Shelburne's conduct of this business could possibly +have been obtained.</p> + +<p>The coalition ministry did not long survive the final signing of the +treaty. The events of the next few months are curiously instructive as +showing the quiet and stealthy way in which a political revolution may +be consummated in a thoroughly<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[Pg 46]</a></span> conservative and constitutional country. +Early in the winter session of Parliament Fox brought in his famous bill +for organizing the government of the great empire which Clive and +Hastings had built up in India. Popular indignation at the ministry had +been strengthened by its adopting the same treaty of peace for the +making of which it had assaulted Shelburne; and now, on the passage of +the India Bill by the House of Commons, there was a great outcry. Many +provisions of the bill were exceedingly unpopular, and its chief object +was alleged to be the concentration of the immense patronage of India +into the hands of the old Whig families. With the popular feeling thus +warmly enlisted against the ministry, George III. was now emboldened to +make war on it by violent means; and, accordingly, when the bill came up +in the House of Lords, he caused it to be announced, by Lord Temple, +that any peer who should vote in its favour would be regarded as an +enemy by the king. Four days later the House of Commons, by a vote of +153 to 80, resolved that "to report any opinion, or pretended opinion, +of his majesty upon any bill or other proceeding depending in either +house of Parliament, with a view to influence the votes of the members, +is a high crime and misdemeanour, derogatory to the honour of the crown, +a breach of the fundamental privileges of Parliament, and subversive of +the constitution of this country." A more explicit or emphatic defiance +to the king would have been hard to frame. Two days afterward the Lords +rejected the India Bill, and on the next day, the 18th of December, +George turned the ministers out of office.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[Pg 47]</a></span></p><div class="sidenote">Constitutional crisis, ending in the overwhelming victory of +Pitt, May, 1784.</div> + +<p>In this grave constitutional crisis the king invited William Pitt to +form a government, and this young statesman, who had consistently +opposed the coalition, now saw that his hour was come. He was more than +any one else the favourite of the people. Fox's political reputation was +eclipsed, and North's was destroyed, by their unseemly alliance. People +were sick of the whole state of things which had accompanied the +American war. Pitt, who had only come into Parliament in 1780, was free +from these unpleasant associations. The unblemished purity of his life, +his incorruptible integrity, his rare disinterestedness, and his +transcendent ability in debate were known to every one. As the worthy +son of Lord Chatham, whose name was associated with the most glorious +moment of English history, he was peculiarly dear to the people. His +position, however, on taking supreme office at the instance of a king +who had just committed an outrageous breach of the constitution, was +extremely critical, and only the most consummate skill could have won +from the chaos such a victory as he was about to win. When he became +first lord of the treasury and chancellor of the exchequer, in December, +1783, he had barely completed his twenty-fifth year. All his colleagues +in the new cabinet were peers, so that he had to fight single-handed in +the Commons against the united talents of Burke and Sheridan, Fox and +North; and there was a heavy majority against him, besides. In view of +this adverse majority, it was Pitt's constitutional duty to dissolve +Parliament<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48">[Pg 48]</a></span> and appeal to the country. But Fox, unwilling to imperil his +great majority by a new election, now made the fatal mistake of opposing +a dissolution; thus showing his distrust of the people and his dread of +their verdict. With consummate tact, Pitt allowed the debates to go on +till March, and then, when the popular feeling in his favour had grown +into wild enthusiasm, he dissolved Parliament. In the general election +which followed, 160 members of the coalition lost their seats, and Pitt +obtained the greatest majority that has ever been given to an English +minister.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Overthrow of George III.'s system of personal government.</div> + +<p>Thus was completed the political revolution in England which was set on +foot by the American victory at Yorktown. Its full significance was only +gradually realized. For the moment it might seem that it was the king +who had triumphed. He had shattered the alliance which had been formed +for the purpose of curbing him, and the result of the election had +virtually condoned his breach of the constitution. This apparent +victory, however, had been won only by a direct appeal to the people, +and all its advantages accrued to the people, and not to George III. His +ingenious system of weak and divided ministries, with himself for +balance-wheel, was destroyed. For the next seventeen years the real +ruler of England was not George III., but William Pitt, who, with his +great popular following, wielded such a power as no English sovereign +had possessed since the days of Elizabeth. The political atmosphere was +cleared of intrigue; and Fox, in the legitimate attitude of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[Pg 49]</a></span> leader of +the new opposition, entered upon the glorious part of his career. There +was now set in motion that great work of reform which, hindered for a +while by the reaction against the French revolutionists, won its +decisive victory in 1832. Down to the very moment at which American and +British history begin to flow in distinct and separate channels, it is +interesting to observe how closely they are implicated with each other. +The victory of the Americans not only set on foot the British revolution +here described, but it figured most prominently in each of the political +changes that we have witnessed, down to the very eve of the overthrow of +the coalition. The system which George III. had sought to fasten upon +America, in order that he might fasten it upon England, was shaken off +and shattered by the good people of both countries at almost the same +moment of time.</p> + + + +<hr /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[Pg 50]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_II" id="CHAPTER_II"></a>CHAPTER II.</h2> + +<h3>THE THIRTEEN COMMONWEALTHS.</h3> + + +<div class="sidenote">Departure of the British troops, Nov. 25, 1783.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">Washington resigns his command, Dec. 23.</div> + +<p>"<span class="smcap">The</span> times that tried men's souls are over," said Thomas Paine in the +last number of the "Crisis," which he published after hearing that the +negotiations for a treaty of peace had been concluded. The preliminary +articles had been signed at Paris on the 20th of January, 1783. The news +arrived in America on the 23d of March, in a letter to the president of +Congress from Lafayette, who had returned to France soon after the +victory at Yorktown. A few days later Sir Guy Carleton received his +orders from the ministry to proclaim a cessation of hostilities by land +and sea. A similar proclamation made by Congress was formally +communicated to the army by Washington on the 19th of April, the eighth +anniversary of the first bloodshed on Lexington green. Since Wayne had +driven the British from Georgia, early in the preceding year, there had +been no military operations between the regular armies. Guerrilla +warfare between Whig and Tory had been kept up in parts of South +Carolina and on the frontier of New York, where Thayendanegea was still +alert and defiant; while beyond the mountains the tomahawk and +scalping-knife had been busy, and Washington's old friend and comrade, +Colonel<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[Pg 51]</a></span> Crawford, had been scorched to death by the firebrands of the +red demons; but the armies had sat still, awaiting the peace which every +one felt sure must speedily come. After Cornwallis's surrender, +Washington marched his army back to the Hudson, and established his +headquarters at Newburgh. Rochambeau followed somewhat later, and in +September joined the Americans on the Hudson; but in December the French +army marched to Boston, and there embarked for France. After the formal +cessation of hostilities on the 19th of April, 1783, Washington granted +furloughs to most of his soldiers; and these weather-beaten veterans +trudged homeward in all directions, in little groups of four or five, +depending largely for their subsistence on the hospitality of the +farm-houses along the road. Arrived at home, their muskets were hung +over the chimney-piece as trophies for grandchildren to be proud of, the +stories of their exploits and their sufferings became household legends, +and they turned the furrows and drove the cattle to pasture just as in +the "old colony times." Their furloughs were equivalent to a full +discharge, for on the 3d of September the definitive treaty was signed, +and the country was at peace. On the 3d of November the army was +formally disbanded, and on the 25th of that month Sir Guy Carleton's +army embarked from New York. Small British garrisons still remained in +the frontier posts of Ogdensburg, Oswego, Niagara, Erie, Sandusky, +Detroit, and Mackinaw, but by the terms of the treaty these places were +to be promptly surrendered to the United States. On<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[Pg 52]</a></span> the 4th of December +a barge waited at the South Ferry in New York to carry General +Washington across the river to Paulus Hook. He was going to Annapolis, +where Congress was in session, in order to resign his command. At +Fraunces's Tavern, near the ferry, he took leave of the officers who so +long had shared his labours. One after another they embraced their +beloved commander, while there were few dry eyes in the company. They +followed him to the ferry, and watched the departing boat with hearts +too full for words, and then in solemn silence returned up the street. +At Philadelphia he handed to the comptroller of the treasury a neatly +written manuscript, containing an accurate statement of his expenses in +the public service since the day when he took command of the army. The +sums which Washington had thus spent out of his private fortune amounted +to $64,315. For his personal services he declined to take any pay. At +noon of the 23d, in the presence of Congress and of a throng of ladies +and gentlemen at Annapolis, the great general gave up his command, and +requested as an "indulgence" to be allowed to retire into private life. +General Mifflin, who during the winter of Valley Forge had conspired +with Gates to undermine the confidence of the people in Washington, was +now president of Congress, and it was for him to make the reply. "You +retire," said Mifflin, "from the theatre of action with the blessings of +your fellow-citizens, but the glory of your virtues will not terminate +with your military command; it will continue to animate<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[Pg 53]</a></span> remotest ages." +The next morning Washington hurried away to spend Christmas at his +pleasant home at Mount Vernon, which, save for a few hours in the autumn +of 1781, he had not set eyes on for more than eight years. His estate +had suffered from his long absence, and his highest ambition was to +devote himself to its simple interests. To his friends he offered +unpretentious hospitality. "My manner of living is plain," he said, "and +I do not mean to be put out of it. A glass of wine and a bit of mutton +are always ready, and such as will be content to partake of them are +always welcome. Those who expect more will be disappointed." To +Lafayette he wrote that he was now about to solace himself with those +tranquil enjoyments of which the anxious soldier and the weary statesman +know but little. "I have not only retired from all public employments, +but I am retiring within myself, and shall be able to view the solitary +walk and tread the paths of private life with heartfelt satisfaction. +Envious of none, I am determined to be pleased with all; and this, my +dear friend, being the order of my march, I will move gently down the +stream of life until I sleep with my fathers."</p> + +<div class="sidenote">His "legacy" to the American people, June 8, 1783.</div> + +<p>In these hopes Washington was to be disappointed. "All the world is +touched by his republican virtues," wrote Luzerne to Vergennes, "but it +will be useless for him to try to hide himself and live the life of a +private man: he will always be the first citizen of the United States." +It indeed required no prophet to foretell that the American people could +not long dispense with the services of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[Pg 54]</a></span> this greatest of citizens. +Washington had already put himself most explicitly on record as the +leader of the men who were urging the people of the United States toward +the formation of a more perfect union. The great lesson of the war had +not been lost on him. Bitter experience of the evils attendant upon the +weak government of the Continental Congress had impressed upon his mind +the urgent necessity of an immediate and thorough reform. On the 8th of +June, in view of the approaching disbandment of the army, he had +addressed to the governors and presidents of the several states a +circular letter, which he wished to have regarded as his legacy to the +American people. In this letter he insisted upon four things as +essential to the very existence of the United States as an independent +power. First, there must be an indissoluble union of all the states +under a single federal government, which must possess the power of +enforcing its decrees; for without such authority it would be a +government only in name. Secondly, the debts incurred by Congress for +the purpose of carrying on the war and securing independence must be +paid to the uttermost farthing. Thirdly, the militia system must be +organized throughout the thirteen states on uniform principles. +Fourthly, the people must be willing to sacrifice, if need be, some of +their local interests to the common weal; they must discard their local +prejudices, and regard one another as fellow-citizens of a common +country, with interests in the deepest and truest sense identical.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[Pg 55]</a></span></p><div class="sidenote">Absence of a sentiment of union, and consequent danger of +anarchy.</div> + +<p>The unparalleled grandeur of Washington's character, his heroic +services, and his utter disinterestedness had given him such a hold upon +the people as scarcely any other statesman known to history, save +perhaps William the Silent, has ever possessed. The noble and sensible +words of his circular letter were treasured up in the minds of all the +best people in the country, and when the time for reforming the weak and +disorderly government had come it was again to Washington that men +looked as their leader and guide. But that time had not yet come. Only +through the discipline of perplexity and tribulation could the people be +brought to realize the indispensable necessity of that indissoluble +union of which Washington had spoken. Thomas Paine was sadly mistaken +when, in the moment of exultation over the peace, he declared that the +trying time was ended. The most trying time of all was just beginning. +It is not too much to say that the period of five years 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 the dangers from which we were saved in 1865. In the War of +Secession the love of union had come to be so strong that thousands of +men gave up their lives for it as cheerfully and triumphantly as the +martyrs of older times, who sang their hymns of praise even while their +flesh was withering in the relentless flames. In 1783 the love of union, +as a sentiment for which men would fight, had scarcely come into +existence<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[Pg 56]</a></span> among the people of these states. The souls of the men of +that day had not been thrilled by the immortal eloquence of Webster, nor +had they gained the historic experience which gave to Webster's words +their meaning and their charm. They had not gained control of all the +fairest part of the continent, with domains stretching more than three +thousand miles from ocean to ocean, and so situated in geographical +configuration and commercial relations as to make the very idea of +disunion absurd, save for men in whose minds fanaticism for the moment +usurped the place of sound judgment. The men of 1783 dwelt in a long, +straggling series of republics, fringing the Atlantic coast, bordered on +the north and south and west by two European powers whose hostility they +had some reason to dread. But nine years had elapsed since, in the first +Continental Congress, they had begun to act consistently and +independently in common, under the severe pressure of a common fear and +an immediate necessity of action. Even under such circumstances the war +had languished and come nigh to failure simply through the difficulty of +insuring concerted action. Had there been such a government that the +whole power of the thirteen states could have been swiftly and +vigorously wielded as a unit, the British, fighting at such disadvantage +as they did, might have been driven to their ships in less than a year. +The length of the war and its worst hardships had been chiefly due to +want of organization. Congress had steadily declined in power and in +respectability; it was much weaker at the end of the war than at the +beginning; and there was<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[Pg 57]</a></span> reason to fear that as soon as the common +pressure was removed the need for concerted action would quite cease to +be felt, and the scarcely formed Union would break into pieces. There +was the greater reason for such a fear in that, while no strong +sentiment had as yet grown up in favour of union, there was an intensely +powerful sentiment in favour of local self-government. This feeling was +scarcely less strong as between states like Connecticut and Rhode +Island, or Maryland and Virginia, than it was between Athens and Megara, +Argos and Sparta, in the great days of Grecian history. A most wholesome +feeling it was, and one which needed not so much to be curbed as to be +guided in the right direction. It was a feeling which was shared by some +of the foremost Revolutionary leaders, such as Samuel Adams and Richard +Henry Lee. But unless the most profound and delicate statesmanship +should be forthcoming, to take this sentiment under its guidance, there +was much reason to fear that the release from the common adhesion to +Great Britain would end in setting up thirteen little republics, ripe +for endless squabbling, like the republics of ancient Greece and +mediæval Italy, and ready to become the prey of England and Spain, even +as Greece became the prey of Macedonia.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">False historic analogies.</div> + +<p>As such a lamentable result was dreaded by Washington, so by statesmen +in Europe it was generally expected, and by our enemies it was eagerly +hoped for. Josiah Tucker, Dean of Gloucester, was a far-sighted man in +many things; but he said, "As to the future grandeur of America, and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58">[Pg 58]</a></span> +its being a rising empire under one head, whether republican or +monarchical, it is one of the idlest and most visionary notions that +ever was conceived even by writers of romance. The mutual antipathies +and clashing interests of the Americans, their difference of +governments, habitudes, and manners, indicate that they will have no +centre of union and no common interest. They never can be united into +one compact empire under any species of government whatever; a disunited +people till the end of time, suspicious and distrustful of each other, +they will be divided and subdivided into little commonwealths or +principalities, according to natural boundaries, by great bays of the +sea, and by vast rivers, lakes, and ridges of mountains." Such were the +views of a liberal-minded philosopher who bore us no ill-will. George +III. said officially that he hoped the Americans would not suffer from +the evils which in history had always followed the throwing off of +monarchical government: which meant, of course, that he hoped they +<i>would</i> suffer from such evils. He believed we should get into such a +snarl that the several states, one after another, would repent and beg +on their knees to be taken back into the British empire. Frederick of +Prussia, though friendly to the Americans, argued that the mere extent +of country from Maine to Georgia would suffice either to break up the +Union, or to make a monarchy necessary. No republic, he said, had ever +long existed on so great a scale. The Roman republic had been +transformed into a despotism mainly by the excessive enlargement of its +area. It was only<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[Pg 59]</a></span> little states, like Venice, Switzerland, and Holland, +that could maintain a republican government. Such arguments were common +enough a century ago, but they overlooked three essential differences +between the Roman republic and the United States. The Roman republic in +Cæsar's time comprised peoples differing widely in blood, in speech, and +in degree of civilization; it was perpetually threatened on all its +frontiers by powerful enemies; and representative assemblies were +unknown to it. The only free government of which the Roman knew anything +was that of the primary assembly or town meeting. On the other hand, the +people of the United States were all English in speech, and mainly +English in blood. The differences in degree of civilization between such +states as Massachusetts and North Carolina were considerable, but in +comparison with such differences as those between Attika and Lusitania +they might well be called slight. The attacks of savages on the frontier +were cruel and annoying, but never since the time of King Philip had +they seemed to threaten the existence of the white man. A very small +military establishment was quite enough to deal with the Indians. And to +crown all, the American people were thoroughly familiar with the +principle of representation, having practised it on a grand scale for +four centuries in England, and for more than a century in America. The +governments of the thirteen states were all similar, and the political +ideas of one were perfectly intelligible to all the others. It was +essentially fallacious, therefore, to liken the case of the United +States to that of ancient Rome.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[Pg 60]</a></span></p><div class="sidenote">Influence of railroad and telegraph upon perpetuity of the +American Union.</div> + +<p>But there was another feature of the case which was quite hidden from +the men of 1783. Just before the assembling of the first Continental +Congress James Watt had completed his steam-engine; in the summer of +1787, while the Federal Convention was sitting at Philadelphia, John +Fitch launched his first steamboat on the Delaware River; and +Stephenson's invention of the locomotive was to follow in less than half +a century. Even with all other conditions favourable, it is doubtful if +the American Union could have been preserved to the present time without +the railroad. But for the military aid of railroads our government would +hardly have succeeded in putting down the rebellion of the southern +states. In the debates on the Oregon Bill in the United States Senate in +1843, the idea that we could ever have an interest in so remote a +country as Oregon was loudly ridiculed by some of the members. It would +take ten months—said George McDuffie, the very able senator from South +Carolina—for representatives to get from that territory to the District +of Columbia and back again. Yet since the building of railroads to the +Pacific coast, we can go from Boston to the capital of Oregon in much +less time than it took John Hancock to make the journey from Boston to +Philadelphia. Railroads and telegraphs have made our vast country, both +for political and for social purposes, more snug and compact than little +Switzerland was in the Middle Ages or New England a century ago.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Difficulty of travelling a hundred years ago.</div> + +<p>At the time of our Revolution the difficulties of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[Pg 61]</a></span> travelling formed an +important social obstacle to the union of the states. In our time the +persons who pass in a single day between New York and Boston by six or +seven distinct lines of railroad and steamboat are numbered by +thousands. In 1783 two stage-coaches were enough for all the travellers, +and nearly all the freight besides, that went between these two cities, +except such large freight as went by sea around Cape Cod. The journey +began at three o'clock in the morning. Horses were changed every twenty +miles, and if the roads were in good condition some forty miles would be +made by ten o'clock in the evening. In bad weather, when the passengers +had to get down and lift the clumsy wheels out of deep ruts, the +progress was much slower. The loss of life from accidents, in proportion +to the number of travellers, was much greater than it has ever been on +the railway. Broad rivers like the Connecticut and Housatonic had no +bridges. To drive across them in winter, when they were solidly frozen +over, was easy; and in pleasant summer weather to cross in a row-boat +was not a dangerous undertaking. But squalls at some seasons and +floating ice at others were things to be feared. More than one instance +is recorded where boats were crushed and passengers drowned, or saved +only by scrambling upon ice-floes. After a week or ten days of +discomfort and danger the jolted and jaded traveller reached New York. +Such was a journey in the most highly civilized part of the United +States. The case was still worse in the South, and it was not so very +much<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[Pg 62]</a></span> better in England and France. In one respect the traveller in the +United States fared better than the traveller in Europe: the danger from +highwaymen was but slight.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Local jealousies and antipathies, an inheritance from +primeval savagery.</div> + +<p>Such being the difficulty of travelling, people never made long journeys +save for very important reasons. Except in the case of the soldiers, +most people lived and died without ever having seen any state but their +own. And as the mails were irregular and uncertain, and the rates of +postage very high, people heard from one another but seldom. Commercial +dealings between the different states were inconsiderable. The +occupation of the people was chiefly agriculture. Cities were few and +small, and each little district for the most part supported itself. +Under such circumstances the different parts of the country knew very +little about each other, and local prejudices were intense. It was not +simply free Massachusetts and slave-holding South Carolina, or English +Connecticut and Dutch New York, that misunderstood and ridiculed each +the other; but even between such neighbouring states as Connecticut and +Massachusetts, both of them thoroughly English and Puritan, and in all +their social conditions almost exactly alike, it used often to be said +that there was no love lost. These unspeakably stupid and contemptible +local antipathies are inherited by civilized men from that far-off time +when the clan system prevailed over the face of the earth, and the hand +of every clan was raised against its neighbours. They are pale and +evanescent survivals from the universal<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[Pg 63]</a></span> primitive warfare, and the +sooner they die out from human society the better for every one. They +should be stigmatized and frowned down upon every fit occasion, just as +we frown upon swearing as a symbol of anger and contention. But the only +thing which can finally destroy them is the widespread and unrestrained +intercourse of different groups of people in peaceful social and +commercial relations. The rapidity with which this process is now going +on is the most encouraging of all the symptoms of our modern +civilization. But a century ago the progress made in this direction had +been relatively small, and it was a very critical moment for the +American people.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Conservative character of the Revolution.</div> + +<p>The thirteen states, as already observed, had worked in concert for only +nine years, during which their coöperation had been feeble and halting. +But the several state governments had been in operation since the first +settlement of the country, and were regarded with intense loyalty by the +people of the states. Under the royal governors the local political life +of each state had been vigorous and often stormy, as befitted +communities of the sturdy descendants of English freemen. The +legislative assembly of each state had stoutly defended its liberties +against the encroachments of the governor. In the eyes of the people it +was the only power on earth competent to lay taxes upon them, it was as +supreme in its own sphere as the British Parliament itself, and in +behalf of this rooted conviction the people had gone to war and won +their independence from England. During the war the people of all the +states, except <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[Pg 64]</a></span>Connecticut and Rhode Island, had carefully remodelled +their governments, and in the performance of this work had withdrawn +many of their ablest statesmen from the Continental Congress; but except +for the expulsion of the royal and proprietary governors, the work had +in no instance been revolutionary in its character. It was not so much +that the American people gained an increase of freedom by their +separation from England, as that they kept the freedom they had always +enjoyed, that freedom which was the inalienable birthright of +Englishmen, but which George III. had foolishly sought to impair. The +American Revolution was therefore in no respect destructive. It was the +most conservative revolution known to history, thoroughly English in +conception from beginning to end. It had no likeness whatever to the +terrible popular convulsion which soon after took place in France. The +mischievous doctrines of Rousseau had found few readers and fewer +admirers among the Americans. The principles upon which their revolution +was conducted were those of Sidney, Harrington, and Locke. In +remodelling the state governments, as in planning the union of the +states, the precedents followed and the principles applied were almost +purely English. We must now pass in review the principal changes wrought +in the several states, and we shall then be ready to consider the +general structure of the Confederation, and to describe the remarkable +series of events which led to the adoption of our Federal Constitution.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">State governments remodelled; assemblies continued from +colonial times.</div> + +<p>It will be remembered that at the time of the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[Pg 65]</a></span> Declaration of +Independence there were three kinds of government in the colonies. +Connecticut and Rhode Island had always been true republics, with +governors and legislative assemblies elected by the people. +Pennsylvania, Delaware, and Maryland presented the appearance of limited +hereditary monarchies. Their assemblies were chosen by the people, but +the lords proprietary appointed their governors, or in some instances +acted as governors themselves. In Maryland the office of lord +proprietary was hereditary in the Calvert family; in Delaware and +Pennsylvania, which, though distinct commonwealths with separate +legislatures, had the same executive head, it was hereditary in the Penn +family. The other eight colonies were viceroyalties, with governors +appointed by the king, while in all alike the people elected the +legislatures. Accordingly in Connecticut and Rhode Island no change was +made necessary by the Revolution, beyond the mere omission of the king's +name from legal documents; and their charters, which dated from the +middle of the seventeenth century, continued to do duty as state +constitutions till far into the nineteenth. During the Revolutionary War +all the other states framed new constitutions, but in most essential +respects they took the old colonial charters for their model. The +popular legislative body remained unchanged even in its name. In North +Carolina its supreme dignity was vindicated in its title of the House of +Commons; in Virginia it was called the House of Burgesses; in most of +the states the House of Representatives. The <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66">[Pg 66]</a></span>members were chosen each +year, except in South Carolina, where they served for two years. In the +New England states they represented the townships, in other states the +counties. In all the states except Pennsylvania a property qualification +was required of them.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Origin of the senates.</div> + +<p>In addition to this House of Representatives all the legislatures except +those of Pennsylvania and Georgia contained a second or upper house +known as the Senate. The origin of the senate is to be found in the +governor's council of colonial times, just as the House of Lords is +descended from the Witenagemot or council of great barons summoned by +the Old-English kings. The Americans had been used to having the acts of +their popular assemblies reviewed by a council, and so they retained +this revisory body as an upper house. A higher property qualification +was required than for membership of the lower house, and, except in New +Hampshire, Massachusetts, and South Carolina, the term of service was +longer. In Maryland senators sat for five years, in Virginia and New +York for four years, elsewhere for two years. In some states they were +chosen by the people, in others by the lower house. In Maryland they +were chosen by a college of electors, thus affording a precedent for the +method of electing the chief magistrate of the union under the Federal +Constitution.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Governors viewed with suspicion.</div> + +<p>Governors were unpopular in those days. There was too much flavour of +royalty and high prerogative about them. Except in the two republics of +Rhode Island and Connecticut, American political<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[Pg 67]</a></span> history during the +eighteenth century was chiefly the record of interminable squabbles +between governors and legislatures, down to the moment when the detested +agents of royalty were clapped into jail, or took refuge behind the +bulwarks of a British seventy-four. Accordingly the new constitutions +were very chary of the powers to be exercised by the governor. In +Pennsylvania and Delaware, in New Hampshire and Massachusetts, the +governor was at first replaced by an executive council, and the +president of this council was first magistrate and titular ruler of the +state. His dignity was imposing enough, but his authority was merely +that of a chairman. The other states had governors chosen by the +legislatures, except in New York where the governor was elected by the +people. No one was eligible to the office of governor who did not +possess a specified amount of property. In most of the states the +governor could not be reëlected, he had no veto upon the acts of the +legislature, nor any power of appointing officers. In 1780, in a new +constitution drawn up by James Bowdoin and the two Adamses, +Massachusetts led the way in the construction of a more efficient +executive department. The president was replaced by a governor elected +annually by the people, and endowed with the power of appointment and a +suspensory veto. The first governor elected under this constitution was +John Hancock. In 1783 New Hampshire adopted a similar constitution. In +1790 Pennsylvania added an upper house to its legislature, and vested +the executive power in a governor elected by the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68">[Pg 68]</a></span>people for a term of +three years, and twice reëligible. He was intrusted with the power of +appointment to offices, with a suspensory veto, and with the royal +prerogative of reprieving or pardoning criminals. In 1792 similar +changes were made in Delaware. In 1789 Georgia added the upper house to +its legislature, and about the same time in several states the +governor's powers were enlarged.</p> + +<p>Thus the various state governments were repetitions on a small scale of +what was then supposed to be the triplex government of England, with its +King, Lords, and Commons. The governor answered to the king with his +dignity curtailed by election for a short period, and by narrowly +limited prerogatives. The senate answered to the House of Lords, except +in being a representative and not a hereditary body. It was supposed to +represent more especially that part of the community which was possessed +of most wealth and consideration; and in several states the senators +were apportioned with some reference to the amount of taxes paid by +different parts of the state. The senate of New York, in direct +imitation of the House of Lords, was made a supreme court of errors. On +the other hand, the assembly answered to the House of Commons, save that +its power was really limited by the senate as the power of the House of +Commons is not really limited by the House of Lords. But this +peculiarity of the British Constitution was not well understood a +century ago; and the misunderstanding, as we shall hereafter see, +exerted a very serious influence upon the form of our federal +government, as well as upon the constitutions of the several states.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[Pg 69]</a></span></p><div class="sidenote">The judiciary.</div> + +<p>In all the thirteen states the common law of England remained in force, +as it does to this day save where modified by statute. British and +colonial statutes made prior to the Revolution continued also in force +unless expressly repealed. The system of civil and criminal courts, the +remedies in common law and equity, the forms of writs, the functions of +justices of the peace, the courts of probate, all remained substantially +unchanged. In Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey, the judges held +office for a term of seven years; in all the other states they held +office for life or during good behaviour. In all the states save Georgia +they were appointed either by the governor or by the legislature. It was +Georgia that in 1812 first set the pernicious example of electing judges +for short terms by the people,<a name="FNanchor_1_1" id="FNanchor_1_1"></a><a href="#Footnote_1_1" class="fnanchor">[1]</a>—a practice which is responsible for +much of the degradation that the courts have suffered in many of our +states, and which will have to be abandoned before a proper +administration of justice can ever be secured.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The limited suffrage.</div> + +<p>In bestowing the suffrage, the new constitutions were as conservative as +in all other respects. The general state of opinion in America at that +time, with regard to universal suffrage, was far more advanced than the +general state of opinion in England, but it was less advanced than the +opinions of such statesmen as Pitt and Shelburne and the Duke of +Richmond. There was a truly English irregularity in the provisions which +were made on<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[Pg 70]</a></span> this subject. In New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Delaware, +and South Carolina, all resident freemen who paid taxes could vote. In +North Carolina all such persons could vote for members of the lower +house, but in order to vote for senators a freehold of fifty acres was +required. In Virginia none could vote save those who possessed such a +freehold of fifty acres. To vote for governor or for senators in New +York, one must possess a freehold of $250, clear of mortgage, and to +vote for assemblymen one must either have a freehold of $50, or pay a +yearly rent of $10. The pettiness of these sums was in keeping with the +time when two daily coaches sufficed for the traffic between our two +greatest commercial cities. In Rhode Island an unincumbered freehold +worth $134 was required; but in Rhode Island and Pennsylvania the eldest +sons of qualified freemen could vote without payment of taxes. In all +the other states the possession of a small amount of property, either +real or personal, varying from $33 to $200, was the necessary +qualification for voting. Thus slowly and irregularly did the states +drift toward universal suffrage; but although the impediments in the way +of voting were more serious than they seem to us in these days when the +community is more prosperous and money less scarce, they were still not +very great, and in the opinion of conservative people they barely +sufficed to exclude from the suffrage such shiftless persons as had no +visible interest in keeping down the taxes.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Abolition of primogeniture, entails, and manorial +privileges.</div> + +<p>At the time of the Revolution the succession to property was regulated +in New York and the southern<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[Pg 71]</a></span> states by the English rule of +primogeniture. The eldest son took all. In New Jersey, Pennsylvania, +Delaware, and the four New England states, the eldest son took a double +share. It was Georgia that led the way in decreeing the equal +distribution of intestate property, both real and personal; and between +1784 and 1796 the example was followed by all the other states. At the +same time entails were either definitely abolished, or the obstacles to +cutting them off were removed. In New York the manorial privileges of +the great patroons were swept away. In Maryland the old manorial system +had long been dying a natural death through the encroachments of the +patriarchal system of slavery. The ownership of all ungranted lands +within the limits of the thirteen states passed from the crown not to +the Confederacy, but to the several state governments. In Pennsylvania +and Maryland such ungranted lands had belonged to the lords proprietary. +They were now forfeited to the state. The Penn family was indemnified by +Pennsylvania to the amount of half a million dollars; but Maryland made +no compensation to the Calverts, inasmuch as their claim was presented +by an illegitimate descendant of the last Lord Baltimore.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Steps toward the abolition of slavery and the slave-trade.</div> + +<p>The success of the American Revolution made it possible for the +different states to take measures for the gradual abolition of slavery +and the immediate abolition of the foreign slave-trade. On this great +question the state of public opinion in America was more advanced than +in England. So great a thinker as Edmund Burke, who devoted much<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[Pg 72]</a></span> +thought to the subject, came to the conclusion that slavery was an +incurable evil, and that there was not the slightest hope that the trade +in slaves could be stopped. The most that he thought could be done by +judicious legislation was to mitigate the horrors which the poor negroes +endured on board ship, or to prevent wives from being sold away from +their husbands or children from their parents. Such was the outlook to +one of the greatest political philosophers of modern times just +eighty-two years before the immortal proclamation of President Lincoln! +But how vast was the distance between Burke and Bossuet, who had +declared about eighty years earlier that "to condemn slavery was to +condemn the Holy Ghost!" It was equally vast between Burke and his +contemporary Thurlow, who in 1799 poured out the vials of his wrath upon +"the altogether miserable and contemptible" proposal to abolish the +slave-trade. George III. agreed with his chancellor, and resisted the +movement for abolition with all the obstinacy of which his hard and +narrow nature was capable. In 1769 the Virginia legislature had enacted +that the further importation of negroes, to be sold into slavery, should +be prohibited. But George III. commanded the governor to veto this act, +and it was vetoed. In Jefferson's first-draft of the Declaration of +Independence, this action of the king was made the occasion of a fierce +denunciation of slavery, but in deference to the prejudices of South +Carolina and Georgia the clause was struck out by Congress. When George +III. and his vetoes had been <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[Pg 73]</a></span>eliminated from the case, it became +possible for the states to legislate freely on the subject. In 1776 +negro slaves were held in all the thirteen states, but in all except +South Carolina and Georgia there was a strong sentiment in favour of +emancipation. In North Carolina, which contained a large Quaker +population, and in which estates were small and were often cultivated by +free labour, the pro-slavery feeling was never so strong as in the +southernmost states. In Virginia all the foremost statesmen—Washington, +Jefferson, Lee, Randolph, Henry, Madison, and Mason—were opposed to the +continuance of slavery; and their opinions were shared by many of the +largest planters. For tobacco-culture slavery did not seem so +indispensable as for the raising of rice and indigo; and in Virginia the +negroes, half-civilized by kindly treatment, were not regarded with +horror by their masters, like the ill-treated and ferocious blacks of +South Carolina and Georgia. After 1808 the policy and the sentiments of +Virginia underwent a marked change. The invention of the cotton-gin, +taken in connection with the sudden and prodigious development of +manufactures in England, greatly stimulated the growth of cotton in the +ever-enlarging area of the Gulf states, and created an immense demand +for slave-labour, just at the time when the importation of negroes from +Africa came to an end. The breeding of slaves, to be sold to the +planters of the Gulf states, then became such a profitable occupation in +Virginia as entirely to change the popular feeling about slavery. But +until 1808 Virginia sympathized with the anti-slavery sentiment which<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[Pg 74]</a></span> +was growing up in the northern states; and the same was true of +Maryland. Emancipation was, however, much more easy to accomplish in the +north, because the number of slaves was small, and economic +circumstances distinctly favoured free labour. In the work of gradual +emancipation the little state of Delaware led the way. In its new +constitution of 1776 the further introduction of slaves was prohibited, +all restraints upon emancipation having already been removed. In the +assembly of Virginia in 1778 a bill prohibiting the further introduction +of slaves was moved and carried by Thomas Jefferson, and the same +measure was passed in Maryland in 1783, while both these states removed +all restraints upon emancipation. North Carolina was not ready to go +quite so far, but in 1786 she sought to discourage the slave-trade by +putting a duty of £5 per head on all negroes thereafter imported. New +Jersey followed the example of Maryland and Virginia. Pennsylvania went +farther. In 1780 its assembly enacted that no more slaves should be +brought in, and that all children of slaves born after that date should +be free. The same provisions were made by New Hampshire in its new +constitution of 1783, and by the assemblies of Connecticut and Rhode +Island in 1784. New York went farther still, and in 1785 enacted that +all children of slaves thereafter born should not only be free, but +should be admitted to vote on the same conditions as other freemen. In +1788 Virginia, which contained many free negroes, enacted that any +person convicted of kidnapping or selling into slavery any free person +should suffer<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[Pg 75]</a></span> death on the gallows. Summing up all these facts, we see +that within two years after the independence of the United States had +been acknowledged by England, while the two southernmost states had done +nothing to check the growth of slavery, North Carolina had discouraged +the importation of slaves; Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, and New Jersey +had stopped such importation and removed all restraint upon +emancipation; and all the remaining states, except Massachusetts, had +made gradual emancipation compulsory. Massachusetts had gone still +farther. Before the Revolution the anti-slavery feeling had been +stronger there than in any other state, and cases brought into court for +the purpose of testing the legality of slavery had been decided in +favour of those who were opposed to the continuance of that barbarous +institution. In 1777 an American cruiser brought into the port of Salem +a captured British ship with slaves on board, and these slaves were +advertised for sale, but on complaint being made before the legislature +they were set free. The new constitution of 1780 contained a declaration +of rights which asserted that all men are born free and have an equal +and inalienable right to defend their lives and liberties, to acquire +property, and to seek and obtain safety and happiness. The supreme court +presently decided that this clause worked the abolition of slavery, and +accordingly Massachusetts was the first of American states, within the +limits of the Union, to become in the full sense of the words a free +commonwealth. Of the negro inhabitants, not more than six thousand in +number, a large proportion<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[Pg 76]</a></span> had already for a long time enjoyed freedom; +and all were now admitted to the suffrage on the same terms as other +citizens.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Progress toward freedom in religion.</div> + +<p>By the revolutionary legislation of the states some progress was also +effected in the direction of a more complete religious freedom. +Pennsylvania and Delaware were the only states in which all Christian +sects stood socially and politically on an equal footing. In Rhode +Island all Protestants enjoyed equal privileges, but Catholics were +debarred from voting. In Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Connecticut, +the old Puritan Congregationalism was the established religion. The +Congregational church was supported by taxes, and the minister, once +chosen, kept his place for life or during good behaviour. He could not +be got rid of unless formally investigated and dismissed by an +ecclesiastical council. Laws against blasphemy, which were virtually +laws against heresy, were in force in these three states. In +Massachusetts, Catholic priests were liable to imprisonment for life. +Any one who should dare to speculate too freely about the nature of +Christ, or the philosophy of the plan of salvation, or to express a +doubt as to the plenary inspiration of every word between the two covers +of the Bible, was subject to fine and imprisonment. The tithing-man +still arrested Sabbath-breakers and shut them up in the town-cage in the +market-place; he stopped all unnecessary riding or driving on Sunday, +and haled people off to the meeting-house whether they would or not. +Such restraints upon liberty were still endured by people who had<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[Pg 77]</a></span> dared +and suffered so much for liberty's sake. The men of Boston strove hard +to secure the repeal of these barbarous laws and the disestablishment of +the Congregational church; but they were outvoted by the delegates from +the rural towns. The most that could be accomplished was the provision +that dissenters might escape the church-rate by supporting a church of +their own. The nineteenth century was to arrive before church and state +were finally separated in Massachusetts. The new constitution of New +Hampshire was similarly illiberal, and in Connecticut no change was +made. Rhode Island nobly distinguished herself by contrast when in 1784 +she extended the franchise to Catholics.</p> + +<p>In the six states just mentioned the British government had been +hindered by charter, and by the overwhelming opposition of the people, +from seriously trying to establish the Episcopal church. The sure fate +of any such mad experiment had been well illustrated in the time of +Andros. In the other seven states there were no such insuperable +obstacles. The Church of England was maintained with languid +acquiescence in New York. By the Quakers and Presbyterians of New Jersey +and North Carolina, as well as in half-Catholic, half-Puritan Maryland, +its supremacy was unwillingly endured; in the turbulent frontier +commonwealth of Georgia it was accepted with easy contempt. Only in +South Carolina and Virginia had the Church of England ever possessed any +real hold upon the people. The Episcopal clergy of South Carolina, men +of learning and high character,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[Pg 78]</a></span> elected by their own congregations +instead of being appointed to their livings by a patron, were thoroughly +independent, and in the late war their powerful influence had been +mainly exerted in behalf of the patriot cause. Hence, while they +retained their influence after the close of the war, there was no +difficulty in disestablishing the church. It felt itself able to stand +without government support. As soon as the political separation from +England was effected, the Episcopal church was accordingly separated +from the state, not only in South Carolina, but in all the states in +which it had hitherto been upheld by the authority of the British +government; and in the constitutions of New Jersey, Georgia, and the two +Carolinas, no less than in those of Delaware and Pennsylvania, it was +explicitly provided that no man should be obliged to pay any church rate +or attend any religious service save according to his own free and +unhampered will.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Church and state in Virginia.</div> + +<p>The case of Virginia was peculiar. At first the Church of England had +taken deep root there because of the considerable immigration of members +of the Cavalier party after the downfall of Charles I. Most of the great +statesmen of Virginia in the Revolution—such as Washington, Madison, +Mason, Jefferson, Pendleton, Henry, the Lees, and the Randolphs—were +descendants of Cavaliers and members of the Church of England. But for a +long time the Episcopal clergy had been falling into discredit. Many of +them were appointed by the British government and ordained by the +Bishop<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[Pg 79]</a></span> of London, and they were affected by the irreligious +listlessness and low moral tone of the English church in the eighteenth +century. The Virginia legislature thought it necessary to pass special +laws prohibiting these clergymen from drunkenness and riotous living. It +was said that they spent more time in hunting foxes and betting on +race-horses than in conducting religious services or visiting the sick; +and according to Bishop Meade, many dissolute parsons, discarded from +the church in England as unworthy, were yet thought fit to be presented +with livings in Virginia. To this general character of the clergy there +were many exceptions. There were many excellent clergymen, especially +among the native Virginians, whose appointment depended to some extent +upon the repute in which they were held by their neighbours. But on the +whole the system was such as to illustrate all the worst vices of a +church supported by the temporal power. The Revolution achieved the +discomfiture of a clergy already thus deservedly discredited. The +parsons mostly embraced the cause of the crown, but failed to carry +their congregations with them, and thus they found themselves arrayed in +hopeless antagonism to popular sentiment in a state which contained +perhaps fewer Tories in proportion to its population than any other of +the thirteen.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Madison and the Religious Freedom Act, 1785.</div> + +<p>At the same time the Episcopal church itself had gradually come to be a +minority in the commonwealth. For more than half a century Scotch and +Welsh Presbyterians, German Lutherans, English Quakers, and Baptists, +had been working<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[Pg 80]</a></span> their way southward from Pennsylvania and New Jersey, +and had settled in the fertile country west of the Blue Ridge. Daniel +Morgan, who had won the most brilliant battle of the Revolution, was one +of these men, and sturdiness was a chief characteristic of most of them. +So long as these frontier settlers served as a much-needed bulwark +against the Indians, the church saw fit to ignore them and let them +build meeting-houses and carry on religious services as they pleased. +But when the peril of Indian attack had been thrust westward into the +Ohio valley, and these dissenting communities had waxed strong and +prosperous, the ecclesiastical party in the state undertook to lay taxes +on them for the support of the Church of England, and to compel them to +receive Episcopal clergymen to preach for them, to bless them in +marriage, and to bury their dead. The immediate consequence was a revolt +which not only overthrew the established church in Virginia, but nearly +effected its ruin. The troubles began in 1768, when the Baptists had +made their way into the centre of the state, and three of their +preachers were arrested by the sheriff of Spottsylvania. As the +indictment was read against these men for "preaching the gospel contrary +to law," a deep and solemn voice interrupted the proceedings. Patrick +Henry had come on horseback many a mile over roughest roads to listen to +the trial, and this phrase, which savoured of the religious despotisms +of old, was quite too much for him. "May it please your worships," he +exclaimed, "what did I hear read? Did I hear an expression<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[Pg 81]</a></span> that these +men, whom your worships are about to try for misdemeanour, are charged +with preaching the gospel of the Son of God!" The shamefast silence and +confusion which ensued was of ill omen for the success of an undertaking +so unwelcome to the growing liberalism of the time. The zeal of the +persecuted Baptists was presently reinforced by the learning and the +dialectic skill of the Presbyterian ministers. Unlike the Puritans of +New England, the Presbyterians were in favour of the total separation of +church from state. It was one of their cardinal principles that the +civil magistrate had no right to interfere in any way with matters of +religion. By taking this broad ground they secured the powerful aid of +Thomas Jefferson, and afterwards of Madison and Mason. The controversy +went on through all the years of the Revolutionary War, while all +Virginia, from the sea to the mountains, rang with fulminations and +arguments. In 1776 Jefferson and Mason succeeded in carrying a bill +which released all dissenters from parish rates and legalized all forms +of worship. At last in 1785 Madison won the crowning victory in the +Religious Freedom Act, by which the Church of England was disestablished +and all parish rates abolished, and still more, all religious tests were +done away with. In this last respect Virginia came to the front among +all the American states, as Massachusetts had come to the front in the +abolition of negro slavery. Nearly all the states still imposed +religious tests upon civil office-holders, from simply declaring a +general belief in the infallibleness of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[Pg 82]</a></span> the Bible to accepting the +doctrine of the Trinity. The Virginia statute, which declared that +"opinion in matters of religion shall in nowise diminish, enlarge, or +affect civil capacities," was translated into French and Italian, and +was widely read and commented on in Europe.</p> + +<p>It is the historian's unpleasant duty to add that the victory thus +happily won was ungenerously followed up. Theological and political +odium combined to overwhelm the Episcopal church in Virginia. The +persecuted became persecutors. It was contended that the property of the +church, having been largely created by unjustifiable taxation, ought to +be forfeited. In 1802 its parsonages and glebe lands were sold, its +parishes wiped out, and its clergy left without a calling. "A reckless +sensualist," said Dr. Hawks, "administered the morning dram to his +guests from the silver cup" used in the communion service. But in all +this there is a manifest historic lesson. That it should have been +possible thus to deal with the Episcopal church in Virginia shows +forcibly the moribund condition into which it had been brought through +dependence upon the extraneous aid of a political sovereignty from which +the people of Virginia were severing their allegiance. The lesson is +most vividly enhanced by the contrast with the church of South Carolina +which, rooted in its own soil, was quite able to stand alone when +government aid was withdrawn. In Virginia the church in which George +Washington was reared had so nearly vanished by the year 1830 that Chief +Justice Marshall said it was folly to dream of reviving<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[Pg 83]</a></span> so dead a +thing. Nevertheless, under the noble ministration of its great bishop, +William Meade, the Episcopal church in Virginia, no longer relying upon +state aid, but trusting in the divine persuasive power of spiritual +truth, was even then entering upon a new life and beginning to exercise +a most wholesome influence.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Mason Weems and Samuel Seabury.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">November 14, 1784.</div> + +<p>The separation of the English church in America from the English crown +was the occasion of a curious difficulty with regard to the ordination +of bishops. Until after the Revolution there were no bishops of that +church in America, and between 1783 and 1785 it was not clear how +candidates for holy orders could receive the necessary consecration. In +1784 a young divinity student from Maryland, named Mason Weems, who had +been studying for some time in England, applied to the Bishop of London +for admission to holy orders, but was rudely refused. Weems then had +recourse to Watson, Bishop of Llandaff, author of the famous reply to +Gibbon. Watson treated him kindly and advised him to get a letter of +recommendation from the governor of Maryland, but after this had been +obtained he referred him to the Archbishop of Canterbury, who said that +nothing could be done without the consent of Parliament. As the law +stood, no one could be admitted into the ranks of the English clergy +without taking the oath of allegiance and acknowledging the king of +England as the head of the church. Weems then wrote to John Adams at the +Hague, and to Franklin at Paris, to see if there were any Protestant +bishops on the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[Pg 84]</a></span>Continent from whom he could obtain consecration. A +rather amusing diplomatic correspondence ensued, and finally the king of +Denmark, after taking theological advice, kindly offered the services of +a Danish bishop, who was to perform the ceremony in Latin. Weems does +not seem to have availed himself of this permission, probably because +the question soon reached a more satisfactory solution.<a name="FNanchor_2_2" id="FNanchor_2_2"></a><a href="#Footnote_2_2" class="fnanchor">[2]</a> About the +same time the Episcopal church in Connecticut sent one of its ministers, +Samuel Seabury of New London, to England, to be ordained as bishop. The +oaths of allegiance and supremacy stood as much in the way of the +learned and famous minister as in that of the young and obscure student. +Seabury accordingly appealed to the non-juring Jacobite bishops of the +Episcopal church of Scotland, and at length was duly ordained at +Aberdeen as bishop of the diocese of Connecticut. While Seabury was in +England, the churches in the various states<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[Pg 85]</a></span> chose delegates to a +general convention, which framed a constitution for the "Protestant +Episcopal Church of the United States of America." Advowsons were +abolished, some parts of the liturgy were dropped, and the tenure of +ministers, even of bishops, was to be during good behaviour. At the same +time a friendly letter was sent to the bishops of England, urging them +to secure, if possible, an act of Parliament whereby American clergymen +might be ordained without taking the oaths of allegiance and supremacy. +Such an act was obtained without much difficulty, and three American +bishops were accordingly consecrated in due form. The peculiar +ordination of Seabury was also recognized as valid by the general +convention, and thus the Episcopal church in America was fairly started +on its independent career.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Francis Asbury and the Methodists.</div> + +<p>This foundation of a separate episcopacy west of the Atlantic was +accompanied by the further separation of the Methodists as a distinct +religious society. Although John Wesley regarded the notion of an +apostolical succession as superstitious, he had made no attempt to +separate his followers from the national church. He translated the +titles of "bishop" and "priest" from Greek into Latin and English, +calling them "superintendent" and "elder," but he did not deny the +king's headship. Meanwhile during the long period of his preaching there +had begun to grow up a Methodist church in America. George Whitefield +had come over and preached in Georgia in 1737, and in Massachusetts in +1744, where he encountered much opposition on the part of the Puritan +clergy. But<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86">[Pg 86]</a></span> the first Methodist church in America was founded in the +city of New York in 1766. In 1772 Wesley sent over Francis Asbury, a man +of shrewd sense and deep religious feeling, to act as his assistant and +representative in this country. At that time there were not more than a +thousand Methodists, with six preachers, and all these were in the +middle and southern colonies; but within five years, largely owing to +the zeal and eloquence of Asbury, these numbers had increased sevenfold. +At the end of the war, seeing the American Methodists cut loose from the +English establishment, Wesley in his own house at Bristol, with the aid +of two presbyters, proceeded to ordain ministers enough to make a +presbytery, and thereupon set apart Thomas Coke to be "superintendent" +or bishop for America. On the same day of November, 1784, on which +Seabury was consecrated by the non-jurors at Aberdeen, Coke began +preaching and baptizing in Maryland, in rude chapels built of logs or +under the shade of forest trees. On Christmas Eve a conference assembled +at Baltimore, at which Asbury was chosen bishop by some sixty ministers +present, and ordained by Coke, and the constitution of the Methodist +church in America was organized. Among the poor white people of the +southern states, and among the negroes, the new church rapidly obtained +great sway; and at a somewhat later date it began to assume considerable +proportions in the north.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Presbyterians; Roman Catholics.</div> + +<p>Four years after this the Presbyterians, who were most numerous in the +middle states, organized<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[Pg 87]</a></span> their government in a general assembly, which +was also attended by Congregationalist delegates from New England in the +capacity of simple advisers. The theological difference between these +two sects was so slight that an alliance grew up between them, and in +Connecticut some fifty years later their names were often inaccurately +used as if synonymous. Such a difference seemed to vanish when +confronted with the newer differences that began to spring up soon after +the close of the Revolution. The revolt against the doctrine of eternal +punishment was already beginning in New England, and among the learned +and thoughtful clergy of Massachusetts the seeds of Unitarianism were +germinating. The gloomy intolerance of an older time was beginning to +yield to more enlightened views. In 1789 the first Roman Catholic church +in New England was dedicated in Boston. So great had been the prejudice +against this sect that in 1784 there were only 600 Catholics in all New +England. In the four southernmost states, on the other hand, there were +2,500; in New York and New Jersey there were 1,700; in Delaware and +Pennsylvania there were 7,700; in Maryland there were 20,000; while +among the French settlements along the eastern bank of the Mississippi +there were supposed to be nearly 12,000. In 1786 John Carroll, a cousin +of Charles Carroll of Carrollton, was selected by the Pope as his +apostolic vicar, and was afterward successively made bishop of Baltimore +and archbishop of the United States. By 1789 all obstacles to the +Catholic worship had been done away with in all the states.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[Pg 88]</a></span></p><div class="sidenote">Except in the instance of slavery, all these changes were +favourable to union.</div> + +<p>In this brief survey of the principal changes wrought in the several +states by the separation from England, one cannot fail to be struck with +their conservative character. Things proceeded just as they had done +from time immemorial with the English race. Forms of government were +modified just far enough to adapt them to the new situation and no +farther. The abolition of entails, of primogeniture, and of such few +manorial privileges as existed, were useful reforms of far less sweeping +character than similar changes would have been in England; and they were +accordingly effected with ease. Even the abolition of slavery in the +northern states, where negroes were few in number and chiefly employed +in domestic service, wrought nothing in the remotest degree resembling a +social revolution. But nowhere was this constitutionally cautious and +precedent-loving mode of proceeding more thoroughly exemplified than in +the measures just related, whereby the Episcopal and Methodist churches +were separated from the English establishment and placed upon an +independent footing in the new world. From another point of view it may +be observed that all these changes, except in the instance of slavery, +tended to assimilate the states to one another in their political and +social condition. So far as they went, these changes were favourable to +union, and this was perhaps especially true in the case of the +ecclesiastical bodies, which brought citizens of different states into +coöperation in pursuit of specific ends in common.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[Pg 89]</a></span></p><p>At the same time this survey most forcibly reminds us how completely +the legislation which immediately affected the daily domestic life of +the citizen was the legislation of the single state in which he lived. +In the various reforms just passed in review the United States +government took no part, and could not from the nature of the case. Even +to-day our national government has no power over such matters, and it is +to be hoped it never will have. But at the present day our national +government performs many important functions of common concern, which a +century ago were scarcely performed at all. The organization of the +single state was old in principle and well understood by everybody. It +therefore worked easily, and such changes as those above described were +brought about with little friction. On the other hand, the principles +upon which the various relations of the states to each other were to be +adjusted were not well understood. There was wide disagreement upon the +subject, and the attempt to compromise between opposing views was not at +first successful. Hence, in the management of affairs which concerned +the United States as a nation, we shall not find the central machinery +working smoothly or quietly. We are about to traverse a period of +uncertainty and confusion, in which it required all the political +sagacity and all the good temper of the people to save the half-built +ship of state from going to pieces on the rocks of civil contention.</p> + + + +<hr /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[Pg 90]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_III" id="CHAPTER_III"></a>CHAPTER III.</h2> + +<h3>THE LEAGUE OF FRIENDSHIP.</h3> + + +<div class="sidenote">The several states have never enjoyed complete sovereignty.</div> + +<p><span class="smcap">That</span> some kind of union existed between the states was doubted by no +one. Ever since the assembling of the first Continental Congress in 1774 +the thirteen commonwealths had acted in concert, and sometimes most +generously, as when Maryland and South Carolina had joined in the +Declaration of Independence without any crying grievances of their own, +from a feeling that the cause of one should be the cause of all. It has +sometimes been said that the Union was in its origin a league of +sovereign states, each of which surrendered a specific portion of its +sovereignty to the federal government for the sake of the common +welfare. Grave political arguments have been based upon this alleged +fact, but such an account of the matter is not historically true. There +never was a time when Massachusetts or Virginia was an absolutely +sovereign state like Holland or France. Sovereign over their own +internal affairs they are to-day as they were at the time of the +Revolution, but there was never a time when they presented themselves +before other nations as sovereign, or were recognized as such. Under the +government of England before the Revolution the thirteen commonwealths +were independent of one another,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[Pg 91]</a></span> and were held together, juxtaposed +rather than united, only through their allegiance to the British crown. +Had that allegiance been maintained there is no telling how long they +might have gone on thus disunited; and this, it seems, should be one of +our chief reasons for rejoicing that the political connection with +England was dissolved when it was. A permanent redress of grievances, +and even virtual independence such as Canada now enjoys, we might +perhaps have gained had we listened to Lord North's proposals after the +surrender of Burgoyne; but the formation of the Federal Union would +certainly have been long postponed, and when we realize the grandeur of +the work which we are now doing in the world through the simple fact of +such a union, we cannot fail to see that such an issue would have been +extremely unfortunate. However this may be, it is clear that until the +connection with England was severed the thirteen commonwealths were not +united, nor were they sovereign. It is also clear that in the very act +of severing their connection with England these commonwealths entered +into some sort of union which was incompatible with their absolute +sovereignty taken severally. It was not the people of New Hampshire, +Massachusetts, and so on through the list, that declared their +independence of Great Britain, but it was the representatives of the +United States in Congress assembled, and speaking as a single body in +the name of the whole. Three weeks before this declaration was adopted, +Congress appointed a committee to draw up the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[Pg 92]</a></span> "articles of +confederation and perpetual union," by which the sovereignty of the +several states was expressly limited and curtailed in many important +particulars. This committee had finished its work by the 12th of July, +but the articles were not adopted by Congress until the autumn of 1777, +and they were not finally put into operation until the spring of 1781. +During this inchoate period of union the action of the United States was +that of a confederation in which some portion of the several +sovereignties was understood to be surrendered to the whole. It was the +business of the articles to define the precise nature and extent of this +surrendered sovereignty which no state by itself ever exercised. In the +mean time this sovereignty, undefined in nature and extent, was +exercised, as well as circumstances permitted, by the Continental +Congress.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The Continental Congress; its extraordinary character.</div> + +<p>A most remarkable body was this Continental Congress. For the +vicissitudes through which it passed, there is perhaps no other +revolutionary body, save the Long Parliament, which can be compared with +it. For its origin we must look back to the committees of correspondence +devised by Jonathan Mayhew, Samuel Adams, and Dabney Carr. First +assembled in 1774 to meet an emergency which was generally believed to +be only temporary, it continued to sit for nearly seven years before its +powers were ever clearly defined; and during those seven years it +exercised some of the highest functions of sovereignty which are +possible to any governing body. It declared the independence of the +United States;<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[Pg 93]</a></span> it contracted an offensive and defensive alliance with +France; it raised and organized a Continental army; it borrowed large +sums of money, and pledged what the lenders understood to be the +national credit for their repayment; it issued an inconvertible paper +currency, granted letters of marque, and built a navy. All this it did +in the exercise of what in later times would have been called "implied +war powers," and its authority rested upon the general acquiescence in +the purposes for which it acted and in the measures which it adopted. +Under such circumstances its functions were very inefficiently +performed. But the articles of confederation, which in 1781 defined its +powers, served at the same time to limit them; so that for the remaining +eight years of its existence the Continental Congress grew weaker and +weaker, until it was swept away to make room for a more efficient +government.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The articles of confederation.</div> + +<p>John Dickinson is supposed to have been the principal author of the +articles of confederation; but as the work of the committee was done in +secret and has never been reported, the point cannot be determined. In +November, 1777, Congress sent the articles to the several state +legislatures, with a circular letter recommending them as containing the +only plan of union at all likely to be adopted. In the course of the +next fifteen months the articles were ratified by all the states except +Maryland, which refused to sign until the states laying claim to the +northwestern lands, and especially Virginia, should surrender their +claims to the confederation. We shall by<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[Pg 94]</a></span> and by see, when we come to +explain this point in detail, that from this action of Maryland there +flowed beneficent consequences that were little dreamed of. It was first +in the great chain of events which led directly to the formation of the +Federal Union. Having carried her point, Maryland ratified the articles +on the first day of March, 1781; and thus in the last and most brilliant +period of the war, while Greene was leading Cornwallis on his fatal +chase across North Carolina, the confederation proposed at the time of +the Declaration of Independence was finally consummated.</p> + +<p>According to the language of the articles, the states entered into a +firm league of friendship with each other; and in order to secure and +perpetuate such friendship, the freemen of each state were entitled to +all the privileges and immunities of freemen in all the other states. +Mutual extradition of criminals was established, and in each state full +faith and credit was to be given to the records, acts, and judicial +proceedings of every other state. This universal intercitizenship was +what gave reality to the nascent and feeble Union. In all the common +business relations of life, the man of New Hampshire could deal with the +man of Georgia on an equal footing before the law. But this was almost +the only effectively cohesive provision in the whole instrument. +Throughout the remainder of the articles its language was largely +devoted to reconciling the theory that the states were severally +sovereign with the visible fact that they were already merged to some +extent in a larger political body. The sovereignty of this larger body +was<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[Pg 95]</a></span> vested in the Congress of delegates appointed yearly by the states. +No state was to be represented by less than two or more than seven +members; no one could be a delegate for more than three years out of +every six; and no delegate could hold any salaried office under the +United States. As in colonial times the states had, to preserve their +self-government, insisted upon paying their governors and judges, +instead of allowing them to be paid out of the royal treasury, so now +the delegates in Congress were paid by their own states. In determining +questions in Congress, each state had one vote, without regard to +population; but a bare majority was not enough to carry any important +measure. Not only for such extraordinary matters as wars and treaties, +but even for the regular and ordinary business of raising money to carry +on the government, not a single step could be taken without the consent +of at least nine of the thirteen states; and this provision well-nigh +sufficed of itself to block the wheels of federal legislation. The +Congress assembled each year on the first Monday of November, and could +not adjourn for a longer period than six months. During its recess the +continuity of government was preserved by an executive committee, +consisting of one delegate from each state, and known as the "committee +of the states." Saving such matters of warfare or treaty as the public +interest might require to be kept secret, all the proceedings of +Congress were entered in a journal, to be published monthly; and the +yeas and nays must be entered should any delegate request it. The +executive <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[Pg 96]</a></span>departments of war, finance, and so forth were intrusted at +first to committees, until experience soon showed the necessity of +single heads. There was a president of Congress, who, as representing +the dignity of the United States, was, in a certain sense, the foremost +person in the country, but he had no more power than any other delegate. +Of the fourteen presidents between 1774 and 1789, perhaps only Randolph, +Hancock, and Laurens are popularly remembered in that capacity; Jay, St. +Clair, Mifflin, and Lee are remembered for other things; Hanson, +Griffin, and Boudinot are scarcely remembered at all, save by the +student of American history.</p> + +<p>Between the Congress thus constituted and the several state governments +the attributes of sovereignty were shared in such a way as to produce a +minimum of result with a maximum of effort. The states were prohibited +from keeping up any naval or military force, except militia, or from +entering into any treaty or alliance, either with a foreign power or +between themselves, without the consent of Congress. No state could +engage in war except by way of defence against a sudden Indian attack. +Congress had the sole right of determining on peace and war, of sending +and receiving ambassadors, of making treaties, of adjudicating all +disputes between the states, of managing Indian affairs, and of +regulating the value of coin and fixing the standard of weights and +measures. Congress took control of the post-office on condition that no +more revenue should be raised from postage than should suffice to +discharge the expenses of the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[Pg 97]</a></span> service. Congress controlled the army, +but was provided with no means of raising soldiers save through +requisitions upon the states, and it could only appoint officers above +the rank of colonel; the organization of regiments was left entirely in +the hands of the states. The traditional and wholesome dread of a +standing army was great, but there was no such deep-seated jealousy of a +navy, and Congress was accordingly allowed not only to appoint all naval +officers, but also to establish courts of admiralty.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The articles failed to create a federal government endowed +with real sovereignty.</div> + +<p>Several essential attributes of sovereignty were thus withheld from the +states; and by assuming all debts contracted by Congress prior to the +adoption of the articles, and solemnly pledging the public faith for +their payment, it was implicitly declared that the sovereignty here +accorded to Congress was substantially the same as that which it had +asserted and exercised ever since the severing of the connection with +England. The articles simply defined the relations of the states to the +Confederation as they had already shaped themselves. Indeed, the +articles, though not finally ratified till 1781, had been known to +Congress and to the people ever since 1776 as their expected +constitution, and political action had been shaped in general accordance +with the theory on which they had been drawn up. They show that +political action was at no time based on the view of the states as +absolutely sovereign, but they also show that the share of sovereignty +accorded to Congress was very inadequate even to the purposes of an +effective confederation. The position in which they left Congress was +hardly<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98">[Pg 98]</a></span> more than that of the deliberative head of a league. For the +most fundamental of all the attributes of sovereignty—the power of +taxation—was not given to Congress. It could neither raise taxes +through an excise nor through custom-house duties; it could only make +requisitions upon the thirteen members of the confederacy in proportion +to the assessed value of their real estate, and it was not provided with +any means of enforcing these requisitions. On this point the articles +contained nothing beyond the vague promise of the states to obey. The +power of levying taxes was thus retained entirely by the states. They +not only imposed direct taxes, as they do to-day, but they laid duties +on exports and imports, each according to its own narrow view of its +local interests. The only restriction upon this was that such +state-imposed duties must not interfere with the stipulations of any +foreign treaties such as Congress might make in pursuance of treaties +already proposed to the courts of France and Spain. Besides all this, +the states shared with Congress the powers of coining money, of emitting +bills of credit, and of making their promissory notes a legal tender for +debts.</p> + +<p>Such was the constitution under which the United States had begun to +drift toward anarchy even before the close of the Revolutionary War, but +which could only be amended by the unanimous consent of all the thirteen +states. The historian cannot but regard this difficulty of amendment as +a fortunate circumstance; for in the troubles which<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99">[Pg 99]</a></span> presently arose it +led the distressed people to seek some other method of relief, and thus +prepared the way for the Convention of 1787, which destroyed the whole +vicious scheme, and gave us a form of government under which we have +just completed a century unparalleled for peace and prosperity. Besides +this extreme difficulty of amendment, the fatal defects of the +Confederation were three in number. The first defect was the two thirds +vote necessary for any important legislation in Congress; under this +rule any five of the states—as, for example, the four southernmost +states with Maryland, or the four New England states with New +Jersey—could defeat the most sorely needed measures. The second defect +was the impossibility of presenting a united front to foreign countries +in respect to commerce. The third and greatest defect was the lack of +any means, on the part of Congress, of enforcing obedience. Not only was +there no federal executive or judiciary worthy of the name, but the +central government operated only upon states, and not upon individuals. +Congress could call for troops and for money in strict conformity with +the articles; but should any state prove delinquent in furnishing its +quota, there were no constitutional means of compelling it to obey the +call. This defect was seen and deplored at the outset by such men as +Washington and Madison, but the only remedy which at first occurred to +them was one more likely to kill than to cure. Only six weeks after the +ratification of the articles, Madison proposed an amendment "to give to +the United States full authority to employ their force, as well<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100">[Pg 100]</a></span> by sea +as by land, to compel any delinquent state to fulfil its federal +engagements." Washington approved of this measure, hoping, as he said, +that "a knowledge that this power was lodged in Congress might be the +means to prevent its ever being exercised, and the more readily induce +obedience. Indeed," added Washington, "if Congress were unquestionably +possessed of the power, nothing should induce the display of it but +obstinate disobedience and the urgency of the general welfare." Madison +argued that in the very nature of the Confederation such a right of +coercion was necessarily implied, though not expressed in the articles, +and much might have been said in behalf of this opinion. The +Confederation explicitly declared itself to be perpetual, yet how could +it perpetuate itself for a dozen years without the right to coerce its +refractory members? Practically, however, the remedy was one which could +never have been applied without breaking the Confederation into +fragments. To use the army or navy in coercing a state meant nothing +less than civil war. The local yeomanry would have turned out against +the Continental army with as high a spirit as that with which they +swarmed about the British enemy at Lexington or King's Mountain. A +government which could not collect the taxes for its yearly budget +without firing upon citizens or blockading two or three harbours would +have been the absurdest political anomaly imaginable. No such idea could +have entered the mind of a statesman save from the hope that if one +state should prove refractory, all the others would immediately frown +upon it and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101">[Pg 101]</a></span> uphold Congress in overawing it. In such case the knowledge +that Congress had the power would doubtless have been enough to make its +exercise unnecessary. But in fact this hope was disappointed, for the +delinquency of each state simply set an example of disobedience for all +the others to follow; and the amendment, had it been carried, would +merely have armed Congress with a threat which everybody would have +laughed at. So manifestly hopeless was the case to Pelatiah Webster that +as early as May, 1781, he published an able pamphlet, urging the +necessity for a federal convention for overhauling the whole scheme of +government from beginning to end.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Military weakness of the government.</div> + +<p>The military weakness due to this imperfect governmental organization +may be illustrated by comparing the number of regular troops which +Congress was able to keep in the field during the Revolutionary War with +the number maintained by the United States government during the War of +Secession. A rough estimate, obtained from averages, will suffice to +show the broad contrast. In 1863, the middle year of the War of +Secession, the total population of the loyal states was about +23,491,600, of whom about one fifth, or 4,698,320, were adult males of +military age. Supposing one adult male out of every five to have been +under arms at one time, the number would have been 939,664. Now the +total number of troops enlisted in the northern army during the four +years of the war, reduced to a uniform standard, was 2,320,272, or an +average of 580,068 under arms in any single year. In<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102">[Pg 102]</a></span> point of fact, +this average was reached before the middle of the war, and the numbers +went on increasing, until at the end there were more than a million men +under arms,—at least one out of every five adult males in the northern +states. On the other hand, in 1779, the middle year of the Revolutionary +War, the white population of the United States was about 2,175,000, of +whom 435,000 were adult males of military age. Supposing one out of +every five of these to have been under arms at once, the number would +have been 87,000. Now in the spring of 1777, when the Continental +Congress was at the highest point of authority which it ever reached, +when France was willing to lend it money freely, when its paper currency +was not yet discredited and it could make liberal offers of bounties, a +demand was made upon the states for 80,000 men, or nearly one fifth of +the adult male population, to serve for three years or during the war. +Only 34,820 were obtained. The total number of men in the field in that +most critical year, including the swarms of militia who came to the +rescue at Ridgefield and Bennington and Oriskany, and the Pennsylvania +militia who turned out while their state was invaded, was 68,720. In +1781, when the credit of Congress was greatly impaired, although +military activity again rose to a maximum and it was necessary for the +people to strain every nerve, the total number of men in the field, +militia and all, was only 29,340, of whom only 13,292 were Continentals; +and it was left for the genius of Washington and Greene, working with +desperate energy and most pitiful resources, to save the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103">[Pg 103]</a></span> country. A +more impressive contrast to the readiness with which the demands of the +government were met in the War of Secession can hardly be imagined. Had +the country put forth its strength in 1781 as it did in 1864, an army of +90,000 men might have overwhelmed Clinton at the north and Cornwallis at +the south, without asking any favours of the French fleet. Had it put +forth its full strength in 1777, four years of active warfare might have +been spared. Mr. Lecky explains this difference by his favourite +hypothesis that the American Revolution was the work of a few +ultra-radical leaders, with whom the people were not generally in +sympathy; and he thinks we could not expect to see great heroism or +self-sacrifice manifested by a people who went to war over what he calls +a "money dispute."<a name="FNanchor_3_3" id="FNanchor_3_3"></a><a href="#Footnote_3_3" class="fnanchor">[3]</a> But there is no reason for supposing that the +loyalists represented the general sentiment of the country in the +Revolutionary War any more than the peace party represented the general +sentiment of the northern states in the War of Secession. There is no +reason for supposing that the people were less at heart in 1781 in +fighting for the priceless treasure of self-government than they were in +1864 when they fought for the maintenance of the pacific principles +underlying our Federal Union. The differences in the organization of the +government, and in its power of operating directly upon the people, are +quite enough to explain the difference between the languid conduct of +the earlier war and the energetic conduct of the later.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104">[Pg 104]</a></span></p><div class="sidenote">Extreme difficulty of obtaining a revenue.</div> + +<p>Impossible as Congress found it to fill the quotas of the army, the task +of raising a revenue by requisitions upon the states was even more +discouraging. Every state had its own war-debt, and several were +applicants for foreign loans not easy to obtain, so that none could +without the greatest difficulty raise a surplus to hand over to +Congress. The Continental rag-money had ceased to circulate by the end +of 1780, and our foreign credit was nearly ruined. The French government +began to complain of the heavy demands which the Americans made upon its +exchequer, and Vergennes, in sending over a new loan in the fall of +1782, warned Franklin that no more must be expected. To save American +credit from destruction, it was at least necessary that the interest on +the public debt should be paid. For this purpose Congress in 1781 asked +permission to levy a five per cent. duty on imports. The modest request +was the signal for a year of angry discussion. Again and again it was +asked, If taxes could thus be levied by any power outside the state, why +had we ever opposed the Stamp Act or the tea duties? The question was +indeed a serious one, and as an instance of reasoning from analogy +seemed plausible enough. After more than a year Massachusetts consented, +by a bare majority of two in the House and one in the Senate, reserving +to herself the right of appointing the collectors. The bill was then +vetoed by Governor Hancock, though one day too late, and so it was +saved. But Rhode Island flatly refused her consent, and so did Virginia, +though Madison earnestly pleaded the cause<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105">[Pg 105]</a></span> of the public credit. For +the current expenses of the government in that same year $9,000,000 were +needed. It was calculated that $4,000,000 might be raised by a loan, and +the other $5,000,000 were demanded of the states. At the end of the year +$422,000 had been collected, not a cent of which came from Georgia, the +Carolinas, or Delaware. Rhode Island, which paid $38,000, did the best +of all according to its resources. Of the Continental taxes assessed in +1783, only one-fifth part had been paid by the middle of 1785. And the +worst of it was that no one could point to a remedy for this state of +things, or assign any probable end to it.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Dread of the army.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">Supposed scheme for making Washington king.</div> + +<p>Under such circumstances the public credit sank at home as well as +abroad. Foreign creditors—even France, who had been nothing if not +generous with her loans—might be made to wait; but there were creditors +at home who, should they prove ugly, could not be so easily put off. The +disbandment of the army in the summer of 1783, before the British troops +had evacuated New York, was hastened by the impossibility of paying the +soldiers and the dread of what they might do under such provocation. +Though peace had been officially announced, Hamilton and Livingston +urged that, for the sake of appearances if for no other reason, the army +should be kept together so long as the British remained in New York, if +not until they should have surrendered the western frontier posts. But +Congress could not pay the army, and was afraid of it,—and not without +some reason. Discouraged at the length of time which had passed since +they had received any<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106">[Pg 106]</a></span> money, the soldiers had begun to fear lest, now +that their services were no longer needed, their honest claims would be +set aside. Among the officers, too, there was grave discontent. In the +spring of 1778, after the dreadful winter at Valley Forge, several +officers had thrown up their commissions, and others threatened to do +likewise. To avert the danger, Washington had urged Congress to promise +half-pay for life to such officers as should serve to the end of the +war. It was only with great difficulty that he succeeded in obtaining a +promise of half-pay for seven years, and even this raised an outcry +throughout the country, which seemed to dread its natural defenders only +less than its enemies. In the fall of 1780, however, in the general +depression which followed upon the disasters at Charleston and Camden, +the collapse of the paper money, and the discovery of Arnold's treason, +there was serious danger that the army would fall to pieces. At this +critical moment Washington had earnestly appealed to Congress, and +against the strenuous opposition of Samuel Adams had at length extorted +the promise of half-pay for life. In the spring of 1782, seeing the +utter inability of Congress to discharge its pecuniary obligations, many +officers began to doubt whether the promise would ever be kept. It had +been made before the articles of confederation, which required the +assent of nine states to any such measure, had been finally ratified. It +was well known that nine states had never been found to favour the +measure, and it was now feared that it might be repealed or repudiated, +so loud was the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107">[Pg 107]</a></span> popular clamour against it. All this comes of +republican government, said some of the officers; too many cooks spoil +the broth; a dozen heads are as bad as no head; you do not know whose +promises to trust; a monarchy, with a good king whom all men can trust, +would extricate us from these difficulties. In this mood, Colonel Louis +Nicola, of the Pennsylvania line, a foreigner by birth, addressed a long +and well-argued letter to Washington, setting forth the troubles of the +time, and urging him to come forward as a saviour of society, and accept +the crown at the hands of his faithful soldiers. Nicola was an aged man, +of excellent character, and in making this suggestion he seemed to be +acting as spokesman of a certain clique or party among the +officers,—how numerous is not known. Washington instantly replied that +Nicola could not have found a person to whom such a scheme could be more +odious, and he was at a loss to conceive what he had ever done to have +it supposed that he could for one moment listen to a suggestion so +fraught with mischief to his country. Lest the affair, becoming known, +should enhance the popular distrust of the army, Washington said nothing +about it. But as the year went by, and the outcry against half-pay +continued, and Congress showed symptoms of a willingness to compromise +the matter, the discontent of the army increased. Officers and soldiers +brooded alike over their wrongs. "The army," said General Macdougall, +"is verging to that state which, we are told, will make a wise man mad." +The peril of the situation was increased by the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108">[Pg 108]</a></span> well-meant but +injudicious whisperings of other public creditors, who believed that if +the army would only take a firm stand and insist upon a grant of +permanent funds to Congress for liquidating all public debts, the states +could probably be prevailed upon to make such a grant. Robert Morris, +the able secretary of finance, held this opinion, and did not believe +that the states could be brought to terms in any other way. His namesake +and assistant, Gouverneur Morris, held similar views, and gave +expression to them in February, 1783, in a letter to General Greene, who +was still commanding in South Carolina. When Greene received the letter, +he urged upon the legislature of that state, in most guarded and +moderate language, the paramount need of granting a revenue to Congress, +and hinted that the army would not be satisfied with anything less. The +assembly straightway flew into a rage. "No dictation by a Cromwell!" +shouted the members. South Carolina had consented to the five per cent. +impost, but now she revoked it, to show her independence, and Greene's +eyes were opened at once to the danger of the slightest appearance of +military intervention in civil affairs.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The dangerous Newburgh address, March 11, 1783.</div> + +<p>At the same time a violent outbreak in the army at Newburgh was barely +prevented by the unfailing tact of Washington. A rumour went about the +camp that it was generally expected the army would not disband until the +question of pay should be settled, and that the public creditors looked +to them to make some such demonstration as would overawe the delinquent +states. General Gates<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109">[Pg 109]</a></span> had lately emerged from the retirement in which +he had been fain to hide himself after Camden, and had rejoined the army +where there was now such a field for intrigue. An odious aroma of +impotent malice clings about his memory on this last occasion on which +the historian needs to notice him. He plotted in secret with officers of +the staff and others. One of his staff, Major Armstrong, wrote an +anonymous appeal to the troops, and another, Colonel Barber, caused it +to be circulated about the camp. It named the next day for a meeting to +consider grievances. Its language was inflammatory. "My friends!" it +said, "after seven long years your suffering courage has conducted the +United States of America through a doubtful and bloody war; and peace +returns to bless—whom? A country willing to redress your wrongs, +cherish your worth, and reward your services? Or is it rather a country +that tramples upon your rights, disdains your cries, and insults your +distresses? ... If such be your treatment while the swords you wear are +necessary for the defence of America, what have you to expect when those +very swords, the instruments and companions of your glory, shall be +taken from your sides, and no mark of military distinction left but your +wants, infirmities, and scars? If you have sense enough to discover and +spirit to oppose tyranny, whatever garb it may assume, awake to your +situation. If the present moment be lost, your threats hereafter will be +as empty as your entreaties now. Appeal from the justice to the fears of +government, and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110">[Pg 110]</a></span>suspect the man who would advise to longer +forbearance."</p> + +<p>Better English has seldom been wasted in a worse cause. Washington, the +man who was aimed at in the last sentence, got hold of the paper next +day, just in time, as he said, "to arrest the feet that stood wavering +on a precipice." The memory of the revolt of the Pennsylvania line, +which had so alarmed the people in 1781, was still fresh in men's minds; +and here was an invitation to more wholesale mutiny, which could hardly +fail to end in bloodshed, and might precipitate the perplexed and +embarrassed country into civil war. Washington issued a general order, +recognizing the existence of the manifesto, but overruling it so far as +to appoint the meeting for a later day, with the senior major-general, +who happened to be Gates, to preside. This order, which neither +discipline nor courtesy could disregard, in a measure tied Gates's +hands, while it gave Washington time to ascertain the extent of the +disaffection. On the appointed day he suddenly came into the meeting, +and amid profoundest silence broke forth in a most eloquent and touching +speech. Sympathizing keenly with the sufferings of his hearers, and +fully admitting their claims, he appealed to their better feelings, and +reminded them of the terrible difficulties under which Congress +laboured, and of the folly of putting themselves in the wrong. He still +counselled forbearance as the greatest of victories, and with consummate +skill he characterized the anonymous appeal as undoubtedly the work of +some crafty emissary of the British, eager to disgrace<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111">[Pg 111]</a></span> the army which +they had not been able to vanquish. All were hushed by that majestic +presence and those solemn tones. The knowledge that he had refused all +pay, while enduring more than any other man in the room, gave added +weight to every word. In proof of the good faith of Congress he began +reading a letter from one of the members, when, finding his sight dim, +he paused and took from his pocket the new pair of spectacles which the +astronomer David Rittenhouse had just sent him. He had never worn +spectacles in public, and as he put them on he said, in his simple +manner and with his pleasant smile, "I have grown gray in your service, +and now find myself growing blind." While all hearts were softened he +went on reading the letter, and then withdrew, leaving the meeting to +its deliberations. There was a sudden and mighty revulsion of feeling. A +motion was reported declaring "unshaken confidence in the justice of +Congress;" and it was added that "the officers of the American army view +with abhorrence and reject with disdain the infamous proposals contained +in a late anonymous address to them." The crestfallen Gates, as +chairman, had nothing to do but put the question and report it carried +unanimously; for if any still remained obdurate they no longer dared to +show it. Washington immediately set forth the urgency of the case in an +earnest letter to Congress, and one week later the matter was settled by +an act commuting half-pay for life into a gross sum equal to five years' +full pay, to be discharged at once by certificates bearing interest at +six per cent. Such poor paper was all that<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112">[Pg 112]</a></span> Congress had to pay with, +but it was all ultimately redeemed; and while the commutation was +advantageous to the government, it was at the same time greatly for the +interest of the officers, while they were looking out for new means of +livelihood, to have their claims adjusted at once, and to receive +something which could do duty as a respectable sum of money.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Congress driven from Philadelphia by mutinous soldiers, June +21, 1783.</div> + +<p>Nothing, however, could prevent the story of the Newburgh affair from +being published all over the country, and it greatly added to the +distrust with which the army was regarded on general principles. What +might have happened was forcibly suggested by a miserable occurrence in +June, about two months after the disbanding of the army had begun. Some +eighty soldiers of the Pennsylvania line, mutinous from discomfort and +want of pay, broke from their camp at Lancaster and marched down to +Philadelphia, led by a sergeant or two. They drew up in line before the +state house, where Congress was assembled, and after passing the grog +began throwing stones and pointing their muskets at the windows. They +demanded pay, and threatened, if it were not forthcoming, to seize the +members of Congress and hold them as hostages, or else to break into the +bank where the federal deposits were kept. The executive council of +Pennsylvania sat in the same building, and so the federal government +appealed to the state government for protection. The appeal was +fruitless. President Dickinson had a few state militia at his disposal, +but did not dare to summon them, for fear they<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_113" id="Page_113">[Pg 113]</a></span> should side with the +rioters. The city government was equally listless, and the townsfolk +went their ways as if it were none of their business; and so Congress +fled across the river and on to Princeton, where the college afforded it +shelter. Thus in a city of thirty-two thousand inhabitants, the largest +city in the country, the government of the United States, the body which +had just completed a treaty browbeating England and France, was +ignominiously turned out-of-doors by a handful of drunken mutineers. The +affair was laughed at by many, but sensible men keenly felt the +disgrace, and asked what would be thought in Europe of a government +which could not even command the services of the police. The army became +more unpopular than ever, and during the summer and fall many +town-meetings were held in New England, condemning the Commutation Act. +Are we not poor enough already, cried the farmers, that we must be taxed +to support in idle luxury a riotous rabble of soldiery, or create an +aristocracy of men with gold lace and epaulets, who will presently plot +against our liberties? The Massachusetts legislature protested; the +people of Connecticut meditated resistance. A convention was held at +Middletown in December, at which two thirds of the towns in the state +were represented, and the best method of overruling Congress was +discussed. Much high-flown eloquence was wasted, but the convention +broke up without deciding upon any course of action. The matter had +become so serious that wise men changed their minds, and disapproved of +proceedings calculated to throw Congress into <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_114" id="Page_114">[Pg 114]</a></span>contempt. Samuel Adams, +who had almost violently opposed the grant of half-pay and had been +dissatisfied with the Commutation Act, now came completely over to the +other side. Whatever might be thought of the policy of the measures, he +said, Congress had an undoubted right to adopt them. The army had been +necessary for the defence of our liberties, and the public faith had +been pledged to the payment of the soldiers. States were as much bound +as individuals to fulfil their engagements, and did not the sacred +Scriptures say of an honest man that, though he sweareth to his own +hurt, he changeth not? Such plain truths prevailed in the Boston +town-meeting, which voted that "the commutation is wisely blended with +the national debt." The agitation in New England presently came to an +end, and in this matter the course of Congress was upheld.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Order of the Cincinnati.</div> + +<p>In order fully to understand this extravagant distrust of the army, we +have to take into account another incident of the summer of 1783, which +gave rise to a discussion that sent its reverberation all over the +civilized world. Men of the present generation who in childhood rummaged +in their grandmothers' cosy garrets cannot fail to have come across +scores of musty and worm-eaten pamphlets, their yellow pages crowded +with italics and exclamation points, inveighing in passionate language +against the wicked and dangerous society of the Cincinnati. Just before +the army was disbanded, the officers, at the suggestion of General Knox, +formed themselves into a secret society, for the purpose of keeping up +their friendly intercourse<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_115" id="Page_115">[Pg 115]</a></span> and cherishing the heroic memories of the +struggle in which they had taken part. With the fondness for classical +analogies which characterized that time, they likened themselves to +Cincinnatus, who was taken from the plough to lead an army, and returned +to his quiet farm so soon as his warlike duties were over. They were +modern Cincinnati. A constitution and by-laws were established for the +order, and Washington was unanimously chosen to be its president. Its +branches in the several states were to hold meetings each Fourth of +July, and there was to be a general meeting of the whole society every +year in the month of May. French officers who had taken part in the war +were admitted to membership, and the order was to be perpetuated by +descent through the eldest male representatives of the families of the +members. It was further provided that a limited membership should from +time to time be granted, as a distinguished honour, to able and worthy +citizens, without regard to the memories of the war. A golden American +eagle attached to a blue ribbon edged with white was the sacred badge of +the order; and to this emblem especial favour was shown at the French +court, where the insignia of foreign states were generally, it is said, +regarded with jealousy. No political purpose was to be subserved by this +order of the Cincinnati, save in so far as the members pledged to one +another their determination to promote and cherish the union between the +states. In its main intent the society was to be a kind of masonic +brotherhood, charged with the duty of aiding the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_116" id="Page_116">[Pg 116]</a></span> widows and the orphan +children of its members in time of need. Innocent as all this was, +however, the news of the establishment of such a society was greeted +with a howl of indignation all over the country. It was thought that its +founders were inspired by a deep-laid political scheme for centralizing +the government and setting up a hereditary aristocracy. The press teemed +with invective and ridicule, and the feeling thus expressed by the +penny-a-liners was shared by able men accustomed to weigh their words. +Franklin dealt with it in a spirit of banter, and John Adams in a spirit +of abhorrence; while Samuel Adams pointed out the dangers inherent in +the principle of hereditary transmission of honours, and in the +admission of foreigners into a secret association possessed of political +influence in America. What! cried the men of Massachusetts. Have we +thrown overboard the effete institutions of Europe, only to have them +straightway introduced among us again, after this plausible and +surreptitious fashion? At Cambridge it was thought that the general +sentiment of the university was in favour of suppressing the order by +act of legislature. One of the members, who was a candidate for senator +in the spring of 1784, found it necessary to resign in order to save his +chances for election. Rhode Island proposed to disfranchise such of her +citizens as belonged to the order, albeit her most eminent citizen, +Nathanael Greene, was one of them. Ædanus Burke, a judge of the Supreme +Court of South Carolina, wrote a violent pamphlet against the society of +the Cincinnati under the pseudonym of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_117" id="Page_117">[Pg 117]</a></span> Cassius, the slayer of tyrants; +and this diatribe, translated and amplified by Mirabeau, awakened dull +echoes among readers of Rousseau and haters of privilege in all parts of +Europe. A swarm of brochures in rejoinder and rebutter issued from the +press, and the nineteenth century had come in before the controversy was +quite forgotten.</p> + +<p>It is easy for us now to smile at this outcry against the Cincinnati as +much ado about nothing, seeing as we do that in the absence of +territorial jurisdiction or especial political privileges an order of +nobility cannot be created by the mere inheritance of empty titles or +badges. For example, since the great revolution which swept away the +landlordship and fiscal exemptions of the French nobility, a marquisate +or a dukedom in France is of scarcely more political importance than a +doctorate of laws in a New England university. Men were nevertheless not +to be blamed in 1783 for their hostility toward that ghost of the +hereditary principle which the Cincinnati sought to introduce. In a free +industrial society like that of America it had no proper place or +meaning; and the attempt to set up such a form might well have been +cited in illustration of the partial reversion toward militancy which +eight years of warfare had effected. The absurdity of the situation was +quickly realized by Washington, and he prevailed upon the society, in +its first annual meeting of May, 1784, to abandon the principle of +hereditary membership. The agitation was thus allayed, and in the +presence of graver questions the much-dreaded brotherhood gradually +ceased to occupy popular attention.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_118" id="Page_118">[Pg 118]</a></span></p><p>The opposition to the Cincinnati is not fully explained unless we +consider it in connection with Nicola's letter, the Newburgh address, +and the flight of Congress to Princeton. The members of the Cincinnati +were pledged to do whatever they could to promote the union between the +states; the object of the Newburgh address was to enlist the army in +behalf of the public creditors, and in some vaguely-imagined fashion to +force a stronger government upon the country; the letter of Nicola shows +that at least some of the officers had harboured the notion of a +monarchy; and the weakness of Congress had been revealed in the most +startling manner by its flight before a squad of mutineers. It is one of +the lessons of history that, in the virtual absence of a central +government for which a need is felt, the want is apt to be supplied by +the strongest organization in the country, whatever that may happen to +be. It was in this way that the French army, a few years later, got +control of the government of France and made its general emperor. In +1783, if the impotence of Congress were to be as explicitly acknowledged +as it was implicitly felt, the only national organization left in the +country was the army, and when this was disbanded it seemed nevertheless +to prolong its life under a new and dangerous form in the secret +brotherhood of the Cincinnati. The cession of western lands to the +confederacy was, moreover, completed at about this time, and one of the +uses to which the new territory was to be put was the payment of claims +due to the soldiers. It was distinctly feared, as is shown in a letter +from Samuel Adams to Elbridge<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119">[Pg 119]</a></span> Gerry, that the members of the Cincinnati +would acquire large tracts of western land under this arrangement, and, +importing peasants from Germany, would grant farms to them on terms of +military service and fealty, thus introducing into America the feudal +system. In order to forestall any such movement, it was provided by +Congress that in any new states formed out of the western territory no +person holding a hereditary title should be admitted to citizenship.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Congress finds itself unable to carry out the provisions of +the treaty.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">Persecution of Tories.</div> + +<p>From the weakness of Congress as illustrated in its inability to raise +money to pay the public debt and meet the current expenses of +government, and from the popular dread of military usurpation which went +along with the uneasy consciousness of that weakness, we have now to +turn to another group of affairs in which the same point is still +further illustrated and emphasized. We have seen how the commissioners +of the United States in Paris had succeeded in making a treaty of peace +with Great Britain on extremely favourable terms. So unpopular was the +treaty in England, on account of the great concessions made to the +Americans, that, as we have seen, the fall of Lord Shelburne's ministry +was occasioned thereby. As an offset to these liberal concessions, of +which the most considerable was the acknowledgment of the American claim +to the northwestern territory, our confederate government was pledged to +do all in its power to effect certain concessions which were demanded by +England. That the American loyalists, whose property had been +confiscated by various state governments,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_120" id="Page_120">[Pg 120]</a></span> should be indemnified for +their losses was a claim which, whatever Americans might think of it, +England felt bound in honour to urge. That private debts, due from +American to British creditors, should be faithfully discharged was the +plainest dictate of common honesty. Congress, as we have seen, was bound +by the treaty to recommend to the several states to desist from the +persecution of Tories, and to give them an opportunity of recovering +their estates; and it had been further agreed that all private debts +should be discharged at their full value in sterling money. It now +turned out that Congress was powerless to carry out the provisions of +the treaty upon either of these points. The recommendations concerning +the Tories were greeted with a storm of popular indignation. Since the +beginning of the war these unfortunate persons had been treated with +severity both by the legislatures and by the people. Many had been +banished; others had fled the country, and against these refugees +various harsh laws had been enacted. Their estates had been confiscated, +and their return prohibited under penalty of imprisonment or death. Many +others, who had remained in the country, were objects of suspicion and +dislike in states where they had not, as in New York and the Carolinas, +openly aided the enemy or taken part in Indian atrocities. Now, on the +conclusion of peace, in utter disregard of Congress, fresh measures of +vengeance were taken against these "fawning spaniels," as they were +called, these "tools and minions of Britain." An article in the +"Massachusetts Chronicle" expressed the common<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_121" id="Page_121">[Pg 121]</a></span> feeling: "As Hannibal +swore never to be at peace with the Romans, so let every Whig swear, by +his abhorrence of slavery, by liberty and religion, by the shades of +departed friends who have fallen in battle, by the ghosts of those of +our brethren who have been destroyed on board of prison-ships and in +loathsome dungeons, never to be at peace with those fiends the refugees, +whose thefts, murders, and treasons have filled the cup of woe." Tons of +pamphlets, issued under the customary Latin pseudonyms, were filled with +this truculent bombast; and like sentiments were thundered from the +pulpit by men who had quite forgotten for the moment their duty of +preaching reconciliation and forgiveness of injuries. Why should not +these wretches, it was sarcastically asked, be driven at once from the +country? Of course they could not desire to live under a free government +which they had been at such pains to destroy. Let them go forthwith to +his majesty's dominions, and live under the government they preferred. +It would never do to let them stay here, to plot treason at their +leisure; in a few years they would get control of all the states, and +either hand them over to Great Britain again, or set up a Tory despotism +on American soil. Such was the rubbish that passed current as argument +with the majority of the people. A small party of moderate Whigs saw its +absurdity, and urged that the Tories had much better remain at home, +where they had lost all political influence, than go and found +unfriendly colonies to the northward. The moderate Whigs were in favour +of heeding the recommendation of Congress, and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_122" id="Page_122">[Pg 122]</a></span>acting in accordance +with the spirit of the treaty; and these humane and sensible views were +shared by Gadsden and Marion in South Carolina, by Theodore Sedgwick in +Massachusetts, and by Greene, Hamilton, and Jay. But any man who held +such opinions, no matter how conspicuous his services had been, ran the +risk of being accused of Tory sympathies. "Time-serving Whigs" and +"trimmers" were the strangely inappropriate epithets hurled at men who, +had they been in the slightest degree time-servers, would have shrunk +from the thankless task of upholding good sense and humanity in the +teeth of popular prejudice.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The Trespass Act of New York, 1784.</div> + +<p>In none of the states did the loyalists receive severer treatment than +in New York, and for obvious reasons. Throughout the war the frontier +had been the scene of atrocities such as no other state, save perhaps +South Carolina, had witnessed. Cherry Valley and Minisink were names of +horror not easily forgotten, and the fate of Lieutenant Boyd and +countless other victims called loudly for vengeance. The sins of the +Butlers and their bloodthirsty followers were visited in robbery and +insult upon unoffending men, who were like them in nothing but in being +labelled with the epithet "Tory." During the seven years that the city +of New York had been occupied by the British army, many of these +loyalists had found shelter there. The Whig citizens, on the other hand, +had been driven off the island, to shift as best they might in New +Jersey, while their comfortable homes were seized and assigned by +military orders to these very Tories. For seven years the refugee Whigs<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_123" id="Page_123">[Pg 123]</a></span> +from across the Hudson had looked upon New York with feelings like those +with which the mediæval exile from Florence or Pisa was wont to regard +his native city. They saw in it the home of enemies who had robbed them, +the prison-house of gallant friends penned up to die of wanton ill-usage +in foul ships' holds in the harbour. When at last the king's troops left +the city, it was felt that a great day of reckoning had arrived. In +September, 1783, two months before the evacuation, more than twelve +thousand men, women, and children embarked for the Bahamas or for Nova +Scotia, rather than stay and face the troubles that were coming. Many of +these were refined and cultivated persons, and not all had been actively +hostile to the American cause; many had simply accepted British +protection. Against those who remained in the city the returning Whigs +now proceeded with great severity. The violent party was dominant in the +legislature, and George Clinton, the governor, put himself conspicuously +at its head. A bill was passed disfranchising all such persons as had +voluntarily stayed in neighbourhoods occupied by the British troops; +their offence was called misprision of treason. But the council vetoed +this bill as too wholesale in its operation, for it would have left some +districts without voters enough to hold an election. An "iron-clad oath" +was adopted instead, and no one was allowed to vote unless he could +swear that he had never in anywise abetted the enemy. It was voted that +no Tory who had left the state should be permitted to return; and a bill +was passed<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_124" id="Page_124">[Pg 124]</a></span> known as the Trespass Act, whereby all persons who had quit +their homes by reason of the enemy's presence might recover damages in +an action of trespass against such persons as had since taken possession +of the premises. Defendants in such cases were expressly barred from +pleading a military order in justification of their possession. As there +was scarcely a building on the island of New York that had not thus +changed hands during the British occupation, it was easy to foresee what +confusion must ensue. Everybody whose house had once been, for ever so +few days, in the hands of a Tory now rushed into court with his action +of trespass. Damages were rated at most exorbitant figures, and it +became clear that the misdeeds of the enemy were about to be made the +excuse for a carnival of spoliation, when all at once the test case of +Rutgers <i>v.</i> Waddington brought upon the scene a sturdy defender of +order, an advocate who was soon to become one of the foremost personages +in American history.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Alexander Hamilton.</div> + +<p>Of all the young men of that day, save perhaps William Pitt, the most +precocious was Alexander Hamilton. He had already given promise of a +great career before the breaking out of the war. He was born on the +island of Nevis, in the West Indies, in 1757. His father belonged to +that famous Scottish clan from which have come one of the most learned +metaphysicians and one of the most original mathematicians of modern +times. His mother was a French lady, of Huguenot descent, and +biographers have been fond of tracing in his character the various +qualities of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_125" id="Page_125">[Pg 125]</a></span> his parents. To the shrewdness and persistence, the +administrative ability, and the taste for abstract reasoning which we +are wont to find associated in the highest type of Scottish mind he +joined a truly French vivacity and grace. His earnestness, sincerity, +and moral courage were characteristic alike of Puritan and of Huguenot. +In the course of his short life he exhibited a remarkable +many-sidedness. So great was his genius for organization that in many +essential respects the American government is moving to-day along the +lines which he was the first to mark out. As an economist he shared to +some extent in the shortcomings of the age which preceded Adam Smith, +but in the special department of finance he has been equalled by no +other American statesman save Albert Gallatin. He was a splendid orator +and brilliant writer, an excellent lawyer, and a clear-headed and +industrious student of political history. He was also eminent as a +political leader, although he lacked faith in democratic government, and +a generous impatience of temperament sometimes led him to prefer short +and arbitrary by-paths toward desirable ends, which can never be +securely reached save along the broad but steep and arduous road of +popular conviction. But with all Hamilton's splendid qualities, nothing +about him is so remarkable as the early age at which these were +developed. At the age of fifteen a brilliant newspaper article brought +him into such repute in the little island of Nevis that he was sent to +New York to avail himself of the best advantages afforded by the King's +College, now known<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126">[Pg 126]</a></span> as Columbia. He had at first no definite intention +of becoming an American citizen, but the thrilling events of the time +appealed strongly to the earnest heart and powerful intelligence of this +wonderful boy. At a gathering of the people of New York in July, 1774, +his generous blood warmed, till a resistless impulse brought him on his +feet to speak to the assembled multitude. It was no company of +half-drunken idlers that thronged about him, but an assemblage of grave +and responsible citizens, who looked with some astonishment upon this +boy of seventeen years, short and slight in stature, yet erect and +Cæsar-like in bearing, with firm set mouth and great, dark, earnest +eyes. His eloquent speech, full of sense and without a syllable of +bombast, held his hearers entranced, and from that day Alexander +Hamilton was a marked man. He began publishing anonymous pamphlets, +which at first were attributed by some to Jay, and by others to +Livingston. When their authorship was discovered, the loyalist party +tried in vain to buy off the formidable youth. He kept up the +pamphlet-war, in the course of which he wofully defeated Dr. Cooper, the +Tory president of the college; but shortly afterward he defended the +doctor's house against an angry mob, until that unpopular gentleman had +succeeded in making his escape to a British ship. Hamilton served in the +army throughout the war, for the most part as aid and secretary to +Washington; but in 1781 he was a colonel in the line, and stormed a +redoubt at Yorktown with distinguished skill and bravery. He married a +daughter of Philip Schuyler, began the practice of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127">[Pg 127]</a></span> law, and in 1782, at +the age of twenty-five, was chosen a delegate to Congress.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The case of Rutgers <i>v.</i> Waddington.</div> + +<p>In 1784, when the Trespass Act threw New York into confusion, Hamilton +had come to be regarded as one of the most powerful advocates in the +country. In the test case which now came before the courts he played a +part of consummate boldness and heroism. Elizabeth Rutgers was a widow, +who had fled from New York after its capture by General Howe. Her +confiscated estate had passed into the hands of Joshua Waddington, a +rich Tory merchant, and she now brought suit under the Trespass Act for +its recovery. It was a case in which popular sympathy was naturally and +strongly enlisted in behalf of the poor widow. That she should have been +turned out of house and home was one of the many gross instances of +wickedness wrought by the war. On the other hand, the disturbance +wrought by the enforcement of the Trespass Act was already creating +fresh wrongs much faster than it was righting old ones; and it is for +such reasons as this that both in the common law and in the law of +nations the principle has been firmly established that "the fruits of +immovables belong to the captor as long as he remains in actual +possession of them." The Trespass Act contravened this principle, and it +also contravened the treaty. It moreover placed the state of New York in +an attitude of defiance toward Congress, which had made the treaty and +expressly urged upon the states to suspend the legislation against the +Tories. On large grounds of public policy, therefore, the Trespass Act +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_128" id="Page_128">[Pg 128]</a></span>deserved to be set aside by the courts, and when Hamilton was asked to +serve as counsel for the defendant he accepted the odious task without +hesitation. There can be no better proof of his forensic ability than +his winning a verdict, in such a case as this, from a hostile court that +was largely influenced by the popular excitement. The decision nullified +the Trespass Act, and forthwith mass meetings of the people and an extra +session of the legislature condemned this action of the court. Hamilton +was roundly abused, and his conduct was attributed to unworthy motives. +But he faced the people as boldly as he had faced the court, and +published a letter, under the signature of Phocion, setting forth in the +clearest light the injustice and impolicy of extreme measures against +the Tories. The popular wrath and disgust at Hamilton's course found +expression in a letter from one Isaac Ledyard, a hot-headed pot-house +politician, who signed himself Mentor. A war of pamphlets ensued between +Mentor and Phocion. It was genius pitted against dulness, reason against +passion; and reason wielded by genius won the day. The more intelligent +and respectable citizens reluctantly admitted that Hamilton's arguments +were unanswerable. A club of boon companions, to which Ledyard belonged, +made the same admission by the peculiar manner in which it proposed to +silence him. It was gravely proposed that the members of the club should +pledge themselves one after another to challenge Hamilton to mortal +combat, until some one of them should have the good fortune to kill him! +The scheme met with general<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_129" id="Page_129">[Pg 129]</a></span> favour, but was defeated by the exertions +of Ledyard himself, whose zeal was not ardent enough to condone +treachery and murder. The incident well illustrates the intense +bitterness of political passion at the time, as Hamilton's conduct shows +him in the light of a most courageous and powerful defender of the +central government. For nothing was more significant in the verdict +which he had obtained than its implicit assertion of the rights of the +United States as against the legislature of a single state.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Emigration of Tories.</div> + +<p>In spite of the efforts of such men as Hamilton, life was made very +uncomfortable for the Tories. In some states they were subjected to mob +violence. Instances of tarring and feathering were not uncommon. The +legislature of South Carolina was honourably distinguished for the good +faith with which it endeavoured to enforce the recommendation of +Congress; but the people, unable to forget the smoking ruins of +plundered homes, were less lenient. Notices were posted ordering +prominent loyalists to leave the country; the newspapers teemed with +savage warnings; and finally, of those who tarried beyond a certain +time, many were shot or hanged to trees. This extremity of bitterness, +however, did not long continue. The instances of physical violence were +mostly confined to the first two or three years after the close of the +war. In most of the states the confiscating acts were after a while +repealed, and many of the loyalists were restored to their estates. But +the emigration which took place between 1783 and 1785 was very large. It +has been <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_130" id="Page_130">[Pg 130]</a></span>estimated that 100,000 persons, or nearly three per cent. of +the total white population, quit the country. Those from the southern +states went mostly to the Bahamas and Florida; while those from the +north laid the foundation of new British states in New Brunswick and +Upper Canada. Many of these refugees appealed to the British government +for indemnification for their losses, and their claims received prompt +attention. A parliamentary commission was appointed to inquire into the +matter, and by the year 1790 some $16,000,000 had been distributed among +about 4,000 sufferers, while many others received grants of crown-lands, +or half-pay as military officers, or special annuities, or appointments +in the civil service. On the whole, the compensation which the refugees +received from Parliament seems to have been much more ample than that +which the ragged soldiers of our Revolutionary army ever received from +Congress.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Congress is unable to enforce payment of debts to British +creditors. England retaliates by refusing to surrender the western +posts.</div> + +<p>While the political passions resulting in this forced emigration of +loyalists were such as naturally arise in the course of a civil war, the +historian cannot but regret that the United States should have been +deprived of the services of so many excellent citizens. In nearly all +such cases of wholesale popular vengeance, it is the wrong individuals +who suffer. We could well afford to dispense with the border-ruffians +who abetted the Indians in their carnival of burning and scalping, but +the refugees of 1784 were for the most part peaceful and unoffending +families, above the average in education and refinement. The vicarious +suffering inflicted upon them set nothing right, but simply increased<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_131" id="Page_131">[Pg 131]</a></span> +the mass of wrong, while to the general interests of the country the +loss of such people was in every way damaging. The immediate political +detriment wrought at the time, though it is that which here most nearly +concerns us, was perhaps the least important. Since Congress was +manifestly unable to carry out the treaty, an excuse was furnished to +England for declining to fulfil some of its provisions. In regard to the +loyalists, indeed, the treaty had recognized that Congress possessed but +an advisory power; but in the other provision concerning the payment of +private debts, which in the popular mind was very much mixed up with the +question of justice to the loyalists, the faith of the United States was +distinctly pledged. On this point also Congress was powerless to enforce +the treaty. Massachusetts, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, +and South Carolina had all enacted laws obstructing the collection of +British debts; and in flat defiance of the treaty these statutes +remained in force until after the downfall of the Confederation. The +states were aware that such conduct needed an excuse, and one was soon +forthcoming. Many negroes had left the country with the British fleet: +some doubtless had sought their freedom; others, perhaps, had been +kidnapped as booty, and sold to planters in the West Indies. The number +of these black men carried away by the fleet had been magnified tenfold +by popular rumour. Complaints had been made to Sir Guy Carleton, but he +had replied that any negro who came within his lines was <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_132" id="Page_132">[Pg 132]</a></span>presumably a +freeman, and he could not lend his aid in remanding such persons to +slavery. Jay, as one of the treaty commissioners, gave it as his opinion +that Carleton was quite right in this, but he thought that where a loss +of slaves could be proved, Great Britain was bound to make pecuniary +compensation to the owners. The matter was wrangled over for several +years, in the state legislatures, in town and county meetings, at +dinner-tables, and in bar-rooms, with the general result that, until +such compensation should be made, the statutes hindering the collection +of debts would not be repealed. In retaliation for this, Great Britain +refused to withdraw her garrisons from the western fortresses, which the +treaty had surrendered to the United States. This measure was very +keenly felt by the people. As an assertion of superior strength, it was +peculiarly galling to our weak and divided confederacy, and it also +wrought us direct practical injury. It encouraged the Indian tribes in +their depredations on the frontier, and it deprived American merchants +of an immensely lucrative trade in furs. In the spring of 1787 there +were advertised for sale in London more than 360,000 skins, worth +$1,200,000 at the lowest estimate; and had the posts been surrendered +according to the treaty, all this would have passed through the hands of +American merchants. The London fur-traders were naturally loth to lose +their control over this business, and in the language of modern politics +they brought "pressure" to bear on the government to retain the +fortresses as long as possible. The American refusal to pay British +creditors furnished an excellent<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133">[Pg 133]</a></span> excuse, while the weakness of Congress +made any kind of reprisal impossible; and it was not until Washington's +second term as president, after our national credit had been restored +and the strength of our new government made manifest, that England +surrendered this chain of strongholds, commanding the woods and waters +of our northwestern frontier.</p> + + + +<hr /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_134" id="Page_134">[Pg 134]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_IV" id="CHAPTER_IV"></a>CHAPTER IV.</h2> + +<h3>DRIFTING TOWARD ANARCHY.</h3> + + +<div class="sidenote">Barbarous superstitions about trade.</div> + +<p><span class="smcap">At</span> the close of the eighteenth century the barbarous superstitions of +the Middle Ages concerning trade between nations still flourished with +scarcely diminished vitality. The epoch-making work of Adam Smith had +been published in the same year in which the United States declared +their independence. The one was the great scientific event, as the other +was the great political event of the age; but of neither the one nor the +other were the scope and purport fathomed at the time. Among the +foremost statesmen, those who, like Shelburne and Gallatin, understood +the principles of the "Wealth of Nations" were few indeed. The simple +principle that when two parties trade both must be gainers, or one would +soon stop trading, was generally lost sight of; and most commercial +legislation proceeded upon the theory that in trade, as in gambling or +betting, what the one party gains the other must lose. Hence towns, +districts, and nations surrounded themselves with walls of legislative +restrictions intended to keep out the monster Trade, or to admit him +only on strictest proof that he could do no harm. On this barbarous +theory, the use of a colony consisted in its being a customer<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_135" id="Page_135">[Pg 135]</a></span> which you +could compel to trade with yourself, while you could prevent it from +trading with anybody else; and having secured this point, you could +cunningly arrange things by legislation so as to throw all the loss upon +this enforced customer, and keep all the gain to yourself. In the +seventeenth and eighteenth centuries all the commercial legislation of +the great colonizing states was based upon this theory of the use of a +colony. For effectiveness, it shared to some extent the characteristic +features of legislation for making water run up hill. It retarded +commercial development all over the world, fostered monopolies, made the +rich richer and the poor poorer, hindered the interchange of ideas and +the refinement of manners, and sacrificed millions of human lives in +misdirected warfare; but what it was intended to do it did not do. The +sturdy race of smugglers—those despised pioneers of a higher +civilization—thrived in defiance of kings and parliaments; and as it +was impossible to carry out such legislation thoroughly without stopping +trade altogether, colonies and mother countries contrived to increase +their wealth in spite of it. The colonies, however, understood the +animus of the theory in so far as it was directed against them, and the +revolutionary sentiment in America had gained much of its strength from +the protest against this one-sided justice. In one of its most important +aspects, the Revolution was a deadly blow aimed at the old system of +trade restrictions. It was to a certain extent a step in realization of +the noble doctrines of Adam Smith. But where the scientific thinker<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_136" id="Page_136">[Pg 136]</a></span> +grasped the whole principle involved in the matter, the practical +statesmen saw only the special application which seemed to concern them +for the moment. They all understood that the Revolution had set them +free to trade with other countries than England, but very few of them +understood that, whatever countries trade together, the one cannot hope +to benefit by impoverishing the other.</p> + +<p>This point is much better understood in England to-day than in the +United States; but a century ago there was little to choose between the +two countries in ignorance of political economy. England had gained +great wealth and power through trade with her rapidly growing American +colonies. One of her chief fears, in the event of American independence, +had been the possible loss of that trade. English merchants feared that +American commerce, when no longer confined to its old paths by +legislation, would somehow find its way to France and Holland and Spain +and other countries, until nothing would be left for England. The +Revolution worked no such change, however. The principal trade of the +United States was with England, as before, because England could best +supply the goods that Americans wanted; and it is such considerations, +and not acts of Parliament, that determine trade in its natural and +proper channels. In 1783 Pitt introduced into Parliament a bill which +would have secured mutual unconditional free trade between the two +countries; and this was what such men as Franklin, Jefferson, and +Madison desired. Could this bill have passed, the hard feelings +occasioned by the war would soon have<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_137" id="Page_137">[Pg 137]</a></span> died out, the commercial progress +of both countries would have been promoted, and the stupid measures +which led to a second war within thirty years might have been prevented. +But the wisdom of Pitt found less favour in Parliament than the dense +stupidity of Lord Sheffield, who thought that to admit Americans to the +carrying trade would undermine the naval power of Great Britain. Pitt's +measure was defeated, and the regulation of commerce with America was +left to the king in council. Orders were forthwith passed as if upon the +theory that America poor would be a better customer than America rich.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Ship-building in New England.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">British navigation acts and orders in council directed +against American commerce.</div> + +<p>The carrying trade to the West Indies had been one of the most important +branches of American industry. The men of New England were famous for +seamanship, and better and cheaper ships could be built in the seaports +of Massachusetts than anywhere in Great Britain. An oak vessel could be +built at Gloucester or Salem for twenty-four dollars per ton; a ship of +live-oak or American cedar cost not more than thirty-eight dollars per +ton. On the other hand, fir vessels built on the Baltic cost thirty-five +dollars per ton, and nowhere in England, France, or Holland could a ship +be made of oak for less than fifty dollars per ton. Often the cost was +as high as sixty dollars. It was not strange, therefore, that before the +war more than one third of the tonnage afloat under the British flag was +launched from American dock-yards. The war had violently deprived +England of this enormous advantage, and now she sought to make the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_138" id="Page_138">[Pg 138]</a></span> +privation perpetual, in the delusive hope of confining British trade to +British keels, and in the belief that it was the height of wisdom to +impoverish the nation which she regarded as her best customer. In July, +1783, an order in council proclaimed that henceforth all trade between +the United States and the British West Indies must be carried on in +British-built ships, owned and navigated by British subjects. A serious +blow was thus dealt not only at American shipping, but also at the +interchange of commodities between the states and the islands, which was +greatly hampered by this restriction. During the whole of the eighteenth +century the West India sugar trade with the North American colonies and +with Great Britain had been of immense value to all parties, and all had +been seriously damaged by the curtailment of it due to the war. Now that +the artificial state of things created by the war was to be perpetuated +by legislation, the prospect of repairing the loss seemed indefinitely +postponed. Moreover, even in trading directly with Great Britain, +American ships were only allowed to bring in articles produced in the +particular states of which their owners were citizens,—an enactment +which seemed to add insult to injury, inasmuch as it directed especial +attention to the want of union among the thirteen states. Great +indignation was aroused in America, and reprisals were talked of, but +efforts were first made to obtain a commercial treaty.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">John Adams tries in vain to negotiate a commercial treaty.</div> + +<p>In 1785 Franklin returned from France, and Jefferson was sent as +minister in his stead, while<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_139" id="Page_139">[Pg 139]</a></span> John Adams became the first representative +of the United States at the British court. Adams was at first very +courteously received by George III., and presently set to work to +convince Lord Carmarthen, the foreign secretary, of the desirableness of +unrestricted intercourse between the two countries. But popular opinion +in England was obstinately set against him. But for the Navigation Act +and the orders in council, it was said, all ships would by and by come +to be built in America, and every time a frigate was wanted for the navy +the Lords of Admiralty would have to send over to Boston or Philadelphia +and order one. Rather than do such a thing as this, it was thought that +the British navy should content itself with vessels of inferior +workmanship and higher cost, built in British dock-yards. Thirty years +after, England gathered an unexpected fruit of this narrow policy, when, +to her intense bewilderment, she saw frigate after frigate outsailed and +defeated in single combat with American antagonists. Owing to her +exclusive measures, the rapid improvement in American shipbuilding had +gone on quite beyond her ken, until she was thus rudely awakened to it. +With similar short-sighted jealousy, it was argued that the American +share in the whale-fishery and in the Newfoundland fishery should be +curtailed as much as possible. Spermaceti oil was much needed in +England: complaints were rife of robbery and murder in the dimly lighted +streets of London and other great cities. But it was thought that if +American ships could carry oil to England and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_140" id="Page_140">[Pg 140]</a></span> salt fish to Jamaica, the +supply of seamen for the British navy would be diminished; and +accordingly such privileges must not be granted the Americans unless +valuable privileges could be granted in return. But the government of +the United States could grant no privileges because it could impose no +restrictions. British manufactured goods were needed in America, and +Congress, which could levy no duties, had no power to keep them out. +British merchants and manufacturers, it was argued, already enjoyed all +needful privileges in American ports, and accordingly they asked no +favours and granted none.</p> + +<p>Such were the arguments to which Adams was obliged to listen. The +popular feeling was so strong that Pitt could not have stemmed it if he +would. It was in vain that Adams threatened reprisals, and urged that +the British measures would defeat their own purpose. "The end of the +Navigation Act," said he, "as expressed in its own preamble, is to +confine the commerce of the colonies to the mother country; but now we +are become independent states, instead of confining our trade to Great +Britain, it will drive it to other countries:" and he suggested that the +Americans might make a navigation act in their turn, admitting to +American ports none but American-built ships, owned and commanded by +Americans. But under the articles of confederation such a threat was +idle, and the British government knew it to be so. Thirteen separate +state governments could never be made to adopt any such measure in +concert. The weakness of Congress had been fatally revealed in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_141" id="Page_141">[Pg 141]</a></span> its +inability to protect the loyalists or to enforce the payment of debts, +and in its failure to raise a revenue for meeting its current expenses. +A government thus slighted at home was naturally despised abroad. +England neglected to send a minister to Philadelphia, and while Adams +was treated politely, his arguments were unheeded. Whether in this +behaviour Pitt's government was influenced or not by political as well +as economical reasons, it was certain that a political purpose was +entertained by the king and approved by many people. There was an +intention of humiliating the Americans, and it was commonly said that +under a sufficient weight of commercial distress the states would break +up their feeble union, and come straggling back, one after another, to +their old allegiance. The fiery spirit of Adams could ill brook this +contemptuous treatment of the nation which he represented. Though he +favoured very liberal commercial relations with the whole world, he +could see no escape from the present difficulties save in systematic +retaliation. "I should be sorry," he said, "to adopt a monopoly, but, +driven to the necessity of it, I would not do things by halves.... If +monopolies and exclusions are the only arms of defence against +monopolies and exclusions, I would venture upon them without fear of +offending Dean Tucker or the ghost of Dr. Quesnay." That is to say, +certain commercial privileges must be withheld from Great Britain, in +order to be offered to her in return for reciprocal privileges. It was a +miserable policy to be forced to adopt, for such restrictions upon trade +inevitably cut both ways. Like the non-importation<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_142" id="Page_142">[Pg 142]</a></span> agreement of 1768 +and the embargo of 1808, such a policy was open to the objections +familiarly urged against biting off one's own nose. It was injuring +one's self in the hope of injuring somebody else. It was perpetuating in +time of peace the obstacles to commerce generated by a state of war. In +a certain sense, it was keeping up warfare by commercial instead of +military methods, and there was danger that it might lead to a renewal +of armed conflict. Nevertheless, the conduct of the British government +seemed to Adams to leave no other course open. But such "means of +preserving ourselves," he said, "can never be secured until Congress +shall be made supreme in foreign commerce."</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Reprisal impossible; the states impose conflicting duties.</div> + +<p>It was obvious enough that the separate action of the states upon such a +question was only adding to the general uncertainty and confusion. In +1785 New York laid a double duty on all goods whatever imported in +British ships. In the same year Pennsylvania passed the first of the +long series of American tariff acts, designed to tax the whole community +for the alleged benefit of a few greedy manufacturers. Massachusetts +sought to establish committees of correspondence for the purpose of +entering into a new non-importation agreement, and its legislature +resolved that "the present powers of the Congress of the United States, +as contained in the articles of confederation, are not fully adequate to +the great purposes they were originally designed to effect." The +Massachusetts delegates in Congress—Gerry, Holton, and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_143" id="Page_143">[Pg 143]</a></span>King—were +instructed to recommend a general convention of the states for the +purpose of revising and amending the articles of confederation; but the +delegates refused to comply with their instructions, and set forth their +reasons in a paper which was approved by Samuel Adams, and caused the +legislature to reconsider its action. It was feared that a call for a +convention might seem too much like an open expression of a want of +confidence in Congress, and might thereby weaken it still further +without accomplishing any good result. For the present, as a temporary +expedient, Massachusetts took counsel with New Hampshire, and the two +states passed navigation acts, prohibiting British ships from carrying +goods out of their harbours, and imposing a fourfold duty upon all such +goods as they should bring in. A discriminating tonnage duty was also +laid upon all foreign vessels. Rhode Island soon after adopted similar +measures. In Congress a scheme for a uniform navigation act, to be +concurred in and passed by all the thirteen states, was suggested by one +of the Maryland delegates; but it was opposed by Richard Henry Lee and +most of the delegates from the far south. The southern states, having no +ships or seamen of their own, feared that the exclusion of British +competition might enable northern ship-owners to charge exorbitant rates +for carrying their rice and tobacco, thus subjecting them to a ruinous +monopoly; but the gallant Moultrie, then governor of South Carolina, +taking a broader view of the case, wrote to Bowdoin, governor of +Massachusetts, asserting the paramount need of harmonious and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_144" id="Page_144">[Pg 144]</a></span> united +action. In the Virginia assembly, a hot-headed member, named Thurston, +declared himself in doubt "whether it would not be better to encourage +the British rather than the eastern marine;" but the remark was greeted +with hisses and groans, and the speaker was speedily put down. Amid such +mutual jealousies and misgivings, during the year 1785 acts were passed +by ten states granting to Congress the power of regulating commerce for +the ensuing thirteen years. The three states which refrained from acting +were Georgia, South Carolina, and Delaware. The acts of the other ten +were, as might have been expected, a jumble of incongruities. North +Carolina granted all the power that was asked, but stipulated that when +all the states should have done likewise their acts should be summed up +in a new article of confederation. Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and +Maryland had fixed the date at which the grant was to take effect, while +Rhode Island provided that it should not expire until after the lapse of +twenty-five years. The grant by New Hampshire allowed the power to be +used only in one specified way,—by restricting the duties imposable by +the several states. The grants of Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, +and Virginia were not to take effect until all the others should go into +operation. The only thing which Congress could do with these acts was to +refer them back to the several legislatures, with a polite request to +try to reduce them to something like uniformity.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Commercial war between different states.</div> + +<p>Meanwhile, the different states, with their different tariff and tonnage +acts, began to make <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_145" id="Page_145">[Pg 145]</a></span>commercial war upon one another. No sooner had the +other three New England states virtually closed their ports to British +shipping than Connecticut threw hers wide open, an act which she +followed up by laying duties upon imports from Massachusetts. +Pennsylvania discriminated against Delaware, and New Jersey, pillaged at +once by both her greater neighbours, was compared to a cask tapped at +both ends. The conduct of New York became especially selfish and +blameworthy. That rapid growth which was so soon to carry the city and +the state to a position of primacy in the Union had already begun. After +the departure of the British the revival of business went on with leaps +and bounds. The feeling of local patriotism waxed strong, and in no one +was it more completely manifested than in George Clinton, the +Revolutionary general, whom the people elected governor for nine +successive terms. From a humble origin, by dint of shrewdness and +untiring push, Clinton had come to be for the moment the most powerful +man in the state of New York. He had come to look upon the state almost +as if it were his own private manor, and his life was devoted to +furthering its interests as he understood them. It was his first article +of faith that New York must be the greatest state in the Union. But his +conceptions of statesmanship were extremely narrow. In his mind, the +welfare of New York meant the pulling down and thrusting aside of all +her neighbours and rivals. He was the vigorous and steadfast advocate of +every illiberal and exclusive measure, and the most uncompromising<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_146" id="Page_146">[Pg 146]</a></span> +enemy to a closer union of the states. His great popular strength and +the commercial importance of the community in which he held sway made +him at this time the most dangerous man in America. The political +victories presently to be won by Hamilton, Schuyler, and Livingston, +without which our grand and pacific federal union could not have been +brought into being, were victories won by most desperate fighting +against the dogged opposition of Clinton. Under his guidance, the +history of New York, during the five years following the peace of 1783, +was a shameful story of greedy monopoly and sectional hate. Of all the +thirteen states, none behaved worse except Rhode Island.</p> + +<p>A single instance, which occurred early in 1787, may serve as an +illustration. The city of New York, with its population of 30,000 souls, +had long been supplied with firewood from Connecticut, and with butter +and cheese, chickens and garden vegetables, from the thrifty farms of +New Jersey. This trade, it was observed, carried thousands of dollars +out of the city and into the pockets of detested Yankees and despised +Jerseymen. It was ruinous to domestic industry, said the men of New +York. It must be stopped by those effective remedies of the Sangrado +school of economic doctors, a navigation act and a protective tariff. +Acts were accordingly passed, obliging every Yankee sloop which came +down through Hell Gate, and every Jersey market boat which was rowed +across from Paulus Hook to Cortlandt Street, to pay entrance fees and +obtain clearances at the custom-house, just as was done by ships from +London or<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_147" id="Page_147">[Pg 147]</a></span> Hamburg; and not a cart-load of Connecticut firewood could be +delivered at the back-door of a country-house in Beekman Street until it +should have paid a heavy duty. Great and just was the wrath of the +farmers and lumbermen. The New Jersey legislature made up its mind to +retaliate. The city of New York had lately bought a small patch of +ground on Sandy Hook, and had built a light-house there. This +light-house was the one weak spot in the heel of Achilles where a +hostile arrow could strike, and New Jersey gave vent to her indignation +by laying a tax of $1,800 a year on it. Connecticut was equally prompt. +At a great meeting of business men, held at New London, it was +unanimously agreed to suspend all commercial intercourse with New York. +Every merchant signed an agreement, under penalty of $250 for the first +offence, not to send any goods whatever into the hated state for a +period of twelve months. By such retaliatory measures, it was hoped that +New York might be compelled to rescind her odious enactment. But such +meetings and such resolves bore an ominous likeness to the meetings and +resolves which in the years before 1775 had heralded a state of war; and +but for the good work done by the federal convention another five years +would scarcely have elapsed before shots would have been fired and seeds +of perennial hatred sown on the shores that look toward Manhattan +Island.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Disputes about territory; disasters in the valley of Wyoming, +1784.</div> + +<p>To these commercial disputes there were added disputes about territory. +The chronic quarrel between Connecticut and Pennsylvania over the valley +of Wyoming was decided in the autumn of 1782<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_148" id="Page_148">[Pg 148]</a></span> by a special federal +court, appointed in accordance with the articles of confederation. The +prize was adjudged to Pennsylvania, and the government of Connecticut +submitted as gracefully as possible. But new troubles were in store for +the inhabitants of that beautiful region. The traces of the massacre of +1778 had disappeared, the houses had been rebuilt, new settlers had come +in, and the pretty villages had taken on their old look of contentment +and thrift, when in the spring of 1784 there came an accumulation of +disasters. During a very cold winter great quantities of snow had +fallen, and lay piled in huge masses on the mountain sides, until in +March a sudden thaw set in. The Susquehanna rose, and overflowed the +valley, and great blocks of ice drifted here and there, carrying death +and destruction with them. Houses, barns, and fences were swept away, +the cattle were drowned, the fruit trees broken down, the stores of food +destroyed, and over the whole valley there lay a stratum of gravel and +pebbles. The people were starving with cold and hunger, and President +Dickinson urged the legislature to send prompt relief to the sufferers. +But the hearts of the members were as flint, and their talk was +incredibly wicked. Not a penny would they give to help the accursed +Yankees. It served them right. If they had stayed in Connecticut, where +they belonged, they would have kept out of harm's way. And with a +blasphemy thinly veiled in phrases of pious unction, the desolation of +the valley was said to have been contrived by the Deity with the +express<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149">[Pg 149]</a></span> object of punishing these trespassers. But the cruelty of the +Pennsylvania legislature was not confined to words. A scheme was devised +for driving out the settlers and partitioning their lands among a +company of speculators. A force of militia was sent to Wyoming, +commanded by a truculent creature named Patterson. The ostensible +purpose was to assist in restoring order in the valley, but the +behaviour of the soldiers was such as would have disgraced a horde of +barbarians. They stole what they could find, dealt out blows to the men +and insults to the women, until their violence was met with violence in +return. Then Patterson sent a letter to President Dickinson, accusing +the farmers of sedition, and hinting that extreme measures were +necessary. Having thus, as he thought, prepared the way, he attacked the +settlement, turned some five hundred people out-of-doors, and burned +their houses to the ground. The wretched victims, many of them tender +women, or infirm old men, or little children, were driven into the +wilderness at the point of the bayonet, and told to find their way to +Connecticut without further delay. Heartrending scenes ensued. Many died +of exhaustion, or furnished food for wolves. But this was more than the +Pennsylvania legislature had intended. Patterson's zeal had carried him +too far. He was recalled, and the sheriff of Northumberland County was +sent, with a posse of men, to protect the settlers. Patterson disobeyed, +however, and withdrawing his men to a fortified lair in the mountains, +kept up a guerilla warfare. All the Connecticut men in the neighbouring +country flew to arms.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_150" id="Page_150">[Pg 150]</a></span> Men were killed on both sides, and presently +Patterson was besieged. A regiment of soldiers was then sent from +Philadelphia, under Colonel Armstrong, who had formerly been on Gates's +staff, the author of the incendiary Newburgh address. On arriving in the +valley, Armstrong held a parley with the Connecticut men, and persuaded +them to lay down their arms; assuring them on his honour that they +should meet with no ill treatment, and that their enemy, Patterson, +should be disarmed also. Having thus fallen into this soldier's +clutches, they were forthwith treated as prisoners. Seventy-six of them +were handcuffed and sent under guard, some to Easton and some to +Northumberland, where they were thrown into jail.</p> + +<p>Great was the indignation in New England when these deeds were heard of. +The matter had become very serious. A war between Connecticut and +Pennsylvania might easily grow out of it. But the danger was averted +through a very singular feature in the Pennsylvania constitution. In +order to hold its legislature in check, Pennsylvania had a council of +censors, which was assembled once in seven years in order to inquire +whether the state had been properly governed during the interval. Soon +after the troubles in Wyoming the regular meeting of the censors was +held, and the conduct of Armstrong and Patterson was unreservedly +condemned. A hot controversy ensued between the legislature and the +censors, and as the people set great store by the latter peculiar +institution, public sympathy was gradually awakened for the sufferers. +The wickedness of the affair began to dawn upon<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151">[Pg 151]</a></span> people's minds, and +they were ashamed of what had been done. Patterson and Armstrong were +frowned down, the legislature disavowed their acts, and it was ordered +that full reparation should be made to the persecuted settlers of +Wyoming.<a name="FNanchor_4_4" id="FNanchor_4_4"></a><a href="#Footnote_4_4" class="fnanchor">[4]</a></p> + +<div class="sidenote">Troubles in the Green Mountains, 1777–84.</div> + +<p>In the Green Mountains and on the upper waters of the Connecticut there +had been trouble for many years. In the course of the Revolutionary War, +the fierce dispute between New York and New Hampshire for the possession +of the Green Mountains came in from time to time to influence most +curiously the course of events. It was closely connected with the +intrigues against General Schuyler, and thus more remotely with the +Conway cabal and the treason of Arnold. About the time of Burgoyne's +invasion the association of Green Mountain Boys endeavoured to cut the +Gordian knot by declaring Vermont an independent state, and applying to +the Continental Congress for admission into the Union. The New York +delegates in Congress succeeded in defeating this scheme, but the +Vermont people went on and framed their constitution. Thomas Chittenden, +a man of rough manners but very considerable ability, a farmer and +innkeeper, like Israel Putnam, was chosen governor, and held that +position for many years. New Hampshire thus far had not actively opposed +these measures, but fresh grounds of quarrel were soon at hand. Several +towns on the east bank of the Connecticut River wished to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_152" id="Page_152">[Pg 152]</a></span> escape from +the jurisdiction of New Hampshire. They preferred to belong to Vermont, +because it was not within the Union, and accordingly not liable to +requisitions of taxes from the Continental Congress. It was conveniently +remembered that by the original grant, in the reign of Charles II., New +Hampshire extended only sixty miles from the coast. Vermont was at first +inclined to assent, but finding the scheme unpopular in Congress, and +not wishing to offend that body, she changed her mind. The towns on both +banks of the river then tried to organize themselves into a middle +state,—a sort of Lotharingia on the banks of this New World Rhine,—to +be called New Connecticut. By this time New Hampshire was aroused, and +she called attention to the fact that she still believed herself +entitled to dominion over the whole of Vermont. Massachusetts now began +to suspect that the upshot of the matter would be the partition of the +whole disputed territory between New Hampshire and New York, and, +ransacking her ancient grants and charters, she decided to set up a +claim on her own part to the southernmost towns in Vermont. Thus goaded +on all sides, Vermont adopted an aggressive policy. She not only annexed +the towns east of the Connecticut River, but also asserted sovereignty +over the towns in New York as far as the Hudson. New York sent troops to +the threatened frontier, New Hampshire prepared to do likewise, and for +a moment war seemed inevitable. But here, as in so many other instances, +Washington appeared as peace-maker, and prevailed upon Governor +Chittenden to use his influence in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_153" id="Page_153">[Pg 153]</a></span> getting the dangerous claims +withdrawn. After the spring of 1784 the outlook was less stormy in the +Green Mountains. The conflicting claims were allowed to lie dormant, but +the possibilities of mischief remained, and the Vermont question was not +finally settled until after the adoption of the Federal Constitution. +Meanwhile, on the debatable frontier between Vermont and New York the +embers of hatred smouldered. Barns and houses were set on fire, and +belated wayfarers were found mysteriously murdered in the depths of the +forest.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">One nation or thirteen?</div> + +<p>Incidents like these of Wyoming and Vermont seem trivial, perhaps, when +contrasted with the lurid tales of border warfare in older times between +half-civilized peoples of mediæval Europe, as we read them in the pages +of Froissart and Sir Walter Scott. But their historic lesson is none the +less clear. Though they lift the curtain but a little way, they show us +a glimpse of the untold dangers and horrors from which the adoption of +our Federal Constitution has so thoroughly freed us that we can only +with some effort realize how narrowly we have escaped them. It is fit +that they should be borne in mind, that we may duly appreciate the +significance of the reign of law and order which has been established on +this continent during the greater part of a century. When reported in +Europe, such incidents were held to confirm the opinion that the +American confederacy was going to pieces. With quarrels about trade and +quarrels about boundaries, we seemed to be treading the old-fashioned +paths of anarchy, even as they had been trodden in other ages and other +parts of the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_154" id="Page_154">[Pg 154]</a></span> world. It was natural that people in Europe should think +so, because there was no historic precedent to help them in forming a +different opinion. No one could possibly foresee that within five years +a number of gentlemen at Philadelphia, containing among themselves a +greater amount of political sagacity than had ever before been brought +together within the walls of a single room, would amicably discuss the +situation and agree upon a new system of government whereby the dangers +might be once for all averted. Still less could any one foresee that +these gentlemen would not only agree upon a scheme among themselves, but +would actually succeed, without serious civil dissension, in making the +people of thirteen states adopt, defend, and cherish it. History +afforded no example of such a gigantic act of constructive +statesmanship. It was, moreover, a strange and apparently fortuitous +combination of circumstances that were now preparing the way for it and +making its accomplishment possible. No one could forecast the future. +When our ministers and agents in Europe raised the question as to making +commercial treaties, they were disdainfully asked whether European +powers were expected to deal with thirteen governments or with one. If +it was answered that the United States constituted a single government +so far as their relations with foreign powers were concerned, then we +were forthwith twitted with our failure to keep our engagements with +England with regard to the loyalists and the collection of private +debts. Yes, we see, said the European diplomats; the United States<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_155" id="Page_155">[Pg 155]</a></span> are +one nation to-day and thirteen to-morrow, according as may seem to +subserve their selfish interests. Jefferson, at Paris, was told again +and again that it was useless for the French government to enter into +any agreement with the United States, as there was no certainty that it +would be fulfilled on our part; and the same things were said all over +Europe. Toward the close of the war most of the European nations had +seemed ready to enter into commercial arrangements with the United +States, but all save Holland speedily lost interest in the subject. John +Adams had succeeded in making a treaty with Holland in 1782. Frederick +the Great treated us more civilly than other sovereigns. One of the last +acts of his life was to conclude a treaty for ten years with the United +States; asserting the principle that free ships make free goods, taking +arms and military stores out of the class of contraband, agreeing to +refrain from privateering even in case of war between the two countries, +and in other respects showing a liberal and enlightened spirit.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Failure of American credit; John Adams begging in Holland, +1784.</div> + +<p>This treaty was concluded in 1786. It scarcely touched the subject of +international trade in time of peace, but it was valuable as regarded +the matters it covered, and in the midst of the general failure of +American diplomacy in Europe it fell pleasantly upon our ears. Our +diplomacy had failed because our weakness had been proclaimed to the +world. We were bullied by England, insulted by France and Spain, and +looked askance at in Holland. The humiliating position in which our +ministers were placed by the beggarly poverty<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_156" id="Page_156">[Pg 156]</a></span> of Congress was something +almost beyond credence. It was by no means unusual for the +superintendent of finance, when hard pushed for money, to draw upon our +foreign ministers, and then sell the drafts for cash. This was not only +not unusual; it was an established custom. It was done again and again, +when there was not the smallest ground for supposing that the minister +upon whom the draft was made would have any funds wherewith to meet it. +He must go and beg the money. That was part of his duty as envoy,—to +solicit loans without security for a government that could not raise +enough money by taxation to defray its current expenses. It was +sickening work. Just before John Adams had been appointed minister to +England, and while he was visiting in London, he suddenly learned that +drafts upon him had been presented to his bankers in Amsterdam to the +amount of more than a million florins. Less than half a million florins +were on hand to meet these demands, and unless something were done at +once the greater part of this paper would go back to America protested. +Adams lost not a moment in starting for Holland. In these modern days of +precision in travel, when we can translate space into time, the distance +between London and Amsterdam is eleven hours. It was accomplished by +Adams, after innumerable delays and vexations and no little danger, in +fifty-four days. The bankers had contrived, by ingenious excuses, to +keep the drafts from going to protest until the minister's arrival, but +the gazettes were full of the troubles of Congress and the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_157" id="Page_157">[Pg 157]</a></span>bickerings +of the states, and everybody was suspicious. Adams applied in vain to +the regency of Amsterdam. The promise of the American government was not +regarded as valid security for a sum equivalent to about three hundred +thousand dollars. The members of the regency were polite, but +inexorable. They could not make a loan on such terms; it was +unbusinesslike and contrary to precedent. Finding them immovable, Adams +was forced to apply to professional usurers and Jew brokers, from whom, +after three weeks of perplexity and humiliation, he obtained a loan at +exorbitant interest, and succeeded in meeting the drafts. It was only +too plain, as he mournfully confessed, that American credit was dead. +Such were the trials of our American ministers in Europe in the dark +days of the League of Friendship. It was not a solitary, but a typical, +instance. John Jay's experience at the unfriendly court of Spain was +perhaps even more trying.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The Barbary pirates.</div> + +<p>European governments might treat us with cold disdain, and European +bankers might pronounce our securities worthless, but there was one +quarter of the world from which even worse measure was meted out to us. +Of all the barbarous communities with which the civilized world has had +to deal in modern times, perhaps none have made so much trouble as the +Mussulman states on the southern shore of the Mediterranean. After the +breaking up of the great Moorish kingdoms of the Middle Ages, this +region had fallen under the nominal control of the Turkish sultans as +lords paramount of the orthodox Mohammedan world. Its miserable<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_158" id="Page_158">[Pg 158]</a></span> +populations became the prey of banditti. Swarms of half-savage +chieftains settled down upon the land like locusts, and out of such a +pandemonium of robbery and murder as has scarcely been equalled in +historic times the pirate states of Morocco and Algiers, Tunis and +Tripoli, gradually emerged. Of these communities history has not one +good word to say. In these fair lands, once illustrious for the genius +and virtues of a Hannibal and the profound philosophy of St. Augustine, +there grew up some of the most terrible despotisms ever known to the +world. The things done daily by the robber sovereigns were such as to +make a civilized imagination recoil with horror. One of these cheerful +creatures, who reigned in the middle of the eighteenth century, and was +called Muley Abdallah, especially prided himself on his peculiar skill +in mounting a horse. Resting his left hand upon the horse's neck, as he +sprang into the saddle he simultaneously swung the sharp scimiter in his +right hand so deftly as to cut off the head of the groom who held the +bridle. From his behaviour in these sportive moods one may judge what he +was capable of on serious occasions. He was a fair sample of the Barbary +monarchs. The foreign policy of these wretches was summed up in piracy +and blackmail. Their corsairs swept the Mediterranean and ventured far +out upon the ocean, capturing merchant vessels, and murdering or +enslaving their crews. Of the rich booty, a fixed proportion was paid +over to the robber sovereign, and the rest was divided among the gang. +So lucrative was this business that it<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_159" id="Page_159">[Pg 159]</a></span> attracted hardy ruffians from +all parts of Europe, and the misery they inflicted upon mankind during +four centuries was beyond calculation. One of their favourite practices +was the kidnapping of eminent or wealthy persons, in the hope of +extorting ransom. Cervantes and Vincent de Paul were among the +celebrated men who thus tasted the horrors of Moorish slavery; but it +was a calamity that might fall to the lot of any man, or woman, and it +was but rarely that the victims ever regained their freedom.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">American citizens kidnapped.</div> + +<p>Against these pirates the governments of Europe contended in vain. Swift +cruisers frequently captured their ships, and from the days of Joan of +Arc down to the days of Napoleon their skeletons swung from long rows of +gibbets on all the coasts of Europe, as a terror and a warning. But +their losses were easily repaired, and sometimes they cruised in fleets +of seventy or eighty sail, defying the navies of England and France. It +was not until after England, in Nelson's time, had acquired supremacy in +the Mediterranean that this dreadful scourge was destroyed. Americans, +however, have just ground for pride in recollecting that their +government was foremost in chastising these pirates in their own +harbours. The exploits of our little navy in the Mediterranean at the +beginning of the present century form an interesting episode in American +history, but in the weak days of the Confederation our commerce was +plundered with impunity, and American citizens were seized and sold into +slavery in the markets of Algiers and Tripoli. One reason for<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_160" id="Page_160">[Pg 160]</a></span> the long +survival of this villainy was the low state of humanity among European +nations. An Englishman's sympathy was but feebly aroused by the plunder +of Frenchmen, and the bigoted Spaniard looked on with approval so long +as it was Protestants that were kidnapped and bastinadoed. In 1783 Lord +Sheffield published a pamphlet on the commerce of the United States, in +which he shamelessly declared that the Barbary pirates were really +useful to the great maritime powers, because they tended to keep the +weaker nations out of their share in the carrying trade. This, he +thought, was a valuable offset to the Empress Catherine's device of the +armed neutrality, whereby small nations were protected; and on this +wicked theory, as Franklin tells us, London merchants had been heard to +say that "if there were no Algiers, it would be worth England's while to +build one." It was largely because of such feelings that the great +states of Europe so long persisted in the craven policy of paying +blackmail to the robbers, instead of joining in a crusade and destroying +them.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Tripoli demands blackmail, Feb. 1786.</div> + +<p>In 1786 Congress felt it necessary to take measures for protecting the +lives and liberties of American citizens. The person who called himself +"Emperor" of Morocco at that time was different from most of his kind. +He had a taste for reading, and had thus caught a glimmering of the +enlightened liberalism which French philosophers were preaching. He +wished to be thought a benevolent despot, and with Morocco, accordingly, +Congress succeeded in making a treaty. But nothing could be done with +the other pirate states without paying blackmail.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_161" id="Page_161">[Pg 161]</a></span> Few scenes in our +history are more amusing, or more irritating, than the interview of John +Adams with an envoy from Tripoli in London. The oily-tongued barbarian, +with his soft voice and his bland smile, asseverating that his only +interest in life was to do good and make other people happy, stands out +in fine contrast with the blunt, straightforward, and truthful New +Englander; and their conversation reminds one of the old story of +Cœur-de-Lion with his curtal-axe and Saladin with the blade that cut +the silken cushion. Adams felt sure that the fellow was either saint or +devil, but could not quite tell which. The envoy's love for mankind was +so great that he could not bear the thought of hostility between the +Americans and the Barbary States, and he suggested that everything might +be happily arranged for a million dollars or so. Adams thought it better +to fight than to pay tribute. It would be cheaper in the end, as well as +more manly. At the same time, it was better economy to pay a million +dollars at once than waste many times that sum in war risks and loss of +trade. But Congress could do neither one thing nor the other. It was too +poor to build a navy, and too poor to buy off the pirates; and so for +several years to come American ships were burned and American sailors +enslaved with utter impunity. With the memory of such wrongs deeply +graven in his heart, it was natural that John Adams, on becoming +president of the United States, should bend his energies toward founding +a strong American navy.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Congress unable to protect American citizens.</div> + +<p>A government touches the lowest point of ignominy<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_162" id="Page_162">[Pg 162]</a></span> when it confesses its +inability to protect the lives and property of its citizens. A +government which has come to this has failed in discharging the primary +function of government, and forthwith ceases to have any reason for +existing. In March, 1786, Grayson wrote to Madison that several members +of Congress thought seriously of recommending a general convention for +remodelling the government. "I have not made up my mind," says Grayson, +"whether it would not be better to bear the ills we have than fly to +those we know not of. I am, however, in no doubt about the weakness of +the federal government. If it remains much longer in its present state +of imbecility, we shall be one of the most contemptible nations on the +face of the earth." "It is clear to me as A, B, C," said Washington, +"that an extension of federal powers would make us one of the most +happy, wealthy, respectable, and powerful nations that ever inhabited +the terrestrial globe. Without them we shall soon be everything which is +the direct reverse. I predict the worst consequences from a +half-starved, limping government, always moving upon crutches and +tottering at every step."</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Financial distress precipitates the political crisis.</div> + +<p>There is no telling how long the wretched state of things which followed +the Revolution might have continued, had not the crisis been +precipitated by the wild attempts of the several states to remedy the +distress of the people by legislation. That financial distress was +widespread and deep-seated was not to be denied. At the beginning of the +war the amount of accumulated capital in the country had been<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_163" id="Page_163">[Pg 163]</a></span> very +small. The great majority of the people did little more than get from +the annual yield of their farms or plantations enough to meet the +current expenses of the year. Outside of agriculture the chief resources +were the carrying trade, the exchange of commodities with England and +the West Indies, and the cod and whale fisheries; and in these +occupations many people had grown rich. The war had destroyed all these +sources of revenue. Imports and exports had alike been stopped, so that +there was a distressing scarcity of some of the commonest household +articles. The enemy's navy had kept us from the fisheries. Before the +war, the dock-yards of Nantucket were ringing with the busy sound of +adze and hammer, rope-walks covered the island, and two hundred keels +sailed yearly in quest of spermaceti. At the return of peace, the docks +were silent and grass grew in the streets. The carrying trade and the +fisheries began soon to revive, but it was some years before the old +prosperity was restored. The war had also wrought serious damage to +agriculture, and in some parts of the country the direct destruction of +property by the enemy's troops had been very great. To all these causes +of poverty there was added the hopeless confusion due to an +inconvertible paper currency. The worst feature of this financial device +is that it not only impoverishes people, but bemuddles their brains by +creating a false and fleeting show of prosperity. By violently +disturbing apparent values, it always brings on an era of wild +speculation and extravagance in living, followed by sudden collapse and +protracted suffering. In such<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_164" id="Page_164">[Pg 164]</a></span> crises the poorest people, those who earn +their bread by the sweat of their brows and have no margin of +accumulated capital, always suffer the most. Above all men, it is the +labouring man who needs sound money and steady values. We have seen all +these points amply illustrated since the War of Secession. After the War +of Independence, when the margin of accumulated capital was so much +smaller, the misery was much greater. While the paper money lasted there +was marked extravagance in living, and complaints were loud against the +speculators, especially those who operated in bread-stuffs. Washington +said he would like to hang them all on a gallows higher than that of +Haman; but they were, after all, but the inevitable products of this +abnormal state of things, and the more guilty criminals were the +demagogues who went about preaching the doctrine that the poor man needs +cheap money. After the collapse of this continental currency in 1780, it +seemed as if there were no money in the country, and at the peace the +renewal of trade with England seemed at first to make matters worse. The +brisk importation of sorely needed manufactured goods, which then began, +would naturally have been paid for in the south by indigo, rice, and +tobacco, in the middle states by exports of wheat and furs, and in New +England by the profits of the fisheries, the shipping, and the West +India trade. But in the southern and middle states the necessary revival +of agriculture could not be effected in a moment, and British +legislation against American shipping and the West India trade fell with +crippling force<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_165" id="Page_165">[Pg 165]</a></span> upon New England. Consequently, we had little else but +specie with which to pay for imports, and the country was soon drained +of what little specie there was. In the absence of a circulating medium +there was a reversion to the practice of barter, and the revival of +business was thus further impeded. Whiskey in North Carolina, tobacco in +Virginia, did duty as measures of value; and Isaiah Thomas, editor of +the Worcester "Spy," announced that he would receive subscriptions for +his paper in salt pork.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">State of the coinage.</div> + +<p>It is worth while, in this connection, to observe what this specie was, +the scarcity of which created so much embarrassment. Until 1785 no +national coinage was established, and none was issued until 1793. +English, French, Spanish, and German coins, of various and uncertain +value, passed from hand to hand. Beside the ninepences and +fourpence-ha'-pennies, there were bits and half-bits, pistareens, +picayunes, and fips. Of gold pieces there were the johannes, or joe, the +doubloon, the moidore, and pistole, with English and French guineas, +carolins, ducats, and chequins. Of coppers there were English pence and +halfpence and French sous; and pennies were issued at local mints in +Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. The +English shilling had everywhere degenerated in value, but differently in +different localities; and among silver pieces the Spanish dollar, from +Louisiana and Cuba, had begun to supersede it as a measure of value. In +New England the shilling had sunk from nearly one fourth to one sixth of +a dollar; in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_166" id="Page_166">[Pg 166]</a></span> New York to one eighth; in North Carolina to one tenth. It +was partly for this reason that in devising a national coinage the more +uniform dollar was adopted as the unit. At the same time the decimal +system of division was adopted instead of the cumbrous English system, +and the result was our present admirably simple currency, which we owe +to Gouverneur Morris, aided as to some points by Thomas Jefferson. +During the period of the Confederation, the chaotic state of the +currency was a serious obstacle to trade, and it afforded endless +opportunities for fraud and extortion. Clipping and counterfeiting were +carried to such lengths that every moderately cautious person, in taking +payment in hard cash, felt it necessary to keep a small pair of scales +beside him and carefully weigh each coin, after narrowly scrutinizing +its stamp and deciphering its legend.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Cost of the war; Robert Morris and his immense services.</div> + +<p>In view of all these complicated impediments to business on the morrow +of a long and costly war, it was not strange that the whole country was +in some measure pauperized. The cost of the war, estimated in cash, had +been about $170,000,000—a huge sum if we consider the circumstances of +the country at that time. To meet this crushing indebtedness Mr. +Hildreth reckons the total amount raised by the states, whether by means +of repudiated paper or of taxes, down to 1784, as not more than +$30,000,000. No wonder if the issue of such a struggle seemed quite +hopeless. In many parts of the country, by the year 1786, the payment of +taxes had come to be regarded as an amiable eccentricity.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_167" id="Page_167">[Pg 167]</a></span> At one +moment, early in 1782, there was not a single dollar in the treasury. +That the government had in any way been able to finish the war, after +the downfall of its paper money, was due to the gigantic efforts of one +great man,—Robert Morris, of Pennsylvania. This statesman was born in +England, but he had come to Philadelphia in his boyhood, and had amassed +an enormous fortune, which he devoted without stint to the service of +his adopted country. Though opposed to the Declaration of Independence +as rash and premature, he had, nevertheless, signed his name to that +document, and scarcely any one had contributed more to the success of +the war. It was he who supplied the money which enabled Washington to +complete the great campaign of Trenton and Princeton. In 1781 he was +made superintendent of finance, and by dint of every imaginable device +of hard-pressed ingenuity he contrived to support the brilliant work +which began at the Cowpens and ended at Yorktown. He established the +Bank of North America as an instrument by which government loans might +be negotiated. Sometimes his methods were such as doctors call heroic, +as when he made sudden drafts upon our ministers in Europe after the +manner already described. In every dire emergency he was Washington's +chief reliance, and in his devotion to the common weal he drew upon his +private resources until he became poor; and in later years—for shame be +it said—an ungrateful nation allowed one of its noblest and most +disinterested champions to languish in a debtor's prison. It was of ill +omen for the fortunes of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_168" id="Page_168">[Pg 168]</a></span> the weak and disorderly Confederation that in +1784, after three years of herculean struggle with impossibilities, this +stout heart and sagacious head could no longer weather the storm. The +task of creating wealth out of nothing had become too arduous and too +thankless to be endured. Robert Morris resigned his place, and it was +taken by a congressional committee of finance, under whose management +the disorders only hurried to a crisis.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The craze for paper-money, 1786.</div> + +<p>By 1786, under the universal depression and want of confidence, all +trade had well-nigh stopped, and political quackery, with its cheap and +dirty remedies, had full control of the field. In the very face of +miseries so plainly traceable to the deadly paper currency, it may seem +strange that people should now have begun to clamour for a renewal of +the experiment which had worked so much evil. Yet so it was. As starving +men are said to dream of dainty banquets, so now a craze for fictitious +wealth in the shape of paper money ran like an epidemic through the +country. There was a Barmecide feast of economic vagaries; only now it +was the several states that sought to apply the remedy, each in its own +way. And when we have threaded the maze of this rash legislation, we +shall the better understand that clause in our federal constitution +which forbids the making of laws impairing the obligation of contracts. +The events of 1786 impressed upon men's minds more forcibly than ever +the wretched and disorderly condition of the country, and went far +toward calling into existence the needful popular sentiment in favour of +an overruling central government.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_169" id="Page_169">[Pg 169]</a></span></p><div class="sidenote">Agitation in southern and middle states.</div> + +<p>The disorders assumed very different forms in the different states, and +brought out a great diversity of opinion as to the causes of the +distress and the efficacy of the proposed remedies. Only two states out +of the thirteen—Connecticut and Delaware—escaped the infection, but, +on the other hand, it was only in seven states that the paper money +party prevailed in the legislatures. North Carolina issued a large +amount of paper, and, in order to get it into circulation as quickly as +possible, the state government proceeded to buy tobacco with it, paying +double the specie value of the tobacco. As a natural consequence, the +paper dollar instantly fell to seventy cents, and went on declining. In +South Carolina an issue was tried somewhat more cautiously, but the +planters soon refused to take the paper at its face value. Coercive +measures were then attempted. Planters and merchants were urged to sign +a pledge not to discriminate between paper and gold, and if any one +dared refuse the fanatics forthwith attempted to make it hot for him. A +kind of "Kuklux" society was organized at Charleston, known as the "Hint +Club." Its purpose was to hint to such people that they had better look +out. If they did not mend their ways, it was unnecessary to inform them +more explicitly what they might expect. Houses were combustible then as +now, and the use of firearms was well understood. In Georgia the +legislature itself attempted coercion. Paper money was made a legal +tender in spite of strong opposition, and a law was passed prohibiting +any planter or merchant from<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_170" id="Page_170">[Pg 170]</a></span> exporting any produce without taking +affidavit that he had never refused to receive this scrip at its full +face value. But somehow people found that the more it was sought to keep +up the paper by dint of threats and forcing acts, the faster its value +fell. Virginia had issued bills of credit during the campaign of 1781, +but it was enacted at the same time that they should not be a legal +tender after the next January. The influence of Washington, Madison, and +Mason was effectively brought to bear in favour of sound currency, and +the people of Virginia were but slightly affected by the craze of 1786. +In the autumn of that year a proposition from two counties for an issue +of paper was defeated in the legislature by a vote of eighty-five to +seventeen, and no more was heard of the matter. In Maryland, after a +very obstinate fight, a rag money bill was carried in the house of +representatives, but the senate threw it out; and the measure was thus +postponed until the discussion over the federal constitution superseded +it in popular interest. Pennsylvania had warily begun in May, 1785, to +issue a million dollars in bills of credit, which were not made a legal +tender for the payment of private debts. They were mainly loaned to +farmers on mortgage, and were received by the state as an equivalent for +specie in the payment of taxes. By August, 1786, even this carefully +guarded paper had fallen some twelve cents below par,—not a bad showing +for such a year as that. New York moved somewhat less cautiously. A +million dollars were issued in bills of credit receivable for the +custom-house duties, which were then<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_171" id="Page_171">[Pg 171]</a></span> paid into the state treasury; and +these bills were made a legal tender for all money received in lawsuits. +At the same time the New Jersey legislature passed a bill for issuing +half a million paper dollars, to be a legal tender in all business +transactions. The bill was vetoed by the governor in council. The aged +Governor Livingston was greatly respected by the people; and so the mob +at Elizabethtown, which had duly planted a stake and dragged his effigy +up to it, refrained from inflicting the last indignities upon the image, +and burned that of one of the members of the council instead. At the +next session the governor yielded, and the rag money was issued. But an +unforeseen difficulty arose. Most of the dealings of New Jersey people +were in the cities of New York and Philadelphia, and in both cities the +merchants refused their paper, so that it speedily became worthless.</p> + +<p>The business of exchange was thus fast getting into hopeless confusion. +It has been said of Bradshaw's Railway Guide, the indispensable +companion of the traveller in England, that no man can study it for an +hour without qualifying himself for an insane asylum. But Bradshaw is +pellucid clearness compared with the American tables of exchange in +1786, with their medley of dollars and shillings, moidores and +pistareens. The addition of half a dozen different kinds of paper +created such a labyrinth as no human intellect could explore. No wonder +that men were counted wise who preferred to take whiskey and pork +instead. Nobody who had a yard of cloth to sell could tell how much it +was worth. But even worse than all this<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_172" id="Page_172">[Pg 172]</a></span> was the swift and certain +renewal of bankruptcy which so many states were preparing for +themselves.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Distress in New England.</div> + +<p>Nowhere did the warning come so quickly or so sharply as in New England. +Connecticut, indeed, as already observed, came off scot-free. She had +issued a little paper money soon after the battle of Lexington, but had +stopped it about the time of the surrender of Burgoyne. In 1780 she had +wisely and summarily adjusted all relations between debtor and creditor, +and the crisis of 1786 found her people poor enough, no doubt, but able +to wait for better times and indisposed to adopt violent remedies. It +was far otherwise in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. These were +preëminently the maritime states of the Union, and upon them the blows +aimed by England at American commerce had fallen most severely. It was +these two maritime states that suffered most from the cutting down of +the carrying trade and the restriction of intercourse with the West +Indies. These things worked injury to shipbuilding, to the exports of +lumber and oil and salted fish, even to the manufacture of Medford rum. +Nowhere had the normal machinery of business been thrown out of gear so +extensively as in these two states, and in Rhode Island there was the +added disturbance due to a prolonged occupation by the enemy's troops. +Nowhere, perhaps, was there a larger proportion of the population in +debt, and in these preëminently commercial communities private debts +were a heavier burden and involved more personal suffering than in the +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_173" id="Page_173">[Pg 173]</a></span>somewhat patriarchal system of life in Virginia or South Carolina. In +the time of which we are now treating, imprisonment for debt was common. +High-minded but unfortunate men were carried to jail, and herded with +thieves and ruffians in loathsome dungeons, for the crime of owing a +hundred dollars which they could not promptly pay. Under such +circumstances, a commercial disturbance, involving widespread debt, +entailed an amount of personal suffering and humiliation of which, in +these kinder days, we can form no adequate conception. It tended to make +the debtor an outlaw, ready to entertain schemes for the subversion of +society. In the crisis of 1786, the agitation in Rhode Island and +Massachusetts reached white heat, and things were done which alarmed the +whole country. But the course of events was different in the two states. +In Rhode Island the agitators obtained control of the government, and +the result was a paroxysm of tyranny. In Massachusetts the agitators +failed to secure control of the government, and the result was a +paroxysm of rebellion.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Rag money victorious in Rhode Island; the "Know Ye" +measures.</div> + +<p>The debates over paper money in the Rhode Island legislature began in +1785, but the advocates of a sound currency were victorious. These men +were roundly abused in the newspapers, and in the next spring election +most of them lost their seats. The legislature of 1786 showed an +overwhelming majority in favor of paper money. The farmers from the +inland towns were unanimous in supporting the measure. They could not +see the difference between the state making a dollar out of paper and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_174" id="Page_174">[Pg 174]</a></span> a +dollar out of silver. The idea that the value did not lie in the +government stamp they dismissed as an idle crotchet, a wire-drawn +theory, worthy only of "literary fellows." What they could see was the +glaring fact that they had no money, hard or soft; and they wanted +something that would satisfy their creditors and buy new gowns for their +wives, whose raiment was unquestionably the worse for wear. On the other +hand, the merchants from seaports like Providence, Newport, and Bristol +understood the difference between real money and the promissory notes of +a bankrupt government, but they were in a hopeless minority. Half a +million dollars were issued in scrip, to be loaned to the farmers on a +mortgage of their real estate. No one could obtain the scrip without +giving a mortgage for twice the amount, and it was thought that this +security would make it as good as gold. But the depreciation began +instantly. When the worthy farmers went to the store for dry goods or +sugar, and found the prices rising with dreadful rapidity, they were at +first astonished, and then enraged. The trouble, as they truly said, was +with the wicked merchants, who would not take the paper dollars at their +face value. These men were thus thwarting the government, and must be +punished. An act was accordingly hurried through the legislature, +commanding every one to take paper as an equivalent for gold, under +penalty of five hundred dollars fine and loss of the right of suffrage. +The merchants in the cities thereupon shut up their shops. During the +summer of 1786 all<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_175" id="Page_175">[Pg 175]</a></span> business was at a standstill in Newport and +Providence, except in the bar-rooms. There and about the market-places +men spent their time angrily discussing politics, and scarcely a day +passed without street-fights, which at times grew into riots. In the +country, too, no less than in the cities, the goddess of discord +reigned. The farmers determined to starve the city people into +submission, and they entered into an agreement not to send any produce +into the cities until the merchants should open their shops and begin +selling their goods for paper at its face value. Not wishing to lose +their pigs and butter and grain, they tried to dispose of them in Boston +and New York, and in the coast towns of Connecticut. But in all these +places their proceedings had awakened such lively disgust that placards +were posted in the taverns warning purchasers against farm produce from +Rhode Island. Disappointed in these quarters, the farmers threw away +their milk, used their corn for fuel, and let their apples rot on the +ground, rather than supply the detested merchants. Food grew scarce in +Providence and Newport, and in the latter city a mob of sailors +attempted unsuccessfully to storm the provision stores. The farmers were +threatened with armed violence. Town-meetings were held all over the +state, to discuss the situation, and how long they might have talked to +no purpose none can say, when all at once the matter was brought into +court. A cabinet-maker in Newport named Trevett went into a meat-market +kept by one John Weeden, and selecting a joint of meat, offered paper in +payment. Weeden refused to take the paper except at a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_176" id="Page_176">[Pg 176]</a></span> heavy discount. +Trevett went to bed supperless, and next morning informed against the +obstinate butcher for disobedience to the forcing act. Should the court +find him guilty, it would be a good speculation for Trevett, for half of +the five hundred dollars fine was to go to the informer. Hard-money men +feared lest the court might prove subservient to the legislature, since +that body possessed the power of removing the five judges. The case was +tried in September amid furious excitement. Huge crowds gathered about +the court-house and far down the street, screaming and cheering like a +crowd on the night of a presidential election. The judges were +clear-headed men, not to be browbeaten. They declared the forcing act +unconstitutional, and dismissed the complaint. Popular wrath then turned +upon them. A special session of the legislature was convened, four of +the judges were removed, and a new forcing-act was prepared. This act +provided that no man could vote at elections or hold any office without +taking a test oath promising to receive paper money at par. But this was +going too far. Many soft-money men were not wild enough to support such +a measure; among the farmers there were some who had grown tired of +seeing their produce spoiled on their hands; and many of the richest +merchants had announced their intention of moving out of the state. The +new forcing act accordingly failed to pass, and presently the old one +was repealed. The paper dollar had been issued in May; in November it +passed for sixteen cents.</p> + +<p>These outrageous proceedings awakened disgust<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_177" id="Page_177">[Pg 177]</a></span> and alarm among sensible +people in all the other states, and Rhode Island was everywhere reviled +and made fun of. One clause of the forcing act had provided that if a +debtor should offer paper to his creditor and the creditor should refuse +to take it at par, the debtor might carry his rag money to court and +deposit it with the judge; and the judge must thereupon issue a +certificate discharging the debt. The form of certificate began with the +words "Know Ye," and forthwith the unhappy little state was nicknamed +Rogues' Island, the home of Know Ye men and Know Ye measures.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Rag money defeated in Massachusetts; the Shays insurrection, +Aug. 1786–Feb. 1787.</div> + +<p>While the scorn of the people was thus poured out upon Rhode Island, +much sympathy was felt for the government of Massachusetts, which was +called upon thus early to put down armed rebellion. The pressure of debt +was keenly felt in the rural districts of Massachusetts. It is estimated +that the private debts in the state amounted to some $7,000,000, and the +state's arrears to the federal government amounted to some $7,000,000 +more. Adding to these sums the arrears of bounties due to the soldiers, +and the annual cost of the state, county, and town governments, there +was reached an aggregate equivalent to a tax of more than $50 on every +man, woman, and child in this population of 379,000 souls. Upon every +head of a family the average burden was some $200 at a time when most +farmers would have thought such a sum yearly a princely income. In those +days of scarcity most of them did not set eyes on so much as $50 in the +course of a year, and happy was he who<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_178" id="Page_178">[Pg 178]</a></span> had tucked away two or three +golden guineas or moidores in an old stocking, and sewed up the treasure +in his straw mattress or hidden it behind the bricks of the +chimney-piece. Under such circumstances the payment of debts and taxes +was out of the question; and as the same state of things made creditors +clamorous and ugly, the courts were crowded with lawsuits. The lawyers +usually contrived to get their money by exacting retainers in advance, +and the practice of champerty was common, whereby the lawyer did his +work in consideration of a percentage on the sum which was at last +forcibly collected. Homesteads were sold for the payment of foreclosed +mortgages, cattle were seized in distrainer, and the farmer himself was +sent to jail. The smouldering fires of wrath thus kindled found +expression in curses aimed at lawyers, judges, and merchants. The wicked +merchants bought foreign goods and drained the state of specie to pay +for them, while they drank Madeira wine and dressed their wives in fine +velvets and laces. So said the farmers; and city ladies, far kinder than +these railers deemed them, formed clubs, of which the members pledged +themselves to wear homespun,—a poor palliative for the deep-seated ills +of the time. In such mood were many of the villagers when in the summer +of 1786 they were overtaken by the craze for paper money. At the meeting +of the legislature in May, a petition came in from Bristol County, +praying for an issue of paper. The petitioners admitted that such money +was sure to deteriorate in value, and they doubted the wisdom of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_179" id="Page_179">[Pg 179]</a></span> trying +to keep it up by forcing acts. Instead of this they would have the rate +of its deterioration regulated by law, so that a dollar might be worth +ninety cents to-day, and presently seventy cents, and by and by fifty +cents, and so on till it should go down to zero and be thrown overboard. +People would thus know what to expect, and it would be all right. The +delicious <i>naïveté</i> of this argument did not prevail with the +legislature of Massachusetts, and soft money was frowned down by a vote +of ninety-nine to nineteen. Then a bill was brought in seeking to +reëstablish in legislation the ancient practice of barter, and make +horses and cows legal tender for debts; and this bill was crushed by +eighty-nine votes against thirty-five. At the same time this legislature +passed a bill to strengthen the federal government by a grant of +supplementary funds to Congress, and thus laid a further burden of taxes +upon the people.</p> + +<p>There was an outburst of popular wrath. A convention at Hatfield in +August decided that the court of common pleas ought to be abolished, +that no funds should be granted to Congress, and that paper money should +be issued at once. Another convention at Lenox denounced such incendiary +measures, approved of supporting the federal government, and declared +that no good could come from the issue of paper money. But meanwhile the +angry farmers had resorted to violence. The legislature, they said, had +its sittings in Boston, under the influence of wicked lawyers and +merchants, and thus could not be expected to do the will of the people. +A cry went up that henceforth<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_180" id="Page_180">[Pg 180]</a></span> the law-makers must sit in some small +inland town, where jealous eyes might watch their proceedings. Meanwhile +the lawyers must be dealt with; and at Northampton, Worcester, Great +Barrington, and Concord the courts were broken up by armed mobs. At +Concord one Job Shattuck brought several hundred armed men into the town +and surrounded the court-house, while in a fierce harangue he declared +that the time had come for wiping out all debts. "Yes," squeaked a nasal +voice from the crowd,—"yes, Job, we know all about them two farms you +can't never pay for!" But this repartee did not save the judges, who +thought it best to flee from the town. At first the legislature deemed +it wise to take a lenient view of these proceedings, and it even went so +far as to promise to hold its next session out of Boston. But the +agitation had reached a point where it could not be stayed. In September +the supreme court was to sit at Springfield, and Governor Bowdoin sent a +force of 600 militia under General Shepard to protect it. They were +confronted by some 600 insurgents, under the leadership of Daniel Shays. +This man had been a captain in the Continental army, and in his force +were many of the penniless veterans whom Gates would fain have incited +to rebellion at Newburgh. Shays seems to have done what he could to +restrain his men from violence, but he was a poor creature, wanting +alike in courage and good faith. On the other hand the militia were +lacking in spirit. After a disorderly parley, with much cursing and +swearing, they beat a retreat, and the court was prevented from sitting. +Fresh riots <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_181" id="Page_181">[Pg 181]</a></span>followed at Worcester and Concord. A regiment of cavalry, +sent out by the governor, scoured Middlesex County, and, after a short +fight in the woods near Groton, captured Job Shattuck and dispersed his +men. But this only exasperated the insurgents. They assembled in +Worcester to the number of 1,200 or more, where they lived for two +months at free quarters, while Shays organized and drilled them.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The insurrection suppressed by state troops.</div> + +<p>Meanwhile the habeas corpus act was suspended for eight months, and +Governor Bowdoin called out an army of 4,400 men, who were placed under +command of General Lincoln. As the state treasury was nearly empty, some +wealthy gentlemen in Boston subscribed the money needed for equipping +these troops, and about the middle of January, 1787, they were collected +at Worcester. The rebels had behaved shamefully, burning barns and +seizing all the plunder they could lay hands on. As their numbers +increased they found their military stores inadequate, and accordingly +they marched upon Springfield, with the intent to capture the federal +arsenal there, and provide themselves with muskets and cannon. General +Shepard held Springfield with 1,200 men, and on the 25th of January +Shays attacked him with a force of somewhat more than 2,000, hoping to +crush him and seize the arsenal before Lincoln could come to the rescue. +But his plan of attack was faulty, and as soon as his men began falling +under Shepard's fire a panic seized them, and they retreated in disorder +to Ludlow, and then to Amherst, setting fire to houses and robbing the +inhabitants. On the approach of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_182" id="Page_182">[Pg 182]</a></span> Lincoln's army, three days later, Shays +retreated to Pelham, and planted his forces on two steep hills protected +at the bottom by huge snowdrifts. Lincoln advanced to Hadley and sought +to open negotiations with the rebels. They were reminded that a contest +with the state government was hopeless, and that they had already +incurred the penalty of death; but if they would now lay down their arms +and go home, a free pardon could be obtained for them. Shays seemed +willing to yield, and Saturday, the 3d of February, was appointed for a +conference between some of the leading rebels and some of the officers. +But this was only a stratagem. During the conference Shays decamped and +marched his men through Prescott and North Dana to Petersham. Toward +nightfall the trick was discovered, and Lincoln set his whole force in +motion over the mountain ridges of Shutesbury and New Salem. The day had +been mild, but during the night the thermometer dropped below zero and +an icy, cutting snow began to fall. There was great suffering during the +last ten miles, and indeed the whole march of thirty miles in thirteen +hours over steep and snow-covered roads was a worthy exploit for these +veterans of the Revolution. Shays and his men had not looked for such a +display of energy, and as they were getting their breakfast on Sunday +morning at Petersham they were taken by surprise. A few minutes sufficed +to scatter them in flight. A hundred and fifty, including Shays himself, +were taken prisoners. The rest fled in all directions, most of them to +Athol and Northfield,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_183" id="Page_183">[Pg 183]</a></span> whence they made their way into Vermont. General +Lincoln then marched his troops into the mountains of Berkshire, where +disturbances still continued. On the 26th of February one Captain +Hamlin, with several hundred insurgents, plundered the town of +Stockbridge and carried off the leading citizens as hostages. He was +pursued as far as Sheffield, defeated there in a sharp skirmish, with a +loss of some thirty in killed and wounded, and his troops scattered. +This put an end to the insurrection in Massachusetts.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Conduct of neighbouring states.</div> + +<p>During the autumn similar disturbances had occurred in the states to the +northward. At Exeter in New Hampshire and at Windsor and Rutland in +Vermont the courts had been broken up by armed mobs, and at Rutland +there had been bloodshed. When the Shays rebellion was put down, +Governor Bowdoin requested the neighbouring states to lend their aid in +bringing the insurgents to justice, and all complied with the request +except Vermont and Rhode Island. The legislature of Rhode Island +sympathized with the rebels, and refused to allow the governor to issue +a warrant for their arrest. On the other hand, the governor of Vermont +issued a proclamation out of courtesy toward Massachusetts, but he +caused it to be understood that this was but an empty form, as the state +of Vermont could not afford to discourage immigration! A feeling of +compassion for the insurgents was widely spread in Massachusetts. In +March the leaders were tried, and fourteen were convicted of treason and +sentenced to death; but Governor Bowdoin,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_184" id="Page_184">[Pg 184]</a></span> whose term was about to +expire, granted a reprieve for a few weeks. At the annual election in +April the candidates for the governorship were Bowdoin and Hancock, and +it was generally believed that the latter would be more likely than the +former to pardon the convicted men. So strong was this feeling that, +although much gratitude was felt toward Bowdoin, to whose energetic +measures the prompt suppression of the rebellion was due, Hancock +obtained a large majority. When the question of a pardon came up for +discussion, Samuel Adams, who was then president of the senate, was +strongly opposed to it, and one of his arguments was very +characteristic. "In monarchies," he said, "the crime of treason and +rebellion may admit of being pardoned or lightly punished; but the man +who dares to rebel against the laws of a republic ought to suffer +death." This was Adams's sensitive point. He wanted the whole world to +realize that the rule of a republic is a rule of law and order, and that +liberty does not mean license. But in spite of this view, for which +there was much to be said, the clemency of the American temperament +prevailed, and Governor Hancock pardoned all the prisoners.</p> + +<p>Nothing in the history of these disturbances is more instructive than +the light incidentally thrown upon the relations between Congress and +the state government. Just before the news of the rout at Petersham, +Samuel Adams had proposed in the senate that the governor should be +requested to write to Congress and inform that body of what was going on +in Massachusetts, stating that "although<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_185" id="Page_185">[Pg 185]</a></span> the legislature are firmly +persuaded that ... in all probability they will be able speedily and +effectively to suppress the rebellion, yet, if any unforeseen event +should take place which may frustrate the measures of government, they +rely upon such support from the United States as is expressly and +solemnly stipulated by the articles of confederation." A resolution to +this effect was carried in the senate, but defeated in the house through +the influence of western county members in sympathy with the insurgents; +and incredible as it may seem, the argument was freely used that it was +incompatible with the dignity of Massachusetts to allow United States +troops to set foot upon her soil. When we reflect that the arsenal at +Springfield, where the most considerable disturbance occurred, was +itself federal property, the climax of absurdity might seem to have been +reached.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Congress afraid to interfere.</div> + +<p>It was left for Congress itself, however, to cap that climax. The +progress of the insurrection in the autumn in Vermont, New Hampshire, +and Massachusetts, as well as the troubles in Rhode Island, had alarmed +the whole country. It was feared that the insurgents in these states +might join forces, and in some way kindle a flame that would run through +the land. Accordingly Congress in October called upon the states for a +continental force, but did not dare to declare openly what it was to be +used for. It was thought necessary to say that the troops were wanted +for an expedition against the northwestern Indians! National humiliation +could go no further than such a confession, on the part of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_186" id="Page_186">[Pg 186]</a></span> our central +government, that it dared not use force in defence of those very +articles of confederation to which it owed its existence. Things had +come to such a pass that people of all shades of opinion were beginning +to agree upon one thing,—that something must be done, and done quickly.</p> + + + +<hr /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_187" id="Page_187">[Pg 187]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_V" id="CHAPTER_V"></a>CHAPTER V.</h2> + +<h3>GERMS OF NATIONAL SOVEREIGNTY.</h3> + + +<div class="sidenote">Creation of a national domain beyond the Alleghanies.</div> + +<p><span class="smcap">While</span> the events we have heretofore contemplated seemed to prophesy the +speedy dissolution and downfall of the half-formed American Union, a +series of causes, obscure enough at first, but emerging gradually into +distinctness and then into prominence, were preparing the way for the +foundation of a national sovereignty. The growth of this sovereignty +proceeded stealthily along such ancient lines of precedent as to take +ready hold of people's minds, although few, if any, understood the full +purport of what they were doing. Ever since the days when our English +forefathers dwelt in village communities in the forests of northern +Germany, the idea of a common land or folkland—a territory belonging to +the whole community, and upon which new communities might be organized +by a process analogous to what physiologists call +cell-multiplication—had been perfectly familiar to everybody. Townships +budded from village or parish folkland in Maryland and Massachusetts in +the seventeenth century, just as they had done in England before the +time of Alfred. The critical period of the Revolution witnessed the +repetition of this process on a gigantic scale. It witnessed the +creation of a national<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_188" id="Page_188">[Pg 188]</a></span> territory beyond the Alleghanies,—an enormous +folkland in which all the thirteen old states had a common interest, and +upon which new and derivative communities were already beginning to +organize themselves. Questions about public lands are often regarded as +the driest of historical deadwood. Discussions about them in newspapers +and magazines belong to the class of articles which the general reader +usually skips. Yet there is a great deal of the philosophy of history +wrapped up in this subject, and it now comes to confront us at a most +interesting moment; for without studying this creation of a national +domain between the Alleghanies and the Mississippi, we cannot understand +how our Federal Union came to be formed.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Conflicting claims to the western territory.</div> + +<p>When England began to contend with France and Spain for the possession +of North America, she made royal grants of land upon this continent, in +royal ignorance of its extent and configuration. But until the Seven +Years' War the eastward and westward partitioning of these grants was of +little practical consequence; for English dominion was bounded by the +Alleghanies, and everything beyond was in the hands of the French. In +that most momentous war the genius of the elder Pitt won the region east +of the Mississippi for men of English race, while the vast territory of +Louisiana, beyond, passed under the control of Spain. During the +Revolutionary War, in a series of romantic expeditions, the state of +Virginia took military possession of a great part of the wilderness east +of the Mississippi, founding towns in the Ohio and Cumberland valleys, +and occupying with garrisons of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_189" id="Page_189">[Pg 189]</a></span> her state militia the posts at Cahokia, +Kaskaskia, and Vincennes. We have seen how, through the skill of our +commissioners at Paris, this noble country was secured for the Americans +in the treaty of 1783, in spite of the reluctance of France and the +hostility of Spain. Throughout the Revolutionary War the Americans +claimed the territory as part of the United States; but when once it +passed from under the control of Great Britain, into whose hands did it +go? To whom did it belong? To this question there were various and +conflicting answers. North Carolina, indeed, had already taken +possession of what was afterward called Tennessee, and at the beginning +of the war Virginia had annexed Kentucky. As to these points there could +be little or no dispute. But with the territory north of the Ohio River +it was very different. Four states laid claim either to the whole or to +parts of this territory, and these claims were not simply conflicting, +but irreconcilable.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Claims of Massachusetts and Connecticut.</div> + +<p>The charters of Massachusetts and Connecticut were framed at a time when +people had not got over the notion that this part of the continent was +not much wider than Mexico, and accordingly these colonies had received +the royal permission to extend from sea to sea. The existence of a +foreign colony of Dutchmen in the neighbourhood was a trifle about which +these documents did not trouble themselves; but when Charles II. +conquered this colony and bestowed it upon his brother, the province of +New York became a stubborn fact, which could not<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_190" id="Page_190">[Pg 190]</a></span> be disregarded. +Massachusetts and Connecticut peaceably settled their boundary line with +New York, and laid no claims to land within the limits of that state; +but they still continued to claim what lay beyond it, as far as the +Mississippi River, where the Spanish dominion now began. The regions +claimed by Massachusetts have since become the southern halves of the +states of Michigan and Wisconsin. The region claimed by Connecticut was +a narrow strip running over the northern portions of Pennsylvania, Ohio, +Indiana, and Illinois; and we have seen how much trouble was occasioned +in Pennsylvania by this circumstance.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Claims of New York.</div> + +<p>But New York laughed to scorn these claims of Connecticut. In the +seventeenth century all the Algonquin tribes between Lake Erie and the +Cumberland Mountains had become tributary to the Iroquois; and during +the hundred years' struggle between France and England for the supremacy +of this continent the Iroquois had put themselves under the protection +of England, which thenceforth always treated them as an appurtenance to +New York. For a hundred years before the Revolution, said New York, she +had borne the expense of protecting the Iroquois against the French, and +by various treaties she had become lawful suzerain over the Six Nations +and their lands and the lands of their Algonquin vassals. On such +grounds New York claimed pretty much everything north of the Ohio and +east of the Miami.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Virginia's claims.</div> + +<p>But according to Virginia, it made little difference what Massachusetts +and Connecticut and New<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_191" id="Page_191">[Pg 191]</a></span> York thought about the matter, for every acre +of land, from the Ohio River up to Lake Superior, belonged to her. Was +not she the lordly "Old Dominion," out of which every one of the states +had been carved? Even Cape Cod and Cape Ann were said to be in "North +Virginia," until, in 1614, Captain John Smith invented the name "New +England." It was a fair presumption that any uncarved territory belonged +to Virginia; and it was further held that the original charter of 1609 +used language which implicitly covered the northwestern territory, +though, as Thomas Paine showed, in a pamphlet entitled "Public Good," +this was very doubtful. But besides all this, it was Virginia that had +actually conquered the disputed territory, and held every military post +in it except those which the British had not surrendered; and who could +doubt that possession was nine points in the law?</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Maryland's novel and beneficent suggestion, Oct. 15, 1777.</div> + +<p>Of these conflicting claims, those of New York and Virginia were the +most grasping and the most formidable, because they concerned a region +into which immigration was beginning rapidly to pour. They were regarded +with strong disfavour by the small states, Rhode Island, New Jersey, +Delaware, and Maryland, which were so situated that they never could +expand in any direction. They looked forward with dread to a future in +which New York and Virginia might wax powerful enough to tyrannize over +their smaller neighbours. But of these protesting states it was only +Maryland that fairly rose to the occasion, and suggested an idea which<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_192" id="Page_192">[Pg 192]</a></span> +seemed startling at first, but from which mighty and unforeseen +consequences were soon to follow.<a name="FNanchor_5_5" id="FNanchor_5_5"></a><a href="#Footnote_5_5" class="fnanchor">[5]</a> It was on the 15th of October, +1777, just two days before Burgoyne's surrender, that this path-breaking +idea first found expression in Congress. The articles of confederation +were then just about to be presented to the several states to be +ratified, and the question arose as to how the conflicting western +claims should be settled. A motion was then made that "the United States +in Congress assembled shall have the sole and exclusive right and power +to ascertain and fix the western boundary of such states as claim to the +Mississippi, ... and lay out the land beyond the boundary so ascertained +into separate and independent states, from time to time, as the numbers +and circumstances of the people may require." To carry out such a +motion, it would be necessary for the four claimant states to surrender +their claims into the hands of the United States, and thus create a +domain which should be owned by the confederacy in common. So bold a +step towards centralization found no favour at the time. No other state +but Maryland voted for it.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The several states yield their claims in favour of the United +States, 1780–85.</div> + +<p>But Maryland's course was well considered: she pursued it resolutely, +and was rewarded with complete success. By February, 1779, all the other +states had ratified the articles of confederation. In the following May, +Maryland declared that she<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_193" id="Page_193">[Pg 193]</a></span> would not ratify the articles until she +should receive some definite assurance that the northwestern territory +should become the common property of the United States, "subject to be +parcelled out by Congress into free, convenient, and independent +governments." The question, thus boldly brought into the foreground, was +earnestly discussed in Congress and in the state legislatures, until in +February, 1780, partly through the influence of General Schuyler, New +York decided to cede all her claims to the western lands. This act of +New York set things in motion, so that in September Congress recommended +to all states having western claims to cede them to the United States. +In October, Congress, still pursuing the Maryland idea, went farther, +and declared that all such lands as might be ceded should be sold in +lots to immigrants and the money used for federal purposes, and that in +due season distinct states should be formed there, to be admitted into +the Union, with the same rights of sovereignty as the original thirteen +states. As an inducement to Virginia, it was further provided that any +state which had incurred expense during the war in defending its western +possessions should receive compensation. To this general invitation +Connecticut immediately responded by offering to cede everything to +which she laid claim, except 3,250,000 acres on the southern shore of +Lake Erie, which she wished to reserve for educational purposes. +Washington disapproved of this reservation, but it was accepted by +Congress, though the business was not completed until 1786. This<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_194" id="Page_194">[Pg 194]</a></span> part +of the state of Ohio is still commonly spoken of as the "Connecticut +Reserve." Half a million acres were given to citizens of Connecticut +whose property had been destroyed in the British raids upon her coast +towns, and the rest were sold, in 1795, for $1,200,000, in aid of +schools and colleges.</p> + +<p>In January, 1781, Virginia offered to surrender all the territory +northwest of the Ohio, provided that Congress would guarantee her in the +possession of Kentucky. This gave rise to a discussion which lasted +nearly three years, until Virginia withdrew her proviso and made the +cession absolute. It was accepted by Congress on the 1st of March, 1784, +and on the 19th of April, in the following year,—the tenth anniversary +of Lexington,—Massachusetts surrendered her claims; and the whole +northwestern territory—the area of the great states of Michigan, +Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio (excepting the Connecticut +Reserve)—thus became the common property of the half-formed nation. +Maryland, however, did not wait for this. As soon as New York and +Virginia had become thoroughly committed to the movement, she ratified +the articles of confederation, which thus went into operation on the 1st +of March, 1781.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Magnanimity of Virginia.</div> + +<p>This acquisition of a common territory speedily led to results not at +all contemplated in the theory of union upon which the articles of +confederation were based. It led to "the exercise of national +sovereignty in the sense of eminent domain," as shown in the ordinances +of 1784 and 1787, and prepared men's minds for the work of the Federal +Convention. Great credit is due to Maryland for<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_195" id="Page_195">[Pg 195]</a></span> her resolute course in +setting in motion this train of events. It aroused fierce indignation at +the time, as to many people it looked unfriendly to the Union. Some +hot-heads were even heard to say that if Maryland should persist any +longer in her refusal to join the confederation, she ought to be +summarily divided up between the neighbouring states, and her name +erased from the map. But the brave little state had earned a better fate +than that of Poland. When we have come to trace out the results of her +action, we shall see that just as it was Massachusetts that took the +decisive step in bringing on the Revolutionary War when she threw the +tea into Boston harbour, so it was Maryland that, by leading the way +toward the creation of a national domain, laid the corner-stone of our +Federal Union. Equal credit must be given to Virginia for her +magnanimity in making the desired surrender. It was New York, indeed, +that set the praiseworthy example; but New York, after all, surrendered +only a shadowy claim, whereas Virginia gave up a magnificent and +princely territory of which she was actually in possession. She might +have held back and made endless trouble, just as, at the beginning of +the Revolution, she might have refused to make common cause with +Massachusetts; but in both instances her leading statesmen showed a +far-sighted wisdom and a breadth of patriotism for which no words of +praise can be too strong. In the later instance, as in the earlier, +Thomas Jefferson played an important part. He, who in after years, as +president of the United States, was destined, by<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_196" id="Page_196">[Pg 196]</a></span> the purchase of +Louisiana, to carry our western frontier beyond the Rocky Mountains, +had, in 1779, done more than any one else to support the romantic +campaign in which General Clark had taken possession of the country +between the Alleghanies and the Mississippi. He had much to do with the +generous policy which gave up the greater part of that country for a +national domain, and on the very day on which the act of cession was +completed he presented to Congress a remarkable plan for the government +of the new territory, which was only partially successful because it +attempted too much, but the results of which were in many ways notable.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Jefferson proposes a scheme of government for the +northwestern territory, 1784.</div> + +<p>In this plan, known as the Ordinance of 1784, Jefferson proposed to +divide the northwestern territory into ten states, or just twice as many +as have actually grown out of it. In each of these states the settlers +might establish a local government, under the authority of Congress; and +when in any one of them the population should come to equal that of the +least populous of the original states, it might be admitted into the +Union by the consent of nine states in Congress. The new states were to +have universal suffrage; they must have republican forms of government; +they must pay their shares of the federal debt; they must forever remain +a part of the United States; and after the year 1800 negro slavery must +be prohibited within their limits. The names of these ten states have +afforded much amusement to Jefferson's biographers. In those days the +schoolmaster was abroad in the land after a peculiar fashion. Just as we +are now in the full<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_197" id="Page_197">[Pg 197]</a></span> tide of that Gothic revival which goes back for its +beginnings to Sir Walter Scott; as we admire mediæval things, and try to +build our houses after old English models, and prefer words of what +people call "Saxon" origin, and name our children Roland and Herbert, or +Edith and Winifred, so our great-grandfathers lived in a time of +classical revival. They were always looking for precedents in Greek and +Roman history; they were just beginning to try to make their wooden +houses look like temples, with Doric columns; they preferred words of +Latin origin; they signed their pamphlets "Brutus" and "Lycurgus," and +in sober earnest baptized their children as Cæsar, or Marcellus, or +Darius. The map of the United States was just about to bloom forth with +towns named Ithaca and Syracuse, Corinth and Sparta; and on the Ohio +River, opposite the mouth of Licking Creek, a city had lately been +founded, the name of which was truly portentous. "Losantiville" was this +wonderful compound, in which the initial <i>L</i> stood for "Licking," while +<i>os</i> signified "mouth," <i>anti</i> "opposite," and <i>ville</i> "town;" and the +whole read backwards as "Town-opposite-mouth-of-Licking." In 1790 +General St. Clair, then governor of the northwest territory, changed +this name to Cincinnati, in honor of the military order to which he +belonged. With such examples in mind, we may see that the names of the +proposed ten states, from which the failure of Jefferson's ordinance has +delivered us, illustrated the prevalent taste of the time rather than +any idiosyncrasy of the man. The proposed names were Sylvania, +Michigania, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_198" id="Page_198">[Pg 198]</a></span>Chersonesus, Assenisipia, Metropotamia, Illinoia, Saratoga, +Washington, Polypotamia, and Pelisipia.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">He wishes to prohibit slavery in the national domain.</div> + +<p>It was not the nomenclature that stood in the way of Jefferson's scheme, +but the wholesale way in which he tried to deal with the slavery +question. He wished to hem in the probable extension of slavery by an +impassable barrier, and accordingly he not only provided that it should +be extinguished in the northwestern territory after the year 1800, but +at the same time his anti-slavery ardour led him to try to extend the +national dominion southward. He did his best to persuade the legislature +of Virginia to crown its work by giving up Kentucky to the United +States, and he urged that North Carolina and Georgia should also cede +their western territories. As for South Carolina, she was shut in +between the two neighbouring states in such wise that her western claims +were vague and barren. Jefferson would thus have drawn a north-and-south +line from Lake Erie down to the Spanish border of the Floridas, and west +of this line he would have had all negro slavery end with the eighteenth +century. The policy of restricting slavery, so as to let it die a +natural death within a narrowly confined area,—the policy to sustain +which Mr. Lincoln was elected president in 1860,—was thus first +definitely outlined by Jefferson in 1784. It was the policy of +forbidding slavery in the national territory. Had this policy succeeded +then, it would have been an ounce of prevention worth many a pound of +cure. But it failed because of its largeness, because it had too many +elements to deal with. For the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_199" id="Page_199">[Pg 199]</a></span> moment, the proposal to exclude slavery +from the northwestern territory was defeated, because of the two thirds +vote required in Congress for any important measure. It got only seven +states in its favour, where it needed nine. This defeat, however, was +retrieved three years later, when the famous Ordinance of 1787 +prohibited slavery forever from the national territory north of the Ohio +River. But Jefferson's scheme had not only to deal with the national +domain as it was, but also to extend that domain southward to Florida; +and in this it failed. Virginia could not be persuaded to give up +Kentucky until too late. When Kentucky came into the Union, after the +adoption of the Federal Constitution, she came as a sovereign state, +with all her domestic institutions in her own hands. With the western +districts of North Carolina the case was somewhat different, and the +story of this region throws a curious light upon the affairs of that +disorderly time.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">John Sevier, and the state of Franklin, 1784–-87.</div> + +<p>In surrendering her western territory, North Carolina showed +praiseworthy generosity. But the frontier settlers were too numerous to +be handed about from one dominion to another, without saying something +about it themselves; and their action complicated the matter, until it +was too late for Jefferson's scheme to operate upon them. In June, 1784, +North Carolina ceded the region since known as Tennessee, and allowed +Congress two years in which to accept the grant. Meanwhile, her own +authority was to remain supreme there. But the settlers grumbled and +protested. Some of them were sturdy pioneers of the finest type, but<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_200" id="Page_200">[Pg 200]</a></span> +along with these there was a lawless population of "white trash," +ancestors of the peculiar race of men we find to-day in rural districts +of Missouri and Arkansas. They were the refuse of North Carolina, +gradually pushed westward by the advance of an orderly civilization. +Crime was rife in the settlements, and, in the absence of courts, a +rough-and-ready justice was administered by vigilance committees. The +Cherokees, moreover, were troublesome neighbours, and people lived in +dread of their tomahawks. Petitions had again and again gone up to the +legislature, urging the establishment of courts and a militia, but had +passed unheeded, and now it seemed that the state had withdrawn her +protection entirely. The settlers did not wish to have their country +made a national domain. If their own state could not protect them, it +was quite clear to them that Congress could not. What was Congress, any +way, but a roomful of men whom nobody heeded? So these backwoodsmen held +a convention in a log-cabin at Jonesborough, and seceded from North +Carolina. They declared that the three counties between the Bald +Mountains and the Holston River constituted an independent state, to +which they gave the name of Franklin; and they went on to frame a +constitution and elect a legislature with two chambers. For governor +they chose John Sevier, one of the heroes of King's Mountain, a man of +Huguenot ancestry, and such dauntless nature that he was generally known +as the "lion of the border." Having done all this, the seceders, in +spite of their small respect for<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_201" id="Page_201">[Pg 201]</a></span> Congress, sent a delegate to that +body, requesting that the new state of Franklin might be admitted into +the Union. Before this business had been completed, North Carolina +repealed her act of cession, and warned the backwoodsmen to return to +their allegiance. This at once split the new state into two factions: +one party wished to keep on as they had now started, the other wished +for reunion with North Carolina. In 1786 the one party in each county +elected members to represent them in the North Carolina legislature, +while the other party elected members of the legislature of Franklin. +Everywhere two sets of officers claimed authority, civil dudgeon grew +very high, and pistols were freely used. The agitation extended into the +neighbouring counties of Virginia, where some discontented people wished +to secede and join the state of Franklin. For the next two years there +was something very like civil war, until the North Carolina party grew +so strong that Sevier fled, and the state of Franklin ceased to exist. +Sevier was arrested on a warrant for high treason, but he effected an +escape, and after men's passions had cooled down his great services and +strong character brought him again to the front. He sat in the senate of +North Carolina, and in 1796, when Tennessee became a state in the Union, +Sevier was her first governor.</p> + +<p>These troubles show how impracticable was the attempt to create a +national domain in any part of the country which contained a +considerable population. The instinct of self-government was too strong +to allow it. Any such population would<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_202" id="Page_202">[Pg 202]</a></span> have refused to submit to +ordinances of Congress. To obey the parent state or to set up for one's +self,—these were the only alternatives which ordinary men at that time +could understand. Experience had not yet ripened their minds for +comprehending a temporary condition of semi-independence, such as exists +to-day under our territorial governments. The behaviour of these +Tennessee backwoodsmen was just what might have been expected. The land +on which they were living was not common land: it had been appropriated; +it belonged to them, and it was for them to make laws for it. Such is +the lesson of the short-lived state of Franklin. It was because she +perceived that similar feelings were at work in Kentucky that Virginia +did not venture to loosen her grasp upon that state until it was fully +organized and ready for admission into the Union. It was in no such +partly settled country that Congress could do such a thing as carve out +boundaries and prohibit slavery by an act of national sovereignty. There +remained the magnificent territory north of the Ohio,—an empire in +itself, as large as the German Empire, with the Netherlands thrown +in,—in which the collective wisdom of the American people, as +represented in Congress, might autocratically shape the future; for it +was still a wilderness, watched by frontier garrisons, and save for the +Indians and the trappers and a few sleepy old French towns on the +eastern bank of the Mississippi, there were no signs of human life in +all its vast solitude. Here, where there was nobody to grumble or +secede, Congress, in 1787, proceeded to carry out the work which +Jefferson had outlined three years before.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_203" id="Page_203">[Pg 203]</a></span></p><div class="sidenote">Origin of the Ohio company.</div> + +<p>It is interesting to trace the immediate origin of the famous Ordinance +of 1787. At the close of the war General Rufus Putnam, from the mountain +village of Rutland in Massachusetts, sent to Congress an outline of a +plan for colonizing the region between Lake Erie and the Ohio with +veterans of the army, who were well fitted to protect the border against +Indian attacks. The land was to be laid out in townships six miles +square, "with large reservations for the ministry and schools;" and by +selling it to the soldiers at a merely nominal price, the penniless +Congress might obtain an income, and at the same time recognize their +services in the only substantial way that seemed practicable. Washington +strongly favoured the scheme, but, in order to carry it out, it was +necessary to wait until the cession of the territory by the various +claimant states should be completed. After this had been done, a series +of treaties were made with the Six Nations, as overlords, and their +vassal tribes, the Wyandots, Chippewas, Ottawas, Delawares, and +Shawnees, whereby all Indian claims to the lands in question were +forever renounced. The matter was then formally taken up by Holden +Parsons of Connecticut, and Rufus Putnam, Manasseh Cutler, Winthrop +Sargent, and others, of Massachusetts, and a joint-stock company was +formed for the purchase of lands on the Ohio River. A large number of +settlers—old soldiers of excellent character, whom the war had +impoverished—were ready to go and take possession at once; and in its +petition the Ohio company asked for nothing better than that<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_204" id="Page_204">[Pg 204]</a></span> its +settlers should be "under the immediate government of Congress in such +mode and for such time as Congress shall judge proper." Such a proposal, +affording a means at once of replenishing the treasury and satisfying +the soldiers, could not but be accepted; and thus were laid the +foundations of a state destined within a century to equal in population +and far surpass in wealth the whole Union as it was at that time. It +became necessary at once to lay down certain general principles of +government applicable to the northwestern territory; and the result was +the Ordinance of 1787, which was chiefly the work of Edward Carrington +and Richard Henry Lee of Virginia, and Nathan Dane of Massachusetts, in +committee, following the outlines of a draft which is supposed to have +been made by Manasseh Cutler. Jefferson was no longer on the ground, +having gone on his mission to Paris, but some of the principles of his +proposed Ordinance of 1784 were adopted.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The Ordinance of 1787.</div> + +<p>It was provided that the northwestern territory should ultimately be +carved into states, not exceeding five in number, and any one of these +might be admitted into the Union as soon as its population should reach +60,000. In the mean time, the whole territory was to be governed by +officers appointed by Congress, and required to take an oath of +allegiance to the United States. Under this government there was to be +unqualified freedom of religious worship, and no religious tests should +be required of any public official. Intestate property should descend in +equal shares to children of both sexes. Public schools were to be +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_205" id="Page_205">[Pg 205]</a></span>established. Suffrage was not yet made universal, as a freehold in +fifty acres was required. No law was ever to be made which should impair +the obligation of contracts, and it was thoroughly agreed that this +provision especially covered and prohibited the issue of paper money. +The future states to be formed from this territory must make their laws +conform to these fundamental principles, and under no circumstances +could any one of them ever be separated from the Union. In such wise, +the theory of peaceful secession was condemned in advance, so far as it +was possible for the federal government to do so. Jefferson's principle, +that slavery should not be permitted in the national domain, was also +adopted so far as the northwest was concerned; and it is interesting to +observe the names of the states which were present in Congress when this +clause was added to the ordinance. They were Georgia, the two Carolinas, +Virginia, Delaware, New Jersey, New York, and Massachusetts; and the +vote was unanimous. No one was more active in bringing about this result +than William Grayson of Virginia, who was earnestly supported by Lee. +The action of Virginia and North Carolina at that time need not surprise +us. But the movements in favour of emancipation in these two states, and +the emancipation actually effected or going on at the north, had already +made Georgia and South Carolina extremely sensitive about slavery; and +their action on this occasion can be explained only by supposing that +they were willing to yield a point in this remote territory, in order by +and by to be able to insist upon an equivalent<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_206" id="Page_206">[Pg 206]</a></span> in the case of the +territory lying west of Georgia. Nor would they have yielded at all had +not a fugitive slave law been enacted, providing that slaves escaping +beyond the Ohio should be arrested and returned to their owners. These +arrangements having been made, General St. Clair was appointed governor +of the territory; surveys were made; land was put up for sale at sixty +cents per acre, payable in certificates of the public debt; and settlers +rapidly came in. The westward exodus from New England and Pennsylvania +now began, and only fourteen years elapsed before Ohio, the first of the +five states, was admitted into the Union.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Theory of folkland upon which the ordinance was based.</div> + +<p>"I doubt," says Daniel Webster, "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." Nothing could +have been more emphatically an exercise of national sovereignty; yet, as +Madison said, while warmly commending the act, Congress did it "without +the least colour of constitutional authority." The ordinance was never +submitted to the states for ratification. The articles of confederation +had never contemplated an occasion for such a peculiar assertion of +sovereignty. "A great and independent fund of revenue," said Madison, +"is passing into the hands of a single body of men, who can raise troops +to an indefinite number, and appropriate money to their support for an +indefinite period of time.... Yet no blame has been whispered, no alarm +has been sounded," even by men most zealous for state rights and most +suspicious of Congress. Within a few months this argument<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_207" id="Page_207">[Pg 207]</a></span> was to be +cited with telling effect against those who hesitated to accept the +Federal Constitution because of the great powers which it conferred upon +the general government. Unless you give a government specific powers, +commensurate with its objects, it is liable on occasions of public +necessity to exercise powers which have not been granted. Avoid the +dreadful dilemma between dissolution and usurpation, urged Madison, by +clothing the government with powers that are ample but clearly defined. +In a certain sense, the action of Congress in 1787 was a usurpation of +authority to meet an emergency which no one had foreseen, as in the +cases of Jefferson's purchase of Louisiana and Lincoln's emancipation of +the slaves. Each of these instances marked, in one way or another, a +brilliant epoch in American history, and in each case the public +interest was so unmistakable that the people consented and applauded. +The theory upon which the Ordinance of 1787 was based was one which +nobody could fail to understand, though perhaps no one would then have +known just how to put it into words. It was simply the thirteen states, +through their delegates in Congress, dealing with the unoccupied +national domain as if it were the common land or folkland of a +stupendous township.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Spain, hearing of the secret article in the treaty of 1783, +loses her temper and threatens to shut up the Mississippi River.</div> + +<p>The vast importance of the lands between the Alleghanies and the +Mississippi was becoming more apparent every year, as the westward +movement of population went on. But at this time their value was much +more clearly seen by the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_208" id="Page_208">[Pg 208]</a></span> southern than by the northern states. In the +north the westward emigration was only just beginning to pass the +Alleghanies; in the south, as we have seen, it had gone beyond them +several years ago. The southern states, accordingly, took a much sounder +view than the northern states of the importance to the Union of the free +navigation of the Mississippi River. The difference was forcibly +illustrated in the dispute with Spain, which came to a crisis in the +summer of 1786. It will be remembered that by the treaties which closed +the Revolutionary War the provinces of East and West Florida were ceded +by England to Spain. West Florida was the region lying between the +Appalachicola and the Mississippi rivers, including the southernmost +portions of the present states of Alabama and Mississippi. By the treaty +between Great Britain and the United States, the northern boundary of +this province was described by the thirty-first parallel of latitude; +but Spain denied the right of these powers to place the boundary so low. +Her troops still held Natchez, and she maintained that the boundary must +be placed a hundred miles farther north, starting from the Mississippi +at the mouth of the Yazoo River, near the present site of Vicksburg. Now +the treaty between Great Britain and the United States contained a +secret article, wherein it was provided that if England could contrive +to keep West Florida, instead of surrendering it to Spain, then the +boundary should start at the Yazoo. This showed that both England and +the United States<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_209" id="Page_209">[Pg 209]</a></span> were willing to yield the one to the other a strip of +territory which both agreed in withholding from Spain. Presently the +Spanish court got hold of the secret article, and there was great +indignation. Here was England giving to the Americans a piece of land +which she knew, and the Americans knew, was recently a part of West +Florida, and therefore belonged to Spain! Castilian grandees went to bed +and dreamed of invincible armadas. Congress was promptly informed that, +until this affair should be set right, the Americans need not expect the +Spanish government to make any treaty of commerce with them; and +furthermore, let no American sloop or barge dare to show itself on the +Mississippi below the Yazoo, under penalty of confiscation. When these +threats were heard in America, there was great excitement everywhere, +but it assumed opposite phases in the north and in the south. The +merchants of New York and Boston cared little more about the Mississippi +River than about Timbuctoo, but they were extremely anxious to see a +commercial treaty concluded with Spain. On the other hand, the +backwoodsmen of Kentucky and the state of Franklin cared nothing for the +trade on the ocean, but they would not sit still while their corn and +their pork were confiscated on the way to New Orleans. The people of +Virginia sympathized with the backwoodsmen, but her great statesmen +realized the importance of both interests and the danger of a conflict +between them.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Gardoqui and Jay.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">Threats of secession in Kentucky and in New England, 1786.</div> + +<p>The Spanish envoy, Gardoqui, arrived in the summer of 1784, and had many +interviews with<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_210" id="Page_210">[Pg 210]</a></span> Jay, who was then secretary for foreign affairs. +Gardoqui set forth that his royal master was graciously pleased to deal +leniently with the Americans, and would confer one favour upon them, but +could not confer two. He was ready to enter into a treaty of commerce +with us, but not until we should have renounced all claim to the +navigation of the Mississippi River below the Yazoo. Here the Spaniard +was inexorable. A year of weary argument passed by, and he had not +budged an inch. At last, in despair, Jay advised Congress, for the sake +of the commercial treaty, to consent to the closing of the Mississippi, +but only for twenty-five years. As the rumour of this went abroad among +the settlements south of the Ohio, there was an outburst of wrath, to +which an incident that now occurred gave added virulence. A North +Carolinian trader, named Amis, sailed down the Mississippi with a cargo +of pots and kettles and barrels of flour. At Natchez his boat and his +goods were seized by the Spanish officers, and he was left to make his +way home afoot through several hundred miles of wilderness. The story of +his wrongs flew from one log-cabin to another, until it reached the +distant northwestern territory. In the neighbourhood of Vincennes there +were Spanish traders, and one of them kept a shop in the town. The shop +was sacked by a band of American soldiers, and an attempt was made to +incite the Indians to attack the Spaniards. Indignation meetings were +held in Kentucky. The people threatened to send a force of militia down +the river and capture Natchez and New Orleans; and a more<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_211" id="Page_211">[Pg 211]</a></span> dangerous +threat was made. Should the northeastern states desert them and adopt +Jay's suggestion, they vowed they would secede, and throw themselves +upon Great Britain for protection. On the other hand, there was great +agitation in the seaboard towns of Massachusetts. They were disgusted +with the backwoodsmen for making such a fuss about nothing, and with the +people of the southern states for aiding and abetting them; and during +this turbulent summer of 1786, many persons were heard to declare that, +in case Jay's suggestion should not be adopted, it would be high time +for the New England states to secede from the Union, and form a +confederation by themselves. The situation was dangerous in the extreme. +Had the question been forced to an issue, the southern states would +never have seen their western territories go and offer themselves to +Great Britain. Sooner than that, they would have broken away from the +northern states. But New Jersey and Pennsylvania now came over to the +southern side, and Rhode Island, moving in her eccentric orbit, +presently joined them; and thus the treaty was postponed for the +present, and the danger averted.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Washington's views on the importance of canals between east +and west.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">His far-sighted genius and self-devotion.</div> + +<p>This lamentable dispute was watched by Washington with feelings of +gravest concern. From an early age he had indulged in prophetic dreams +of the grandeur of the coming civilization in America, and had looked to +the country beyond the mountains as the field in which the next +generation was to find room for expansion. Few had been more efficient +than he in aiding the great scheme of Pitt<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_212" id="Page_212">[Pg 212]</a></span> for overthrowing the French +power in America, and he understood better than most men of his time how +much that scheme implied. In his early journeys in the wilderness he had +given especial attention to the possibilities of water connection +between the east and west, and he had bought for himself and surveyed +many extensive tracts of land beyond the mountains. The subject was a +favourite one with him, and he looked at it from both a commercial and a +political point of view. What we most needed, he said in 1770, were easy +transit lines between east and west, as "the channel of conveyance of +the extensive and valuable trade of a rising empire." Just before +resigning his commission in 1783 Washington had explored the route +through the Mohawk Valley, afterward taken first by the Erie Canal, and +then by the New York Central Railroad, and had prophesied its commercial +importance in the present century. Soon after reaching his home at Mount +Vernon, he turned his attention to the improvement of intercourse with +the west through the valley of the Potomac. The east and west, he said, +must be cemented together by interests in common; otherwise they will +break asunder. Without commercial intercourse they will cease to +understand each other, and will thus be ripe for disagreement. It is +easy for mental habits, as well as merchandise, to glide down stream, +and the connections of the settlers beyond the mountains all centre in +New Orleans, which is in the hands of a foreign and hostile power. No +one can tell what complications may arise from this,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_213" id="Page_213">[Pg 213]</a></span> argued Washington; +"let us bind these people to us by a chain that can never be broken;" +and with characteristic energy he set to work at once to establish that +line of communication that has since grown into the Chesapeake and Ohio +Canal, and into the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. During the three years +preceding the meeting of the Federal Convention he was largely occupied +with this work. In 1785 he became president of a company for extending +the navigation of the Potomac and James rivers, and the legislature of +Virginia passed an act vesting him with one hundred and fifty shares in +the stock of the company, in order to testify their "sense of his +unexampled merits." But Washington refused the testimonial, and declined +to take any pay for his services, because he wished to arouse the people +to the political importance of the undertaking, and felt that his words +would have more weight if he were known to have no selfish interest in +it. His sole purpose, as he repeatedly said, was to strengthen the +spirit of union by cementing the eastern and western regions together. +At this time he could ill afford to give his services without pay, for +his long absence in war-time had sadly impaired his estate. But such was +Washington.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Maryland confers with Virginia regarding the navigation of +the Potomac, 1785.</div> + +<p>In order to carry out the enterprise of extending the navigation of the +Potomac, it became necessary for the two states Virginia and Maryland to +act in concert; and early in 1785 a joint commission of the two states +met for consultation at Washington's house at Mount Vernon. A compact +insuring<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_214" id="Page_214">[Pg 214]</a></span> harmonious coöperation was prepared by the commissioners; and +then, as Washington's scheme involved the connection of the head waters +of the Potomac with those of the Ohio, it was found necessary to invite +Pennsylvania to become a party to the compact. Then Washington took the +occasion to suggest that Maryland and Virginia, while they were about +it, should agree upon a uniform system of duties and other commercial +regulations, and upon a uniform currency; and these suggestions were +sent, together with the compact, to the legislatures of the two states. +Great things were destined to come from these modest beginnings. Just as +in the Yorktown campaign, there had come into existence a multifarious +assemblage of events, apparently unconnected with one another, and all +that was needed was the impulse given by Washington's far-sighted genius +to set them all at work, surging, swelling, and hurrying straight +forward to a decisive result.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Madison's motion; a step in advance, 1785.</div> + +<p>Late in 1785, when the Virginia legislature had wrangled itself into +imbecility over the question of clothing Congress with power over trade, +Madison hit upon an expedient. He prepared a motion to the effect that +commissioners from all the states should hold a meeting, and discuss the +best method of securing a uniform treatment of commercial questions; but +as he was most conspicuous among the advocates of a more perfect union, +he was careful not to present the motion himself. Keeping in the +background, he persuaded another member—John Tyler, father of the +president of that name, a fierce<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_215" id="Page_215">[Pg 215]</a></span> zealot for state rights—to make the +motion. The plan, however, was "so little acceptable that it was not +then persisted in," and the motion was laid on the table. But Madison +knew what was coming from Maryland, and bided his time. After some weeks +it was announced that Maryland had adopted the compact made at Mount +Vernon concerning jurisdiction over the Potomac. Virginia instantly +replied by adopting it also. Then it was suggested, in the report from +Maryland, that Delaware, as well as Pennsylvania, ought to be consulted, +since the scheme should rightly include a canal between the Delaware +River and the Chesapeake Bay. And why not also consult with these states +about a uniform system of duties? If two states can agree upon these +matters, why not four? And still further, said the Maryland +message,—dropping the weightiest part of the proposal into a +subordinate clause, just as women are said to put the quintessence of +their letters into the postscript,—might it not be well enough, if we +are going to have such a conference, to invite commissioners from all +the thirteen states to attend it? An informal discussion can hurt +nobody. The conference of itself can settle nothing; and if four states +can take part in it, why not thirteen? Here was the golden opportunity. +The Madison-Tyler motion was taken up from the table and carried. +Commissioners from all the states were invited to meet on the first +Monday of September, 1786, at Annapolis,—a safe place, far removed from +the influence of that dread tyrant, the Congress, and from wicked +centres of trade, such as New York<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_216" id="Page_216">[Pg 216]</a></span> and Boston. It was the governor of +Virginia who sent the invitations. It may not amount to much, wrote +Madison to Monroe, but "the expedient is better than nothing; and, as +the recommendation of additional powers to Congress is within the +purview of the commission, it may possibly lead to better consequences +than at first occur."</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Convention at Annapolis, Sept. 11, 1786.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">Hamilton's address; a further step in advance.</div> + +<p>The seed dropped by Washington had fallen on fruitful soil. At first it +was to be just a little meeting of two or three states to talk about the +Potomac River and some projected canals, and already it had come to be a +meeting of all the states to discuss some uniform system of legislation +on the subject of trade. This looked like progress, yet when the +convention was gathered at Annapolis, on the 11th of September, the +outlook was most discouraging. Commissioners were there from Virginia, +Delaware, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York. Massachusetts and New +Hampshire, Rhode Island and North Carolina, had duly appointed +commissioners, but they were not there. It is curious to observe that +Maryland, which had been so earnest in the matter, had nevertheless now +neglected to appoint commissioners; and no action had been taken by +Georgia, South Carolina, or Connecticut. With only five states +represented, the commissioners did not think it worth while to go on +with their work. But before adjourning they adopted an address, written +by Alexander Hamilton, and sent it to all the states. All the +commissioners present had been empowered to consider how far a uniform +commercial system might be essential to the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_217" id="Page_217">[Pg 217]</a></span>permanent harmony of the +states. But New Jersey had taken a step in advance, and instructed her +delegates "to consider how far a uniform system in their commercial +regulations <i>and other important matters</i> might be necessary to the +common interest and permanent harmony of the several states." <i>And other +important matters</i>,—thus again was the weightiest part of the business +relegated to a subordinate clause. So gingerly was the great +question—so dreaded, yet so inevitable—approached! This reference to +"other matters" was pronounced by the commissioners to be a vast +improvement on the original plan; and Hamilton's address now urged that +commissioners be appointed by all the states, to meet in convention at +Philadelphia on the second Monday of the following May, "to devise such +further provisions as shall appear to them necessary to render the +constitution of the federal government adequate to the exigencies of the +Union, and to report to Congress such an act as, when agreed to by them, +and confirmed by the legislatures of every state, would effectually +provide for the same." The report of the commissioners was brought +before Congress in October, in the hope that Congress would earnestly +recommend to the several states the course of action therein suggested. +But Nathan Dane and Rufus King of Massachusetts, intent upon +technicalities, succeeded in preventing this. According to King, a +convention was an irregular body, which had no right to propose changes +in the organic law of the land, and the state legislatures could not +properly<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_218" id="Page_218">[Pg 218]</a></span> confirm the acts of such a body, or take notice of them. +Congress was the only source from which such proposals could properly +emanate. These arguments were pleasing to the self-love of Congress, and +it refused to sanction the plan of the Annapolis commissioners.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">New York defeats the impost amendment.</div> + +<p>In an ordinary season this would perhaps have ended the matter, but the +winter of 1786–87 was not an ordinary season. All the troubles above +described seemed to culminate just at this moment. The paper-money craze +in so many of the states, the shameful deeds of Rhode Island, the riots +in Vermont and New Hampshire, the Shays rebellion in Massachusetts, the +dispute with Spain, and the consequent imminent danger of separation +between north and south had all come together; and the feeling of +thoughtful men and women throughout the country was one of real +consternation. The last ounce was now to be put upon the camel's back in +the failure of the impost amendment. In 1783, when the cessions of +western lands were creating a national domain, a promising plan had been +devised for relieving the country of its load of debt, and furnishing +Congress with money for its current expenses. All the money coming from +sales of the western folkland was to be applied to reducing and wiping +out the principal of the public debt. Then the interest of this debt +must be provided for; and to that end Congress had recommended an +impost, or system of custom-house duties, upon liquors, sugars, teas, +coffees, cocoa, molasses, and pepper. This impost was to be kept up for +twenty-five years only, and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_219" id="Page_219">[Pg 219]</a></span> the collectors were to be appointed by the +several states, each for its own ports. Then for the current expenses of +the government, supplementary funds were needed; and these were to be +assessed upon the several states, each of which might raise its quota as +it saw fit. Such was the original plan; but it soon turned out that the +only available source of revenue was the national domain, which had thus +been nothing less than the principal thread which had held the Union +together. As for the impost, it had never been possible to get a +sufficient number of states to agree upon it, and of the quotas for +current expenses, as we have seen, very little had found its way to the +federal treasury. Under these difficulties, it had been proposed that an +amendment to the articles of confederation should endow Congress with +the power of levying customs-duties and appointing the collectors; and +by the summer of 1786, after endless wrangling, twelve states had +consented to the amendment. But, in order that an amendment should be +adopted, unanimous consent was necessary. The one delinquent state, +which thus blocked the wheels of the confederacy, was New York. She had +her little system of duties all nicely arranged for what seemed to be +her own interests, and she would not surrender this system to Congress. +Upon the neighbouring states her tariff system bore hard, and especially +upon New Jersey. In 1786 this little state flatly refused to pay her +quota until New York should stop discriminating against her trade. +Nothing which occurred in that troubled year caused more alarm than +this, for it could not be<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_220" id="Page_220">[Pg 220]</a></span> denied that such a declaration seemed little +less than an act of secession on the part of New Jersey. The arguments +of a congressional committee at last prevailed upon the state to rescind +her declaration. At the same time there came the final struggle in New +York over the impost amendment, against which Governor Clinton had +firmly set his face. There was a fierce fight, in which Hamilton's most +strenuous efforts succeeded in carrying the amendment in part, but not +until it had been clogged with a condition that made it useless. +Congress, it was declared, might have the revenue, but New York must +appoint the collectors; she was not going to have federal officials +rummaging about her docks. The legislature well knew that to grant the +amendment in such wise was not to grant it at all, but simply to reopen +the whole question. Such was the result. Congress expostulated in vain. +On the 15th of February, 1787, the matter was reconsidered in the New +York legislature, and the impost amendment was defeated.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Sudden changes in popular sentiment.</div> + +<p>Thus, only three months before the Federal Convention was to meet, if +indeed it was ever to meet, Congress was decisively informed that it +would not be allowed to take any effectual measures for raising a +revenue. There now seemed nothing left for Congress to do but adopt the +recommendation of the Annapolis commissioners, and give its sanction to +the proposed convention. Madison, however, had not waited for this, but +had prevailed upon the Virginia legislature to go on and appoint its +delegates to the convention. The events of the year had worked a change +in the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_221" id="Page_221">[Pg 221]</a></span> popular sentiment in Virginia; people were more afraid of +anarchy, and not quite so much afraid of centralization; and now, under +Madison's lead, Virginia played her trump card and chose George +Washington as one of her delegates. As soon as this was known, there was +an outburst of joy throughout the land. All at once the people began +everywhere to feel an interest in the proposed convention, and presently +Massachusetts changed her attitude. Up to this time Massachusetts had +been as obstinate in her assertion of local independence, and as +unwilling to strengthen the hands of Congress, as any of the thirteen +states, except New York and Rhode Island. But the Shays rebellion had +served as a useful object-lesson. Part of the distress in Massachusetts +could be traced to the inability of Congress to pay debts which it owed +to her citizens. It was felt that the time had come when the question of +a national revenue must be seriously considered. Every week saw fresh +converts to the party which called for a stronger government. Then came +the news that Virginia had chosen delegates, and that Washington was one +of them; then that New Jersey had followed the example; then that +Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Delaware, had chosen delegates. It was +time for Massachusetts to act, and Rufus King now brought the matter up +in Congress. His scruples as to the legality of the proceeding had not +changed, and accordingly he moved that Congress should of itself propose +a convention at Philadelphia, identical with the one which the Annapolis +commissioners had already<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_222" id="Page_222">[Pg 222]</a></span> recommended. The motion was carried, and in +this way Congress formally approved and adopted what was going on. +Massachusetts immediately chose delegates, and was followed by New York. +In April, Georgia and South Carolina followed suit. Connecticut and +Maryland came on in May, and New Hampshire, somewhat tardily, in June. +Of the thirteen states, Rhode Island alone refused to take any part in +the proceedings.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The Federal Convention meets at Philadelphia, May 14–25, +1787.</div> + +<p>The convention held its meetings in that plain brick building in +Philadelphia already immortalized as the place from which the +Declaration of Independence was published to the world. The work which +these men were undertaking was to determine whether that Declaration had +been for the blessing or the injury of America and of mankind. That they +had succeeded in assembling here at all was somewhat remarkable, when we +think of the curious medley of incidents that led to it. At no time in +this distressed period would a frank and abrupt proposal for a +convention to remodel the government have found favour. Such proposals, +indeed, had been made, beginning with that of Pelatiah Webster in 1781, +and they had all failed to break through the crust of a truly English +conservatism and dread of centralized power. Now, through what some +might have called a strange chapter of accidents, before the element of +causal sequence in it all had become so manifest as it is to us to-day, +this remarkable group of men had been brought together in a single room, +while even yet but few of them realized how thoroughly and exhaustively<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_223" id="Page_223">[Pg 223]</a></span> +reconstructive their work was to be. To most of them it was not clear +whether they were going merely to patch up the articles of +confederation, or to strike out into a new and very different path. +There were a few who entertained far-reaching purposes; the rest were +intelligent critics rather than constructive thinkers; the result was +surprising to all. It is worth our while to pause for a moment, and +observe the character and composition of one of the most memorable +assemblies the world has ever seen. Mr. Gladstone says that just "as the +British Constitution is the most subtle organism which has proceeded +from progressive history, so the American Constitution is the most +wonderful work ever struck off at a given time by the brain and purpose +of man."<a name="FNanchor_6_6" id="FNanchor_6_6"></a><a href="#Footnote_6_6" class="fnanchor">[6]</a> Let us now see who the men were who did this wonderful +work,—this Iliad, or Parthenon, or Fifth Symphony, of statesmanship. We +shall not find that they were all great geniuses. Such is never the case +in such an assembly. There are not enough great geniuses to go around; +and if there were, it is questionable if the result would be +satisfactory. In such discussions the points which impress the more +ordinary and less far-sighted members are sure to have great value; +especially when we bear in mind that the object of such an assembly is +not merely to elaborate a plan, but to get the great mass of people, +including the brick-layers and hod-carriers, to <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_224" id="Page_224">[Pg 224]</a></span>understand it well +enough to vote for it. An ideally perfect assembly of law-makers will +therefore contain two or three men of original constructive genius, two +or three leading spirits eminent for shrewdness and tact, a dozen or +more excellent critics representing various conflicting interests, and a +rank and file of thoroughly respectable, commonplace men, unfitted for +shining in the work of the meeting, but admirably competent to proclaim +its results and get their friends and neighbours to adopt them. And in +such an assembly, even if it be such as we call ideally perfect, we must +allow something for the presence of a few hot-headed and irreconcilable +members,—men of inflexible mind, who cannot adapt themselves to +circumstances, and will refuse to play when they see the game going +against them.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The men who were assembled.</div> + +<p>All these points are well illustrated in the assemblage of men that +framed our Federal Constitution. In its composition, this group of men +left nothing to be desired. In its strength and in its weakness, it was +an ideally perfect assembly. There were fifty-five men, all of them +respectable for family and for personal qualities,—men who had been +well educated, and had done something whereby to earn recognition in +these troubled times. Twenty-nine were university men, graduates of +Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Princeton, William and Mary, Oxford, Glasgow, +and Edinburgh. Twenty-six were not university men, and among these were +Washington and Franklin. Of the illustrious citizens who, for their +public services, would naturally have been<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_225" id="Page_225">[Pg 225]</a></span> here, John Adams and Thomas +Jefferson were in Europe; Samuel Adams, Patrick Henry, and Richard Henry +Lee disapproved of the convention, and remained at home; and the +greatest man of Rhode Island, Nathanael Greene, who—one likes to +think—might have succeeded in bringing his state into the convention, +had lately died of a sun-stroke, at the early age of forty-four.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">James Madison.</div> + +<p>Of the two most famous men present little need be said. The names of +Washington and Franklin stood for supreme intelligence and consummate +tact. Franklin had returned to this country two years before, and was +now president of Pennsylvania. He was eighty-one years of age, the +oldest man in the convention, as Jonathan Dayton of New Jersey, aged +twenty-six, was the youngest. The two most profound and original +thinkers in the company were but little older than Dayton. Alexander +Hamilton was thirty, James Madison thirty-six. Among political writers, +these two men must be ranked in the same order with Aristotle, +Montesquieu, and Locke; and the "Federalist," their joint production, is +the greatest treatise on government that has ever been written. John +Jay, who contributed a few pages to this immortal volume, had not been +sent to the convention, because New York did not wish to have it +succeed. Along with Hamilton, New York sent two commonplace men, Robert +Yates and John Lansing, who were extreme and obstinate Antifederalists; +and the action of Hamilton, who was thus prevented from carrying the +vote of his own state for any measure which he might propose, was in +this way sadly <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_226" id="Page_226">[Pg 226]</a></span>embarrassed. For another reason, Hamilton failed to +exert as much influence in the convention as one would have expected +from his profound thought and his brilliant eloquence. Scarcely any of +these men entertained what we should now call extreme democratic views. +Scarcely any, perhaps, had that intense faith in the ultimate good sense +of the people which was the most powerful characteristic of Jefferson. +But Hamilton went to the other extreme, and expressed his distrust of +popular government too plainly. His views were too aristocratic and his +preference for centralization was too pronounced to carry conviction to +his hearers. The leading part in the convention fell, therefore, to +James Madison, a young man somewhat less brilliant than Hamilton, but +superior to him in sobriety and balance of powers. Madison used to be +called the "Father of the Constitution," and it is true that the +government under which we live is more his work than that of any other +one man. From early youth his life had been devoted to the study of +history and the practice of statesmanship. He was a graduate of +Princeton College, an earnest student, familiar with all the best +literature of political science from Aristotle down to his own time, and +he had given especial attention to the history of federal government in +ancient Greece, and in Switzerland and Holland. At the age of +twenty-five he had taken part in the Virginia convention which +instructed the delegates from that state in Congress to bring forward +the Declaration of Independence. During the last part of the war he was +an active and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_227" id="Page_227">[Pg 227]</a></span> influential member of Congress, where no one equalled or +approached him for knowledge of English history and constitutional law. +In 1784 he had returned to the Virginia legislature, and been foremost +in securing the passage of the great act which gave complete religious +freedom to the people of that state. No man understood better than he +the causes of the alarming weakness of the federal government, and of +the commercial disturbances and popular discontent of the time; nor had +any one worked more zealously or more adroitly in bringing about the +meeting of this convention. As he stood here now, a leader in the +debate, there was nothing grand or imposing in his appearance. He was +small of stature and slight in frame, like Hamilton, but he had none of +Hamilton's personal magnetism. His manner was shy and prim, and blushes +came often to his cheeks. At the same time, he had that rare dignity of +unconscious simplicity which characterizes the earnest and disinterested +scholar. He was exceedingly sweet-tempered, generous, and kind, but very +hard to move from a path which, after long reflection, he had decided to +be the right one. He looked at politics judicially, and was so little of +a party man that on several occasions he was accused (quite wrongfully, +as I hope hereafter to prove) of gross inconsistency. The position of +leadership, which he won so early and kept so long, he held by sheer +force of giant intelligence, sleepless industry, and an integrity which +no man ever doubted. But he was above all things a man of peace. When in +after years, as president of the United States, he<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_228" id="Page_228">[Pg 228]</a></span> was called upon to +manage a great war, he was out of place, and his reputation for supreme +ability was temporarily lowered. Here in the Federal Convention we are +introduced to him at the noblest and most useful moment of his life.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Other leading members.</div> + +<p>Of the fifty-five men here assembled, Washington, Franklin, Hamilton, +and Madison were of the first order of ability. Many others in the room +were gentlemen of more than ordinary talent and culture. There was John +Dickinson, who had moved from Pennsylvania into Delaware, and now came +to defend the equal rights of the smaller states. There was James Wilson +of Pennsylvania, born and educated in Scotland, one of the most learned +jurists this country has ever seen. Beside him sat the financier, Robert +Morris, and his namesake Gouverneur Morris of Morrisania, near the city +of New York, the originator of our decimal currency, and one of the +far-sighted projectors of the Erie Canal. Then there was John Rutledge +of South Carolina, who ever since the Stamp Act Congress had been the +mainstay of his state; and with him were the two able and gallant +Pinckneys. Caleb Strong, afterward ten times governor of Massachusetts, +was a typical Puritan, hard-headed and supremely sensible; his +colleague, Rufus King, already distinguished for his opposition to negro +slavery, was a man of brilliant attainments. And there were George +Wythe, the chancellor of Virginia, and Daniel Carroll of Maryland, who +had played a prominent part in the events which led to the creation of a +national domain. Oliver Ellsworth of Connecticut, afterward chief +justice of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_229" id="Page_229">[Pg 229]</a></span> the United States, was one of the ablest lawyers of his +time; with him were Roger Sherman and William Johnson, the latter a +Fellow of the Royal Society, and afterward president of Columbia +College. The New Jersey delegation, consisting of William Livingston, +David Brearley, William Paterson, and Jonathan Dayton, was a very strong +one; and as to New Hampshire, it is enough to mention the name of John +Langdon. Besides all these there were some twenty of less mark, men who +said little, but listened and voted. And then there were the +irreconcilables, Yates and Lansing, the two Antifederalists from New +York; and four men of much greater ability, who took an important part +in the proceedings, but could not be induced to accept the result. These +four were Luther Martin of Maryland; George Mason and Edmund Randolph of +Virginia; and Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts.</p> + +<p>When these men had assembled in Independence Hall, they chose George +Washington president of the convention. The doors were locked, and an +injunction of strict secrecy was put upon every one. The results of +their work were known in the following September, when the draft of the +Federal Constitution was published. But just what was said and done in +this secret conclave was not revealed until fifty years had passed, and +the aged James Madison, the last survivor of those who sat there, had +been gathered to his fathers. He kept a journal of the proceedings, +which was published after his death, and upon the interesting story told +in that journal we have now to enter.</p> + + + +<hr /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_230" id="Page_230">[Pg 230]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VI" id="CHAPTER_VI"></a>CHAPTER VI.</h2> + +<h3>THE FEDERAL CONVENTION.</h3> + + +<div class="sidenote">Difficult problem before the convention.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">Washington's solemn appeal.</div> + +<p><span class="smcap">The</span> Federal Convention did wisely in withholding its debates from the +knowledge of the people. It was felt that discussion would be more +untrammelled, and that its result ought to go before the country as the +collective and unanimous voice of the convention. There was likely to be +wrangling enough among themselves; but should their scheme be unfolded, +bit by bit, before its parts could be viewed in their mutual relations, +popular excitement would become intense, there might be riots, and an +end would be put to that attitude of mental repose so necessary for the +constructive work that was to be done. It was thought best that the +scheme should be put forth as a completed whole, and that for several +years, even, until the new system of government should have had a fair +trial, the traces of the individual theories and preferences concerned +in its formation should not be revealed. For it was generally assumed +that a system of government new in some important respects would be +proposed by the convention, and while the people awaited the result the +wildest speculations and rumours were current. A few hoped, and many +feared, that some scheme of monarchy would be established. Such +surmises<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_231" id="Page_231">[Pg 231]</a></span> found their way across the ocean, and hopes were expressed in +England that, should a king be chosen, it might be a younger son of +George III. It was even hinted, with alarm, that, through gratitude to +our recent allies, we might be persuaded to offer the crown to some +member of the royal family of France. No such thoughts were entertained, +however, by any person present in the convention. Some of the delegates +came with the design of simply amending the articles of confederation by +taking away from the states the power of regulating commerce, and +intrusting this power to Congress. Others felt that if the work were not +done thoroughly now another chance might never be offered; and these men +thought it necessary to abolish the confederation, and establish a +federal republic, in which the general government should act directly +upon the people. The difficult problem was how to frame a plan of this +sort which people could be made to understand and adopt. At the very +outset some of the delegates began to exhibit symptoms of that peculiar +kind of moral cowardice which is wont to afflict free governments, and +of which American history furnishes so many instructive examples. It was +suggested that palliatives and half measures would be far more likely to +find favour with the people than any thorough-going reform, when +Washington suddenly interposed with a brief but immortal speech, which +ought to be blazoned in letters of gold, and posted on the wall of every +American assembly that shall meet to nominate a candidate, or declare a +policy, or pass a law, so long as the weakness of human nature<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_232" id="Page_232">[Pg 232]</a></span> shall +endure. Rising from his president's chair, his tall figure drawn up to +its full height, he exclaimed in tones unwontedly solemn with suppressed +emotion, "It is too probable that no plan we propose will be adopted. +Perhaps another dreadful conflict is to be sustained. If, to please the +people, we offer what we ourselves disapprove, how can we afterward +defend our work? Let us raise a standard to which the wise and the +honest can repair; the event is in the hand of God."</p> + +<p>This outburst of noble eloquence carried conviction to every one, and +henceforth we do not hear that any attempt was avowedly made to avoid +the issues as they came up. It was a most wholesome tonic. It braced up +the convention to high resolves, and impressed upon all the delegates +that they were in a situation where faltering or trifling was both +wicked and dangerous. From that moment the mood in which they worked +caught something from the glorious spirit of Washington. There was need +of such high purpose, for two plans were presently laid before the +meeting, which, for a moment, brought out one of the chief elements of +antagonism existing between the states, and which at first seemed +irreconcilable. It was the happy compromise which united and harmonised +these two plans that smoothed the further work of the convention, and +made it possible for a stable and powerful government to be constructed.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The root of all the difficulties.</div> + +<p>The first of these plans was known as the Virginia plan. It was agreed +upon in a committee of the delegates of that state, and was brought +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_233" id="Page_233">[Pg 233]</a></span>forward by Edmund Randolph, governor of Virginia, in the name of the +state, but its chief author was Madison. It struck instantly at the root +of the difficulties under which the country had been staggering ever +since the Declaration of Independence. The federal government had +possessed no means of enforcing obedience to its laws. Its edicts were +without a sanction; and this was because they operated upon states, and +not upon individuals. When an individual defies the law, you can lock +him up in jail, or levy an execution upon his property. The immense +force of the community is arrayed against him, and he is as helpless as +a straw on the billows of the ocean. He cannot raise a militia to +protect himself. But when the law is defied by a state, it is quite +otherwise. You cannot put a state into jail, nor seize its goods; you +can only make war on it, and if you try that expedient you find that the +state is not helpless. Its local pride and prejudices are aroused +against you, and its militia will turn out in full force to uphold the +infraction of law. Against this obstinate and exasperated military force +what superior force can you bring? Under some rare combination of +circumstances you might get the military force of several of the other +states; but ordinarily, when what you are trying to do is simply to +enforce every-day laws, and when you simply represent a distrusted +general government in conflict with a local government, you cannot do +this. The other states will sympathize with the delinquent state; they +will feel that the very same condition of things which leads you to +attack that state <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_234" id="Page_234">[Pg 234]</a></span>to-day will lead you to attack some other state +to-morrow. Hence you cannot get any military help, and you are +powerless.</p> + +<p>Such was the case with the Continental Congress. A novel and distrusted +institution, it was called upon to enforce its laws upon +long-established communities, full of sturdy independence and obstinate +local prejudices. It was able to act, though with clumsy slowness, as +long as there was an enemy in the field who was even more dreaded. But +as soon as this enemy had been beaten out of sight it could not act at +all. This had been because it did not represent the American people, but +only the American states. The vital force which moved it was not the +resistless force of a whole people, but only a shadowy semblance of +force, derived from a theoretical consent of thirteen corporate bodies, +which in their corporate capacity could never be compelled to agree +about anything under the sun; and unless compelled they would not agree. +Four years of disturbance in every part of the country, in the course of +which troops had been called out in several states, and civil war had +been narrowly averted at least half a dozen times, had proved this +beyond all cavil. With almost any other people than the Americans civil +war would have come already. With all the vast future interests that +were involved in these quarrels looming up before their keen, sagacious +minds, it was a wonder that they had been kept from coming to blows. +Such self-restraint had been greatly to their credit. It was the blessed +fruit of more than a century of government by free discussion, while yet +these states were<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_235" id="Page_235">[Pg 235]</a></span> colonies, peopled by the very cream of English +freemen who had fought the decisive battle of civil and religious +freedom for mankind in that long crisis when the Invincible Armada was +overwhelmed and the Long Parliament won its triumphs. Such +self-restraint had this people shown in days of trial, under a vicious +government adopted in a time of hurry and sore distress. But late events +had gone far to show that it could not endure.</p> + +<p>The words of Randolph's opening speech are worth quoting in this +connection. "The confederation," he said, "was made in the infancy of +the science of constitutions, when the inefficiency of requisitions was +unknown; when no commercial discord had arisen among states; when no +rebellion like that in Massachusetts had broken out; when foreign debts +were not urgent; when the havoc of paper money had not been foreseen; +when treaties had not been violated; and when nothing better could have +been conceded by states jealous of their sovereignty. But it offered no +security against foreign invasion, for Congress could neither prevent +nor conduct a war, nor punish infractions of treaties or of the law of +nations, nor control particular states from provoking war. The federal +government has no constitutional power to check a quarrel between +separate states; nor to suppress a rebellion in any one of them; nor to +establish a productive impost; nor to counteract the commercial +regulations of other nations; nor to defend itself against the +encroachments of the states. From the manner in which it has been +ratified in many of the states, it cannot be claimed<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_236" id="Page_236">[Pg 236]</a></span> to be paramount to +the state constitutions; so that there is a prospect of anarchy from the +inherent laxity of the government. As the remedy, the government to be +established must have for its basis the republican principle."</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The Virginia plan; a radical cure.</div> + +<p>Having thus tersely stated the whole problem, Randolph went on to +present the Virginia plan. To make the federal government operate +directly upon individuals, one provision was absolutely necessary. It +did not solve the whole problem, but it was an indispensable beginning. +This was the proposal that there should be a national legislature, in +which the American <i>people</i> instead of the American states should be +represented. For the purposes of federal legislation, there must be an +assembly elected directly by the people, and with its members +apportioned according to population. There must be such an assembly as +our present House of Representatives, standing in the same immediate +relation to the people of the whole country as was sustained by the +assembly of each separate state to the people of that state. Without +such direct representation of the whole people in the Federal Congress, +it would be impossible to achieve one secure step toward the radical +reform of the weaknesses and vices of the confederation. It was the only +way in which the vexed question of one nation or thirteen could be made +to yield a satisfactory answer. At the same time it could not be denied +that such a proposal was revolutionary in character. It paved the way +for a national consolidation which might go further than any one could +foresee, and much<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_237" id="Page_237">[Pg 237]</a></span> further than was desirable. The moribund Congress of +the Confederation, with its delegates chosen by the state assemblies, +and casting its vote simply by states, had utterly failed to serve as a +national legislature. There was a good deal of truth in what John Adams +once said of it, that it was more a diplomatic than a legislative body. +It was, indeed, because of this consciously felt diplomatic character +that it was called a Congress, and not a Parliament. In its lack of +coercive power it resembled the international congresses of Europe +rather than the supreme legislature of any country. To substitute +abruptly for such a body a truly national legislature, based not upon +states but upon population, was quietly to inaugurate a revolution of no +less magnitude than that which had lately severed us from Great Britain. +So bold a step, while all-essential in order to complete that +revolution, and make its victorious issue fortunate instead of +disastrous to the American people, was sufficiently revolutionary to +awaken the fears of many members of the Federal Convention. To the +familiar state governments which had so long possessed their love and +allegiance, it was super-adding a new and untried government, which it +was feared would swallow up the states and everywhere extinguish local +independence. Nor can it be said that such fears were unreasonable. Our +federal government has indeed shown a strong tendency to encroach upon +the province of the state governments, especially since our late Civil +War. Too much centralization is our danger to-day, as the weakness of +the federal tie was our danger a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_238" id="Page_238">[Pg 238]</a></span> century ago. The rule of the +Federalist party was needed in 1789 as the rule of the Republican party +was needed in 1861, to put a curb upon the centrifugal tendencies. But +after Federalism had fairly done its great work, at the beginning of the +nineteenth century, it was well that the administration of our national +affairs should pass into the hands of the party to which Thomas +Jefferson and Samuel Adams belonged, and which Madison, in his calm +statesmanlike wisdom, had come to join. And now that, in our own day, +the disruptive forces have been even more thoroughly and effectually +overcome, it is time for the principles of that party to be reasserted +with fresh emphasis. If the day should ever arrive (which God forbid!) +when the people of the different parts of our country shall allow their +local affairs to be administered by prefects sent from Washington, and +when the self-government of the states shall have been so far lost as +that of the departments of France, or even so far as that of the +counties of England,—on that day the progressive political career of +the American people will have come to an end, and the hopes that have +been built upon it for the future happiness and prosperity of mankind +will be wrecked forever.</p> + +<p>I do not think that the historian writing at the present day need fear +any such direful calamity, for the past century has shown most +instructively how, in such a society as ours, the sense of political +dangers slowly makes its way through the whole mass of the people, until +movements at length are made to avert them, and the pendulum swings in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_239" id="Page_239">[Pg 239]</a></span> +the opposite direction. The history of political parties in the United +States is especially rich in lessons of this sort. Compared with the +statesmen of the Federal Convention, we are at a great advantage in +studying this question of national consolidation; and we have no excuse +for failing to comprehend the attitude of the men who dreaded the +creation of a national legislature as the entering wedge which would by +and by rend asunder the structure of our liberties. The great mind of +Madison was one of the first to entertain distinctly the noble +conception of two kinds of government operating at one and the same time +upon the same individuals, harmonious with each other, but each supreme +in its own sphere. Such is the fundamental conception of our partly +federal, partly national, government, which appears throughout the +Virginia plan as well as in the Constitution which grew out of it. It +was a political conception of a higher order than had ever before been +entertained; it took a great deal of discussion to make it clear to the +minds of the delegates generally; and the struggle over this initial +measure of a national legislature was so bitter as to come near breaking +up the convention.</p> + +<p>In its original shape the Virginia plan went much further toward +national consolidation than the Constitution as adopted. The reaction +against the evils of the loose-jointed confederation, which Randolph so +ably summed up, was extreme. According to the Virginia plan, the +national legislature was to be composed of two houses, like the +legislatures of the several states. The members of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_240" id="Page_240">[Pg 240]</a></span> the lower house +should be chosen directly by the people; members of the upper house, or +Senate, should be elected by the lower house out of persons nominated by +the state legislatures. In both the lower and the upper branches of this +national legislature the votes were to be the votes of individuals, and +no longer the votes of states, as in the Continental Congress. Under the +articles of confederation each state had an equal vote, and two thirds +were required for every important measure. Under the proposed +Constitution each state was to have a number of representatives +proportionate either to its wealth or to the number of its free +inhabitants, and a bare majority of votes was to suffice to pass all +measures in the ordinary course of business; and these rules were to +apply both to the lower house and to the Senate. To adopt such a plan +would overthrow the equality of the states altogether. It would give +Virginia, the greatest state, sixteen representatives, where Georgia, +the smallest state, had but one; and besides, as the votes were no +longer to be taken by states, individual members could combine in any +way they pleased, quite irrespective of state lines. It was not strange +that to many delegates in the convention such a beginning should have +seemed revolutionary. This impression was deepened when it was further +proposed not only to clothe this national legislature with original +powers of legislation in all cases to which the several states are +incompetent, but also to allow it to set aside at discretion such state +laws as it might deem unconstitutional. It is interesting to find +Madison, whose Federalism<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_241" id="Page_241">[Pg 241]</a></span> afterward came to be so moderate, now +appearing as the earnest defender of this extreme provision, so +incompatible with state rights. But in Madison's mind at this moment, in +the actual presence of the anarchy of the confederation, the only +alternative which seemed to present itself was that of armed coercion. +"A negative on state laws," he said, "is the mildest expedient that can +be devised for enforcing a national decree. Should no such precaution be +engrafted, the only remedy would be coercion. The negative would render +the use of force unnecessary. This prerogative of the general government +is the great pervading principle that must control the centrifugal +tendency of the states, which, without it, will continually fly out of +their proper orbits, and destroy the order and harmony of the political +system." But these views were not destined to find favour with the +convention, which finally left the matter to be much more satisfactorily +adjusted through the medium of the federal judiciary.</p> + +<p>Such were the fundamental provisions of the Virginia plan with regard to +the national legislature. To carry out the laws, it was proposed that +there should be a national executive, to be chosen by the national +legislature for a short term, and ineligible a second time. Whether the +executive power should be invested in a single person or in several was +not specified. As will be seen hereafter, this was regarded as an +extremely delicate point, with which it was thought best not to +embarrass the Virginia plan at the outset. Passing lightly over this, it +was urged that, in order to <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_242" id="Page_242">[Pg 242]</a></span>complete the action of the government upon +individuals, there must be a national judiciary to determine cases +arising under the Constitution, cases in admiralty, and cases in which +different states or their citizens appear as parties. The judges were to +be chosen by the national legislature, to hold office during good +behaviour.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">First reception of the Virginia plan.</div> + +<p>Such, in its main outlines, was the plan which Randolph laid before the +convention, in the name of the Virginia delegation. An audacious scheme! +exclaimed some of the delegates; it was enough to take your breath away. +If they were going to begin like this, they might as well go home, for +all discussion would be time wasted. They were not sent there to set on +foot a revolution, but to amend and strengthen the articles of +confederation. But this audacious plan simply abolished the +Confederation in order to substitute for it a consolidated national +government. Foremost in urging this objection were Yates and Lansing of +New York, with Luther Martin of Maryland. Dickinson said it was pushing +things altogether too far, and his colleague, George Read, hinted that +the delegation from Delaware might feel obliged to withdraw from the +convention if the election of representatives according to population +should be adopted. By the tact of Madison and Gouverneur Morris this +question was postponed for a few days. After some animated discussion, +the issues became so narrowed and defined that they could be taken up +one by one. It was first decided that the national legislature should +consist of two branches. Then came a warm discussion as to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_243" id="Page_243">[Pg 243]</a></span> whether the +members of the lower house should be elected directly by the people. +Curiously enough, in a country where the principle of popular election +had long since taken such deep root, where the assemblies of the several +states had been chosen by the people from the very beginning, there was +some doubt as to whether the same principle could safely be applied to +the national House of Representatives. Gerry, with his head full of the +Shays rebellion and the "Know Ye" measures of the neighbouring state, +thought the people could not be trusted. "The people do not want +virtue," said he, "but are the dupes of pretended patriots." Roger +Sherman took a similar view, and was supported by Martin, Rutledge, and +both the Pinckneys; but the sounder opinion prevailed. On this point +Hamilton was at one with Mason, Wilson, and Dickinson. The proposed +assembly, said Mason, was to be, so to speak, our House of Commons, and +ought to know and sympathize with every part of the community. It ought +to have at heart the rights and interests of every class of the people, +and in no other way could this end be so completely attained as by +popular election. "Yes," added Wilson, "without the confidence of the +people no government, least of all a republican government, can long +subsist.... The election of the first branch by the people is not the +corner-stone only, but the foundation of the fabric." "It is essential +to the democratic rights of the community," said Hamilton, "that the +first branch be directly elected by the people." Madison argued +powerfully on the same side, and the question was finally decided in +favour of popular election.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_244" id="Page_244">[Pg 244]</a></span></p><div class="sidenote">Antagonism between large states and small states.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">The New Jersey plan; a feeble palliative.</div> + +<p>It was now the 4th of June, when the great question came up which nearly +wrecked the convention before it was settled, after a whole month of +stormy debate. This was the question as to how the states should be +represented in the new Congress. On the Virginia plan, the smaller +states would be virtually swamped. Unless they could have equal votes, +without regard to wealth or population, they would be at the mercy of +the great states. In the division which ensued, the four most populous +states—Virginia, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, and North +Carolina—favoured the Virginia plan; and they succeeded in carrying +South Carolina with them. Georgia, too, which, though weak at that +moment, possessed considerable room for expansion, voted upon the same +side. On the other hand, the states of Connecticut, New Jersey, +Delaware, and Maryland—which were not only small in area, but were cut +off from further expansion by their geographical situation—were not +inclined to give up their equal vote in either branch of the national +legislature. At this stage of the proceedings the delegation from New +Hampshire had not yet arrived upon the scene. On several occasions the +majority of the Maryland delegation went with the larger states, but +Luther Martin, always opposed to the Virginia plan, usually succeeded in +dividing the vote of the delegation. Of the New York members, Yates and +Lansing, here as always, thwarted Hamilton by voting with the smaller +states. Their policy throughout was one of obstruction. The members from +Connecticut<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_245" id="Page_245">[Pg 245]</a></span> were disposed to be conciliatory; but New Jersey was +obstinate and implacable. She knew what it was to be tyrannized over by +powerful neighbours. The wrongs she had suffered from New York and +Pennsylvania rankled in the minds of her delegates. Accordingly, in the +name of the smaller states, William Paterson laid before the convention +the so-called "New Jersey plan" for the amendment of the articles of +confederation. This scheme admitted a federal legislature, consisting of +a single house, an executive in the form of a council to be chosen by +Congress, and likewise a federal judiciary, with powers less extensive +than those contemplated by the Virginia plan. It gave to Congress the +power to regulate foreign and domestic commerce, to levy duties on +imports, and even to raise internal revenue by means of a Stamp Act. But +with all this apparent liberality on the surface, the New Jersey plan +was vicious at bottom. It did not really give Congress the power to act +immediately upon individuals. The federal legislature which it proposed +was to represent states, and not individuals, and the states were to +vote equally, without regard to wealth or population. If things were to +be left in this shape, there was no security that the powers granted to +Congress could ever be really exercised. Nay, it was almost certain that +they could not be put into operation. It was easy enough on paper to +give Congress the permission to levy duties and regulate commerce, but +such a permission would amount to nothing unless Congress were armed +with the power of enforcing its decrees upon<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_246" id="Page_246">[Pg 246]</a></span> individuals. And it could +in no wise acquire such power unless as the creature of the people, and +not of the states. The New Jersey plan, therefore, furnished no real +remedy for the evils which afflicted the country. It was vigorously +opposed by Hamilton, Madison, Wilson, and King. Hamilton, indeed, took +this occasion to offer a plan of his own, which, in addition to +Madison's scheme of a purely national legislature, contained the +features of a tenure for life or good behaviour, for the executive and +the members of the upper house. But to most of the delegates this scheme +seemed too little removed from a monarchy, and Hamilton's brilliant +speech in its favour, while applauded by many, was supported by none. +The weighty arguments of Wilson, King, and Madison prevailed, and the +New Jersey plan lost its original shape when it was decided that +Congress should consist of two houses. The principle of equal state +representation, however, remained as a stumbling-block. Paterson, +supported by his able colleague Brearley, as well as by Martin and the +two irreconcilables from New York, stoutly maintained that to depart +from this principle would be to exceed the powers of the convention, +which assuredly was not intended to remodel the government from +beginning to end. But Randolph answered, "When the salvation of the +republic is at stake, it would be treason to our trust not to propose +what we find necessary;" and Hamilton pithily reminded the delegates +that as they were there only for the purpose of recommending a scheme +which would have to be submitted to the states for acceptance,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_247" id="Page_247">[Pg 247]</a></span> they +need not be deterred by any false scruples from using their wits to the +best possible advantage. The debate on the merits of the question was an +angry one. According to the Virginia plan, said Brearly, the three +states of Virginia, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania will carry +everything before them. "It was known to him, from facts within New +Jersey, that where large and small counties were united into a district +for electing representatives for the district, the large counties always +carried their point, and consequently the large states would do so.... +Was it fair, on the other hand, that Georgia should have an equal vote +with Virginia? He would not say it was. What remedy, then? One only: +that a map of the United States be spread out, that all the existing +boundaries be erased, and that a new partition of the whole be made into +thirteen equal parts." "Yes," said Paterson, "a confederacy supposes +sovereignty in the members composing it, and sovereignty supposes +equality. If we are to be considered as a nation, all state distinctions +must be abolished, the whole must be thrown into hotchpot, and when an +equal division is made then there may be fairly an equality of +representation." This argument was repeated with a triumphant air, as +seeming to reduce the Virginia plan to absurdity. Paterson went on to +say that "there was no more reason that a great individual state, +contributing much, should have more votes than a small one, contributing +little, than that a rich individual citizen should have more votes than +an indigent one. If the ratable property of A was to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_248" id="Page_248">[Pg 248]</a></span> that of B as forty +to one, ought A, for that reason, to have forty times as many votes as +B?... Give the large states an influence in proportion to their +magnitude, and what will be the consequence? Their ambition will be +proportionally increased, and the small states will have everything to +fear. It was once proposed by Galloway [in the first Continental +Congress] that America should be represented in the British Parliament, +and then be bound by its laws. America could not have been entitled to +more than one third of the representatives which would fall to the share +of Great Britain: would American rights and interests have been safe +under an authority thus constituted?" Then, warming with the subject, he +exclaimed, If the great states wish to unite on such a plan, "let them +unite if they please, but let them remember that they have no authority +to compel the others to unite.... Shall I submit the welfare of New +Jersey with five votes in a council where Virginia has sixteen?... I +will never consent to the proposed plan. I will not only oppose it here, +but on my return home will do everything in my power to defeat it there. +Neither my state nor myself will ever submit to tyranny."</p> + +<p>Paterson was ably answered by James Wilson, of Pennsylvania, who pointed +out the absurdity of giving 180,000 men in one part of the country as +much weight in the national legislature as 750,000 in another part. It +is unjust, he said. "The gentleman from New Jersey is candid. He +declares his opinions boldly. I commend him for it. I will be equally +candid.... I never will <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_249" id="Page_249">[Pg 249]</a></span>confederate on his principles." The convention +grew nervous and excited over this seemingly irreconcilable antagonism. +The discussion was kept up with much learning and acuteness by Madison, +Ellsworth, and Martin, and history was ransacked for testimony from the +Amphiktyonic Council to Old Sarum, and back again to the Lykian League. +Madison, rightly reading the future, declared that if once the proposed +union should be formed, the real danger would come not from the rivalry +between large and small states, but from the antagonistic interests of +the slave-holding and non-slaveholding states. Hamilton pointed out that +in the state of New York five counties had a majority of the +representatives, and yet the citizens of the other counties were in no +danger of tyranny, as the laws have an equal operation upon all. Rufus +King called attention to the fact that the rights of Scotland were +secure from encroachments, although her representation in Parliament was +necessarily smaller than that of England. But New Jersey and Delaware, +mindful of recent grievances, were not to be argued down or soothed. +Gunning Bedford of Delaware was especially violent. "Pretences to +support ambition," said he, "are never wanting. The cry is, Where is the +danger? and it is insisted that although the powers of the general +government will be increased, yet it will be for the good of the whole; +and although the three great states form nearly a majority of the people +of America, they never will injure the lesser states. <i>Gentlemen, I do +not trust you.</i> If you possess the power, the abuse of it could not be +checked; and what then<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_250" id="Page_250">[Pg 250]</a></span> would prevent you from exercising it to our +destruction?... Sooner than be ruined, <i>there are foreign powers who +will take us by the hand</i>. I say this not to threaten or intimidate, but +that we should reflect seriously before we act." This language called +forth a rebuke from Rufus King. "I am concerned," said he, "for what +fell from the gentleman from Delaware,—<i>take a foreign power by the +hand!</i> I am sorry he mentioned it, and I hope he is able to excuse it to +himself on the score of passion."</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The Connecticut compromise.</div> + +<p>The situation had become dangerous. "The convention," said Martin, "was +on the verge of dissolution, scarce held together by the strength of a +hair." When things were looking darkest, Oliver Ellsworth and Roger +Sherman suggested a compromise. "Yes," said Franklin, "when a joiner +wishes to fit two boards, he sometimes pares off a bit from both." The +famous Connecticut compromise led the way to the arrangement which was +ultimately adopted, according to which the national principle was to +prevail in the House of Representatives, and the federal principle in +the Senate. But at first the compromise met with little favour. Neither +party was willing to give way. "No compromise for us," said Luther +Martin. "You must give each state an equal suffrage, or our business is +at an end." "Then we are come to a full stop," said Roger Sherman. "I +suppose it was never meant that we should break up without doing +something." When the question as to allowing equality of suffrage to the +states in the Federal Senate was put to vote, the result was<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_251" id="Page_251">[Pg 251]</a></span> a tie. +Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland—five +states—voted in the affirmative; Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia, +North Carolina, and South Carolina—five states—voted in the negative; +the vote of Georgia was divided and lost. It was Abraham Baldwin, a +native of Connecticut and lately a tutor in Yale College, a recent +emigrant to Georgia, who thus divided the vote of that state, and +prevented a decision which would in all probability have broken up the +convention. His state was the last to vote, and the house was hushed in +anxious expectation, when this brave and wise young man yielded his +private conviction to what he saw to be the paramount necessity of +keeping the convention together. All honour to his memory!</p> + +<p>The moral effect of the tie vote was in favour of the Connecticut +compromise; for no one could doubt that the little states, New Hampshire +and Rhode Island, had they been represented in the division, would have +voted upon that side. The matter was referred to a committee as +impartially constituted as possible, with Elbridge Gerry as chairman; +and On the 5th of July, after a recess of three days, the committee +reported in favour of the compromise. Fresh objections on the part of +the large states were now offered by Wilson and Gouverneur Morris, and +gloom again overhung the convention. Gerry said that, while he did not +fully approve of the compromise, he had nevertheless supported it, +because he felt sure that if nothing were done war and confusion must +ensue, the old confederation being already virtually at an end. George +Mason<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_252" id="Page_252">[Pg 252]</a></span> observed that "it could not be more inconvenient for any +gentleman to remain absent from his private affairs than it was for him; +but he would bury his bones in that city rather than expose his country +to the consequences of a dissolution of the convention." Mason's +subsequent behaviour was hardly in keeping with the promise of this +brave speech, and in Gerry we shall observe like inconsistency. At +present a timely speech from Madison soothed the troubled waters; but it +was only after eleven days of somewhat more tranquil debate that the +compromise was adopted on the 16th of July. Even then it was but +narrowly secured. The ayes were Connecticut, New Jersey, Delaware, +Maryland, and North Carolina,—five states; the noes were Pennsylvania, +Virginia, South Carolina, and Georgia,—four states; Gerry and Strong +against King and Gorham divided the vote of Massachusetts, which was +thus lost. New York, for reasons presently to be stated, was absent. It +is accordingly to Elbridge Gerry and Caleb Strong that posterity are +indebted for here preventing a tie, and thus bringing the vexed question +to a happy issue.</p> + +<p>According to the compromise secured with so much difficulty, it was +arranged that in the lower house population was to be represented, and +in the upper house the states, each of which, without regard to size, +was forever to be entitled to two senators. In the lower house there was +to be one representative for every 40,000 inhabitants, but at +Washington's suggestion the number was changed to 30,000, so as to +increase the house, which then seemed likely to be too small in numbers. +Some<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_253" id="Page_253">[Pg 253]</a></span> one suggested that with the growth of population that rate would +make an unwieldy house within a hundred and fifty years from that time, +whereat Gorham of Massachusetts laughed to scorn the idea that any +system of government they could devise in that room could possibly last +a hundred and fifty years. The difficulty has been surmounted by +enlarging from time to time the basis of representation. It now seemed +inadvisable that the senators should be chosen by the lower house out of +persons nominated by the state legislatures; and it was accordingly +decided that they should be not merely nominated, but elected, by the +state legislatures. Thus the Senate was made quite independent of the +lower house. At the same time, the senators were to vote as individuals, +and thus the old practice of voting by states, except in certain +peculiar emergencies, was finally done away with.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">It was a decisive victory for Madison's scheme.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">Irreconcilables go home.</div> + +<p>It is seldom, if ever, that a political compromise leaves things evenly +balanced. Almost every such arrangement, when once set working, weighs +down the scales decidedly to the one side or the other. The Connecticut +compromise was really a decisive victory for Madison and his party, +although it modified the Virginia plan so considerably. They could well +afford to defer to the fears and prejudices of the smaller states in the +structure of the Senate, for by securing a lower house, which +represented the American people, and not the American states, they won +the whole battle in so far as the question of radically reforming the +government was <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_254" id="Page_254">[Pg 254]</a></span>concerned. As soon as the foundation was thus laid for a +government which should act directly upon individuals, it obviously +became necessary to abandon the articles of confederation, and work out +a new constitution in all its details. The plan, as now reported, +omitted the obnoxious adjective "national," and spoke of the <i>federal</i> +legislature and <i>federal</i> courts. But to the men who were still blindly +wedded to the old confederation this soothing change of phraseology did +not conceal their defeat. On the very day that the compromise was +favourably reported by the committee, Yates and Lansing quit the +convention in disgust, and went home to New York. After the departure of +these uncongenial colleagues, Hamilton might have acted with power, had +he not known too well that the sentiment of his state did not support +him. As a mere individual he could do but little, and accordingly he +went home for a while to attend to pressing business, returning just in +time to take part in the closing scenes. His share in the work of +framing the Federal Constitution was very small. About the time that +Hamilton returned, Luther Martin, whose wrath had waxed hotter every +day, as he saw power after power extended to the federal government, at +length gave way and went back to Maryland, vowing that he would have +nothing more to do with such high-handed proceedings.</p> + +<p>While the Connecticut compromise thus scattered a few scintillations of +discontent, and relieved the convention of some of its most discordant +elements, its general effect was wonderfully <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_255" id="Page_255">[Pg 255]</a></span>harmonizing. The men who +had opposed the Virginia plan only through their dread of the larger +states were now more than conciliated. The concession of equal +representation in the Senate turned out to have been a master stroke of +diplomacy. As soon as the little states were assured of an equal share +in the control of one of the two central legislative bodies, they +suddenly forgot their scruples about thoroughly overhauling the +government, and none were readier than they to intrust extensive powers +to the new Congress. Paterson of New Jersey, the fiercest opponent of +the Virginia plan, became from that time forth to the end of his life +the most devoted of Federalists.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Other antagonisms; vague dread of the future west.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">Antagonism between slave states and free states.</div> + +<p>That first step which proverbially gives the most trouble had now been +fairly taken. But other compromises were needed before the work of +construction could properly be carried out. As the antagonism between +great and small states disappeared from the scene, other antagonisms +appeared. It is worth noting that just for a moment there was revealed a +glimmering of jealousy and dread on the part of the eastern states +toward those of which the foundations were laid in the northwestern +territory. Many people in New England feared that their children would +be drawn westward in such numbers as to create immense states beyond the +Ohio; and thus it was foreseen that the relative political weight of New +England in the future would be diminished. To a certain extent this +prediction has been justified by events, but Roger Sherman rightly +maintained that it afforded no just grounds for dread.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_256" id="Page_256">[Pg 256]</a></span> King and Gerry +introduced a most illiberal and mischievous motion, that the total +number of representatives from new states must never be allowed to +exceed the total number from the original thirteen. Such an arrangement, +which would surely have been enough to create that antagonism between +east and west which it sought to forestall and avoid, was supported by +Massachusetts and Connecticut, with Delaware and Maryland; but it was +defeated by the combination of New Jersey with the four states south of +Maryland. The ground was thus cleared for a very different kind of +sectional antagonism,—that which, as Madison truly said, would prove +the most deep-seated and enduring of all,—the antagonism between north +and south. The first great struggle between the pro-slavery and +anti-slavery parties began in the Federal Convention, and it resulted in +the first two of the long series of compromises by which the +irrepressible conflict was postponed until the north had waxed strong +enough to confront the dreaded spectre of secession, and, summoning all +its energies in one stupendous effort, exorcise it forever. From this +moment down to 1865 we shall continually be made to realize how the +American people had entered into the shadow of the coming Civil War +before they had fairly emerged from that of the Revolution; and as we +pass from scene to scene of the solemn story, we shall learn how to be +forever grateful for the sudden and final clearing of the air wrought by +that frightful storm which men not yet old can still so well remember.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_257" id="Page_257">[Pg 257]</a></span></p><p>The first compromise related to the distribution of representatives +between north and south. Was representation in the lower house of +Congress to be proportioned to wealth, or to population; and if the +latter, were all the inhabitants, or only all the free inhabitants, to +be counted? It was soon agreed that wealth was difficult to reckon and +population easy to count; and to an extent sufficient for all ordinary +purposes, population might serve as an index of wealth. A state with +500,000 inhabitants would be in most cases richer than one with 400,000. +In those days, when cities were few and small, this was approximately +true. In our day it is not at all true. A state with large commercial +and manufacturing cities is sure to be much richer than a state in which +the population is chiefly rural. The population of Massachusetts is +somewhat smaller than that of Indiana; but her aggregate wealth is more +than double that of Indiana. Disparities like this, which do not trouble +us to-day, would have troubled the Federal Convention. We no longer +think it desirable to give political representation to wealth, or to +anything but persons. We have become thoroughly democratic, but our +great-grandfathers had not. To them it seemed quite essential that +wealth should be represented as well as persons; but they got over the +main difficulty easily, because under the economic conditions of that +time population could serve roughly as an index to wealth, and it was +much easier to count noses than to assess the value of farms and stock.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Were slaves to be reckoned as persons or as chattels?</div> + +<p>But now there was in all the southern states,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_258" id="Page_258">[Pg 258]</a></span> and in most of the +northern, a peculiar species of collective existence, which might be +described either as wealth or as population. As human beings the slaves +might be described as population, but in the eye of the law they were +chattels. In the northern states slavery was rapidly disappearing, and +the property in negroes was so small as to be hardly worth considering; +while south of Mason and Dixon's line this peculiar kind of property was +the chief wealth of the states. But clearly, in apportioning +representation, in sharing political power in the federal assembly, the +same rule should have been applied impartially to all the states. At +this point, Pierce Butler and Cotesworth Pinckney of South Carolina +insisted that slaves were part of the population, and as such must be +counted in ascertaining the basis of representation. A fierce and +complicated dispute ensued. The South Carolina proposal suggested a +uniform rule, but it was one that would scarcely alter the political +weight of the north, while it would vastly increase the weight of the +south; and it would increase it most in just the quarter where slavery +was most deeply rooted. The power of South Carolina, as a member of the +Union, would be doubled by such a measure. Hence the northern delegates +maintained that slaves, as chattels, ought no more to be reckoned as +part of the population than houses or ships. "Has a man in Virginia," +exclaimed Paterson, "a number of votes in proportion to the number of +his slaves? And if negroes are not represented in the states to which +they belong, why should they<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_259" id="Page_259">[Pg 259]</a></span> be represented in the general +government?... If a meeting of the people were to take place in a slave +state, would the slaves vote? They would not. Why then should they be +represented in a federal government?" "I can never agree," said +Gouverneur Morris, "to give such encouragement to the slave-trade as +would be given by allowing the southern states a representation for +their negroes.... I would sooner submit myself to a tax for paying for +all the negroes in the United States than saddle posterity with such a +constitution."</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The three fifths compromise; a genuine English solution, if +ever there was one.</div> + +<p>The attitude taken by Virginia was that of peace-maker. On the one hand, +such men as Washington, Madison, and Mason, who were earnestly hoping to +see their own state soon freed from the curse of slavery, could not fail +to perceive that if Virginia were to gain an increase of political +weight from the existence of that institution, the difficulty of getting +the state legislature to abolish it would be enhanced. But on the other +hand, they saw that South Carolina was inexorable, and that her refusal +to adopt the Constitution for this reason would certainly carry Georgia +with her, and probably North Carolina, also. Even had South Carolina +alone been involved, it was not simply a question of forming a Union +which should either include her or leave her out in the cold. The case +was much more complicated than that. It was really doubtful if, without +the cordial assistance of South Carolina, a Union could be formed at +all. A Federal Constitution had not only to be framed, but it had to be +presented to the thirteen states for adoption. It was by no<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_260" id="Page_260">[Pg 260]</a></span> means clear +that enough states would ratify it to enable the experiment of the new +government to go into operation. New York and Rhode Island were known to +be bitterly opposed to it; Massachusetts could not be counted on as +sure; to add South Carolina to this list would be to endanger +everything. The event justified this caution. We shall hereafter see +that it was absolutely necessary to satisfy South Carolina, and that but +for her ratification, coming just at the moment when it did, the work of +the Federal Convention would probably have been done in vain. It was a +clear perception of the wonderful complication of interests involved in +the final appeal to the people that induced the Virginia statesmen to +take the lead in a compromise. Four years before, in 1783, when Congress +was endeavouring to apportion the quotas of revenue to be required of +the several states, a similar dispute had arisen. If taxation were to be +distributed according to population, it made a great difference whether +slaves were to be counted as population or not. If slaves were to be +counted, the southern states would have to pay more than their equitable +share into the federal treasury; if slaves were not to be counted, it +was argued at the north that they would be paying less than their +equitable share. Consequently, at that time the north had been inclined +to maintain that the slaves were population, while the south had +preferred to regard them as chattels. Thus we see that in politics, as +well as in algebra, it makes all the difference in the world whether you +start with <i>plus</i> or with <i>minus</i>. On that occasion Madison had offered +a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_261" id="Page_261">[Pg 261]</a></span> successful compromise, in which a slave figured as three fifths of a +freeman; and Rutledge of South Carolina, who was now present in the +convention, had supported the measure. Madison now proposed the same +method of getting over the difficulty about representation, and his +compromise was adopted. It was agreed that in counting population, +whether for direct taxation or for representation in the lower house of +Congress, five slaves should be reckoned as three individuals.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">In other words, it was the best solution attainable under the +circumstances.</div> + +<p>All this was thoroughly illogical, of course; it left the question +whether slaves are population or chattels for theorizers to wrangle +over, and for future events to decide. It was easy for James Wilson to +show that there was neither rhyme nor reason in it: but he subscribed to +it, nevertheless, just as the northern abolitionists, Rufus King and +Gouverneur Morris, joined with Washington and Madison, and with the +pro-slavery Pinckneys, in subscribing to it, because they all believed +that without such a compromise the Constitution would not be adopted; +and in this there can be little doubt that they were right. The evil +consequences were unquestionably very serious indeed. Henceforth, so +long as slavery lasted, the vote of a southerner counted for more than +the vote of a northerner; and just where negroes were most numerous the +power of their masters became greatest. In South Carolina there soon +came to be more blacks than whites, and the application of the rule +therefore went far toward doubling the vote of South Carolina in the +House of Representatives and in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_262" id="Page_262">[Pg 262]</a></span> the electoral college. Every five +slaveholders down there were equal in political weight to not less than +eight farmers or merchants in the north; and thus this troublesome state +acquired a power of working mischief out of all proportion to her real +size. At a later date the operation of the rule in Mississippi was +similar; and in general it was just the most backward and barbarous +parts of the Union that were thus favoured at the expense of the most +civilized parts. Admitting all this, however, it remains undeniable that +the Constitution saved us from anarchy; and there can be little doubt +that slavery and every other remnant of barbarism in American society +would have thriven far more lustily under a state of chronic anarchy +than was possible under the Constitution. Four years of concentrated +warfare, animated by an intense and lofty moral purpose, could not hurt +the character or mar the fortunes of the people, like a century of +aimless and miscellaneous squabbling over a host of petty local +interests. The War of Secession was a terrible ordeal to pass through; +but when one tries to picture what might have happened in this fair land +without the work of the Federal Convention, the imagination stands +aghast.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Compromise between New England and South Carolina as to the +foreign slave-trade.</div> + +<p>The second great compromise between northern and southern interests +related to the abolition of the foreign slave-trade and the power of the +federal government over commerce. All the states except South Carolina +and Georgia wished to stop the importation of slaves; but the physical +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_263" id="Page_263">[Pg 263]</a></span>conditions of rice and indigo culture exhausted the negroes so fast +that these two states felt that their industries would be dried up at +the very source if the importation of fresh negroes were to be stopped. +Cotesworth Pinckney accordingly declared that South Carolina would +consider a vote to abolish the slave-trade as simply a polite way of +telling her that she was not wanted in the Union. On the other hand, the +three New England states present in the convention had made up their +minds that it would not do to allow the several states any longer to +regulate commerce each according to its own whim. It was of vital +importance that this power should be taken from the states and lodged in +Congress; otherwise, the Union would soon be rent in pieces by +commercial disputes. The policy of New York had thoroughly impressed +this lesson upon all the neighbouring states. But none of the southern +states were in favour of granting this power unreservedly to Congress. +If a navigation act could be passed by a simple majority in Congress, it +was feared that the New Englanders would get all the carrying trade into +their own hands, and then charge ruinous freights for carrying rice, +indigo, and tobacco to the north and to Europe. On this point, +accordingly, the southern delegates acted as a unit in insisting that +Congress should not be empowered to pass navigation acts, except by a +two thirds vote of both houses. This would have tied the hands of the +federal government most unfortunately; and the New Englanders, +enlightened by their own interests, saw it to be so. Here were the +materials ready for a compromise, or, as the stout<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_264" id="Page_264">[Pg 264]</a></span> abolitionist, +Gouverneur Morris, truly called it, a "bargain" between New England and +the far south. New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Connecticut consented +to the prolonging of the foreign slave-trade for twenty years, or until +1808; and in return South Carolina and Georgia consented to the clause +empowering Congress to pass navigation acts and otherwise regulate +commerce by a simple majority of votes. At the same time, as a +concession to rice and indigo, the New Englanders agreed that Congress +should be forever prohibited from taxing exports; and thus one remnant +of mediæval political economy was neatly swept away.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">This last compromise seems to make the adhesion of Virginia +doubtful.</div> + +<p>This compromise was carried against the sturdy opposition of Virginia. +The language of George Mason of Virginia is worth quoting, for it was +such as Theodore Parker might have used. He called the slave-trade "this +infernal traffic." "Slavery," said he, "discourages arts and +manufactures. The poor despise labour when performed by slaves. They +prevent the immigration of whites, who really strengthen and enrich a +country. They produce the most pernicious effect on manners. Every +master of slaves is born a petty tyrant. They bring the judgment of +Heaven on a country. As nations cannot be rewarded or punished in the +next world, they must be in this. By an inevitable chain of causes and +effects, Providence punishes national sins by national calamities." But +these prophetic words were powerless against the combination of New +England with the far south. One thing was now made certain,—that the +vast <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_265" id="Page_265">[Pg 265]</a></span>influence of Rutledge and the Pinckneys would be thrown +unreservedly in behalf of the new Constitution. "I will confess," said +Cotesworth Pinckney, "that I had prejudices against the eastern states +before I came here, but I have found them as liberal and candid as any +men whatever." But this compromise, which finally secured South Carolina +and Georgia, made Virginia for the moment doubtful; for Mason and +Randolph were so disgusted at the absolute power over commerce conceded +to Congress that, when the Constitution was finished and engrossed on +paper, they refused to sign it.</p> + +<p>It is difficult to read this or any other episode in our history whereby +negro slavery was extended and fostered without burning indignation. But +this is not the proper mood for the historian, whose aim is to interpret +men's actions by the circumstances of their time, in order to judge +their motives correctly. In 1787 slavery was the cloud like unto a man's +hand which portended a deluge, but those who could truly read the signs +were few. From north to south, slavery had been slowly dying out for +nearly fifty years. It had become extinct in Massachusetts, it was +nearly so in all the other northern states, and it had just been forever +prohibited in the national domain. In Maryland and Virginia there was a +strong and growing party in favour of abolition. The movement had even +gathered strength in North Carolina. Only the rice-swamps of the far +south remained wedded to their idols. It was quite generally believed +that slavery was destined speedily to expire, to give<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_266" id="Page_266">[Pg 266]</a></span> place to a better +system of labour, without any great danger or disturbance; and this +opinion was distinctly set forth by many delegates in the convention.<a name="FNanchor_7_7" id="FNanchor_7_7"></a><a href="#Footnote_7_7" class="fnanchor">[7]</a> +Even Charles Pinckney went so far as to express a hope that South +Carolina, if not too much meddled with, would by and by voluntarily rank +herself among the emancipating states; but his older cousin declared +himself bound in candour to acknowledge that there was very little +likelihood indeed of so desirable an event. Not even these South +Carolinians ventured to defend slavery on principle. This belief in the +moribund condition of slavery prevented the convention from realizing +the actual effect of the concessions which were made. Scarcely any +cotton was grown at that time, and none was sent to England. The +industrial revolution about to be wrought by the inventions of Arkwright +and Hargreaves, Cartwright and Watt and Whitney, could not be foreseen. +Nor could it be foreseen that presently, when there should thus arise a +great demand for slaves from Virginia as a breeding-ground, the +abolitionist<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_267" id="Page_267">[Pg 267]</a></span> party in that state would disappear, leaving her to join +in the odious struggle for introducing slavery into the national domain. +Though these things were so soon to happen, the wisest man in 1787 could +not foresee them. The convention hoped that twenty years would see not +only the end of the foreign slave-trade, but the restriction and +diminution of slavery itself. It was in such a mood that they completed +the compromise by recommending a tariff of ten dollars a head upon all +negroes imported, while at the same time a clause was added for insuring +the recovery of fugitive slaves, quite similar to the clause in the +ordinance for the government of the northwestern territory.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The foundations of the Constitution were thus laid in +compromise.</div> + +<p>It was the three great compromises here described that laid the +foundations of our Federal Constitution. The first compromise, by +conceding equal representation to the states in the Senate, enlisted the +small states in favour of the new scheme, and by establishing a national +system of representation in the lower house, prepared the way for a +government that could endure. This was Madison's great victory, secured +by the aid of Sherman and Ellsworth, without which nothing could have +been effected. The second compromise, at the cost of giving +disproportionate weight to the slave states, gained their support for +the more perfect union that was about to be formed. The third +compromise, at the cost of postponing for twenty years the abolition of +the foreign slave-trade, secured absolute free-trade between the states, +with the surrender of all control over commerce into the hands<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_268" id="Page_268">[Pg 268]</a></span> of the +federal government. After these steps had been taken, the most difficult +and dangerous part of the road had been travelled; the remainder, though +extremely important, was accomplished far more easily. It was mainly the +task of building on the foundations already laid.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Powers granted to the federal government.</div> + +<p>In the grants to the federal government of powers hitherto reserved to +the several states, the diversity of opinion among the members of the +convention was but slight compared to the profound antagonism which had +been allayed by the three initial compromises. It was admitted, as a +matter of course, that the federal government alone could coin money, +fix the standard of weights and measures, establish post-offices and +post-roads, and grant patents and copyrights. To it alone was naturally +intrusted the whole business of war and of international relations. It +could define and punish felonies committed on the high seas; it could +maintain a navy and issue letters of marque and reprisal; it could +support an army and provide for calling forth the militia to execute the +laws of the Union, to suppress insurrections, and to repel invasions. +But in relation to this question of the army and the militia there was +some characteristic discussion. It was at first proposed that Congress +should have the power "to subdue a rebellion in any state on the +application of its legislature." The Shays rebellion was then fresh in +the memory of all the delegates, and their arguments simply reflected +the impression which that unpleasant affair had left upon them. Charles +Pinckney, Gouverneur<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_269" id="Page_269">[Pg 269]</a></span> Morris, and John Langdon wished to have the power +given to Congress unconditionally, without waiting for an application +from the legislature. But Gerry, who had been on the ground, spoke +sturdily against such a needless infraction of state rights. He was +utterly opposed, he said, to "letting loose the myrmidons of the United +States on a state without its own consent. The states will be the best +judges in such cases. More blood would have been spilt in Massachusetts +in the late insurrection if the general authority had intermeddled." +Ellsworth suggested that Congress should use its discretion only in +cases where the legislature of the state could not meet; but Randolph +forcibly replied that if Congress is to judge whether a state +legislature can or cannot meet, the difficulty is in no wise surmounted. +Gerry's view at last prevailed, and in accordance therewith it was +decided that the federal power should guarantee to every state a +republican form of government, and should protect each of them against +invasion; and on application of the legislature, or of the executive (if +the legislature could not be convened), it should protect them against +domestic violence. This arrangement did not fully provide against such +an emergency as that of rival and hostile executives in the same state, +as under the so-called "carpet-bag" governments which followed after the +War of Secession, but it was doubtless as sound a provision as any +general constitution could make.</p> + +<p>The federal government was further empowered to borrow money on the +credit of the United States; and it was declared that all debts +contracted and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_270" id="Page_270">[Pg 270]</a></span> engagements entered into before the adoption of this +constitution should be as valid against the United States under this +constitution as under the confederation. There was to be no repudiation +or readjustment of debts on the ground of inability to pay. Congress was +further empowered to establish a uniform rule of naturalization and a +uniform law of bankruptcy. But it was prohibited from passing bills of +attainder or <i>ex post facto</i> laws, or suspending the writ of <i>habeas +corpus</i>, except under the stress of rebellion or invasion. It was +provided that all duties, imposts, or excises should be uniform +throughout the United States. The federal government could not give +preference to one state over another in its commercial regulations. It +could not tax exports. It could not draw money from the treasury save by +due process of appropriation, and all bills relating to the raising of +revenue must originate in the lower house, which directly represented +the people. Congress was empowered to admit new states into the Union, +but it was not allowed to interfere with the territorial areas of states +already existing without the express consent of the local legislatures. +To insure the independence of the federal government, it was provided +that senators and representatives should be paid out of the federal +treasury, and not by their respective states, as had been the case under +the confederation. Except for such offences as treason, felony, or +breach of the peace, they should be "privileged from arrest during their +attendance, at the session of their respective houses, and in going to +or returning from the same; and for any<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_271" id="Page_271">[Pg 271]</a></span> speech or debate in either +house" they were not to be "questioned in any other place." It was +further provided that a territory not exceeding ten miles square should +be ceded to the United States, and set apart as the site of a federal +city, in which the general government should ever after hold its +meetings, erect its buildings, and exercise exclusive jurisdiction. +During the past four years the Continental Congress had skipped about +from Philadelphia to Princeton, to Annapolis, to Trenton, to New York, +until it had become a laughing-stock, and the newspapers were full of +squibs about it. Verily, said one facetious editor, the Lord shall make +this government like unto a wheel, and keep it rolling back and forth +betwixt Dan and Beersheba, and grant it no rest this side of Jordan. +This inconvenience was now to be remedied. Congress was hereafter to +have a federal police force at its disposal, and was never more to be +reduced to the humiliation of a fruitless appeal to the protecting arm +of a state government, as at Philadelphia in the summer of 1783. +Furthermore, the Continental Congress had of late years commanded so +little respect, and had offered so few temptations to able men in quest +of political distinction, that its meetings were often attended by no +more than eight or ten members. It was actually on the point of dying a +natural death through sheer lack of public interest in it. To prevent +any possible continuance of such a disgraceful state of things, it was +agreed that the Federal Congress should be "authorized to compel the +attendance of absent members, in such manner and under such penalties<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_272" id="Page_272">[Pg 272]</a></span> +as each house may provide." Had the political life of the country +continued to go on as under the confederation, it is very doubtful +whether such a provision as this would have remedied the evil. But the +new Federal Congress, drawing its life directly from the people, was +destined to afford far greater opportunities for a political career than +were afforded by the feeble body of delegates which preceded it; and a +penal clause, compelling members to attend its meetings, was hardly +needed under the new circumstances which arose.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Powers denied to the states.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">Emphatic condemnation of paper money.</div> + +<p>While the powers of the federal government were thus carefully defined, +at the same time several powers were expressly denied to the states. No +state was allowed, without explicit authority from Congress, to lay any +tonnage or custom-house duties, "keep troops or ships of war in time of +peace, enter into any agreement or compact with another state or with a +foreign power, or engage in war unless actually invaded, or in such +imminent danger as will not admit of delays." The following clause +provided against a recurrence of some of the worst evils which had been +felt under the "league of friendship:" "No state shall enter into any +treaty, alliance, or confederation; grant letters of marque and +reprisal; coin money; emit bills of credit; make anything but gold and +silver coin a tender in payment of debts; pass any bill of attainder, +<i>ex post facto</i> law, or law impairing the obligation of contracts; or +grant any title of nobility." Henceforth there was to be no repetition +of such disgraceful scenes as had lately been witnessed in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_273" id="Page_273">[Pg 273]</a></span> Rhode +Island. So far as the state legislatures were concerned, paper money was +to be ruled out forever. But how was it with the federal government? By +the articles of confederation the United States were allowed to issue +bills of credit, and make them a tender in payment of debts. In the +Federal Convention the committee of detail suggested that this +permission might remain under the new constitution; but the suggestion +was almost unanimously condemned. All the ablest men in the convention +spoke emphatically against it. Gouverneur Morris urged that the federal +government, no less than the state governments, should be expressly +prohibited from issuing bills of credit, or in any wise making its +promissory notes a legal tender. He went over the history of the past +ten years; he called attention to the obstinacy with which the wretched +device had been resorted to again and again, after its evils had been +thrust before everybody's eyes; and he proved himself a true prophet +when he said that if the United States should ever again have a great +war to conduct, people would have forgotten all about these things, and +would call for fresh issues of inconvertible paper, with similar +disastrous results. Now was the time to stop it once for all. "Yes," +echoed Roger Sherman, "this is the favourable crisis for crushing paper +money." "This is the time," said his colleague, Ellsworth, "to shut and +bar the door against paper money, which can in no case be necessary. +Give the government credit, and other resources will offer. The power +may do harm, never good."<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_274" id="Page_274">[Pg 274]</a></span> There was no way, he added, in which powerful +friends could so soon be gained for the new constitution as by +withholding this power from the government. James Wilson took the same +view. "It will have the most salutary influence on the credit of the +United States," said he, "to remove the possibility of paper money." +"Rather than grant the power to Congress," said John Langdon, "I would +reject the whole plan." "The words which grant this power," said George +Read of Delaware, "if not struck out, will be as alarming as the mark of +the Beast, in the Apocalypse." On none of the subjects that came up for +discussion during that summer was the convention more nearly unanimous +than in its condemnation of paper money. The only delegate who ventured +to speak in its favour was Mercer of Maryland. What Hamilton would have +said, if he had been present that day, we may judge from his vigorous +words published some time before. The power to emit an inconvertible +paper as a sign of value ought never hereafter to be used; for in its +very nature, said he, it is "pregnant with abuses, and liable to be made +the engine of imposition and fraud, holding out temptations equally +pernicious to the integrity of government and to the morals of the +people." Paterson called it "sanctifying iniquity by law." The same +views were entertained by Washington and Madison. There were a few +delegates, however, who thought it unsafe to fetter Congress absolutely. +To use Luther Martin's expression, they did not set themselves up to be +"wise beyond every event." George Mason said he "had a mortal hatred to +paper<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_275" id="Page_275">[Pg 275]</a></span> money, yet, as he could not foresee all emergencies, he was +unwilling to tie the hands of the legislature. The late war," he +thought, "could not have been carried on had such a prohibition +existed." Randolph spoke to the same effect. It was finally decided, by +the vote of nine states against New Jersey and Maryland, that the power +to issue inconvertible paper should not be granted to the federal +government. An express prohibition, such as had been adopted for the +separate states, was thought unnecessary. It was supposed that it was +enough to withhold the power, since the federal government would not +venture to exercise it unless expressly permitted in the Constitution. +"Thus," says Madison, in his narrative of the proceedings, "the pretext +for a paper currency, and particularly for making the bills a tender, +either for public or private debts, was cut off." Nothing could be more +clearly expressed than this. As Mr. Justice Field observes, in his able +dissenting opinion in the recent case of Juilliard <i>vs.</i> Greenman, "if +there be anything in the history of the Constitution which can be +established with moral certainty, it is that the framers of that +instrument intended to prohibit the issue of legal-tender notes both by +the general government and by the states, and thus prevent interference +with the contracts of private parties." Such has been the opinion of our +ablest constitutional jurists, Marshall, Webster, Story, Curtis, and +Nelson. There can be little doubt that, according to all sound +principles of interpretation, the Legal Tender Act of 1862 was passed in +flagrant violation of the Constitution. Could <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_276" id="Page_276">[Pg 276]</a></span>Ellsworth and Morris, +Langdon and Madison, have foreseen the possibility of such extraordinary +judgments as have lately emanated from the Supreme Court of the United +States, they would doubtless have insisted upon the express prohibition, +instead of leaving it to posterity to root out the plague, as it will +apparently some time have to do, by the cumbrous process of an amendment +to the Constitution.</p> + +<p>The work of the convention, as thus far considered, related to the +legislative department of the new government. While these discussions +were going on, much attention had been paid, from time to time, to the +characteristics of the proposed federal executive. The debates on this +question, though long kept up, were far less acrimonious than the +debates on representation and the power of Congress over trade, because +here there was no obvious clashing of local interests. But for this very +reason the convention had no longer so clear a chart to steer by. On the +question of the slave-trade, the Pinckneys knew accurately just what +South Carolina wanted, how much it would do to claim, and how far it +would be necessary to yield. As to the regulation of commerce by a bare +majority of votes in Congress, King and Sherman on the one hand, Mason +and Randolph on the other, were able to pursue a thoroughly definite +course of action in behalf of what were supposed to be the special +interests of New England or of Virginia. Consequently, the debates kept +close to the point; the controversy was keen, and sometimes, as we have +seen, angry.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_277" id="Page_277">[Pg 277]</a></span></p><div class="sidenote">Debates as to the federal executive.</div> + +<p>It was very different with the question as to the federal executive. +Upon this point the discussions were guided rather by general +speculations as to what would be most likely to work well, and +accordingly they wandered far and wide. Some of the delegates seemed to +think we should sooner or later come to adopt a hereditary monarchy, and +that the chief thing to be done was to postpone the event as long as +possible. Many wild ideas were broached: such, for example, as a +triple-headed executive, to represent the eastern, middle, and southern +states, somewhat as associated Roman emperors at times administered +affairs in the different portions of an undivided empire. The Virginia +plan had not stated whether its proposed executive was to be single or +plural, because the Virginia delegates could not agree. Madison wished +it to be single, to insure greater efficiency, but to Randolph and Mason +a tyranny seemed to lurk in such an arrangement. When James Wilson and +Charles Pinckney suggested that the executive power should be intrusted +into the hands of one man, a profound silence fell upon the convention. +No one spoke for several minutes, until Washington, from the chair, +asked if he should put the question. Franklin then got up, and said it +was an interesting subject, and he should like to hear what the members +had to say; and so the ball was set rolling. Rutledge said there was no +need of their being so shy. A man might frankly express his opinions, +and afterwards change them if he saw good reason for so doing. For his +part, he was in favour of vesting the executive power in a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_278" id="Page_278">[Pg 278]</a></span> single +person, to secure efficiency of administration and concentration of +responsibility; but he would not give him the power to declare war and +make peace. Sherman then made the far-reaching suggestion, that the +executive magistracy was really "nothing more than an institution for +carrying the will of the legislature into effect; that the person or +persons ought to be appointed by and accountable to the legislature +only, which was the depository of the supreme will of the society. As +they were the best judges of the business which ought to be done by the +executive department, ... he wished the number might not be fixed, but +that the legislature should be at liberty to appoint one or more, as +experience might dictate." It would greatly have astonished the +convention had they been told that this suggestion of Sherman's was a +move in the very same line of development which the British government +had been following for more than half a century; yet such, as we shall +presently see, was the case. Had this point been understood then as we +understand it now, the proceedings of the convention could not have +failed to be profoundly affected by it. As it was, the suggestion did +not receive due attention, and the stream of discussion was turned into +a very different channel. Wilson argued powerfully in favour of a single +chief magistrate, and this view finally prevailed.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">There should be a president, but how should he be elected.</div> + +<p>After it had been decided that there should be one man set in so high a +position, there was endless discussion as to whether he should be +elected by the people or by Congress, and whether he<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_279" id="Page_279">[Pg 279]</a></span> should serve for +one, or two, or three, or four, or ten, or fifteen years. "Better call +it twenty," said Rufus King, sarcastically; "it is the average reign of +princes." Hamilton and Gouverneur Morris would have had him chosen for +life, subject to removal for misbehaviour; but the preference for a +short term of service was soon manifest. As to the method of election, +opinions oscillated back and forth for several weeks. Wilson said "he +was almost unwilling to declare the mode which he wished to take place, +being apprehensive that it might appear chimerical. He would say, +however, at least, that in theory he was for an election by the people. +Experience, particularly in New York and Massachusetts, showed that an +election of the first magistrate by the people at large was both a +convenient and a successful mode. The objects of choice in such cases +must be persons whose merits have general notoriety." Mason, Rutledge, +and Strong agreed with Sherman that the executive should be chosen by +the legislature; but Washington, Madison, Gerry, and Gouverneur Morris +strongly disapproved of this. Morris argued that an election by the +national legislature would be the work of intrigue and corruption, like +the election of the king of Poland by a diet of nobles; but Mason +declared, on the other hand, that "to refer the choice of a proper +character for a chief magistrate to the people would be as unnatural as +to refer a trial of colours to a blind man." A decision was first +reached against an election by Congress, because it was thought that if +the chief magistrate<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_280" id="Page_280">[Pg 280]</a></span> should prove himself thoroughly competent he ought +to be reëligible; but if reëligible he would be exposed to the +temptation of truckling to the most powerful party or cabal in Congress, +in order to secure his reëlection. It did not occur to any one to +suggest that under ordinary circumstances the executive ought to follow +the policy of the most powerful party in Congress, and that he might at +the same time preserve all needful independence by being clothed with +the power of dissolving Congress and making an appeal to the people in a +new election. It is interesting to consider what might have come of such +a suggestion, following upon the heels of that made by Roger Sherman. As +we shall presently see, it would have immeasurably simplified the +machinery of our government, besides making the executive what it ought +to be, the arm of the legislature, instead of a separate and coördinate +power. Upon this point the minds of nearly all the members were so far +under the sway of an incorrect theory that such an idea occurred to none +of them. It was decided that the chief magistrate ought to be +reëligible, and therefore should not be elected by Congress.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Suggestion of an electoral college.</div> + +<p>An immediate choice by the people, however, did not meet with general +favour. To obviate the difficulty, Ellsworth and King suggested the +device of an electoral college, in which the electors should be chosen +by the state legislatures, and should hold a meeting at the federal city +for the sole purpose of deciding upon a chief magistrate. It was then +objected that it would be difficult to find competent men<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_281" id="Page_281">[Pg 281]</a></span> who would be +willing to undertake a long journey simply for such a purpose. The +objection was felt to be a very grave one, and so the convention +returned to the plan of an election by Congress, and again confronted +the difficulty of the chief magistrate's intriguing to secure his +reëlection. Wilson thought to do away with this difficulty by +introducing the element of blind chance, as in some of the states of +ancient Greece, and choosing the executive by a board of electors taken +from Congress by lot; but the suggestion found little support. Dickinson +thought it would be well if the people of each state were to choose its +best citizen,—in modern parlance, its "favourite son;" then out of +these thirteen names a chief magistrate might be chosen, either by +Congress or by a special board of electors. At length, on the 26th of +July, at the motion of Mason, the convention resolved that there should +be a national executive, to consist of a single person, to be chosen by +the national legislature for the term of seven years, and to be +ineligible for a second term. He was to be styled President of the +United States of America.</p> + +<p>This decision remained until the very end of August, when the whole +question was reopened by a motion of Rutledge that the two houses of +Congress, in electing the president, should proceed by "joint ballot." +The object of this motion was to prevent either house from exerting a +negative on the choice of the other. It was carried in spite of the +opposition of some of the smaller states, which might hope to exercise a +greater relative influence upon<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_282" id="Page_282">[Pg 282]</a></span> the choice of presidents, if the Senate +were to vote separately. At this point the fears of Gouverneur Morris, +that an election by Congress would result in boundless intrigue, were +revived; and in a powerful speech he persuaded the convention to return +to the device of the electoral college, which might be made equal in +number and similar in composition to the two houses of Congress sitting +together. It need not be required of the electors, after all, that they +should make a long journey to the seat of the federal government. They +might meet in their respective states, and vote by ballot for two +persons, one of whom must be an inhabitant of a different state. By this +provision it was hoped to diminish the chances for extreme sectional +partiality. A list of these votes might be sent under seal to the +presiding officer of the Senate, to be counted. Should no candidate turn +out to have a majority of the votes, the Senate might choose a president +from the five highest candidates on the list. The candidate having the +next highest number of votes might be declared vice-president, and +preserve the visible continuity of the government in case of the death +of the president during his term of office. By these changes the method +of electing the president, as finally decided upon, was nearly +completed. But Mason, Randolph, Gerry, King, and Wilson were not +satisfied with the provision that the Senate might choose the president +in case of a failure of choice on the part of the electoral college: +they preferred to give this power to the House of Representatives. It +was thought that the Senate would be likely to prove an <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_283" id="Page_283">[Pg 283]</a></span>aristocratic +body, somewhat removed from the people in its sympathies, and there was +a dread of intrusting to it too many important functions. Mason thought +that the sway of an aristocracy would be worse than an absolute +monarchy; and if the Senate might every now and then elect the +president, there would be a risk that the dignity of his office might +degenerate, until he should become a mere creature of the Senate. On the +other hand, the small states, in order to have an equal voice with the +large ones, in such an emergency as the failure of choice by the +electoral college, wished to keep the eventual choice in the hands of +the Senate. Among the delegates from the small states, only Langdon and +Dickinson at first supported the change, and only New Hampshire voted +for it. At length Sherman proposed a compromise, which was carried. It +was agreed that the eventual choice should be given to the House of +Representatives, and not to the Senate, but that in exercising this +function the vote in the House of Representatives should be taken by +states. Thus the humours of the delegates from the small states, and of +those who dreaded the accumulation of powers into the hands of an +oligarchy, were alike gratified. This arrangement was finally adopted by +the votes of ten states against Delaware.</p> + +<p>But in spite of all the minute and anxious care that was taken in +guarding this point, the contingency of an election being thus thrown +into the hands of the national legislature was not regarded as likely +often to occur. In point of fact, it has hitherto happened only twice in +the century, in the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_284" id="Page_284">[Pg 284]</a></span> elections of 1800 and of 1824. It was recognized +that the work would ordinarily be done through the machinery of the +electoral college, and that thus the fear of intrigue between the +president and Congress, as it had originally been felt by the +convention, might be set aside. To make assurance doubly sure, it was +provided that "no person shall be appointed an elector who is a member +of the legislature of the United States, or who holds any office of +profit or trust under the United States." It then appeared that the +arguments which had been alleged against the eligibility of the +president for a second term had lost their force; and he was accordingly +made reëligible, while his term of service was reduced from seven years +to four.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">How to count the votes.</div> + +<p>The scheme had thus arrived substantially at its present shape, except +that the counting of the electoral vote still remained in the hands of +the Senate. On the 6th of September this provision was altered, and it +was decided that "the president of the Senate shall, in the presence of +the Senate and the House of Representatives, open all the certificates, +and the votes shall then be counted." The object of this provision was +to take the office of counting away from the Senate alone, and give it +to Congress as a whole; and while doing so, to guard against the failure +of an election through the disagreement of the two houses. The method of +counting was not prescribed, for it was thought that it might safely be +left to joint rules established by the two houses of Congress +themselves, after analogies supplied by the experience of the several +state legislatures.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_285" id="Page_285">[Pg 285]</a></span> The case of double returns, sent in by rival +governments in the same state, was not contemplated by the convention; +and thus the door was left open for a danger considerably greater than +many of those over which the delegates were agitated. It may safely be +said, however, that not even the wildest license of interpretation can +find any support for the ridiculous doctrine suggested by some persons +blinded by political passion in 1877, that the business of counting the +votes and deciding upon the validity of returns belongs to the president +of the Senate. No such idea was for a moment entertained by the +convention. Any such idea is completely negatived by their action of the +6th of September. The express purpose of the final arrangement made on +that day was to admit the House of Representatives to active +participation in the office of determining who should have been elected +president. It was expressly declared that this work was too important to +be left to the Senate alone. What, then, would the convention have said +to the preposterous notion that this work might safely be left to the +presiding officer of the Senate? The convention were keenly alive to any +imaginable grant of authority that might enable the Senate to grow into +an oligarchy. What would they have said to the proposal to create a +monocrat <i>ad hoc</i>, an official permanently endowed by virtue of his +office with the function of king-maker?</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The convention foresaw imaginary dangers, but not the real +ones.</div> + +<p>In this connection it is worth our while to observe that in no respect +has the actual working of the Constitution departed so far from the +intentions of its framers as in the case of their <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_286" id="Page_286">[Pg 286]</a></span>provisions concerning +the executive. Against a host of possible dangers they guarded most +elaborately, but the dangers and inconveniences against which we have +actually had to contend they did not foresee. It will be observed that +Wilson's proposal for a direct election of the president by the people +found little favour in the convention. The schemes that were seriously +considered oscillated back and forth between an election by the national +legislature and an election by a special college of electors. The +electors might be chosen by a popular vote, or by the state +legislatures, or in any such wise as each state might see fit to +determine for itself. In point of fact, electors were chosen by the +legislature in New Jersey till 1816; in Connecticut till 1820; in New +York, Delaware, and Vermont, and with one exception in Georgia, till +1824; in South Carolina till 1868. Massachusetts adopted various plans, +and did not finally settle down to an election by the people until 1828. +Now there were several reasons why the Federal Convention was afraid to +trust the choice of the president directly to the people. One was that +very old objection, the fear of the machinations of demagogues, since +people were supposed to be so easily fooled. As already observed, the +democratic sentiment in the convention was such as we should now call +weak. Another reason shows vividly how wide the world seemed in those +days of slow coaches and mail-bags carried on horseback. It was feared +that people would not have sufficient data wherewith to judge of the +merits of public men in states<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_287" id="Page_287">[Pg 287]</a></span> remote from their own. The electors, as +eminent men exceptionally well informed, and screened from the sophisms +of demagogues, might hold little conventions and select the best +possible candidates, using in every case their own unfettered judgment.</p> + +<p>In this connection the words of Hamilton are worth quoting. In the +sixty-eighth number of the "Federalist" he says: "The mode of +appointment of the chief magistrate of the United States is almost the +only part of the system which has escaped without severe censure, or +which has received the slightest mark of approbation from its opponents. +The most plausible of these who has appeared in print has even deigned +to admit that the election of the president is well guarded.... It was +desirable that the sense of the people should operate in the choice of +the person to whom so important a trust was to be confided.... It was +equally desirable that the immediate election should be made by men +capable of analyzing the qualities adapted to the station, and acting +under circumstances favourable to deliberation and to a judicious +combination of all the reasons and inducements that were proper to +govern their choice. A small number of persons, selected by their +fellow-citizens from the general mass, will be most likely to possess +the information and discernment requisite to so complicated an +investigation.... It was also peculiarly desirable to afford as little +opportunity as possible to tumult and disorder. This evil was not least +to be dreaded in the election of a magistrate who was to have so +important an agency in the administration of the government."</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_288" id="Page_288">[Pg 288]</a></span></p><div class="sidenote">Actual working of the electoral scheme.</div> + +<p>Such was the theory as set forth by a thinker endowed with rare ability +to follow out in imagination the results of any course of political +action. It is needless to say that the actual working of the scheme has +been very different from what was expected. In our very first great +struggle of parties, in 1800, the electors divided upon party lines, +with little heed to the "complicated investigation" for which they were +supposed to be chosen. Quite naturally, for the work of electing a +candidate presupposes a state of mind very different from that of serene +deliberation. In 1800 the electors acted simply as automata recording +the victory of their party, and so it has been ever since. In our own +time presidents and vice-presidents are nominated, not without elaborate +intrigue, by special conventions quite unknown to the Constitution; the +people cast their votes for the two or three pairs of candidates thus +presented, and the electoral college simply registers the results. The +system is thus fully exposed to all the dangers which our forefathers +dreaded from the frequent election of a chief magistrate by the people. +Owing to the great good-sense and good-nature of the American people, +the system does not work so badly as might be expected. It has, indeed, +worked immeasurably better than any one would have ventured to predict. +It is nevertheless open to grave objections. It compels a change of +administration at stated astronomical periods, whether any change of +policy is called for or not; it stirs up the whole country every fourth +year with a furious excitement that is often largely factitious;<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_289" id="Page_289">[Pg 289]</a></span> and +twice within the century, in 1801 and again in 1877, it has brought us +to the verge of the most foolish and hopeless species of civil war, in +view of that thoroughly monarchical kind of accident, a disputed +succession.<a name="FNanchor_8_8" id="FNanchor_8_8"></a><a href="#Footnote_8_8" class="fnanchor">[8]</a></p> + +<div class="sidenote">The convention supposed itself to be copying from the British +Constitution.</div> + +<p>The most curious and instructive point concerning the peculiar executive +devised for the United States by the Federal Convention is the fact that +the delegates proceeded upon a thoroughly false theory of what they were +doing. As already observed, in this part of its discussions the +convention had not the clearly outlined chart of local interests to +steer by. It indulged in general speculations and looked about for +precedents; and there was one precedent which American statesmen then +always had before their eyes, whether they were distinctly aware of it +or not. In creating an executive department, the members of the +convention were really trying to copy the only constitution of which +they had any direct experience, and which most of them agreed in +thinking the most efficient working constitution in existence,—as +indeed it was. They were trying to copy the British Constitution, +modifying it to suit their republican ideas: but curiously enough, what +they copied in creating the office of president was not the real English +executive or prime minister, but the fictitious English executive, the +sovereign. And this was associated<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_290" id="Page_290">[Pg 290]</a></span> in their minds with another profound +misconception, which influenced all this part of their work. They +thought that to keep the legislative and executive offices distinct and +separate was the very palladium of liberty; and they all took it for +granted, without a moment's question, that the British Constitution did +this thing. England, they thought, is governed by King, Lords, and +Commons, and the supreme power is nicely divided between the three, so +that neither one can get the whole of it, and that is the safeguard of +English liberty. So they arranged President, Senate, and Representatives +to correspond, and sedulously sought to divide supreme power between the +three, so that they might operate as checks upon each other. If either +one should ever succeed in acquiring the whole sovereignty, then they +thought there would be an end of American liberty.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Influence of Montesquieu and Blackstone.</div> + +<p>Now in the earlier part of the work of the Federal Convention, in +dealing with the legislative department, the delegates were on firm +ground, because they were dealing with things of which they knew +something by experience; but in all this careful separation of the +executive power from the legislative they went wide of the mark, because +they were following a theory which did not truly describe things as they +really existed. And that was because the English Constitution was, and +still is, covered up with a thick husk of legal fictions which long ago +ceased to have any vitality. Blackstone, the great authority of the +eighteenth century, set forth this theory of the division of power +between King, Lords, and Commons with clearness<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_291" id="Page_291">[Pg 291]</a></span> and force, and nobody +then understood English history minutely or thoroughly enough to see its +fallaciousness. Montesquieu also, the ablest and most elegant political +writer of the age, with whose works most of the statesmen in the Federal +Convention were familiar, gave a similar description of the English +Constitution, and generalized from it as the ideal constitution for a +free people. But Montesquieu and Blackstone, in their treatment of this +point, had their eyes upon the legal fictions, and were blind to the +real machinery which was working under them. They gave elegant +expression to what the late Mr. Bagehot called the "literary theory" of +the English Constitution. But the real thing differed essentially from +the "literary theory" even in their day. In our own time the divergence +has become so conspicuous that it would not now be possible for +well-informed writers to make the mistake of Montesquieu and Blackstone. +In our time it has come to be perfectly obvious that so far from the +English Constitution separating the executive power from the +legislative, this is precisely what it does not do. In Great Britain the +supreme power is all lodged in a single body, the House of Commons. The +sovereign has come to be purely a legal fiction, and the House of Lords +maintains itself only by submitting to the Commons. The House of Commons +is absolutely supreme, and, as we shall presently see, it really both +appoints and dismisses the executive. The English executive, or chief +magistrate, is ordinarily the first lord of the treasury, and is +commonly<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_292" id="Page_292">[Pg 292]</a></span> styled the prime minister. He is chairman of the most +important committee of the House of Commons, and his cabinet consists of +the chairmen of other committees.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">What our government would be if it were really like that of +Great Britain.</div> + +<p>To make this perfectly clear, let us see what our machinery of +government would be, if it were really like the English. The presence or +absence of the crowned head makes no essential difference; it is only a +kind of ornamental cupola. Suppose for a moment the presidency +abolished, or reduced to the political nullity of the crown in England; +and postpone for a moment the consideration of the Senate. Suppose that +in our House of Representatives the committee of ways and means had two +chairmen,—an upper chairman who looks after all sorts of business, and +a lower chairman who attends especially to the finances. This upper +chairman, we will say, corresponds to the first lord of the treasury, +while the lower one corresponds to the chancellor of the exchequer. +Sometimes, when the upper chairman is a great financier, and capable of +enormous labour, he will fill both places at once, as Mr. Gladstone was +lately first lord of the treasury and chancellor of the exchequer. The +chairmen of the other committees on foreign, military, and naval affairs +will answer to the English secretaries of state for foreign affairs and +for war, the first lord of the admiralty, and so on. This group of +chairmen, headed by the upper chairman of the ways and means, will then +answer to the English cabinet, with its prime minister. To complete the +parallel, let us suppose that, after<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_293" id="Page_293">[Pg 293]</a></span> a new House of Representatives is +elected, it chooses this prime minister, and he appoints the other +chairmen who are to make up his cabinet. Suppose, too, that he initiates +all legislation, and executes all laws, and stays in office three weeks +or thirty years, or as long as he can get a majority of the house to +vote for his measures. If he loses his majority, he can either resign or +dissolve the house, and order a new election, thus appealing directly to +the people. If the new house gives him a majority, he stays in office; +if it shows a majority against him, he steps down into the house, and +becomes, perhaps, the leader of the opposition.</p> + +<p>Now if this were the form of our government, it would correspond in all +essential features to that of England. The likeness is liable to be +obscured by the fact that in England it is the queen who is supposed to +appoint the prime minister; but that is simply a part of the antiquated +"literary theory" of the English Constitution. In reality the queen only +acts as mistress of the ceremonies. Whatever she may wish, the prime +minister must be the man who can command the best working majority in +the house. This is not only tested by the first vote that is taken, but +it is almost invariably known beforehand so well that if the queen +offers the place to the wrong man he refuses to take it. Should he be so +foolish as to take it, he is sure to be overthrown at the first test +vote, and then the right man comes in. Thus in 1880 the queen's manifest +preference for Lord Granville or Lord Hartington made no sort of +difference. Mr.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_294" id="Page_294">[Pg 294]</a></span> Gladstone was as much chosen by the House of Commons as +if the members had sat in their seats and balloted for him. If the crown +were to be abolished to-morrow, and the house were henceforth, on the +resignation of a prime minister, to elect a new one to serve as long as +he could command a majority, it would not be doing essentially otherwise +than it does now. The house then dismisses its minister when it rejects +one of his important measures. But while thus appointed and dismissed by +the house, he is in no wise its slave; for by the power of dissolution +he has the right to appeal to the country, and let the general election +decide the issue. The obvious advantages of this system are that it +makes anything like a deadlock between the legislature and the executive +impossible; and it insures a concentration of responsibility. The prime +minister's bills cannot be disregarded, like the president's messages; +and thus, too, the house is kept in hand, and cannot degenerate into a +debating club.<a name="FNanchor_9_9" id="FNanchor_9_9"></a><a href="#Footnote_9_9" class="fnanchor">[9]</a></p> + +<div class="sidenote">In the British government, the executive department is not +separated from the legislative.</div> + +<p>A system so delicate and subtle, yet so strong and efficient, as this +could no more have been invented by the wisest of statesmen than a +chemist could make albumen by taking its elements and mixing them +together. In its practical working it is a much simpler system than +ours, and still its principal features are not such as would be likely +to occur to men who had not had some actual <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_295" id="Page_295">[Pg 295]</a></span>experience of them. It is +the peculiar outgrowth of English history. As we can now see, its chief +characteristic is its not separating the executive power from the +legislative. As a member of Parliament, the prime minister introduces +the legislation which he is himself expected to carry into effect. Nor +does the English system even keep the judiciary entirely separate, for +the lord chancellor not only presides over the House of Lords, but sits +in the cabinet as the prime minister's legal adviser. It is somewhat as +if the chief justice of the United States were <i>ex officio</i> president of +the Senate and attorney-general; though here the resemblance is somewhat +superficial. Our Senate, although it does not represent landed +aristocracy or the church, but the federal character of our government, +has still a superficial resemblance to the House of Lords. It passes on +all bills that come up from the lower house, and can originate bills on +most matters, but not for raising revenue. Its function as a high court +of impeachment, with the chief justice for its presiding officer, was +directly copied from the House of Lords. But here the resemblance ends. +The House of Lords has no such veto upon the House of Commons as our +Senate has upon the House of Representatives. Between our upper and +lower houses a serious deadlock is possible; but the House of Lords can +only reject a bill until it sees that the House of Commons is determined +to have it carried. It can only enter a protest. If it is obstinate and +tries to do more, the House of Commons, through its prime minister,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_296" id="Page_296">[Pg 296]</a></span> can +create enough new peers to change the vote,—a power so formidable in +its effects upon the social position of the peerage that it does not +need to be used. The knowledge that it exists is enough to bring the +House of Lords to terms.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Circumstances which obscured the true aspect of the case a +century ago.</div> + +<p>These features of the English Constitution are so prominent since the +reform of Parliament in 1832 as to be generally recognized. They have +been gradually becoming its essential features ever since the Revolution +of 1688. Before that time the crown had really been the executive, and +there had really been a separation between the executive and legislative +branches of the government, which on several occasions, and notably in +the middle of the seventeenth century, had led to armed strife. What the +Revolution of 1688 really decided was that henceforth in England the +executive was to be the mighty arm of the legislature, and not a +separate and rival power. It ended whatever of reality there was in the +old system of King, Lords, and Commons, and by the time of Sir Robert +Walpole the system of cabinet government had become fairly established; +but men still continued to use the phrases and formulas bequeathed from +former ages, so that the meaning of the changes going on under their +very eyes was obscured. There was also a great historical incident, +after Walpole's time, which served further to obscure the meaning of +these changes, especially to Americans. From 1760 to 1784, by means of +the rotten borough system of elections and the peculiar attitude of +political parties, the king contrived to make his will felt<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_297" id="Page_297">[Pg 297]</a></span> in the +House of Commons to such an extent that it became possible to speak of +the personal government of George III. The work of the Revolution of +1688 was not really completed till the election of 1784 which made Pitt +the ruler of England, and its fruits cannot be said to have been fully +secured till 1832. Now as our Revolutionary War was brought on by the +attempts of George III. to establish his personal government, and as it +was actually he rather than Lord North who ruled England during that +war, it was not strange that Americans, even of the highest education, +should have failed to discover the transformation which the past century +had wrought in the framework of the English government. Nay, more, +during this century the king had seemed even more of a real institution +to the Americans than to the British. He had seemed to them the only +link which bound the different parts of the empire together. Throughout +the struggles which culminated in the War of Independence, it had been +the favourite American theory that while the colonial assemblies and the +British Parliament were sovereign each in its own sphere, all alike owed +allegiance to the king as visible head of the empire. To people who had +been in the habit of setting forth and defending such a theory, it was +impossible that the crown should seem so much a legal fiction as it had +really come to be in England. It is very instructive to note that while +the members of the Federal Convention thoroughly understood the +antiquated theory of the English Constitution as set forth by +Blackstone, they drew very few illustrations from the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_298" id="Page_298">[Pg 298]</a></span> modern working of +Parliament, with which they had not had sufficient opportunities of +becoming familiar. In particular they seemed quite unconscious of the +vast significance of a dissolution of Parliament, although a dissolution +had occurred only three years before under such circumstances as to work +a revolution in British politics without a breath of disturbance. The +only sort of dissolution with which they were familiar was that in which +Dunmore or Bernard used to send the colonial assemblies home about their +business whenever they grew too refractory. Had the significance of a +dissolution, in the British sense, been understood by the convention, +the pregnant suggestion of Roger Sherman, above mentioned, could not +have failed to give a different turn to the whole series of debates on +the executive branch of the government. Had our Constitution been framed +a few years later, this point would have had a better chance of being +understood. As it was, in trying to modify the English system so as to +adapt it to our own uses, it was the archaic monarchical feature, and +not the modern ministerial feature, upon which we seized. The president, +in our system, irremovable by the national legislature, does not answer +to the modern prime minister, but to the old-fashioned king, with powers +for mischief curtailed by election for short terms.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The American cabinet is analogous not to the British cabinet, +but to the privy council.</div> + +<p>The close parallelism between the office of president and that of king +in the minds of the framers of the Constitution was instructively shown +in the debates on the advisableness of restraining the president's +action by a privy council. Gerry and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_299" id="Page_299">[Pg 299]</a></span> Sherman urged that there was need +of such a council, in order to keep watch over the president. It was +suggested that the privy council should consist of "the president of the +Senate, the speaker of the House of Representatives, the chief justice +of the supreme court, and the principal officer in each of five +departments as they shall from time to time be established; their duty +shall be to advise him in matters which he shall lay before them, but +their advice shall not conclude him, or affect his responsibility." The +plan for such a council found favour with Franklin, Madison, Wilson, +Dickinson, and Mason, but did not satisfy the convention. When it was +voted down Mason used strong language. "In rejecting a council to the +president," said he, "we are about to try an experiment on which the +most despotic government has never ventured; the Grand Seignior himself +has his Divan." It was this failure to provide a council which led the +convention to give to the Senate a share in some of the executive +functions of the president, such as the making of treaties, the +appointment of ambassadors, consuls, judges of the supreme court, and +other officers of the United States whose appointment was not otherwise +provided for. As it was objected to the office of vice-president that he +seemed to have nothing provided for him to do, he was disposed of by +making him president of the Senate. No cabinet was created by the +Constitution, but since then the heads of various executive departments, +appointed by the president, have come to constitute what is called his +cabinet. Since, however, the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_300" id="Page_300">[Pg 300]</a></span> members of it do not belong to Congress, +and can neither initiate nor guide legislation, they really constitute a +privy council rather than a cabinet in the modern sense, thus furnishing +another illustration of the analogy between the president and the +archaic sovereign.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The federal judiciary.</div> + +<p>Concerning the structure of the federal judiciary little need be said +here. It was framed with very little disagreement among the delegates. +The work was chiefly done in committee by Ellsworth, Wilson, Randolph, +and Rutledge, and the result did not differ essentially from the scheme +laid down in the Virginia plan. It was indeed the indispensable +completion of the work which was begun by the creation of a national +House of Representatives. To make a federal government immediately +operative upon individual citizens, it must of course be armed with +federal courts to try and federal officers to execute judgment in all +cases in which individual citizens were amenable to the national law. +But for this system of United States courts extended throughout the +states and supreme within its own sphere, the federal constitution could +never have been put into practical working order. In another respect the +federal judiciary was the most remarkable and original of all the +creations of that wonderful convention. It was charged with the duty of +interpreting, in accordance with the general principles of common law, +the Federal Constitution itself. This is the most noble as it is the +most distinctive feature in the government of the United States. It +constitutes a difference between the American<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_301" id="Page_301">[Pg 301]</a></span> and British systems more +fundamental than the separation of the executive from the legislative +department. In Great Britain the unwritten constitution is administered +by the omnipotent House of Commons; whatever statute is enacted by +Parliament must stand until some future Parliament may see fit to repeal +it. But an act passed by both houses of Congress, and signed by the +president, may still be set aside as unconstitutional by the supreme +court of the United States in its judgments upon individual cases +brought before it. It was thus that the practical working of our Federal +Constitution during the first thirty years of the nineteenth century was +swayed to so great an extent by the profound and luminous decisions of +Chief Justice Marshall, that he must be assigned a foremost place among +the founders of our Federal Union. This intrusting to the judiciary the +whole interpretation of the fundamental instrument of government is the +most peculiarly American feature of the work done by the convention, and +to the stability of such a federation as ours, covering as it does the +greater part of a huge continent, it was absolutely indispensable.</p> + +<p>Thus, at length, was realized the sublime conception of a nation in +which every citizen lives under two complete and well-rounded systems of +laws,—the state law and the federal law,—each with its legislature, +its executive, and its judiciary moving one within the other, +noiselessly and without friction. It was one of the longest reaches of +constructive statesmanship ever known in the world. There never was +anything quite like it before, and in <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_302" id="Page_302">[Pg 302]</a></span>Europe it needs much explanation +to-day even for educated statesmen who have never seen its workings. Yet +to Americans it has become so much a matter of course that they, too, +sometimes need to be told how much it signifies. In 1787 it was the +substitution of law for violence between states that were partly +sovereign. In some future still grander convention we trust the same +thing will be done between states that have been wholly sovereign, +whereby peace may gain and violence be diminished over other lands than +this which has set the example.</p> + +<p>Great as was the work which the Federal Convention had now accomplished, +none of the members supposed it to be complete. After some discussion, +it was decided that Congress might at any time, by a two thirds vote in +both houses, propose amendments to the constitution, or on the +application of the legislatures of two thirds of the states might call a +convention for proposing amendments; and such amendments should become +part of the constitution as soon as ratified by three fourths of the +states, either through their legislatures or through special conventions +summoned for the purpose. The design of this elaborate arrangement was +to guard against hasty or ill-considered changes in the fundamental +instrument of government; and its effectiveness has been such that an +amendment has come to be impossible save as the result of intense +conviction on the part of a vast majority of the whole American people.</p> + +<p>Finally it was decided that the Federal Constitution, as now completed, +should be presented to the Continental Congress, and then referred to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_303" id="Page_303">[Pg 303]</a></span> +special conventions in all the states for ratification; and that when +nine states, or two thirds of the whole number, should have ratified, it +should at once go into operation as between such ratifying states.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Signing the Constitution.</div> + +<p>When the great document was at last drafted by Gouverneur Morris, and +was all ready for the signatures, the aged Franklin produced a paper, +which was read for him, as his voice was weak. Some parts of this +Constitution, he said, he did not approve, but he was astonished to find +it so nearly perfect. Whatever opinion he had of its errors he would +sacrifice to the public good, and he hoped that every member of the +convention who still had objections would on this occasion doubt a +little of his own infallibility, and for the sake of unanimity put his +name to this instrument. Hamilton added his plea. A few members, he +said, by refusing to sign, might do infinite mischief. No man's ideas +could be more remote from the plan than his were known to be; but was it +possible for a true patriot to deliberate between anarchy and +convulsion, on the one side, and the chance of good to be expected from +this plan, on the other? From these appeals, as well as from +Washington's solemn warning at the outset, we see how distinctly it was +realized that the country was on the verge of civil war. Most of the +members felt so, but to some the new government seemed far too strong, +and there were three who dreaded despotism even more than anarchy. +Mason, Randolph, and Gerry refused to sign, though Randolph sought to +qualify his refusal by explaining that he<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_304" id="Page_304">[Pg 304]</a></span> could not yet make up his +mind whether to oppose or defend the Constitution, when it should be +laid before the people of Virginia. He wished to reserve to himself full +liberty of action in the matter. That Mason and Gerry, valuable as their +services had been in the making of the Constitution, would now go home +and vigorously oppose it, there was no doubt. Of the delegates who were +present on the last day of the convention, all but these three signed +the Constitution. In the signatures the twelve states which had taken +part in the work were all represented, Hamilton signing alone for New +York.</p> + +<p>Thus after four months of anxious toil, through the whole of a scorching +Philadelphia summer, after earnest but sometimes bitter discussion, in +which more than once the meeting had seemed on the point of breaking up, +a colossal work had at last been accomplished, the results of which were +most powerfully to affect the whole future career of the human race so +long as it shall dwell upon the earth. In spite of the high-wrought +intensity of feeling which had been now and then displayed, grave +decorum had ruled the proceedings; and now, though few were really +satisfied, the approach to unanimity was remarkable. When all was over, +it is said that many of the members seemed awe-struck. Washington sat +with head bowed in solemn meditation. The scene was ended by a +characteristic bit of homely pleasantry from Franklin. Thirty-three +years ago, in the days of George II., before the first mutterings of the +Revolution had been heard, and when the French dominion in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_305" id="Page_305">[Pg 305]</a></span> America was +still untouched, before the banishment of the Acadians or the rout of +Braddock, while Washington was still surveying lands in the wilderness, +while Madison was playing in the nursery and Hamilton was not yet born, +Franklin had endeavoured to bring together the thirteen colonies in a +federal union. Of the famous Albany plan of 1754, the first complete +outline of a federal constitution for America that ever was made, he was +the principal if not the sole author. When he signed his name to the +Declaration of Independence in this very room, his years had rounded the +full period of threescore and ten. Eleven years more had passed, and he +had been spared to see the noble aim of his life accomplished. There was +still, no doubt, a chance of failure, but hope now reigned in the old +man's breast. On the back of the president's quaint black armchair there +was emblazoned a half-sun, brilliant with its gilded rays. As the +meeting was breaking up and Washington arose, Franklin pointed to the +chair, and made it the text for prophecy. "As I have been sitting here +all these weeks," said he, "I have often wondered whether yonder sun is +rising or setting. But now I know that it is a rising sun!"</p> + + + +<hr /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_306" id="Page_306">[Pg 306]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="CHAPTER_VII" id="CHAPTER_VII"></a>CHAPTER VII.</h2> + +<h3>CROWNING THE WORK.</h3> + + +<div class="sidenote">The new Constitution is laid before Congress and submitted +forthwith to the several states for ratification.</div> + +<p><span class="smcap">It</span> was on the 17th of September, 1787, that the Federal Convention broke +up. For most of the delegates there was a long and tedious journey home +before they could meet their fellow-citizens and explain what had been +done at Philadelphia during this anxious summer. Not so, however, with +Benjamin Franklin and the Pennsylvania delegation. At eleven o'clock on +the next morning, radiant with delight at seeing one of the most +cherished purposes of his life so nearly accomplished, the venerable +philosopher, attended by his seven colleagues, presented to the +legislature of Pennsylvania a copy of the Federal Constitution, and in a +brief but pithy speech, characterized by his usual homely wisdom, begged +for it their most favourable consideration. His words fell upon willing +ears, for nowhere was the disgust at the prevailing anarchy greater than +in Philadelphia. But still it was not quite in order for the assembly to +act upon the matter until word should come from the Continental +Congress. Since its ignominious flight to Princeton, four years ago, +that migratory body had not honoured Philadelphia with its presence. It +had once flitted as far south as Annapolis, but at length had chosen for +its abiding-place<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_307" id="Page_307">[Pg 307]</a></span> the city of New York, where it was now in session. To +Congress the new Constitution must be submitted before it was in order +for the several states to take action upon it. On the 20th of September +the draft of the Constitution was laid before Congress, accompanied by a +letter from Washington. The forces of the opposition were promptly +mustered. At their head was Richard Henry Lee, who eleven years ago had +moved in Congress the Declaration of Independence. He was ably supported +by Nathan Dane of Massachusetts, and the delegation from New York were +unanimous in their determination to obstruct any movement toward a +closer union of the states. Their tactics were vigorous, but the +majority in Congress were against them, especially after the return of +Madison from Philadelphia. Madison, aided by Edward Carrington and young +Henry Lee, the famous leader of light horse, succeeded in every division +in carrying the vote of Virginia in favour of the Constitution and +against the obstructive measures of the elder Lee. The objection was +first raised that the new Constitution would put an end to the +Continental Congress, and that in recommending it to the states for +consideration Congress would be virtually asking them to terminate its +own existence. Was it right or proper for Congress thus to have a hand +in signing its own death-warrant? But this flimsy argument was quickly +overturned. Seven months before Congress had recognized the necessity +for calling the convention together; whatever need for its<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_308" id="Page_308">[Pg 308]</a></span> work existed +then, there was the same need now; and by refusing to take due +cognizance of it Congress would simply stultify itself. The opposition +then tried to clog the measure by proposing amendments, but they were +outgeneralled, and after eight days' discussion it was voted that the +new Constitution, together with Washington's letter, "be transmitted to +the several legislatures, in order to be submitted to a convention of +delegates in each state by the people thereof, in conformity to the +resolves of the convention."</p> + +<div class="sidenote">First American parties, Federalists and Antifederalists.</div> + +<p>The submission of the Constitution to the people of the states was the +signal for the first formation of political parties on a truly national +issue. During the war there had indeed been Whigs and Tories, but their +strife had not been like the ordinary strife of political parties; it +was actual warfare. Irredeemably discredited from the outset, the Tories +had been overridden and outlawed from one end of the Union to the other. +They had never been able to hold up their heads as a party in +opposition. Since the close of the war there had been local parties in +the various states, divided on issues of hard and soft money, or the +impost, or state rights, and these issues had coincided in many of the +states. During the autumn of 1787 all these elements were segregated +into two great political parties, whose character and views are +sufficiently described by their names. Those who supported the new +Constitution were henceforth known as Federalists; those who were +opposed to strengthening the bond between the states were called<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_309" id="Page_309">[Pg 309]</a></span> +Antifederalists. It was fit that their name should have this merely +negative significance, for their policy at this time was purely a policy +of negation and obstruction. Care must be taken not to confound them +with the Democratic-Republicans, or <i>strict constructionists</i>, who +appear in opposition to the Federalists soon after the adoption of the +Constitution. The earlier short-lived party furnished a great part of +its material to the later one, but the attitude of the strict +constructionists under the Constitution was very different from that of +the Antifederalists. Madison, the second Republican president, was now +the most energetic of Federalists; and Jefferson, soon to become the +founder of the Democratic-Republican party, wrote from Paris, saying, +"The Constitution is a good canvas, on which some strokes only want +retouching." He found the same fault with it that was found by many of +the ablest and most patriotic men in the country,—that it failed to +include a bill of rights; but at the same time he declared that while he +was not of the party of Federalists, he was much further from that of +the Antifederalists. The Federal Convention he characterized as "an +assembly of demi-gods."</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The contest in Pennsylvania.</div> + +<p>The first contest over the new Constitution came in Pennsylvania. The +Federalists in that state were numerous, but their opponents had one +point in their favour which they did not fail to make the most of. The +constitution of Pennsylvania was peculiar. Its legislature consisted of +a single house, and its president was chosen by that house. Therefore, +said the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_310" id="Page_310">[Pg 310]</a></span>Antifederalists, if we approve of a federal constitution which +provides for a legislature of two houses and chooses a president by the +device of an electoral college, we virtually condemn the state +constitution under which we live. This cry was raised with no little +effect. But some of the strongest immediate causes of opposition to the +new Constitution were wanting in Pennsylvania. The friends of paper +money were few there, and the objections to the control of the central +government over commerce were weaker than in many of the other states. +The Antifederalists were strongest in the mountain districts west of the +Susquehanna, where the somewhat lawless population looked askance at any +plan that savoured of a stronger government and a more regular +collection of revenue. In the eastern counties, and especially in +Philadelphia, the Federalists could count upon a heavy majority.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">How to make a quorum.</div> + +<p>The contest began in the legislature on the 28th of September, the very +day on which Congress decided to submit the Constitution to the states, +and before the news of the action had reached Philadelphia. The zeal of +the Federalists was so intense that they could wait no longer, and they +hurried the event with a high-handed vigour that was not altogether +seemly. The assembly was on the eve of breaking up, and a new election +was to be held on the first Tuesday of November. The Antifederalists +hoped to make a stirring campaign, and secure such a majority in the new +legislature as to prevent the Constitution from being laid before the +people. But their game was frustrated<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_311" id="Page_311">[Pg 311]</a></span> by George Clymer, who had sat in +the Federal Convention, and now most unexpectedly moved that a state +convention be called to consider the proposed form of government. Great +was the wrath of the Antifederalists. Mr. Clymer was quite out of order, +they said. Congress had not yet sent them the Constitution; and besides, +no such motion could be made without notice given beforehand, nor could +it be voted on till it had passed three readings. Parliamentary usage +was doubtless on the side of the Antifederalists, but the majority were +clamorous, and overwhelmed them with cries of "Question, question!" The +question was then put, and carried, by 43 votes against 19, and the +house adjourned till four o'clock. Before going to their dinners the 19 +held an indignation meeting, at which it was decided that they would +foil these outrageous proceedings by staying away. It took 47 to make a +quorum, and without these malcontents the assembly numbered but 45. When +the house was called to order after dinner, it was found there were but +45 members present. The sergeant-at-arms was sent to summon the +delinquents, but they defied him, and so it became necessary to adjourn +till next morning. It was now the turn of the Federalists to uncork the +vials of wrath. The affair was discussed in the taverns till after +midnight, the 19 were abused without stint, and soon after breakfast, +next morning, two of them were visited by a crowd of men, who broke into +their lodgings and dragged them off to the state house, where they were +forcibly held down in their seats, growling and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_312" id="Page_312">[Pg 312]</a></span>muttering curses. This +made a quorum, and a state convention was immediately appointed for the +20th of November. Before these proceedings were concluded, an +express-rider brought the news from New York that Congress had submitted +the Constitution to the judgment of the states.</p> + +<p>And now there ensued such a war of pamphlets, broadsides, caricatures, +squibs, and stump-speeches, as had never yet been seen in America. Cato +and Aristides, Cincinnatus and Plain Truth, were out in full force. What +was the matter with the old confederation? asked the Antifederalists. +Had it not conducted a glorious and triumphant war? Had it not set us +free from the oppression of England? That there was some trouble now in +the country could not be denied, but all would be right if people would +only curb their extravagance, wear homespun clothes, and obey the laws. +There was government enough in the country already. This Philadelphia +convention ought to be distrusted. Some of its members, such as John +Dickinson and Robert Morris, had opposed the Declaration of +Independence. Pretty men these, to be offering us a new government! You +might be sure there was a British cloven foot in it somewhere. Their +convention had sat four months with closed doors, as if they were afraid +to let people know what they were about. Nobody could tell what secret +conspiracies against American liberty might not have been hatched in all +that time. One thing was sure: the convention had squabbled. Some +members had gone home in a huff; others had refused to sign a document +fraught with untold evils to the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_313" id="Page_313">[Pg 313]</a></span> country. And now came James Wilson, +making speeches in behalf of this precious Constitution, and trying to +pull the wool over people's eyes and persuade them to adopt it. Who was +James Wilson, any way? A Scotchman, a countryman of Lord Bute, a born +aristocrat, a snob, a patrician, Jimmy, James de Caledonia. Beware of +any form of government defended by such a man. And as to the other +members of the convention, there was Roger Sherman, who had signed the +articles of confederation, and was now trying to undo his own work. What +confidence could be placed in a man who did not know his own mind any +better than that? Then there were Hamilton and Madison, mere boys; and +Franklin, an old dotard, a man in his second childhood. And as to +Washington, he was doubtless a good soldier, but what did he know about +politics? So said the more moderate of the malcontents, hesitating for +the moment to speak disrespectfully of such a man; but presently their +zeal got the better of them, and in a paper signed "Centinel" it was +boldly declared that Washington was a born fool!</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Delaware ratifies the Constitution, Dec. 6, 1787; +Pennsylvania, Dec. 12; New Jersey, Dec. 18.</div> + +<p>From the style and temper of these arguments one clearly sees that the +Antifederalists in Pennsylvania felt from the beginning that the day was +going against them. Sixteen of the men who had seceded from the +assembly, headed by Robert Whitehill of Carlisle, issued a manifesto +setting forth the ill-treatment they had received, and sounding an alarm +against the dangers of tyranny to which the new Constitution was already +exposing them. They were assisted by Richard Henry Lee, who<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_314" id="Page_314">[Pg 314]</a></span> published a +series of papers entitled "Letters from the Federal Farmer," and +scattered thousands of copies through the state of Pennsylvania. He did +not deny that the government needed reforming, but in the proposed plan +he saw the seeds of aristocracy and of centralization. The chief +objections to the Constitution were that it created a national +legislature in which the vote was to be by individuals, and not by +states; that it granted to this body an unlimited power of taxation; +that it gave too much power to the federal judiciary; that it provided +for paying the salaries of members of Congress out of the federal +treasury, and would thus make them independent of their own states; that +it required an oath of allegiance to the federal government; and +finally, that it did not include a bill of rights. These objections were +very elaborately set forth by the leading Antifederalists in the state +convention; but the logic and eloquence of James Wilson bore down all +opposition. The Antifederalists resorted to filibustering. Five days, it +is said, were used up in settling the meanings of the two words +"annihilation" and "consolidation." In this way the convention was kept +sitting for nearly three weeks, when news came from "the Delaware +state," as it used then to be called in Pennsylvania. The concession of +an equal representation in the federal Senate had removed the only +ground of opposition in Delaware, and the Federalists had everything +their own way there. In a convention assembled at Dover, on the 6th of +December, the Constitution was ratified without<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_315" id="Page_315">[Pg 315]</a></span> a single dissenting +voice. Thus did this little state lead the way in the good work. The +news was received with exultation by the Federalists at Philadelphia, +and on the 12th Pennsylvania ratified the Constitution by a two thirds +vote of 46 to 23. The next day all business was quite at a standstill, +while the town gave itself up to processions and merry-making. The +convention of New Jersey had assembled at Trenton on the 11th, and one +week later, on the 18th, it ratified the Constitution unanimously.</p> + +<p>A most auspicious beginning had thus been made. Three states, one third +of the whole number required, had ratified almost at the same moment. +Two of these, moreover, were small states, which at the beginning of the +Federal Convention had been obstinately opposed to any fundamental +change in the government. It was just here that the Federalists were now +strongest. The Connecticut compromise had wrought with telling effect, +not only in the convention, but upon the people of the states. When the +news from Trenton was received in Pennsylvania, there was great +rejoicing in the eastern counties, while beyond the Susquehanna there +were threats of armed rebellion. On the day after Christmas, as the +Federalists of Carlisle were about to light a bonfire on the common and +fire a salute, they were driven off the field by a mob armed with +bludgeons, their rickety old cannon was spiked, and an almanac for the +new year, containing a copy of the Constitution, was duly cursed, and +then burned. Next day the Federalists, armed with muskets, came back, +and went through their <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_316" id="Page_316">[Pg 316]</a></span>ceremonies. Their opponents did not venture to +molest them; but after they had dispersed, an Antifederalist +demonstration was made, and effigies of James Wilson and Thomas McKean, +another prominent Federalist, were dragged to the common, and there +burned at the stake.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Georgia ratifies, Jan. 2, 1788; Connecticut, Jan. 9. The +outlook in Massachusetts.</div> + +<p>The action of Delaware and New Jersey had shown that the Antifederalists +could not build any hopes upon the antagonism between large and small +states. It was thought, however, that the southern states would unite in +opposing the Constitution from their dread of becoming commercially +subjected to New England. But the compromise on the slave-trade had +broken through this opposition. On the 2d of January, 1788, the +Constitution was ratified in Georgia without a word of dissent. One week +later Connecticut ratified by a vote of 128 to 40, after a session of +only five days. The hopes of the Antifederalists now rested upon +Massachusetts, where the state convention assembled on the 9th of +January, the same day on which that of Connecticut broke up. Should +Massachusetts refuse to ratify, there would be no hope for the +Constitution. Even should nine states adopt it without her, no one +supposed a Federal Union feasible from which so great a state should be +excluded. Her action, too, would have a marked effect upon other states. +It could not be denied that the outlook in Massachusetts was far from +encouraging. The embers of the Shays rebellion still smouldered there, +and in the mountain counties of Worcester and Berkshire were heard loud<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_317" id="Page_317">[Pg 317]</a></span> +murmurs of discontent. Laws impairing the obligation of contracts were +just what these hard-pressed farmers desired, and by the proposed +Constitution all such laws were forever prohibited. The people of the +district of Maine, which had formed part of Massachusetts for nearly a +century, were anxious to set up an independent government for +themselves; and they feared that if they were to enter into the new and +closer Federal Union as part of that state, they might hereafter find it +impossible to detach themselves. For this reason half of the Maine +delegates were opposed to the Constitution. In none of the thirteen +states, moreover, was there a more intense devotion to state rights than +in Massachusetts. Nowhere had local self-government reached a higher +degree of efficiency; nowhere had the town meeting flourished with such +vigour. It was especially characteristic of men trained in the town +meeting to look with suspicion upon all delegated power, upon all +authority that was to be exercised from a distance. They believed it to +be all important that people should manage their own affairs, instead of +having them managed by other people; and so far had this principle been +carried that the towns of Massachusetts were like little +semi-independent republics, and the state was like a league of such +republics, whose representatives, sitting in the state legislature, were +like delegates strictly bound by instructions rather than untrammelled +members of a deliberative body. To men trained in such a school, it +would naturally seem that the new Constitution delegated altogether too +much power to a governing<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_318" id="Page_318">[Pg 318]</a></span> body which must necessarily be remote from +most of its constituents. It was feared that some sort of tyranny might +grow out of this, and such fears were entertained by men who were not in +the slightest degree infected with Shaysism, as the political disease of +the inland counties was then called. Such fears were entertained by one +of the greatest citizens that Massachusetts has ever produced, the man +who has been well described as preëminently "the man of the town +meeting,"—Samuel Adams. The limitations of this great man, as well as +his powers, were those which belonged to him as chief among the men of +English race who have swayed society through the medium of the ancient +folk mote. At this time he was believed by many to be hostile to the new +Constitution, and his influence in Massachusetts was still greater than +that of any other man. Besides this, it was thought that the governor, +John Hancock, was half-hearted in his support of the Constitution, and +it was in everybody's mouth that Elbridge Gerry had refused to set his +name to that document because he felt sure it would create a tyranny.</p> + +<p>Such symptoms encouraged the Antifederalists in the hope that +Massachusetts would reject the Constitution and ruin the plans of the +"visionary young men"—as Richard Henry Lee called them—who had swayed +the Federal Convention. But there were strong forces at work in the +opposite direction. In Boston and all the large coast towns, even those +of the Maine district, the dominant feeling was Federalist. All +well-to-do people had been alarmed by the Shays insurrection, and +merchants,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_319" id="Page_319">[Pg 319]</a></span> shipwrights, and artisans of every sort were convinced that +there was no prosperity in store for them until the federal government +should have control over commerce, and be enabled to make its strength +felt on the seas and in Europe. In these views Samuel Adams shared so +thoroughly that his attitude toward the Constitution at this moment was +really that of a waverer rather than an opponent. Amid balancing +considerations he found it for some time hard to make up his mind.</p> + +<p>In the convention which met on the 9th of January there sat Gorham, +Strong, and King, who had taken part in the Federal Convention. There +were also Samuel Adams and James Bowdoin; the revolutionary generals, +Heath and Lincoln; and the rising statesmen, Sedgwick, Parsons, and +Fisher Ames, whose eloquence was soon to become so famous. There were +twenty-four clergymen, of various denominations,—men of sound +scholarship, and several of them eminent for worldly wisdom and +liberality of temper. Governor Hancock presided, gorgeous in crimson +velvet and finest laces, while about the room sat many browned and +weather-beaten farmers, among whom were at least eighteen who hardly a +year ago had marched over the pine-clad mountain ridges of Petersham, +under the banner of the rebel Shays. It was a wholesome no less than a +generous policy that let these men come in and freely speak their minds. +The air was thus the sooner cleared of discontent; the disease was thus +the more likely to heal itself. In all there were three hundred and +fifty-five delegates present,—a much larger number than took<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_320" id="Page_320">[Pg 320]</a></span> part in +any of the other state conventions. The people of all parts of +Massachusetts were very thoroughly represented, as befitted the state +which was preëminent in the active political life of its town meetings, +and the work done here was in some respects decisive in its effect upon +the adoption of the Constitution.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Debates in the Massachusetts convention.</div> + +<p>The convention began by overhauling that document from beginning to end, +discussing it clause by clause with somewhat wearisome minuteness. Some +of the objections seem odd to us at this time, with our larger +experience. It was several days before the minds of the country members +could be reconciled to the election of representatives for so long a +period as two years. They had not been wont to delegate power to anybody +for so long a time, not even to their selectmen, whom they had always +under their eyes. How much more dangerous was it likely to prove if +delegated authority were to be exercised for so long a period at some +distant federal city, such as the Constitution contemplated! There was a +vague dread that in some indescribable way the new Congress might +contrive to make its sittings perpetual, and thus become a tyrannical +oligarchy, which might tax the people without their consent. And then as +to this federal city, there were some who did not like the idea. A +district ten miles square! Was not that a great space to give up to the +uncontrolled discretion of the federal government, wherein it could +wreak its tyrannical will without let or hindrance? One of the delegates +thought he could be reconciled to the new<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_321" id="Page_321">[Pg 321]</a></span> Constitution if this district +could only be narrowed down to one mile square. And then there was the +power granted to Congress to maintain a standing army, of which the +president was to be <i>ex officio</i> commander-in-chief. Did not this open +the door for a Cromwell? It was to be a standing army for at least two +years, since this was the shortest period between elections. Why, even +the British Parliament, since 1688, did not keep up a standing army for +more than one year at a time, but renewed its existence annually under +what was termed the Mutiny Act. But what need of a standing army at all? +Would it not be sure to provoke needless disorders? Had they already +forgotten the Boston Massacre, in spite of all the orations that had +been delivered in the Old South Meeting-House? A militia, organized +under the town-meeting system, was surely all-sufficient. Such a militia +had won glorious triumphs at Lexington and Bennington; and at King's +Mountain, had not an army of militia surrounded and captured an army of +regulars led by one of England's most skilful officers? What more could +you ask? Clearly this plan for a standing army foreboded tyranny. Upon +this point Mr. Nason, from the Maine district, had his say, in tones of +inimitable bombast. "Had I the voice of Jove," said he, "I would +proclaim it throughout the world; and had I an arm like Jove, I would +hurl from the globe those villains that would dare attempt to establish +in our country a standing army!"</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Liberal attitude of the clergy.</div> + +<p>Next came the complaint that the Constitution did not recognize the +existence of God, and <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_322" id="Page_322">[Pg 322]</a></span>provided no religious tests for candidates for +federal offices. But, strange to say, this objection did not come from +the clergy. It was urged by some of the country members, but the +ministers in the convention were nearly unanimous in opposing it. There +had been a remarkable change of sentiment among the clergy of this +state, which had begun its existence as a theocracy, in which none but +church members could vote or hold office. The seeds of modern liberalism +had been planted in their minds. When Amos Singletary of Sutton declared +it to be scandalous that a Papist or an infidel should be as eligible to +office as a Christian,—a remark which naively assumed that Roman +Catholics were not Christians,—the Rev. Daniel Shute of Hingham replied +that no conceivable advantage could result from a religious test. Yes, +said the Rev. Philip Payson of Chelsea, "human tribunals for the +consciences of men are impious encroachments upon the prerogatives of +God. A religious test, as a qualification for office, would have been a +great blemish." "In reason and in the Holy Scripture," said the Rev. +Isaac Backus of Middleborough, "religion is ever a matter between God +and the individual; the imposing of religious tests hath been the +greatest engine of tyranny in the world." With this liberal stand firmly +taken by the ministers, the religious objection was speedily overruled.</p> + +<p>Then the clause which allows Congress to regulate the times, places, and +manner of holding federal elections was severely criticised. It was +feared that Congress would take advantage of this <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_323" id="Page_323">[Pg 323]</a></span>provision to destroy +the freedom of elections. It was further objected that members of +Congress, being paid their salaries from the federal treasury, would +become too independent of their constituents. Federal collectors of +revenue, moreover, would not be so likely to act with moderation and +justice as collectors appointed by the state. Then it was very doubtful +whether the people could support the expense of an elaborate federal +government. They were already scarcely able to pay their town, county, +and state taxes; was it to be supposed they could bear the additional +burden with which federal taxation would load them? Then the compromise +on the slave-trade was fiercely attacked. They did not wish to have a +hand in licensing this nefarious traffic for twenty years. But it was +urged, on the other hand, that by prohibiting the foreign slave-trade +after 1808 the Constitution was really dealing a death-blow to slavery; +and this opinion prevailed.</p> + +<p>During the whole course of the discussion, observed the Rev. Samuel West +of New Bedford, it seemed to be taken for granted that the federal +government was going to be put into the hands of crafty knaves. "I +wish," said he, "that the gentlemen who have started so many <i>possible</i> +objections would try to show us that what they so much deprecate is +<i>probable</i>.... Because power <i>may</i> be abused, shall we be reduced to +anarchy? What hinders our state legislatures from abusing their +powers?... May we not rationally suppose that the persons we shall +choose to administer the government will be, in general, good men?" +General<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_324" id="Page_324">[Pg 324]</a></span> Thompson said he was surprised to hear such an argument from a +clergyman, who was professionally bound to maintain that all men were +totally depraved. For his part he believed they were so, and he could +prove it from the Old Testament. "I would not trust them," echoed +Abraham White of Bristol, "though every one of them should be a Moses."</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Speech of a Berkshire farmer.</div> + +<p>The feeling of distrust was strongest among the farmers from the +mountain districts. As Rufus King said, they objected, not so much to +the Constitution as to the men who made it and the men who sang its +praises. They hated lawyers, and were jealous of wealthy merchants. +"These lawyers," said Amos Singletary, "and men of learning, and moneyed +men that talk so finely and gloss over matters so smoothly, to make us +poor illiterate people swallow the pill, expect to get into Congress +themselves. They mean to be managers of the Constitution. They mean to +get all the money into their hands, and then they will swallow up us +little folk, like the great Leviathan, Mr. President; yes, just as the +whale swallowed up Jonah." Here a more liberal-minded farmer, Jonathan +Smith of Lanesborough, rose to reply with references to the Shays +rebellion, which presently called forth cries of "Order!" from some of +the members. Samuel Adams said the gentleman was quite in order,—let +him go on in his own way. "I am a plain man," said Mr. Smith, "and am +not used to speak in public, but I am going to show the effects of +anarchy, that you may see why I wish for good government.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_325" id="Page_325">[Pg 325]</a></span> Last winter +people took up arms, and then, if you went to speak to them, you had the +musket of death presented to your breast. They would rob you of your +property, threaten to burn your houses, oblige you to be on your guard +night and day. Alarms spread from town to town, families were broken up; +the tender mother would cry, 'Oh, my son is among them! What shall I do +for my child?' Some were taken captive; children taken out of their +schools and carried away.... How dreadful was this! Our distress was so +great that we should have been glad to snatch at anything that looked +like a government.... Now, Mr. President, when I saw this Constitution, +I found that it was a cure for these disorders. I got a copy of it, and +read it over and over.... I did not go to any lawyer, to ask his +opinion; we have no lawyer in our town, and we do well enough without. +My honourable old daddy there [pointing to Mr. Singletary] won't think +that I expect to be a Congressman, and swallow up the liberties of the +people. I never had any post, nor do I want one. But I don't think the +worse of the Constitution because lawyers, and men of learning, and +moneyed men are fond of it. I am not of such a jealous make. They that +are honest men themselves are not apt to suspect other people.... +Brother farmers, let us suppose a case, now. Suppose you had a farm of +50 acres, and your title was disputed, and there was a farm of 5,000 +acres joined to you that belonged to a man of learning, and his title +was involved in the same difficulty: would you not be glad to have him +for your friend, rather than to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_326" id="Page_326">[Pg 326]</a></span> stand alone in the dispute? Well, the +case is the same. These lawyers, these moneyed men, these men of +learning, are all embarked in the same cause with us, and we must all +sink or swim together. Shall we throw the Constitution overboard because +it does not please us all alike? Suppose two or three of you had been at +the pains to break up a piece of rough land and sow it with wheat: would +you let it lie waste because you could not agree what sort of a fence to +make? Would it not be better to put up a fence that did not please every +one's fancy, rather than keep disputing about it until the wild beasts +came in and devoured the crop? Some gentlemen say, Don't be in a hurry; +take time to consider. I say, There is a time to sow and a time to reap. +We sowed our seed when we sent men to the Federal Convention, now is the +time to reap the fruit of our labour; and if we do not do it now, I am +afraid we shall never have another opportunity."</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Attitude of Samuel Adams.</div> + +<p>It may be doubted whether all the eloquence of Fisher Ames could have +stated the case more forcibly than it was put by this plain farmer from +the Berkshire hills. Upon Ames, with King, Parsons, Bowdoin, and Strong, +fell the principal work in defending the Constitution. For the first two +weeks, Samuel Adams scarcely opened his mouth, but listened with anxious +care to everything that was said on either side. The convention was so +evenly divided that there could be no doubt that his single voice would +decide the result. Every one eagerly awaited his opinion. In the debate +on the two years' term of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_327" id="Page_327">[Pg 327]</a></span> members of Congress, he had asked Caleb +Strong the reason why the Federal Convention had decided upon so long a +term; and when it was explained as a necessary compromise between the +views of so many delegates, he replied, "I am satisfied." "Will Mr. +Adams kindly say that again?" asked one of the members. "I am +satisfied," he repeated; and not another word was said on the subject in +all those weeks. So profound was the faith of this intelligent and +skeptical and independent people in the sound judgment and unswerving +integrity of the Father of the Revolution! As the weeks went by, and the +issue seemed still dubious, the workingmen of Boston, shipwrights and +brass-founders and other mechanics, decided to express their opinion in +a way that they knew Samuel Adams would heed. They held a meeting at the +Green Dragon tavern, passed resolutions in favour of the Constitution, +and appointed a committee, with Paul Revere at its head, to make known +these resolutions to the great popular leader. When Adams had read the +paper, he asked of Paul Revere, "How many mechanics were at the Green +Dragon when these resolutions passed?" "More, sir, than the Green Dragon +could hold." "And where were the rest, Mr. Revere?" "In the streets, +sir." "And how many were in the streets?" "More, sir, than there are +stars in the sky."</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Washington's fruitful suggestion.</div> + +<p>Between Samuel Adams and Thomas Jefferson there were several points of +resemblance, the chief of which was an intense faith in the sound common +sense of the mass of the people. This faith was one of the strongest +attributes of both these<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_328" id="Page_328">[Pg 328]</a></span> great men. It has usually been supposed that +it was this incident of the meeting at the Green Dragon that determined +Adams's final attitude in the state convention. Unquestionably, such a +demonstration must have had great weight with him. But at the same time +the affair was taking such a turn as would have decided him, even +without the aid of this famous mass-meeting. The long delay in the +decision of the Massachusetts convention had carried the excitement to +fever heat throughout the country. Not only were people from New +Hampshire and New York and naughty Rhode Island waiting anxiously about +Boston to catch every crumb of news they could get, but intrigues were +going on, as far south as Virginia, to influence the result. On the 21st +of January the "Boston Gazette" came out with a warning, headed by +enormous capitals with three exclamation-points: "<i>Bribery and +Corruption!!!</i> The most diabolical plan is on foot to corrupt the +members of the convention who oppose the adoption of the new +Constitution. Large sums of money have been brought from a neighbouring +state for that purpose, contributed by the wealthy. If so, is it not +probable there may be collections for the same accursed purpose nearer +home?" No adequate investigation ever determined whether this charge was +true or not. We may hope that it was ill-founded; but our general +knowledge of human nature must compel us to admit that there was +probably a grain of truth in it. But what was undeniable was that +Richard Henry Lee wrote a letter to Gerry, urging that Massachusetts +should not<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_329" id="Page_329">[Pg 329]</a></span> adopt the Constitution without insisting upon sundry +amendments; and in order to consider these amendments, it was suggested +that there should be another Federal Convention. At this anxious crisis, +Washington suddenly threw himself into the breach with that infallible +judgment of his which always saw the way to victory. "If another Federal +Convention is attempted," said Washington, "its members will be more +discordant, and will agree upon no general plan. The Constitution is the +best that can be obtained at this time.... The Constitution or disunion +are before us to choose from. If the Constitution is our choice, a +constitutional door is open for amendments, and they may be adopted in a +peaceable manner, without tumult or disorder."</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Massachusetts ratifies, proposing amendments, Feb. 6, 1788.</div> + +<p>When this advice of Washington's reached Boston, it set in motion a +train of events which soon solved the difficulty, both for Massachusetts +and for the other states which had not yet made up their mind. Chief +among the objections to the Constitution had been the fact that it did +not contain a bill of rights. It did not guarantee religious liberty, +freedom of speech and of the press, or the right of the people +peacefully to assemble and petition the government for a redress of +grievances. It did not provide against the quartering of soldiers upon +the people in time of peace. It did not provide against general +search-warrants, nor did it securely prescribe the methods by which +individuals should be held to answer for criminal offences. It did not +even provide that nobody should be burned at the stake or stretched on +the rack, for<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_330" id="Page_330">[Pg 330]</a></span> holding peculiar opinions about the nature of God or the +origin of evil. That such objections to the Constitution seem strange to +us to-day is partly due to the determined attitude of the men who, amid +all the troubles of the time, would not consent to any arrangement from +which such safeguards to free thinking and free living should be +omitted. The friends of the Constitution in Boston now proposed that the +convention, while adopting it, should suggest sundry amendments +containing the essential provisions of a bill of rights. It was not +intended that the ratification should be conditional. Under the +circumstances, a conditional ratification might prove as disastrous as +rejection. It might lead to a second Federal Convention, in which the +good work already accomplished might be undone. The ratification was to +be absolute, and the amendments were offered in the hope that action +would be taken upon them as soon as the new government should go into +operation. There could be little doubt that the suggestion would be +heeded, not only from the importance of Massachusetts in the Union, but +also from the fact that Virginia and other states would be sure to +follow her example in suggesting such amendments. This forecast proved +quite correct, and it was in this way that the first ten amendments +originated, which were acted on by Congress in 1790, and became part of +the Constitution in 1791. As soon as this plan had been matured, Hancock +proposed it to the convention; the hearty support of Adams was +immediately insured, and within a week from that time, on the 6th of +February, the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_331" id="Page_331">[Pg 331]</a></span> Constitution was ratified by the narrow majority of 187 +votes against 168. On that same day Jefferson, in Paris, wrote 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; but no objection +to the new form must produce a schism in our Union." But as soon as he +heard of the action of Massachusetts, he approved it as preferable to +his own idea, and he wrote home urging Virginia to follow the example.</p> + +<p>Massachusetts was thus the sixth state to ratify the Constitution. On +that day the name of the Long Lane by the meeting-house where the +convention had sat was changed to Federal Street. The Boston people, +said Henry Knox, had quite lost their senses with joy. The two counties +of Worcester and Berkshire had given but 14 yeas against 59 nays, but +the farmers went home declaring that they should cheerfully abide by the +decision of the majority. Not a murmur was heard from any one.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Maryland ratifies, April 28.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">Debates in the South Carolina legislature.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">South Carolina ratifies, May 23.</div> + +<p>About the time that the Massachusetts convention broke up, that of New +Hampshire assembled at Exeter; but after a brief discussion it was +decided to adjourn until June, in order to see how the other states +would act. On the 21st of April the Maryland convention assembled at +Annapolis. All the winter Patrick Henry had been busily at work, with +the hope of inducing the southern states<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_332" id="Page_332">[Pg 332]</a></span> to establish a separate +confederacy; but he had made little headway anywhere, and none at all in +Maryland, where his influence was completely counteracted by that of +Washington. Above all things, said Washington, do not let the convention +adjourn till the matter is decided, for the Antifederalists are taking +no end of comfort from the postponement in New Hampshire. Their glee was +short-lived, however. Some of Maryland's strongest men, such as Luther +Martin and Samuel Chase, were Antifederalists; but their efforts were of +no avail. After a session of five days the Constitution was ratified by +a vote of 63 to 11. Whatever damage New Hampshire might have done was +thus more than made good. The eyes of the whole country were now turned +upon the eighth state, South Carolina. Her convention was to meet at +Charleston on the 12th of May, the anniversary of the day on which +General Lincoln had surrendered that city to Sir Henry Clinton; but +there had been a decisive preliminary struggle in the legislature in +January. The most active of the Antifederalists was Rawlins Lowndes, who +had opposed the Declaration of Independence. Lowndes was betrayed into +silliness. "We are now," said he, "under a most excellent +constitution,—a blessing from Heaven, that has stood the test of time +[!!], and given us liberty and independence; yet we are impatient to +pull down that fabric which we raised at the expense of our blood." This +was not very convincing to the assembly, most of the members knowing +full well that the fabric had not stood the test of time, but had +already<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_333" id="Page_333">[Pg 333]</a></span> tumbled in by reason of its vicious construction. A more +effective plea was that which referred to the slave-trade. "What cause +is there," said Lowndes, "for jealousy of our importing negroes? Why +confine us to twenty years? Why limit us at all? This trade can be +justified on the principles of religion and humanity. They do not like +our having slaves because they have none themselves, and therefore want +to exclude us from this great advantage." Cotesworth Pinckney replied: +"By this settlement we have secured an unlimited importation of negroes +for twenty years. The general government can never emancipate them, for +no such authority is granted, and it is admitted on all hands that the +general government has no powers but what are expressly granted by the +Constitution. We have obtained a right to recover our slaves in whatever +part of the country they may take refuge, which is a right we had not +before. In short, considering all circumstances, we have made the best +terms in our power for the security of this species of property. We +would have made better if we could; but, on the whole, I do not think +them bad." Perhaps Pinckney would not have assumed exactly this tone at +Philadelphia, but at Charleston the argument was convincing. Lowndes +then sounded the alarm that the New England states would monopolize the +carrying-trade and charge ruinous freights, and he drew a harrowing +picture of warehouses packed to bursting with rice and indigo spoiling +because the owners could not afford to pay the Yankee skippers' prices +for carrying their<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_334" id="Page_334">[Pg 334]</a></span> goods to market. But Pinckney rejoined that a Yankee +shipmaster in quest of cargoes would not be likely to ruin his own +chances for getting them, and he called attention to the great +usefulness of the eastern merchant marine as affording material for a +navy, and thus contributing to the defence of the country. Finally +Lowndes put in a plea for paper money, but with little success. The +result of the debate set the matter so clearly before the people that a +great majority of Federalists were elected to the convention. Among them +were Gadsden, the Rutledges and the Pinckneys, Moultrie, and William +Washington, who had become a citizen of the state from which he had +helped to expel the British invader. The Antifederalists were largely +represented by men from the upland counties, belonging to a population +in which there was considerable likeness all along the Appalachian chain +of mountains, from Pennsylvania to the southern extremity of the range. +There were among them many "moonshiners," as they were +called,—distillers of illicit whiskey,—and they did not relish the +idea of a federal excise. At their head was Thomas Sumter, a convert to +Patrick Henry's scheme for a southern confederacy. Their policy was one +of delay and obstruction, but it availed them little, for on the 23d of +May, after a session of eleven days, South Carolina ratified the +Constitution by a vote of 149 against 73.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Important effect upon Virginia.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">Debates in the Virginia Convention.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">Madison and Marshall prevail and Virginia ratifies, June 25.</div> + +<p>The sound policy of the Federal Convention in adopting the odious +compromise over the slave-trade was now about to bear fruit. In Virginia +there<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_335" id="Page_335">[Pg 335]</a></span> had grown up a party which favoured the establishment of a +separate southern confederacy. By the action of South Carolina all such +schemes were now nipped in the bud. Of the states south of Mason and +Dixon's line, three had now ratified the Constitution, so that any +separate confederacy could now consist only of Virginia and North +Carolina. The reason for this short-lived separatist feeling in Virginia +was to be found in the complications which had grown out of the attempt +of Spain to close the Mississippi River. It will be remembered that only +two years before Jay had actually recommended to Congress that the right +to navigate the lower Mississippi be surrendered for twenty-five years, +in exchange for a favourable commercial treaty with Spain. The New +England states, caring nothing for the distant Mississippi, supported +this measure in Congress; and this narrow and selfish policy naturally +created alarm in Virginia, which, in her district of Kentucky, touched +upon the great river. Thus to the vague dread of the southern states in +general, in the event of New England's controlling the commercial policy +of the government, there was added, in Virginia's case, a specific fear. +If the New England people were thus ready to barter away the vital +interests of a remote part of the country, what might they not do? Would +they ever stop at anything so long as they could go on building up their +commerce? This feeling strongly influenced Patrick Henry in his desire +for a separate confederacy; and we have seen how Randolph and Mason, in +the Federal Convention, were so<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_336" id="Page_336">[Pg 336]</a></span> disturbed at the power given to +Congress to regulate commerce by a simple majority of votes that they +refused to set their names to the Constitution. They alleged further +reasons for their refusal, but this was the chief one. They wanted a two +thirds vote to be required, in order that the south might retain the +means of protecting itself. Under these circumstances the opposition to +the Constitution was very strong, and but for the action of South +Carolina the party in favour of a separate confederacy might have been +capable of doing much mischief. As it was, since that party had actively +intrigued both in South Carolina and Maryland, the ratification of the +Constitution by both these states was a direct rebuff. It quite +demoralized the advocates of secession. The paper-money men, moreover, +were handicapped by the fact that two of the most powerful +Antifederalists, Mason and Lee, were determined opponents of a paper +currency, so that this subject had to be dropped or very gingerly dealt +with. The strength of the Antifederalists, though impaired by these +causes, was still very great. The contest was waged with all the more +intensity of feeling because, since eight states had now adopted the +Constitution, the verdict of Virginia would be decisive. The convention +met at Richmond on the 2d of June, and Edmund Pendleton was chosen +president. Foremost among the Antifederalists was Patrick Henry, whose +eloquence was now as zealously employed against the new government as it +had been in bygone days against the usurpations of Great Britain. He was +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_337" id="Page_337">[Pg 337]</a></span>supported by Mason, Lee, and Grayson, as well as by Benjamin Harrison +and John Tyler, the fathers of two future presidents; and he could count +on the votes of most of the delegates from the midland counties, from +the south bank of the James River, and from Kentucky. But the united +talents of the opposition had no chance of success in a conflict with +the genius and tact of Madison, who at one moment crushed, at another +conciliated, his opponent, but always won the day. To Madison, more than +any other man, the Federalist victory was due. But he was ably seconded +by Governor Randolph, whom he began by winning over from the opposite +party, and by the favourite general and eloquent speaker, "Light-Horse +Harry." Conspicuous in the ranks of Federalists, and unsurpassed in +debate, was a tall and gaunt young man, with beaming countenance, eyes +of piercing brilliancy, and an indescribable kingliness of bearing, who +was by and by to become chief justice of the United States, and by his +masterly and far-reaching decisions to win a place side by side with +Madison and Hamilton among the founders of our national government. John +Marshall, second to none among all the illustrious jurists of the +English race, was then, at the age of thirty-three, the foremost lawyer +in Virginia. He had already served for several terms in the state +legislature, but his national career began in this convention, where his +arguments with those of Madison, reinforcing each other, bore down all +opposition. The details of the controversy were much the same as in the +states already passed in review, save<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_338" id="Page_338">[Pg 338]</a></span> in so far as coloured by the +peculiar circumstances of Virginia. After more than three weeks of +debate, on the 25th of June, the question was put to vote, and the +Constitution was ratified by the narrow majority of 89 against 79. +Amendments were offered, after the example of Massachusetts, which had +already been followed by South Carolina and the minority in Maryland; +and, as in Massachusetts, the defeated Antifederalists announced their +intention to abide loyally by the result.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">New Hampshire had already ratified, June 21.</div> + +<p>The discussion had lasted so long that Virginia lost the distinction of +being the ninth state to ratify the Constitution. That honour had been +reserved for New Hampshire, whose convention had met on the anniversary +of Bunker Hill, and after a four days' session, on the 21st of June, had +given its consent to the new government by a vote of 57 against 46. The +couriers from Virginia and those from New Hampshire, as they spurred +their horses over long miles of dusty road, could shout to each other +the joyous news in passing. Though the ratification of New Hampshire had +secured the necessary ninth state, yet the action of Virginia was not +the less significant and decisive. Virginia was at that time, and for a +quarter of a century afterward, the most populous state in the Union, +and one of the greatest in influence. Even with the needed nine states +all in hand, it is clear that the new government could not have gone +into successful operation with the leading state, the home of Washington +himself, left out in the cold. The New Roof, as men were then fond of +calling the Federal Constitution, must<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_339" id="Page_339">[Pg 339]</a></span> speedily have fallen in without +this indispensable prop. When it was known that Virginia had ratified, +it was felt that the victory was won, and the success of the new scheme +assured. The 4th of July, 1788, witnessed such loud rejoicings as have +perhaps never been seen before or since on American soil. In +Philadelphia there was a procession miles in length, in which every +trade was represented, and wagons laden with implements of industry or +emblematic devices alternated with bands of music and gorgeous banners. +There figured the New Roof, supported by thirteen columns, and there was +to be seen the Ship of State, the good ship Constitution, made out of +the barge which Paul Jones had taken from the shattered and +blood-stained Serapis, after his terrible fight. As for the old scow +Confederacy, Imbecility master, it was proclaimed she had foundered at +sea, and "the sloop Anarchy, when last heard from, was ashore on Union +Rocks." All over the country there were processions and bonfires, and in +some towns there were riots. In Providence the Federalists prepared a +barbecue of oxen roasted whole, but a mob of farmers, led by three +members of the state legislature, attempted to disperse them, and were +with some difficulty pacified. In Albany the Antifederalists publicly +burned the Constitution, whereupon a party of Federalists brought out +another copy of it, and nailed it to the top of a pole, which they +planted defiantly amid the ashes of the fire their opponents had made. +Out of these proceedings there grew a riot, in which knives were drawn, +stones were thrown, and blood was shed.</p> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_340" id="Page_340">[Pg 340]</a></span></p><div class="sidenote">The struggle in New York.</div> + +<div class="sidenote">The "Federalist."</div> + +<p>Such incidents might have served to remind one that the end had not yet +come. The difficulties were not yet surmounted, and the rejoicing was in +some respects premature. It was now settled that the new government was +to go into operation, but how it was going to be able to get along +without the adhesion of New York it was not easy to see. It is true that +New York then ranked only as fifth among the states in population, but +commercially and militarily she was the centre of the Union. She not +only touched at once on the ocean and the lakes, but she separated New +England from the rest of the country. It was rightly felt that the Union +could never be cemented without this central state. So strongly were +people impressed with this feeling that some went so far as to threaten +violence. It was said that if New York did not come into the Union +peacefully and of her own accord, she should be conquered and dragged +in. That she would come in peacefully seemed at first very improbable. +When the state convention assembled at Poughkeepsie, on the 17th of +June, more than two thirds of its members were avowed Antifederalists. +At their head was the governor, George Clinton, hard-headed and +resolute, the bitterest hater of the Constitution that could be found +anywhere in the thirteen states. Foremost among his supporters were +Yates and Lansing, with Melanchthon Smith, a man familiar with political +history, and one of the ablest debaters in the country. On the +Federalist side were such eminent men as Livingston and Jay; but the +herculean task of vanquishing this great<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_341" id="Page_341">[Pg 341]</a></span> hostile majority, and +converting it by sheer dint of argument into a majority on the right +side, fell chiefly upon the shoulders of one man. But for Alexander +Hamilton the decision of New York would unquestionably have been adverse +to the Constitution. Nay, more, it is very improbable that, but for him, +the good work would have made such progress as it had in the other +states. To get the people to adopt the Constitution, it was above all +things needful that its practical working should be expounded, in +language such as every one could understand, by some writer endowed in +the highest degree with political intelligence and foresight. Upon their +return from the Federal Convention, Yates and Lansing had done all in +their power to bring its proceedings into ill-repute. Pamphlets and +broadsides were scattered right and left. The Constitution was called +the "triple-headed monster," and declared to be "as deep and wicked a +conspiracy as ever was invented in the darkest ages against the +liberties of a free people." It soon occurred to Hamilton that it would +be well worth while to explain the meaning of all parts of the +Constitution in a series of short, incisive essays. He communicated his +plan to Madison and Jay, who joined him in the work, and the result was +the "Federalist," perhaps the most famous of American books, and +undoubtedly the most profound and suggestive treatise on government that +has ever been written. Of the eighty-five numbers originally published +in the "Independent Gazetteer," under the common signature of "Publius," +Jay wrote five, Madison<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_342" id="Page_342">[Pg 342]</a></span> twenty-nine, and Hamilton fifty-one. Jay's +papers related chiefly to diplomatic points, with which his experience +abroad had fitted him to deal. The first number was written by Hamilton +in the cabin of a sloop on the Hudson, in October, 1787; and they +continued to appear, sometimes as often as three or four in a week, +through the winter and spring. Madison would have contributed a larger +share than he did had he not been called early in March to Virginia to +fight the battle of the Constitution in that state. The essays were +widely and eagerly read, and probably accomplished more toward insuring +the adoption of the Constitution than anything else that was said or +done in that eventful year. They were hastily written,—struck out at +white heat by men full of their subject. Doubtless the authors did not +realize the grandeur of the literary work they were doing, and among the +men of the time there were few who foresaw the immortal fame which these +essays were to earn. It is said of one of the senators in the first +Congress that he made the memorandum, "Get the 'Federalist,' if I can, +without buying it. It isn't worth it." But for all posterity the +"Federalist" must remain the most authoritative commentary upon the +Constitution that can be found; for it is the joint work of the +principal author of that Constitution and of its most brilliant +advocate.</p> + +<p>In nothing could the flexibleness of Hamilton's intellect, or the +genuineness of his patriotism, have been more finely shown than in the +hearty zeal and transcendent ability with which he now wrote in defence +of a plan of government so different from<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_343" id="Page_343">[Pg 343]</a></span> what he would himself have +proposed. He made Madison's thoughts his own, until he set them forth +with even greater force than Madison himself could command. Yet no +arguments could possibly be less chargeable with partisanship than the +arguments of the "Federalist." The judgment is as dispassionate as could +be shown in a philosophical treatise. The tone is one of grave and lofty +eloquence, apt to move even to tears the reader who is fully alive to +the stupendous issues that were involved in the discussion. Hamilton was +supremely endowed with the faculty of imagining, with all the +circumstantial minuteness of concrete reality, political situations +different from those directly before him; and he put this rare power to +noble use in tracing out the natural and legitimate working of such a +Constitution as that which the Federal Convention had framed.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Hamilton wins the victory, and New York ratifies, July 26.</div> + +<p>When it came to defending the Constitution before the hostile convention +at Poughkeepsie, he had before him as arduous a task as ever fell to the +lot of a parliamentary debater. It was a case where political management +was out of the question. The opposition were too numerous to be +silenced, or cajoled, or bargained with. They must be converted. With an +eloquence scarcely equalled before or since in America until Webster's +voice was heard, Hamilton argued week after week, till at last +Melanchthon Smith, the foremost debater of Clinton's party, broke away, +and came to the Federalist side. It was like crushing the centre of a +hostile army. After this the Antifederalist forces were confused and +easily routed. The <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_344" id="Page_344">[Pg 344]</a></span>decisive struggle was over the question whether New +York could ratify the Constitution conditionally, reserving to herself +the right to withdraw from the Union in case the amendments upon which +she had set her heart should not be adopted. Upon this point Hamilton +reinforced himself with the advice of Madison, who had just returned to +New York. Could a state once adopt the Constitution, and then withdraw +from the Union if not satisfied? Madison's reply was prompt and +decisive. No, such a thing could never be done. A state which had once +ratified was in the federal bond forever. The Constitution could not +provide for nor contemplate its own overthrow. There could be no such +thing as a constitutional right of secession. When Melanchthon Smith +deserted the Antifederalists on this point, the victory was won, and on +the 26th of July, New York ratified the Constitution by the bare +majority of 30 votes against 27. Rejoicings were now renewed throughout +the country. In the city of New York there was an immense parade, and as +the emblematic federal ship was drawn through the streets, with +Hamilton's name emblazoned on her side, it was doubtless the proudest +moment of the young statesman's life.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">The laggard states, North Carolina and Rhode Island.</div> + +<p>New York, however, dogged her acceptance by proposing, a few days +afterward, that a second Federal Convention be called for considering +the amendments suggested by the various states. The proposal was +supported by the Virginia legislature, but Massachusetts and +Pennsylvania opposed it, as having a dangerous tendency to reopen the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_345" id="Page_345">[Pg 345]</a></span> +whole discussion and unsettle everything. The proposal fell to the +ground. People were weary of the long dispute, and turned their +attention to electing representatives to the first Congress. With the +adhesion of New York all serious anxiety came to an end. The new +government could be put in operation without waiting for North Carolina +and Rhode Island to make up their minds. The North Carolina convention +met on the 21st of July, and adjourned on the 1st of August without +coming to any decision. The same objections were raised as in Virginia; +and besides, the paper-money party was here much stronger than in the +neighbouring state. In Rhode Island paper money was the chief +difficulty; that state did not even take the trouble to call a +convention. It was not until the 21st of November, 1789, after +Washington's government had been several months in operation, that North +Carolina joined the Federal Union. Rhode Island did not join till the +29th of May, 1790. If she had waited but a few months longer, Vermont, +the first state not of the original thirteen, would have come in before +her.</p> + +<p>The autumn of 1788 was a season of busy but peaceful electioneering. +That remarkable body, the Continental Congress, in putting an end to its +troubled existence, decreed that presidential electors should be chosen +on the first Wednesday of January, 1789, that the 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<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_346" id="Page_346">[Pg 346]</a></span> Wednesday in March. This latter day fell, in 1789, on the 4th of +the month, and accordingly, three years afterward, Congress took it for +a precedent, and decreed that thereafter each new administration should +begin on the 4th of March. It was further decided, after some warm +debate, that until the site for the proposed federal city could be +selected and built upon, the seat of the new government should be the +city of New York.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">First presidential election, Jan. 7, 1789.</div> + +<p>In accordance with these decrees, presidential elections were held on +the first Wednesday in January. The Antifederalists were still potent +for mischief in New York, with the result that, just as that state had +not joined in the Declaration of Independence until after it had been +proclaimed to the world, and just as she refused to adopt the Federal +Constitution until after more than the requisite number of states had +ratified it, so now she failed to choose electors, and had nothing to do +with the vote that made Washington our first president. The other ten +states that had ratified the Constitution all chose electors. But things +moved slowly and cumbrously at this first assembling of the new +government. The House of Representatives did not succeed in getting a +quorum together until the 1st of April. On the 6th, the Senate chose +John Langdon for its president, and the two houses in concert counted +the electoral votes. There were 69 in all, and every one of the 69 was +found to be for George Washington of Virginia. For the second name on +the list there was nothing like such unanimity. It was to be expected +that the other name would<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_347" id="Page_347">[Pg 347]</a></span> be that of a citizen of Massachusetts, as the +other leading state in the Union. The two foremost citizens of +Massachusetts bore the same name, and were cousins. There would have +been most striking poetic justice in coupling with the name of +Washington that of Samuel Adams, since these two men had been +indisputably foremost in the work of achieving the independence of the +United States. But for the hesitancy of Samuel Adams in indorsing the +Federal Constitution, he would very likely have been our first +vice-president and our second president. But the wave of federalism had +now begun to sweep strongly over Massachusetts, carrying everything +before it, and none but the most ardent Federalists had a chance to meet +in the electoral college. Voices were raised in behalf of Samuel Adams. +While we honour the American Fabius, it was said, let us not forget the +American Cato. It was urged by some, with much truth, that but for his +wise and cautious action in the Massachusetts convention, the good ship +Constitution would have been fatally wrecked upon the reefs of Shaysism. +His course had not been that of an obstructionist, like that of his old +friends Henry and Lee and Gerry; but at the critical moment—one of the +most critical in all that wonderful crisis—he had thrown his vast +influence, with decisive effect, upon the right side. All this is plain +enough to the historian of to-day. But in the political fervour of the +election of 1789, the fact most clearly visible to men was that Samuel +Adams had hesitated, and perhaps made things wait. These points came out +most distinctly on<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_348" id="Page_348">[Pg 348]</a></span> the issue of his election to the Federal Congress, +in which he was defeated by the youthful Fisher Ames, whose eloquence in +the state convention had been so conspicuous and useful; but they serve +to explain thoroughly why he was not put upon the presidential list +along with Washington. His cousin, John Adams, had just returned from +his mission to England, weary and disgusted with the scanty respect +which he had been able to secure for a feeble league of states that +could not make good its own promises. His services during the Revolution +had been of the most splendid sort: and after Washington, he was the +second choice of the electoral college, receiving 34 votes, while John +Jay of New York, his nearest competitor, received only 9. John Adams was +accordingly declared vice-president.</p> + +<div class="sidenote">Inauguration of Washington, April 30.</div> + +<p>On the 14th of April Washington was informed of his election, and on the +next day but one he bid adieu again to his beloved home at Mount Vernon, +where he had hoped to pass the remainder of his days in that rural peace +and quiet for which no one yearns like the man who is burdened with +greatness and fame unsought for. The position to which he was summoned +was one of unparalleled splendour,—how splendid we can now realize much +better than he, and our grandchildren will realize it better than +we,—the position of first ruler of what was soon to become at once the +strongest and the most peace-loving people upon the face of the earth. +As he journeyed toward New York, his thoughts must have been busy with +the arduous problems of the time. Already, <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_349" id="Page_349">[Pg 349]</a></span>doubtless, he had marked out +the two great men, Jefferson and Hamilton, for his chief advisers: the +one to place us in a proper attitude before the mocking nations of +Europe; the other to restore our shattered credit, and enlist the +moneyed interests of all the states in the success of the Federal Union. +Washington's temperament was a hopeful one, as befitted a man of his +strength and dash. But in his most hopeful mood he could hardly have +dared to count upon such a sudden and wonderful demonstration of +national strength as was about to ensue upon the heroic financial +measures of Hamilton. His meditations on this journey we may well +believe to have been solemn and anxious enough. But if he could gather +added courage from the often-declared trust of his fellow-countrymen, +there was no lack of such comfort for him. At every town through which +he passed, fresh evidences of it were gathered, but at one point on the +route his strong nature was especially wrought upon. At Trenton, as he +crossed the bridge over the Assunpink Creek, where twelve years ago, at +the darkest moment of the Revolution, he had outwitted Cornwallis in the +most skilful of stratagems, and turned threatening defeat into glorious +victory,—at this spot, so fraught with thrilling associations, he was +met by a party of maidens dressed in white, who strewed his path with +sweet spring flowers, while triumphal arches in softest green bore +inscriptions declaring that he who had watched over the safety of the +mothers could well be trusted to protect the daughters. On the 23d he +arrived in New York, and was entertained at dinner by Governor Clinton.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_350" id="Page_350">[Pg 350]</a></span> +One week later, on the 30th, came the inauguration. It was one of those +magnificent days of clearest sunshine that sometimes make one feel in +April as if summer had come. At noon of that day Washington went from +his lodgings, attended by a military escort, to Federal Hall, at the +corner of Wall and Nassau streets, where his statue has lately been +erected. The city was ablaze with excitement. A sea of upturned eager +faces surrounded the spot, and as the hero appeared thousands of cocked +hats were waved, while ladies fluttered their white handkerchiefs. +Washington came forth clad in a suit of dark brown cloth of American +make, with white silk hose and shoes decorated with silver buckles, +while at his side hung a dress-sword. For a moment all were hushed in +deepest silence, while the secretary of the Senate held forth the Bible +upon a velvet cushion, and Chancellor Livingston administered the oath +of office. Then, before Washington had as yet raised his head, +Livingston shouted,—and from all the vast company came answering +shouts,—"Long live George Washington, President of the United States!"</p> + + + +<hr /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_351" id="Page_351">[Pg 351]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="BIBLIOGRAPHICAL_NOTE" id="BIBLIOGRAPHICAL_NOTE"></a>BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE.</h2> + + +<p><span class="smcap">The</span> bibliography of the period covered in this book is most copiously +and thoroughly treated in the seventh volume of Winsor's <i>Narrative and +Critical History of America</i>, Boston, 1888. For the benefit of the +reader who may not have ready access to that vast storehouse of +information, the following brief notes may be of service.</p> + +<p>The best account of the peace negotiations is to be found in chapter ii. +of Winsor's volume just cited, written by Hon. John Jay, who had already +discussed the subject quite thoroughly in his <i>Address before the New +York Historical Society on its Seventy-Ninth Anniversary</i>, Nov. 27, +1883. Of the highest value are Lord Edmond Fitzmaurice's <i>Life of Lord +Shelburne</i>, 3 vols., London, 1875–76, and Adolphe de Circourt, <i>Histoire +de l'action commune de la France et de l'Amérique, etc.</i>, tome iii., +<i>Documents originaux inédits</i>, Paris, 1876. See also Sparks, <i>Diplomatic +Correspondence of the American Revolution</i>, 12 vols., Boston, 1829–30; +Trescot's <i>Diplomacy of the American Revolution</i>, N.Y., 1852; Lyman's +<i>Diplomacy of the United States</i>, Boston, 1826; Elliot's <i>American +Diplomatic Code</i>, 2 vols., Washington, 1834; Chalmers's <i>Collection of +Treaties</i>, 2 vols., London, 1790; Lord Stanhope's <i>History of England</i>, +vol. vii., London, 1853; Lecky's <i>History of England</i>, vol. iv., London, +1882; Lord John Russell's <i>Memorials of Fox</i>, 4 vols., London, 1853–57; +Albemarle's <i>Rockingham and his Contemporaries</i>, 2 vols., London, 1852; +Walpole's <i>Last Journals</i>, 2 vols., London, 1859; Force's <i>American +Archives</i>, 4th series, 6 vols., Washington, 1839–46; John Adams's +<i>Works</i>, 10 vols., Boston, 1850–56; Rives's <i>Life of Madison</i>, 3 vols., +Boston, 1859–68; Madison's <i>Letters and other Writings</i>, 4 vols., +Phila., 1865; the lives of Franklin,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_352" id="Page_352">[Pg 352]</a></span> by Bigelow and Parton; the lives +of Jay, by Jay, Flanders, and Whitelocke; Morse's <i>John Adams</i>, Boston, +1885; <i>Correspondence of George III. with Lord North</i>, 2 vols., London, +1867; Wharton's <i>Digest of International Law</i>, Washington, 1887, +<i>Appendix</i> to vol. iii.; Hale's <i>Franklin in France</i>, 2 vols., Boston, +1888. The view of the treaty set forth in 1830 by Sparks, according to +which Jay and Adams were quite mistaken in their suspicions of the +French court, we may now regard as disposed of by the evidence presented +by Circourt and Fitzmaurice. It has led many writers astray, and even +with all the lights which Mr. Bancroft has had, the account in the last +revision of his <i>History of the United States</i>, vol. v., N.Y., 1886, +though in some respects one of the best to be found in the general +histories, still leaves much to be desired.</p> + +<p>The general condition of the United States under the articles of +confederation is well sketched in the sixth volume of Bancroft's final +revision, and in Curtis's <i>History of the Constitution</i>, 2 vols., N.Y., +1861. An excellent summary is given in the first volume of Schouler's +<i>History of the United States under the Constitution</i>, of which vols, +i.-iii. (Washington, 1882–85) have appeared. Mr. Schouler's book is +suggestive and stimulating. The work most rich in details is Professor +McMaster's <i>History of the People of the United States</i>, of which the +first volume rather more than covers the period 1783–89. The author is +especially deserving of praise for the diligence with which he has +searched the newspapers and obscure pamphlets of the period. He has thus +given much fresh life to the narrative, besides throwing valuable light +upon the thoughts and feelings of the men who lived under the "league of +friendship." I take pleasure in acknowledging my indebtedness to +Professor McMaster for several interesting illustrative details, chiefly +in my third, fourth, and seventh chapters. At the same time one is +sorely puzzled at some of his omissions, as in the account of the +Federal Convention, in which one finds no allusion whatever to the +all-important question of the representation of slaves, or to the +compromise by which New England secured to Congress full power to +regulate <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_353" id="Page_353">[Pg 353]</a></span>commerce by yielding to Georgia and South Carolina in the +matter of the African slave-trade. So the discussion as to the national +executive is carried on till July 26th, when it was decided that the +president should be chosen by Congress for a single term of seven years; +then the subject is dropped, and the reader is left to suppose that such +was the final arrangement. Instances of what seems like carelessness are +sufficiently numerous to make the book in some places an unsafe guide to +the general reader, but in spite of such defects, which a careful +revision might remedy, its value is great. Further general information +as to the period of the Confederation may be found in Morse's admirable +<i>Life of Alexander Hamilton</i>, 3d ed., 2 vols., Boston, 1882; J.C. +Hamilton's <i>Republic of the United States</i>, 7 vols., Boston, 1879; +Frothingham's <i>Rise of the Republic</i>, Boston, 1872, chapter xii.; Von +Holst's <i>Constitutional History</i>, 5 vols., Chicago, 1877–85, chapter i.; +Pitkin's <i>History of the United States</i>, 2 vols., New Haven, 1828, vol. +ii.; Marshall's <i>Life of Washington</i>, 5 vols., Phila., 1805–07; +<i>Journals of Congress</i>, 13 vols., Phila., 1800; <i>Secret Journals of +Congress</i>, 4 vols., Boston, 1820–21.</p> + +<p>On the loyalists and their treatment, the able essay by Rev. G.E. Ellis, +in Winsor's seventh volume, is especially rich in bibliographical +references. See also Sabine's <i>Loyalists of the American Revolution</i>, 2 +vols., Boston, 1864; Ryerson's <i>Loyalists of America</i>, 2 vols., Toronto, +1880; Jones's <i>New York during the Revolution</i>, 2 vols., N.Y., 1879. +Although chiefly concerned with events earlier than 1780, the <i>Journal +and Letters of Samuel Curwen</i>, 4th ed., Boston, 1864, and especially the +<i>Diary and Letters of Thomas Hutchinson</i>, 2 vols., Boston, 1884–86, are +valuable in this connection.</p> + +<p>For the financial troubles the most convenient general survey is to be +found in A.S. Bolles's <i>Financial History of the United States</i>, +1774–1789, N.Y., 1879; Sparks's <i>Life of Gouverneur Morris</i>, 3 vols., +Boston, 1832; Pelatiah Webster's <i>Political Essays</i>, Phila., 1791; +Phillips's <i>Colonial and Continental Paper Currency</i>, 2 vols., Roxbury, +1865–66; Varnum's <i>Case of Trevett v. Weeden</i>, Providence, 1787; +Arnold's <i>History of Rhode Island</i>, 2 vols., N.Y., 1859–60. The best<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_354" id="Page_354">[Pg 354]</a></span> +account of the Shays rebellion is G.R. Minot's <i>History of the +Insurrections in Massachusetts</i>, Worcester, 1788; see also Barry's +<i>History of Massachusetts</i>, 3 vols., Boston, 1855–57; Austin's <i>Life of +Gerry</i>, 2 vols., Boston, 1828–29. A new and interesting account of the +northwestern cessions and the Ordinance of 1787 is B.A. Hinsdale's <i>Old +Northwest</i>, N.Y., 1888; see also Dunn's <i>Indiana</i>, Boston, 1888; +Cutler's <i>Life, Journal, and Correspondence of Manasseh Cutler</i>, 2 +vols., Cincinnati, 1887.</p> + +<p>In the <i>Johns Hopkins University Studies in Historical and Political +Science</i>, the following articles bear especially upon subjects here +treated and are worthy of careful study: II., v., vi., H.C. Adams, +<i>Taxation in the United States</i>, 1789–1816; III., i., H.B. Adams, +<i>Maryland's Influence upon Land Cessions to the United States</i>; III., +ix., x., Davis, <i>American Constitutions</i>; IV., v., Jameson's +<i>Introduction to the Constitutional and Political History of the +Individual States</i>; IV., vii.-ix., Shoshuke Sato's <i>History of the Land +Question in the United States</i>.</p> + +<p>For the proceedings of the Federal Convention in framing the +Constitution, and of the several state conventions in ratifying it, the +great treasure-house of authoritative information is Elliot's <i>Debates +in the Conventions</i>, 5 vols., originally published under the sanction of +Congress in 1830–45; new reprint, Phila., 1888. The contents of the +volumes are as follows:—</p> + +<div class="blockquot"><p>I. Sundry preliminary papers, relating to the ante-revolutionary +period, and the period of the Confederation; journal of the Federal +Convention; Yates's minutes of the proceedings; the official +letters of Martin, Yates, Lansing, Randolph, Mason, and Gerry, in +explanation of their several courses; Jay's address to the people +of New York; and other illustrative papers.</p> + +<p>II, III., IV. Proceedings of the several state conventions; with +other documents, including the Virginia and Kentucky resolutions of +1798, and data relating thereto.</p> + +<p>V. Madison's journal of debates in the Congress of the +Confederation, Nov. 4, 1782–June 21, 1783, and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_355" id="Page_355">[Pg 355]</a></span> Feb. 19–April 25, +1787; Madison's journal of the Federal Convention; letters from +Madison to Washington, Jefferson, and Randolph, Sept. 1787–Nov. +1788; and other papers. </p></div> + +<p>The best edition of the "Federalist" is by H.C. Lodge, N.Y., 1888. See +also Story's <i>Commentaries on the Constitution</i>, 4th ed., 3 vols., +Boston, 1873; the works of Daniel Webster, 6 vols., Boston, 1851; Hurd's +<i>Theory of our National Existence</i>, Boston, 1881. The above works +expound the Constitution as not a league between sovereign states but a +fundamental law ordained by the people of the United States. The +opposite view is presented in <i>The Republic of Republics</i>, by P.C. Centz +[Plain Common Sense, pseudonym of B.J. Sage of New Orleans], Boston, +1881; the works of Calhoun, 6 vols., N.Y., 1853–55; A.H. Stephens's <i>War +between the States</i>, 2 vols., Phila., 1868; Jefferson Davis's <i>Rise and +Fall of the Confederate Government</i>, 2 vols., N.Y., 1881.</p> + +<p>Several volumes of the "American Statesmen" contain interesting accounts +of discussions in the various conventions, as Tyler's <i>Patrick Henry</i>, +Hosmer's <i>Samuel Adams</i>, Lodge's <i>Hamilton</i>, Magruder's <i>Marshall</i>, +Roosevelt's <i>Morris</i>. Gay's <i>Madison</i> falls far below the general +standard of this excellent and popular series. No satisfactory biography +of Madison has yet been written, though the voluminous work of W.C. +Rives contains much good material. For judicial interpretations of the +Constitution one may consult B.R. Curtis's <i>Digest of Decisions</i>, +1790–1854; Flanders's <i>Lives of the Chief Justices</i>, Phila., 1858; +Marshall's <i>Writings on the Federal Constitution</i>, ed. Perkins, Boston, +1839; see also Pomeroy's <i>Constitutional Law</i>, N.Y., 1868; Wharton's +<i>Commentaries</i>, Phila., 1884; Von Holst's <i>Calhoun</i>, Boston, 1882; +Tyler's <i>Letters and Times of the Tylers</i>, 2 vols., Richmond, 1884–85. +Among critical and theoretical works, Fisher's <i>Trial of the +Constitution</i>, Phila., 1862, and Lockwood's <i>Abolition of the +Presidency</i>, N.Y., 1884, are variously suggestive; Woodrow Wilson's +<i>Congressional Government</i>, Boston, 1885, is a work of rare ability, +pointing out the divergence which has arisen between the literary theory +of our government and its practical working. Walter Bagehot's <i>English +Constitution</i>,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_356" id="Page_356">[Pg 356]</a></span> revised ed., Boston, 1873, had already, in a most +profound and masterly fashion, exhibited the divergence between the +literary theory and the actual working of the British government. Some +points of weakness in the British system are touched in Albert +Stickney's <i>True Republic</i>, N.Y., 1879; see also his <i>Democratic +Government</i>, N.Y., 1885. The constitutional history of England is +presented, in its earlier stages, with prodigious learning, by Dr. +Stubbs, 3 vols., London, 1873–78, and in its later stages by Hallam, 2 +vols., London, 1842, and Sir Erskine May, 2 vols., Boston, 1862–63; see +also Freeman's <i>Growth of the English Constitution</i>, London, 1872; +<i>Comparative Politics</i>, London, 1873; <i>Some Impressions of the United +States</i>, London, 1883; Rudolph Gneist, <i>History of the English +Constitution</i>, 2 vols., London, 1886; J.S. Mill, <i>Representative +Government</i>, N.Y., 1862; Sir H. Maine, <i>Popular Government</i>, N.Y., 1886; +S.R. Gardiner's <i>Introduction to the Study of English History</i>, London, +1881. In this connection I may refer to my own book, <i>American Political +Ideas</i>, N.Y., 1885; and my articles, "Great Britain," "House of Lords," +and "House of Commons," in Lalor's <i>Cyclopædia of Political Science</i>, 3 +vols., Chicago, 1882–84. It is always pleasant to refer to that +cyclopædia, because it contains the numerous articles on American +history by Prof. Alexander Johnston. One must stop somewhere, and I will +conclude by saying that I do not know where one can find anything more +richly suggestive than Professor Johnston's articles.</p> + + + +<hr /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_357" id="Page_357">[Pg 357]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="MEMBERS_OF_THE_FEDERAL_CONVENTION" id="MEMBERS_OF_THE_FEDERAL_CONVENTION"></a>MEMBERS OF THE FEDERAL CONVENTION.</h2> + + +<p><span class="smcap">The</span> names of those who for various reasons were absent when the +Constitution was signed are given in italics; the names of those who +were present, but refused to sign, are given in small capitals.</p> + + + +<div class='center'> +<table border="0" width="50%" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="Constitution Signatures"> +<tr> + <td align='left'>New Hampshire</td> + <td align='left'>John Langdon.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Nicholas Gilman.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Massachusetts</td> + <td align='left'><span class="smcap">Elbridge Gerry.</span></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Nathaniel Gorham.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Rufus King.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'><i>Caleb Strong.</i></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Connecticut</td> + <td align='left'>William Samuel Johnson.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Roger Sherman.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'><i>Oliver Ellsworth.</i></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>New York</td> + <td align='left'><i>Robert Yates.</i></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Alexander Hamilton.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'><i>John Lansing.</i></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>New Jersey</td> + <td align='left'>William Livingston.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>David Brearley.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'><i>William Churchill Houston.</i></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>William Paterson.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Jonathan Dayton.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Pennsylvania</td> + <td align='left'>Benjamin Franklin.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Thomas Mifflin.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Robert Morris.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>George Clymer.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Thomas Fitzsimmons.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Jared Ingersoll.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>James Wilson.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Gouverneur Morris.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Delaware</td> + <td align='left'>George Read.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Gunning Bedford.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>John Dickinson.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Richard Bassett.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Jacob Broom.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Maryland</td> + <td align='left'>James McHenry.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> + </td><td align='left'>Daniel Carroll.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'><i>John Francis Mercer.</i></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'><i>Luther Martin.</i></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Virginia</td> + <td align='left'>George Washington.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'><span class="smcap">Edmund Randolph.</span></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>John Blair.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>James Madison.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'><span class="smcap">George Mason.</span></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'><i>George Wythe.</i></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'><i>James McClurg.</i></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>North Carolina</td> + <td align='left'><i>Alexander Martin.</i></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'><i>William Richardson Davie.</i></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>William Blount.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Richard Dobbs Spaight.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Hugh Williamson.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>South Carolina</td> + <td align='left'>John Rutledge.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Charles Cotesworth Pinckney.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Charles Pinckney.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Pierce Butler.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Georgia</td> + <td align='left'>William Few.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Abraham Baldwin.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'><i>William Pierce.</i></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'><i>William Houstoun.</i></td> +</tr> +</table></div> + + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_358" id="Page_358">[Pg 358]</a></span>Of those who signed their names to the Federal Constitution, the six +following were signers of the Declaration of Independence:—</p> + + +<div class='center'> +<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="Constitution and +Declaration of Independence Signatures."> +<tr><td align='left'>Roger Sherman,</td></tr> +<tr><td align='left'>Benjamin Franklin,</td></tr> +<tr><td align='left'>Robert Morris,</td></tr> +<tr><td align='left'>George Clymer,</td></tr> +<tr><td align='left'>James Wilson,</td></tr> +<tr><td align='left'>George Read.</td></tr> +</table></div> + +<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_359" id="Page_359">[Pg 359]</a></span></p><p>The ten following were appointed as delegates to the Federal +Convention, but never took their seats:—</p> + + +<div class='center'> +<table border="0" width="50%" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="Delegates of the Federal Convention."> +<tr> + <td align='left'>New Hampshire</td> + <td align='left'>John Pickering.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Benjamin West.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Massachusetts</td> + <td align='left'>Francis Dana.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>New Jersey</td> + <td align='left'>John Nelson.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Abraham Clark.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Virginia</td> + <td align='left'>Patrick Henry (declined).</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>North Carolina</td> + <td align='left'>Richard Caswell (resigned).</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Willie Jones (declined).</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Georgia</td> + <td align='left'>George Walton.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Nathaniel Pendleton.</td> +</tr> +</table></div> + +<p>No delegates were appointed by Rhode Island. In a letter addressed to +"the Honourable the Chairman of the General Convention," and dated +"Providence, May 11, 1787," several leading citizens of Rhode Island +expressed their regret that their state should not be represented on so +momentous an occasion. At the same time, says the letter, "the result of +your deliberations ... we still hope may finally be approved and adopted +by this state, for which we pledge our influence and best exertions." +The letter was signed by John Brown, Joseph Nightingale, Levi Hall, +Philip Allen, Paul Allen, Jabez Bowen, Nicholas Brown, John Jinkes, +Welcome Arnold, William Russell, Jeremiah Olney, William Barton, and +Thomas Lloyd Halsey. The letter was presented to the Convention on May +28th by Gouverneur Morris, and, "being read, was ordered to lie on the +table for further consideration." See Elliot's <i>Debates</i>, v. 125.</p> + +<p>The Constitution was ratified by the thirteen states, as follows:—</p> + + +<div class='center'> +<table border="0" width="50%" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="Constitution Ratification Dates."> +<tr> + <td align='right'>1.</td> + <td align='left'>Delaware</td> + <td align='left'>Dec. 6, 1787.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>2.</td> + <td align='left'>Pennsylvania</td> + <td align='left'>Dec. 12, 1787.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>3.</td> + <td align='left'>New Jersey</td> + <td align='left'>Dec. 18, 1787.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>4.</td> + <td align='left'>Georgia</td> + <td align='left'>Jan. 2, 1788.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>5.</td> + <td align='left'>Connecticut</td> + <td align='left'>Jan. 9, 1788.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>6.</td> + <td align='left'>Massachusetts</td> + <td align='left'>Feb. 6, 1788.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>7.</td> + <td align='left'>Maryland</td> + <td align='left'>April 28, 1788.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>8.</td> + <td align='left'>South Carolina</td> + <td align='left'>May 23, 1788.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>9.</td> + <td align='left'>New Hampshire</td> + <td align='left'>June 21, 1788.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>10.</td> + <td align='left'>Virginia</td> + <td align='left'>June 25, 1788.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>11.</td> + <td align='left'>New York</td> + <td align='left'>July 26, 1788.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>12.</td> + <td align='left'>North Carolina</td> + <td align='left'>Nov. 21, 1789.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>13.</td> + <td align='left'>Rhode Island</td> + <td align='left'>May 29, 1790.</td> +</tr> +</table><br /><br /></div> + + +<p class="center"><big>PRESIDENTS OF THE CONTINENTAL CONGRESS.</big></p> + + + +<div class='center'> +<table border="0" width="60%" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="Presidents of the Continental Congress."> +<tr> + <td align='right'>1.</td> + <td align='left'>Peyton Randolph of Virginia</td> + <td align='left'>Sept. 5, 1774.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>2.</td> + <td align='left'>Henry Middleton of South Carolina</td> + <td align='left'>Oct. 22, 1774.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='left'>Peyton Randolph</td> + <td align='left'>May 10, 1775.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>3.</td> + <td align='left'>John Hancock of Massachusetts</td> + <td align='left'>May 24, 1775.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>4.</td> + <td align='left'>Henry Laurens of South Carolina</td> + <td align='left'>Nov. 1, 1777.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>5.</td> + <td align='left'>John Jay of New York</td> + <td align='left'>Dec. 10, 1778.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>6.</td> + <td align='left'>Samuel Huntington of Connecticut</td> + <td align='left'>Sept. 28, 1779.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>7.</td> + <td align='left'>Thomas McKean of Delaware</td> + <td align='left'>July 10, 1781.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>8.</td> + <td align='left'>John Hanson of Maryland</td> + <td align='left'>Nov. 5, 1781.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>9.</td> + <td align='left'>Elias Boudinot of New Jersey</td> + <td align='left'>Nov. 4, 1782.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>10.</td> + <td align='left'>Thomas Mifflin of Pennsylvania</td> + <td align='left'>Nov. 3, 1783.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>11.</td> + <td align='left'>Richard Henry Lee of Virginia</td> + <td align='left'>Nov. 30, 1784.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>12.</td> + <td align='left'>Nathaniel Gorham of Massachusetts</td> + <td align='left'>June 6, 1786.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>13.</td> + <td align='left'>Arthur St. Clair of Pennsylvania</td> + <td align='left'>Feb. 2, 1787.</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='right'>14.</td> + <td align='left'>Cyrus Griffin of Virginia</td> + <td align='left'>Jan. 22, 1788.</td> +</tr> +</table></div> + + + + +<hr style="width: 65%;" /><p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_361" id="Page_361">[Pg 361]</a></span></p> +<h2><a name="INDEX" id="INDEX"></a>INDEX.</h2> + + +<p class="index"> +Acadians, <a href="#Page_205">205</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Adams, Herbert B., <a href="#Page_192">192</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Adams, John, arrives in Paris, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his indignation at the pusillanimous instructions from Congress, <a href="#Page_36">36</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">condemns the Cincinnati, <a href="#Page_116">116</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">tries in vain to negotiate commercial treaty with Great Britain, <a href="#Page_139">139–141</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">negotiates a treaty with Holland, <a href="#Page_155">155</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">obtains a loan there, <a href="#Page_156">156</a>, <a href="#Page_157">157</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his interview with the envoy from Tripoli, <a href="#Page_161">161</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">absent from the United States at the time of the Federal Convention, <a href="#Page_223">223</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">elected vice-president of the United States, <a href="#Page_348">348</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Adams, Samuel, his devotion to local self-government, <a href="#Page_57">57</a>, <a href="#Page_318">318</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his committees of correspondence, <a href="#Page_92">92</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">opposes Washington's proposal for pensioning officers, <a href="#Page_106">106</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">but at length supports the Commutation Act, <a href="#Page_114">114</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">condemns the Cincinnati, <a href="#Page_116">116</a>, <a href="#Page_118">118</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">approves the conduct of the Massachusetts delegates, <a href="#Page_143">143</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">opposes pardoning the ringleaders in the Shays insurrection, <a href="#Page_184">184</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">not a delegate to the Federal Convention, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">"the man of the town meeting," <a href="#Page_318">318</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in the Massachusetts convention, <a href="#Page_324">324</a>, <a href="#Page_326">326–328</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">why not selected for the vice-presidency, <a href="#Page_347">347</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Albany, riot in, <a href="#Page_339">339</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Amendments to Constitution, <a href="#Page_302">302</a>, <a href="#Page_330">330</a>, <a href="#Page_338">338</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ames, Fisher, <a href="#Page_319">319</a>, <a href="#Page_326">326</a>, <a href="#Page_348">348</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Amis, North Carolinian trader, <a href="#Page_210">210</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Amphiktyonic council, <a href="#Page_249">249</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Annapolis convention, <a href="#Page_216">216</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Antagonisms between large and small states, <a href="#Page_244">244–252</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">between east and west, <a href="#Page_255">255</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">between north and south, <a href="#Page_256">256–267</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Antifederalist party, <a href="#Page_309">309</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in Pennsylvania, <a href="#Page_310">310</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in Massachusetts, <a href="#Page_317">317</a>, <a href="#Page_324">324</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in South Carolina, <a href="#Page_334">334</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in Virginia, <a href="#Page_335">335–337</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in New York, <a href="#Page_340">340</a>, <a href="#Page_341">341</a>, <a href="#Page_346">346</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Antipathies between states, <a href="#Page_62">62</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Aranda, Count, his prophecy, <a href="#Page_19">19</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Aristides, pseudonym, <a href="#Page_312">312</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Aristocracy, <a href="#Page_283">283</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Aristotle, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Arkwright, Sir Richard, <a href="#Page_267">267</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Armada, the Invincible, <a href="#Page_235">235</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Armstrong, John, <a href="#Page_109">109</a>, <a href="#Page_150">150</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Army, dread of, <a href="#Page_105">105</a>, <a href="#Page_321">321</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Arnold, Benedict, <a href="#Page_28">28</a>, <a href="#Page_106">106</a>, <a href="#Page_151">151</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Asbury, Francis, <a href="#Page_85">85</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ashburton, Lord, <a href="#Page_5">5</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ashburton treaty, <a href="#Page_26">26</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Assemblies, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Assunpink Creek, <a href="#Page_349">349</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Augustine, <a href="#Page_158">158</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Backus, Rev. Isaac, <a href="#Page_322">322</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bagehot, Walter, <a href="#Page_291">291</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Baldwin, Abraham, <a href="#Page_251">251</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, <a href="#Page_213">213</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Baptists persecuted in Virginia, <a href="#Page_80">80</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Barbary pirates, <a href="#Page_157">157–161</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Barré, Isaac, <a href="#Page_41">41</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bedford, Gunning, <a href="#Page_249">249</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bennington, <a href="#Page_321">321</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bernard, Sir Francis, <a href="#Page_298">298</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Biennial elections, <a href="#Page_327">327</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bill of rights demanded, <a href="#Page_329">329</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Blackstone, Sir William, <a href="#Page_290">290</a>, <a href="#Page_291">291</a>, <a href="#Page_297">297</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bossuet on slavery, <a href="#Page_72">72</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Boston Gazette, quoted, <a href="#Page_328">328</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Boundaries of United States as settled by the treaty, <a href="#Page_25">25</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bowdoin, James, <a href="#Page_143">143</a>, <a href="#Page_180">180–184</a>, <a href="#Page_319">319</a>, <a href="#Page_324">324</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Boyd, Lieutenant, <a href="#Page_122">122</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Braddock, Edward, <a href="#Page_305">305</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bradshaw's Railway Guide, <a href="#Page_171">171</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Brearley, David, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>, <a href="#Page_246">246</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Bribery, charges of, <a href="#Page_328">328</a>.<br /> +<br /> +British army departs, <a href="#Page_51">51</a>.<br /> +<br /> +British Constitution compared with American, <a href="#Page_290">290–298</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Buff and blue colours, <a href="#Page_2">2</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Burgesses, House of, in Virginia, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Burke, Ædanus, <a href="#Page_116">116</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Burke, Edmund, his sympathy with the Americans, <a href="#Page_2">2</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">could not see the need for parliamentary reform, <a href="#Page_6">6</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his invective against Shelburne, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">on the slave-trade, <a href="#Page_72">72</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Butler, Pierce, <a href="#Page_258">258</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_362" id="Page_362">[Pg 362]</a></span>Cabinet, the president's, <a href="#Page_299">299</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cabinet government, growth of, in England, <a href="#Page_296">296</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Camden, Lord, <a href="#Page_5">5</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Canada, Franklin suggests that it should be ceded to the United States, <a href="#Page_9">9</a>, <a href="#Page_14">14</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Carleton, Sir Guy, <a href="#Page_50">50</a>, <a href="#Page_131">131</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Carlisle, Pa., disturbances at, <a href="#Page_315">315</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Carpet-bag governments, <a href="#Page_270">270</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Carr, Dabney, <a href="#Page_92">92</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Carrington, Edward, <a href="#Page_204">204</a>, <a href="#Page_307">307</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Carroll, Daniel, <a href="#Page_228">228</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Carrying trade, <a href="#Page_163">163</a>, <a href="#Page_263">263</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cartwright, Edmund, <a href="#Page_267">267</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Catalonian rebels indemnified, <a href="#Page_29">29</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Catholics in the United States, <a href="#Page_87">87</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cato, pseudonym, <a href="#Page_312">312</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cavendish, Lord John, <a href="#Page_5">5</a>, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Censors, council of, in Pennsylvania, <a href="#Page_150">150</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Centinel, pseudonym, <a href="#Page_313">313</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cervantes, Miguel de, <a href="#Page_159">159</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Charles II., <a href="#Page_29">29</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Chase, Samuel, <a href="#Page_322">322</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Chatham, Lord, <a href="#Page_188">188</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cherry Valley, <a href="#Page_122">122</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, <a href="#Page_213">213</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Chittenden, Thomas, <a href="#Page_121">121</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cincinnati, order of the, <a href="#Page_114">114–118</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cincinnati, the city, original name of, <a href="#Page_197">197</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cincinnatus, pseudonym, <a href="#Page_312">312</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Clan system, <a href="#Page_62">62</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Clergymen in the Massachusetts convention, <a href="#Page_319">319</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">their liberal spirit, <a href="#Page_322">322</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Cleveland, Grover, his tariff message, <a href="#Page_294">294</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Clinton, George, favours persecution of Tories, <a href="#Page_123">123</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">an enemy to closer union of the states, <a href="#Page_145">145</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">defeats impost amendment, <a href="#Page_220">220</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">opposes the Constitution, <a href="#Page_340">340</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">entertains President Washington at dinner, <a href="#Page_350">350</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Clinton, Sir Henry, <a href="#Page_322">322</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Clymer, George, <a href="#Page_311">311</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Coalition ministry, <a href="#Page_38">38–46</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cœur-de-Lion and Saladin, <a href="#Page_161">161</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Coinage, <a href="#Page_165">165</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Coke, Thomas, <a href="#Page_86">86</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Columbia College, <a href="#Page_125">125</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Commerce, control of, given to Congress, <a href="#Page_263">263</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Common law in the United States, <a href="#Page_69">69</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Commons, House of, in England, <a href="#Page_68">68</a>, <a href="#Page_290">290–298</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in North Carolina, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Compromises of the Federal Constitution, <a href="#Page_250">250–267</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Confederation, articles of, <a href="#Page_92">92–98</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Congress, Continental, its instructions to the commissioners at Paris, <a href="#Page_35">35</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">its weakness, <a href="#Page_56">56</a>, <a href="#Page_98">98</a>, <a href="#Page_102">102–113</a>, <a href="#Page_234">234</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">its anomalous character, <a href="#Page_92">92</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">its presidents, <a href="#Page_96">96</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">driven from Philadelphia by drunken soldiers, <a href="#Page_112">112</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">flees to Princeton, <a href="#Page_113">113</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">unable to enforce the provisions of the treaty, <a href="#Page_119">119–131</a>, <a href="#Page_154">154</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">unable to regulate commerce, <a href="#Page_140">140–144</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">afraid to interfere openly in the Shays rebellion, <a href="#Page_185">185</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">passes ordinance for government of northwestern territory, <a href="#Page_203">203–206</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">refuses to recommend a convention for reforming the government, <a href="#Page_218">218</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">reconsiders its refusal, <a href="#Page_221">221</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in some respects a diplomatic rather than a legislative body, <a href="#Page_237">237</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">its migrations, <a href="#Page_271">271</a>, <a href="#Page_306">306</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">debates on the Constitution, <a href="#Page_307">307</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">submits it to the states, <a href="#Page_308">308</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">comes to an end, <a href="#Page_345">345</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Congress, Federal, powers granted to, <a href="#Page_270">270</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">choice of president by, <a href="#Page_282">282–284</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">counting electoral votes in, <a href="#Page_284">284</a>, <a href="#Page_285">285</a>, <a href="#Page_289">289</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Connecticut, government of, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">quarrels with New York and Pennsylvania, <a href="#Page_146">146–151</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">keeps almost entirely clear of paper money, <a href="#Page_172">172</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">western claims of, <a href="#Page_189">189</a>, <a href="#Page_194">194</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">ratifies the Constitution, <a href="#Page_316">316</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Connecticut compromise, the, <a href="#Page_250">250–255</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Conservative character of the American Revolution, <a href="#Page_64">64</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Constitution, emblematic federal ship, <a href="#Page_339">339</a>, <a href="#Page_344">344</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Convention, the Federal, <a href="#Page_154">154</a>, <a href="#Page_222">222–305</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Conway, Gen. Henry, <a href="#Page_5">5</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cooper, Dr. Myles, <a href="#Page_126">126</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cornwallis, Lord, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>, <a href="#Page_51">51</a>, <a href="#Page_349">349</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Council, privy, <a href="#Page_299">299</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cowardice of American politicians, <a href="#Page_231">231</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Crawford, William, <a href="#Page_51">51</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Curtis, B.R., <a href="#Page_276">276</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Cutler, Manasseh, <a href="#Page_203">203</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Dane, Nathan, <a href="#Page_204">204</a>, <a href="#Page_217">217</a>, <a href="#Page_307">307</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dayton, Jonathan, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Debt, imprisonment for, <a href="#Page_173">173</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Debts to British creditors, <a href="#Page_27">27</a>, <a href="#Page_131">131</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Delaware, government of, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">ratifies the Constitution, <a href="#Page_314">314</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Democratic-Republican party, <a href="#Page_309">309</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dickinson, John, <a href="#Page_93">93</a>, <a href="#Page_112">112</a>, <a href="#Page_228">228</a>, <a href="#Page_242">242</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>, <a href="#Page_281">281</a>, <a href="#Page_283">283</a>, <a href="#Page_299">299</a>, <a href="#Page_312">312</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dissolution of Parliament, <a href="#Page_298">298</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dollar, the Spanish, <a href="#Page_165">165</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Dunmore, Lord, <a href="#Page_298">298</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Election by lot, <a href="#Page_281">281</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">first presidential, <a href="#Page_346">346–348</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Electoral college in Maryland, <a href="#Page_66">66</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">device adopted for choosing the president, <a href="#Page_281">281–287</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">its practical working, <a href="#Page_288">288</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Elliot, Sir Gilbert, <a href="#Page_3">3</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ellsworth, Oliver, <a href="#Page_228">228</a>, <a href="#Page_249">249</a>, <a href="#Page_250">250</a>, <a href="#Page_267">267</a>, <a href="#Page_269">269</a>, <a href="#Page_274">274</a>, <a href="#Page_276">276</a>, <a href="#Page_280">280</a>, <a href="#Page_300">300</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Embargo acts, <a href="#Page_142">142</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_363" id="Page_363">[Pg 363]</a></span>Eminent domain, <a href="#Page_194">194</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Episcopal church, <a href="#Page_77">77–85</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Erie Canal, <a href="#Page_212">212</a>, <a href="#Page_228">228</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Executive, federal, <a href="#Page_241">241</a>, <a href="#Page_277">277</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">length of term, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">how elected, <a href="#Page_279">279–285</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">corresponds to sovereign, not to prime minister, <a href="#Page_290">290</a>, <a href="#Page_299">299</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Exports not to be taxed, <a href="#Page_264">264</a>, <a href="#Page_270">270</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +"Federal," the word preferred to "national," <a href="#Page_254">254</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Federal city under federal jurisdiction, <a href="#Page_271">271</a>, <a href="#Page_320">320</a>.<br /> +<br /> +"Federal Farmer" (letters by R.H. Lee), <a href="#Page_314">314</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Federal Street in Boston, <a href="#Page_331">331</a>.<br /> +<br /> +"Federalist," the, <a href="#Page_235">235</a>, <a href="#Page_341">341–343</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Federalist party, <a href="#Page_238">238</a>, <a href="#Page_309">309</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Field, S.J., <a href="#Page_275">275</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Fisheries, question of, <a href="#Page_20">20</a>, <a href="#Page_26">26</a>, <a href="#Page_37">37</a>, <a href="#Page_139">139</a>, <a href="#Page_163">163</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Fitzherbert, Alleyne, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>, <a href="#Page_45">45</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Florida surrendered by Great Britain to Spain, <a href="#Page_37">37</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">disputes about boundary of, <a href="#Page_208">208</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Folkland, <a href="#Page_187">187</a>, <a href="#Page_207">207</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Fox, C.J., his sympathy with the Americans, <a href="#Page_2">2</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">quarrels with Shelburne, <a href="#Page_6">6</a>, <a href="#Page_14">14</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">resigns, <a href="#Page_15">15</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">waywardness of his early career, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">coalition with North, <a href="#Page_38">38–42</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">mistake in opposing a dissolution, <a href="#Page_48">48</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +France, treaty of 1783 with Great Britain, <a href="#Page_37">37</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Franklin, Benjamin, negotiates with Oswald, <a href="#Page_9">9</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">overruled by Jay and Adams, <a href="#Page_23">23</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his arguments against compensating the loyalists, <a href="#Page_30">30</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">ridicules the Cincinnati, <a href="#Page_116">116</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">returns from France, <a href="#Page_138">138</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in the Federal Convention, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>, <a href="#Page_250">250</a>, <a href="#Page_277">277</a>, <a href="#Page_299">299</a>, <a href="#Page_303">303</a>, <a href="#Page_305">305</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">lays the Constitution before the Pennsylvania legislature, <a href="#Page_306">306</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">called a dotard by the Antifederalists, <a href="#Page_313">313</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Franklin, state of, <a href="#Page_200">200</a>, <a href="#Page_209">209</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Frederick the Great, on republics, <a href="#Page_58">58</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Free trade, <a href="#Page_4">4</a>, <a href="#Page_134">134–139</a>.<br /> +<br /> +French army embarks at Boston, <a href="#Page_51">51</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Froissart, <a href="#Page_153">153</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Frontier posts to be surrendered by Great Britain, <a href="#Page_51">51</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">why not surrendered, <a href="#Page_152">152</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Fugitive slaves, <a href="#Page_206">206</a>, <a href="#Page_267">267</a>, <a href="#Page_333">333</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Fur trade, <a href="#Page_132">132</a>, <a href="#Page_164">164</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Gadsden, C., <a href="#Page_122">122</a>, <a href="#Page_334">334</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gallatin, A., <a href="#Page_125">125</a>, <a href="#Page_134">134</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Galloway, Joseph, <a href="#Page_248">248</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gardoqui, Diego, <a href="#Page_209">209</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gates, Horatio, <a href="#Page_108">108–111</a>, <a href="#Page_180">180</a>.<br /> +<br /> +George III. threatens to abdicate, <a href="#Page_3">3</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his disgust at the coalition, <a href="#Page_44">44</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">rebuked by House of Commons, <a href="#Page_46">46</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his personal government overthrown, <a href="#Page_48">48</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">hopes the Americans will repent of their folly, <a href="#Page_58">58</a>, <a href="#Page_141">141</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">resists the movement for abolishing slave-trade, <a href="#Page_72">72</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his personal government, <a href="#Page_297">297</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Georgia takes the lead in making the judiciary elective, <a href="#Page_69">69</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">abandons that evil practice, <a href="#Page_69">69</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">issues paper money, <a href="#Page_169">169</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">ratifies the Constitution, <a href="#Page_316">316</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Germaine, Lord George, <a href="#Page_39">39</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gerry, Elbridge, <a href="#Page_118">118</a>, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>, <a href="#Page_251">251</a>, <a href="#Page_252">252</a>, <a href="#Page_256">256</a>, <a href="#Page_269">269</a>, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>, <a href="#Page_282">282</a>, <a href="#Page_298">298</a>, <a href="#Page_303">303</a>, <a href="#Page_304">304</a>, <a href="#Page_328">328</a>, <a href="#Page_347">347</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gibbon, Edward, <a href="#Page_38">38</a>, <a href="#Page_39">39</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gibraltar, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>, <a href="#Page_36">36</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gladstone, W.E., <a href="#Page_223">223</a>, <a href="#Page_292">292</a>, <a href="#Page_294">294</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gorham, Nathaniel, <a href="#Page_252">252</a>, <a href="#Page_253">253</a>, <a href="#Page_319">319</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Governors, colonial, unpopularity of, <a href="#Page_67">67</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Gower, Lord, <a href="#Page_44">44</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Grafton, Duke of, <a href="#Page_5">5</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Grantham, Lord, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Granville, Lord, <a href="#Page_293">293</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Grasse, Count, defeated by Rodney, <a href="#Page_12">12</a>, <a href="#Page_13">13</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Grayson, William, <a href="#Page_162">162</a>, <a href="#Page_205">205</a>, <a href="#Page_337">337</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Green Dragon tavern, <a href="#Page_327">327</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Greene, Nathanael, <a href="#Page_94">94</a>, <a href="#Page_102">102</a>, <a href="#Page_108">108</a>, <a href="#Page_116">116</a>, <a href="#Page_122">122</a>, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Grenville, Thomas, <a href="#Page_11">11</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Guadaloupe, <a href="#Page_36">36</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Guilford, Earl of, <a href="#Page_44">44</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Half-pay controversy, <a href="#Page_106">106</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hamilton, Alexander, his early life, <a href="#Page_124">124–126</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">attacks the Trespass Act, <a href="#Page_128">128</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">calls for a federal convention, <a href="#Page_217">217</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">advocates the impost amendment, <a href="#Page_220">220</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">in the Federal Convention, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>, <a href="#Page_226">226</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>, <a href="#Page_244">244</a>, <a href="#Page_246">246</a>, <a href="#Page_249">249</a>, <a href="#Page_254">254</a>, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>, <a href="#Page_303">303</a>, <a href="#Page_304">304</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">on inconvertible paper, <a href="#Page_274">274</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">on the electoral college, <a href="#Page_287">287</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">called a boy by the Antifederalists, <a href="#Page_313">313</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">authorship of the "Federalist," <a href="#Page_341">341–343</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">supports the Constitution in the New York convention, <a href="#Page_343">343</a>, <a href="#Page_344">344</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his financial measures, <a href="#Page_349">349</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Hancock, John, <a href="#Page_104">104</a>, <a href="#Page_184">184</a>, <a href="#Page_318">318</a>, <a href="#Page_319">319</a>, <a href="#Page_330">330</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hannibal, <a href="#Page_158">158</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hargreaves, James, <a href="#Page_267">267</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Harrington, James, <a href="#Page_64">64</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Harrison, Benjamin, <a href="#Page_337">337</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hartington, Lord, <a href="#Page_293">293</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hartley, David, <a href="#Page_45">45</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hawks, F.L., <a href="#Page_82">82</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Heath, Gen. William, <a href="#Page_319">319</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Henry, Patrick, <a href="#Page_80">80</a>, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>, <a href="#Page_331">331</a>, <a href="#Page_335">335</a>, <a href="#Page_336">336</a>, <a href="#Page_347">347</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Hint Club, <a href="#Page_169">169</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Impost amendment, <a href="#Page_218">218–240</a>.<br /> +<br /> +India bill, <a href="#Page_46">46</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Insurrections, suppression of, <a href="#Page_269">269</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_364" id="Page_364">[Pg 364]</a></span>Intercitizenship, <a href="#Page_94">94</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Iroquois league, <a href="#Page_190">190</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Irreconcilables in the Federal Convention, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>, <a href="#Page_242">242</a>, <a href="#Page_244">244</a>, <a href="#Page_246">246</a>, <a href="#Page_254">254</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Isolation of states a century ago, <a href="#Page_62">62</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Jay, John, thwarts Vergennes, <a href="#Page_21">21</a>, <a href="#Page_35">35</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">tries to establish free trade between United States and Great Britain, <a href="#Page_26">26</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">condemns persecution of Tories, <a href="#Page_122">122</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">on compensation for slaves, <a href="#Page_132">132</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">consents to the closing of the Mississippi River for twenty-five years, <a href="#Page_210">210</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">why not sent as delegate to Federal Convention, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">supports the Constitution in New York convention, <a href="#Page_340">340</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">contributes articles to the "Federalist," <a href="#Page_341">341</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">receives nine electoral votes for the vice-presidency, <a href="#Page_348">348</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Jefferson, Thomas, opposed to slavery, <a href="#Page_72">72</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">favours religious freedom, <a href="#Page_81">81</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">minister to France, <a href="#Page_138">138</a>, <a href="#Page_155">155</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">assists Gouverneur Morris in arranging our decimal currency, <a href="#Page_166">166</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his plan for the government of the northwestern territory, <a href="#Page_196">196</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">wishes to prohibit slavery in the national domain, <a href="#Page_198">198</a>, <a href="#Page_205">205</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his purchase of Louisiana, <a href="#Page_207">207</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">absent from United States at the time of the Federal Convention, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his faith in the people, <a href="#Page_226">226</a>, <a href="#Page_337">337</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his opinion of the Constitution, <a href="#Page_309">309</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">approves the action of the Massachusetts convention, <a href="#Page_331">331</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Johnson, W.S., <a href="#Page_229">229</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Johnston, Alexander, <a href="#Page_223">223</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Jones, Paul, <a href="#Page_339">339</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Jonesborough, convention at, <a href="#Page_200">200</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Judiciary, elective, <a href="#Page_69">69</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">federal, <a href="#Page_242">242</a>, <a href="#Page_300">300</a>, <a href="#Page_301">301</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Juilliard <i>vs.</i> Greenman, <a href="#Page_275">275</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Kentucky, <a href="#Page_18">18</a>, <a href="#Page_189">189</a>, <a href="#Page_199">199</a>, <a href="#Page_202">202</a>, <a href="#Page_209">209</a>, <a href="#Page_210">210</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Keppel, Lord, <a href="#Page_5">5</a>, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>, <a href="#Page_45">45</a>.<br /> +<br /> +King, Rufus, <a href="#Page_217">217</a>, <a href="#Page_221">221</a>, <a href="#Page_228">228</a>, <a href="#Page_246">246</a>, <a href="#Page_249">249</a>, <a href="#Page_250">250</a>, <a href="#Page_256">256</a>, <a href="#Page_261">261</a>, <a href="#Page_276">276</a>, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>, <a href="#Page_282">282</a>, <a href="#Page_324">324</a>, <a href="#Page_326">326</a>.<br /> +<br /> +King's Mountain, <a href="#Page_28">28</a>, <a href="#Page_200">200</a>, <a href="#Page_321">321</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Kings, election of, in Poland, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Know Ye men and Know Ye measures, <a href="#Page_177">177</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Knox, Henry, <a href="#Page_114">114</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Lafayette, <a href="#Page_50">50</a>, <a href="#Page_54">54</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Langdon, John, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>, <a href="#Page_269">269</a>, <a href="#Page_274">274</a>, <a href="#Page_276">276</a>, <a href="#Page_283">283</a>, <a href="#Page_346">346</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Lansing, John, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>, <a href="#Page_242">242</a>, <a href="#Page_244">244</a>, <a href="#Page_246">246</a>, <a href="#Page_254">254</a>, <a href="#Page_340">340</a>, <a href="#Page_341">341</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Laurens, Henry, <a href="#Page_2">2</a>, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Lecky, W., <a href="#Page_103">103</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ledyard, Isaac, <a href="#Page_128">128</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Lee, Henry, <a href="#Page_307">307</a>, <a href="#Page_337">337</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Lee, Richard Henry, <a href="#Page_57">57</a>, <a href="#Page_143">143</a>, <a href="#Page_204">204</a>, <a href="#Page_205">205</a>, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>, <a href="#Page_307">307</a>, <a href="#Page_313">313</a>, <a href="#Page_318">318</a>, <a href="#Page_328">328</a>, <a href="#Page_336">336</a>, <a href="#Page_337">337</a>, <a href="#Page_347">347</a>.<br /> +<br /> +"Letters from a Federal Farmer," by R.H. Lee, <a href="#Page_314">314</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Lexington, <a href="#Page_50">50</a>, <a href="#Page_321">321</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Lincoln, Abraham, <a href="#Page_72">72</a>, <a href="#Page_198">198</a>, <a href="#Page_207">207</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Lincoln, Benjamin, <a href="#Page_181">181–183</a>, <a href="#Page_319">319</a>, <a href="#Page_332">332</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Livingston, Robert, <a href="#Page_36">36</a>, <a href="#Page_340">340</a>, <a href="#Page_350">350</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Livingston, William, <a href="#Page_171">171</a>, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Locke, John, <a href="#Page_64">64</a>, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Long Lane becomes Federal Street, <a href="#Page_331">331</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Long Parliament, <a href="#Page_92">92</a>, <a href="#Page_235">235</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Lords, House of, <a href="#Page_66">66</a>, <a href="#Page_68">68</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">contrasted with Senate, <a href="#Page_295">295</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Lowndes, Rawlins, <a href="#Page_332">332–334</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Loyalists, compensation of, <a href="#Page_28">28–33</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">persecution of, <a href="#Page_120">120–130</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">did not form, in any proper sense of the word, an opposition party, <a href="#Page_308">308</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Luzerne, Chevalier de, <a href="#Page_35">35</a>, <a href="#Page_54">54</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Lykian League, <a href="#Page_249">249</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Macdougall, Alexander, <a href="#Page_107">107</a>.<br /> +<br /> +McDuffle, George, <a href="#Page_60">60</a>.<br /> +<br /> +McKean, Thomas, <a href="#Page_316">316</a>.<br /> +<br /> +McMaster, J.B., <a href="#Page_151">151</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Madison, James, and the Religious Freedom Act, <a href="#Page_81">81</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">on right of coercion, <a href="#Page_100">100</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">advocates five per cent. impost, <a href="#Page_104">104</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">on the ordinance of 1787, <a href="#Page_206">206</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">moves that a convention be held to secure a uniform commercial policy, <a href="#Page_214">214</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">succeeds in getting delegates appointed, <a href="#Page_220">220</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his character and appearance, <a href="#Page_226">226</a>, <a href="#Page_227">227</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his journal of the proceedings, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">chief author of the Virginia plan, <a href="#Page_233">233</a>, <a href="#Page_267">267</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">one of the first to arrive at the fundamental conception of our partly federal and partly national government, <a href="#Page_239">239</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">approves at first of giving Congress the power to annul state laws, <a href="#Page_241">241</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">opposes the New Jersey plan, <a href="#Page_246">246</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">declares that the real antagonism is between slave states and free states, <a href="#Page_249">249</a>, <a href="#Page_256">256</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">author of the three fifths compromise, <a href="#Page_260">260</a>, <a href="#Page_261">261</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">condemns paper money, <a href="#Page_275">275</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">disapproves of election of the executive by the legislature, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">approves of a privy council, <a href="#Page_299">299</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">supports the Constitution in Congress, <a href="#Page_307">307</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">called a boy by the Antifederalists, <a href="#Page_313">313</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">supports the Constitution in the Virginia convention, <a href="#Page_337">337</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">part author of the "Federalist," <a href="#Page_341">341</a>, <a href="#Page_342">342</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">denies that there can be a constitutional right of secession, <a href="#Page_344">344</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Maine as part of Massachusetts, <a href="#Page_317">317</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Manchester, Duke of, <a href="#Page_45">45</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Marbois, François de Barbé, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>, <a href="#Page_35">35</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Marion, Francis, <a href="#Page_122">122</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Marshall, John, <a href="#Page_82">82</a>, <a href="#Page_276">276</a>, <a href="#Page_301">301</a>, <a href="#Page_337">337</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Martin, Luther, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>, <a href="#Page_242">242–244</a>, <a href="#Page_246">246</a>, <a href="#Page_249">249</a>, <a href="#Page_250">250</a>, <a href="#Page_254">254</a>, <a href="#Page_275">275</a>, <a href="#Page_322">322</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Maryland, government of, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">insists upon cession of northwestern lands, <a href="#Page_93">93</a>, <a href="#Page_192">192</a>, <a href="#Page_195">195</a>;</span><br /> +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_365" id="Page_365">[Pg 365]</a></span><span style="margin-left: 1em;">paper money in, <a href="#Page_170">170</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">message to Virginia, <a href="#Page_215">215</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">ratifies the Constitution, <a href="#Page_332">332</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Mason, George, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>, <a href="#Page_252">252</a>, <a href="#Page_264">264</a>, <a href="#Page_265">265</a>, <a href="#Page_275">275</a>, <a href="#Page_276">276</a>, <a href="#Page_277">277</a>, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>, <a href="#Page_281">281</a>, <a href="#Page_282">282</a>, <a href="#Page_283">283</a>, <a href="#Page_299">299</a>, <a href="#Page_303">303</a>, <a href="#Page_304">304</a>, <a href="#Page_335">335</a>, <a href="#Page_337">337</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Massachusetts, government of, <a href="#Page_67">67</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">abolishes slavery, <a href="#Page_75">75</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">religious bigotry, <a href="#Page_76">76</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">on the five per cent. duty, <a href="#Page_104">104</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">tries to propose a convention for increasing the powers of Congress, <a href="#Page_142">142</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">lays claim to a small part of Vermont, <a href="#Page_152">152</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">paper money in, <a href="#Page_172">172–179</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">western claims of, <a href="#Page_189">189</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">changes her attitude, <a href="#Page_221">221</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">local self-government in, <a href="#Page_317">317</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">debates on the Constitution, <a href="#Page_320">320–330</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">ratifies it, suggesting amendments, <a href="#Page_331">331</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Massachusetts Chronicle, quoted, <a href="#Page_120">120</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Massacre, Boston, <a href="#Page_321">321</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Mayhew, Jonathan, <a href="#Page_92">92</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Meade, William, <a href="#Page_79">79</a>, <a href="#Page_83">83</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Mentor and Phocion, <a href="#Page_128">128</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Mercer, J.F., <a href="#Page_274">274</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Methodists, <a href="#Page_85">85</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Middletown convention, <a href="#Page_113">113</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Mifflin, Thomas, <a href="#Page_52">52</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Minisink, <a href="#Page_122">122</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Mirabeau, Count de, <a href="#Page_116">116</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Mississippi River, attempt to close it, <a href="#Page_209">209–211</a>, <a href="#Page_335">335</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">valley of the, <a href="#Page_18">18</a>, <a href="#Page_188">188</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Monroe, James, <a href="#Page_216">216</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Montesquieu, C., <a href="#Page_225">225</a>, <a href="#Page_291">291</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Moonshiners, <a href="#Page_334">334</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Morris, Gouverneur, <a href="#Page_108">108</a>, <a href="#Page_166">166</a>, <a href="#Page_228">228</a>, <a href="#Page_242">242</a>, <a href="#Page_251">251</a>, <a href="#Page_261">261</a>, <a href="#Page_264">264</a>, <a href="#Page_269">269</a>, <a href="#Page_273">273</a>, <a href="#Page_276">276</a>, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>, <a href="#Page_282">282</a>, <a href="#Page_303">303</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Morris, Robert, <a href="#Page_108">108</a>, <a href="#Page_167">167</a>, <a href="#Page_228">228</a>, <a href="#Page_312">312</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Moultrie, William, <a href="#Page_143">143</a>, <a href="#Page_334">334</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Muley Abdallah, <a href="#Page_158">158</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Mutiny act, <a href="#Page_321">321</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Names of persons and places, fashions in, <a href="#Page_197">197</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Nantucket, <a href="#Page_163">163</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Nason, Samuel, <a href="#Page_321">321</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Naval eminence of New England, <a href="#Page_20">20</a>, <a href="#Page_139">139</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Navigation acts, <a href="#Page_138">138–143</a>, <a href="#Page_164">164</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Negroes carried away by British fleet, <a href="#Page_131">131</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Nelson, Samuel, <a href="#Page_276">276</a>.<br /> +<br /> +New Connecticut, <a href="#Page_152">152</a>.<br /> +<br /> +New Hampshire lays claim to Vermont, <a href="#Page_151">151–153</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">riots in, <a href="#Page_183">183</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">hesitates to ratify the Constitution, <a href="#Page_331">331</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">ratifies it, <a href="#Page_338">338</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +New Jersey quarrels with New York, <a href="#Page_146">146</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">paper money in, <a href="#Page_171">171</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">opposes the attempt to close the Mississippi, <a href="#Page_211">211</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">instructs her delegates to the Annapolis convention, <a href="#Page_217">217</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">her plan for amending the articles of confederation, <a href="#Page_245">245</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">ratifies the Constitution, <a href="#Page_315">315</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +New Roof, <a href="#Page_338">338</a>.<br /> +<br /> +New York passes navigation and tariff acts directed against neighbouring states, <a href="#Page_146">146</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">lays claim to Vermont, <a href="#Page_151">151–153</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">paper money in, <a href="#Page_170">170</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">western claims of, <a href="#Page_190">190</a>, <a href="#Page_193">193</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">defeats the impost amendment, <a href="#Page_218">218–220</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">debates on the Constitution, <a href="#Page_340">340–344</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">ratifies it, <a href="#Page_344">344</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">asks for a second convention, <a href="#Page_344">344</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">fails to choose electors, <a href="#Page_346">346</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +New York Central Railroad, <a href="#Page_212">212</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Newburgh address, <a href="#Page_108">108–112</a>, <a href="#Page_118">118</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Nicola, Louis, his letter to Washington, <a href="#Page_107">107</a>, <a href="#Page_118">118</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Non-importation agreement, <a href="#Page_142">142</a>.<br /> +<br /> +North, Frederick, Lord, fall of his ministry, <a href="#Page_1">1</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">coalition with Fox, <a href="#Page_38">38–42</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his blindness, <a href="#Page_41">41</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his proposals after Saratoga, <a href="#Page_91">91</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his subservience to the king, <a href="#Page_297">297</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +North Carolina issues paper money, <a href="#Page_169">169</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">cedes her western lands to the United States, <a href="#Page_199">199</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">repeals the act of cession, <a href="#Page_201">201</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">delays her ratification of the Constitution, <a href="#Page_345">345</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Ohio, <a href="#Page_203">203–206</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Old Sarum, <a href="#Page_249">249</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Old South Church, <a href="#Page_321">321</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Onslow, George, <a href="#Page_2">2</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ordinance of 1787, <a href="#Page_199">199</a>, <a href="#Page_203">203–206</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Oregon, <a href="#Page_60">60</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Oswald, Richard, <a href="#Page_9">9–14</a>, <a href="#Page_22">22–26</a>, <a href="#Page_32">32</a>, <a href="#Page_45">45</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Paine, Thomas, <a href="#Page_50">50</a>, <a href="#Page_55">55</a>, <a href="#Page_191">191</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Paper currency, <a href="#Page_163">163–179</a>, <a href="#Page_205">205</a>, <a href="#Page_218">218</a>, <a href="#Page_273">273–276</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Parker, Theodore, <a href="#Page_264">264</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Parsons, Samuel Holden, <a href="#Page_203">203</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Parsons, Theophilus, <a href="#Page_319">319</a>, <a href="#Page_324">324</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Parties, formation of, <a href="#Page_308">308</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Paterson, William, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>, <a href="#Page_245">245–248</a>, <a href="#Page_255">255</a>, <a href="#Page_258">258</a>, <a href="#Page_274">274</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Patterson, militia officer in Wyoming, <a href="#Page_149">149</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Payson, Rev. Philip, <a href="#Page_322">322</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Pendleton, Edmund, <a href="#Page_336">336</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Pennsylvania, government of, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">first tariff act, <a href="#Page_142">142</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">quarrels with Connecticut, <a href="#Page_148">148–150</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">paper money in, <a href="#Page_170">170</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">opposes the closing of the Mississippi, <a href="#Page_211">211</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">contest over the Constitution, <a href="#Page_309">309–314</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">ratifies it, <a href="#Page_315">315</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Petersham, scene of Shays's defeat, <a href="#Page_182">182</a>, <a href="#Page_319">319</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Philadelphia, Congress driven from, <a href="#Page_112">112</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Federal Convention meets at, <a href="#Page_222">222</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">unparliamentary proceedings in legislature, <a href="#Page_311">311</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">celebrates ratification by ten states, <a href="#Page_339">339</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Phocion and Mentor, <a href="#Page_128">128</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Pinckney, Charles, <a href="#Page_228">228</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>, <a href="#Page_261">261</a>, <a href="#Page_265">265</a>, <a href="#Page_266">266</a>, <a href="#Page_269">269</a>, <a href="#Page_276">276</a>, <a href="#Page_277">277</a>, <a href="#Page_334">334</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Pinckney, Cotesworth, <a href="#Page_228">228</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>, <a href="#Page_258">258</a>, <a href="#Page_261">261</a>, <a href="#Page_263">263</a>, <a href="#Page_265">265</a>, <a href="#Page_266">266</a>, <a href="#Page_276">276</a>, <a href="#Page_333">333</a>, <a href="#Page_334">334</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Pitt, Thomas, <a href="#Page_44">44</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_366" id="Page_366">[Pg 366]</a></span>Pitt, William, chancellor of exchequer, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">denounces the coalition, <a href="#Page_39">39</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">defends the treaty, <a href="#Page_43">43</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">refuses to form a ministry, <a href="#Page_44">44</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">character, <a href="#Page_47">47</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">prime minister, <a href="#Page_47">47</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">wins a great political victory, <a href="#Page_48">48</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">favours free trade with the United States, <a href="#Page_136">136</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Polish kings, election of, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Population as an index of wealth, <a href="#Page_257">257</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Portland, Duke of, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>, <a href="#Page_45">45</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Potomac, navigation of, <a href="#Page_213">213–216</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Poughkeepsie, convention at, <a href="#Page_340">340–344</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Powers granted to federal government, <a href="#Page_268">268</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Presbyterians, <a href="#Page_81">81</a>, <a href="#Page_86">86</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Presidents of Continental Congress, <a href="#Page_96">96</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Prevost's march against Charleston, <a href="#Page_27">27</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Prime minister contrasted with president, <a href="#Page_292">292–294</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Primogeniture, abolition of, <a href="#Page_71">71</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Proprietary governments, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>, <a href="#Page_71">71</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Providence, R.I., barbecue and mob at, <a href="#Page_339">339</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Public lands, <a href="#Page_188">188</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Putnam, Israel, <a href="#Page_151">151</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Putnam, Rufus, <a href="#Page_203">203</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Quebec act, <a href="#Page_18">18</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Quesnay, François, <a href="#Page_141">141</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Quorum, how to make a, <a href="#Page_311">311</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Railroads, political influence of, <a href="#Page_60">60</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Randolph, Edmund, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>, <a href="#Page_233">233</a>, <a href="#Page_235">235</a>, <a href="#Page_239">239</a>, <a href="#Page_242">242</a>, <a href="#Page_246">246</a>, <a href="#Page_265">265</a>, <a href="#Page_269">269</a>, <a href="#Page_275">275</a>, <a href="#Page_276">276</a>, <a href="#Page_277">277</a>, <a href="#Page_282">282</a>, <a href="#Page_300">300</a>, <a href="#Page_303">303</a>, <a href="#Page_335">335</a>, <a href="#Page_337">337</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rayneval, Gérard de, <a href="#Page_21">21</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Read, George, <a href="#Page_242">242</a>, <a href="#Page_274">274</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Reform, parliamentary, <a href="#Page_6">6</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Religious freedom, progress in, <a href="#Page_76">76–87</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Religious tests opposed by Massachusetts clergymen, <a href="#Page_322">322</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Representation of slaves, <a href="#Page_258">258–262</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Representatives, House of, <a href="#Page_236">236</a>, <a href="#Page_252">252</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Republican party, <a href="#Page_238">238</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Republics, old notion that they must be small in area, <a href="#Page_59">59</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Reserve, Connecticut's western, <a href="#Page_194">194</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Revenue bills, <a href="#Page_270">270</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Revere, Paul, <a href="#Page_327">327</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Revolution, American, its conservative character, <a href="#Page_64">64</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">the French, <a href="#Page_64">64</a>, <a href="#Page_118">118</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Rhode Island, government of, <a href="#Page_65">65</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">extends franchise to Catholics, <a href="#Page_77">77</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">on the five per cent. duty, <a href="#Page_104">104</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">paper money in, <a href="#Page_172">172–177</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">opposes the closing of the Mississippi, <a href="#Page_211">211</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">does not send delegates to Philadelphia, <a href="#Page_222">222</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">delays her ratification of the Constitution, <a href="#Page_345">345</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Richmond, Duke of, <a href="#Page_2">2</a>, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rittenhouse, David, <a href="#Page_111">111</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rockingham, Marquis of, <a href="#Page_4">4</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">instability of his ministry, <a href="#Page_5">5</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">its excellent work, <a href="#Page_7">7</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his death, <a href="#Page_15">15</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Rodney's victory over Grasse, <a href="#Page_12">12</a>, <a href="#Page_13">13</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Roman republic not like the United States, <a href="#Page_59">59</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rousseau, J.J., <a href="#Page_64">64</a>, <a href="#Page_117">117</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rutgers, Elizabeth, <a href="#Page_127">127</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Rutledge, John, <a href="#Page_228">228</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>, <a href="#Page_261">261</a>, <a href="#Page_265">265</a>, <a href="#Page_278">278</a>, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>, <a href="#Page_281">281</a>, <a href="#Page_300">300</a>, <a href="#Page_334">334</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +St. Clair, Arthur, <a href="#Page_197">197</a>, <a href="#Page_206">206</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Saladin and Cœur-de-Lion, <a href="#Page_161">161</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Sandy Hook light-house, <a href="#Page_147">147</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Sargent, Winthrop, <a href="#Page_203">203</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Schuyler, Philip, <a href="#Page_126">126</a>, <a href="#Page_146">146</a>, <a href="#Page_151">151</a>, <a href="#Page_193">193</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Scott, Sir Walter, <a href="#Page_153">153</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Scottish representation in Parliament, <a href="#Page_249">249</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Seabury, Samuel, <a href="#Page_84">84</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Secession, threats of, <a href="#Page_211">211</a>, <a href="#Page_218">218</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">no constitutional right of, <a href="#Page_344">344</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Secrecy of the debates in Federal Convention, <a href="#Page_230">230</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Sedgwick, Theodore, <a href="#Page_122">122</a>, <a href="#Page_319">319</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Self-government, <a href="#Page_57">57</a>, <a href="#Page_63">63</a>, <a href="#Page_88">88</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Senate, federal, made independent of lower house, <a href="#Page_253">253</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">contrasted with House of Lords, <a href="#Page_295">295</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Senates, origin of, <a href="#Page_66">66</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Seven Years' War, <a href="#Page_13">13</a>, <a href="#Page_188">188</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Sevier, John, <a href="#Page_200">200</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Shattuck, Job, <a href="#Page_180">180</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Shays rebellion, <a href="#Page_180">180–182</a>, <a href="#Page_218">218</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>, <a href="#Page_316">316</a>, <a href="#Page_319">319</a>, <a href="#Page_325">325</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Sheffield, Lord, protectionist, <a href="#Page_137">137</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">on the Barbary pirates, <a href="#Page_160">160</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Shelburne, William, Earl of, his character, <a href="#Page_4">4</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his memorandum on proposed cession of Canada, <a href="#Page_11">11</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">prime minister, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">approached by Rayneval and Vaughan, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">misjudged by Fox, <a href="#Page_40">40</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">defends the treaty, <a href="#Page_43">43</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">resigns, <a href="#Page_44">44</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his conduct justified by his enemies, <a href="#Page_45">45</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">understood the principles of free trade, <a href="#Page_4">4</a>, <a href="#Page_134">134</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Shepard, William, <a href="#Page_180">180</a>, <a href="#Page_181">181</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Sherman, Roger, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>, <a href="#Page_250">250</a>, <a href="#Page_255">255</a>, <a href="#Page_267">267</a>, <a href="#Page_274">274</a>, <a href="#Page_276">276</a>, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>, <a href="#Page_283">283</a>, <a href="#Page_299">299</a>, <a href="#Page_313">313</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his suggestion as to relations of the executive to the legislature, <a href="#Page_278">278</a>, <a href="#Page_280">280</a>, <a href="#Page_298">298</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Shillings, <a href="#Page_165">165</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Ship-building in New England, <a href="#Page_137">137–139</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Shute, Rev. Daniel, <a href="#Page_322">322</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Sidney, Algernon, <a href="#Page_64">64</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Singletary, Amos, <a href="#Page_322">322</a>, <a href="#Page_324">324</a>, <a href="#Page_325">325</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Six Nations, <a href="#Page_190">190</a>, <a href="#Page_203">203</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Slave-trade, foreign, permitted for twenty years, <a href="#Page_264">264</a>, <a href="#Page_323">323</a>, <a href="#Page_333">333</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Slavery in the several states, <a href="#Page_72">72–75</a>, <a href="#Page_266">266</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">prohibited in northwestern territory, <a href="#Page_205">205</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">discussions about it in Federal Convention, <a href="#Page_257">257–267</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">condemned by George Mason, <a href="#Page_264">264</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_367" id="Page_367">[Pg 367]</a></span>Slaves, representation of, <a href="#Page_258">258–262</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">numbers of, in the several states, <a href="#Page_266">266</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Small states converted to federalism by the Connecticut compromise, <a href="#Page_255">255</a>, <a href="#Page_315">315</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Smith, Adam, <a href="#Page_125">125</a>, <a href="#Page_134">134</a>, <a href="#Page_135">135</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Smith, Capt. John, <a href="#Page_191">191</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Smith, Jonathan, <a href="#Page_324">324–326</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Smith, Melanchthon, <a href="#Page_340">340</a>, <a href="#Page_343">343</a>, <a href="#Page_344">344</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Smugglers, <a href="#Page_135">135</a>.<br /> +<br /> +South Carolina, Episcopal church in, <a href="#Page_78">78</a>, <a href="#Page_82">82</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">revokes five per cent. impost, <a href="#Page_108">108</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">issues paper money, <a href="#Page_169">169</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">absolute need of conciliating her, <a href="#Page_259">259</a>, <a href="#Page_260">260</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">makes bargain with New England states, <a href="#Page_262">262–267</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">debates on the Constitution, <a href="#Page_332">332–334</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">ratifies it, <a href="#Page_334">334</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Sovereignty never belonged to separate states, <a href="#Page_90">90</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Spain, treaty of 1783 with Great Britain, <a href="#Page_36">36</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">attempts to close Mississippi River, <a href="#Page_208">208–211</a>, <a href="#Page_218">218</a>, <a href="#Page_335">335</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Spanish dollar, why it superseded English pound as unit of value in America, <a href="#Page_166">166</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Spermaceti oil, <a href="#Page_139">139</a>, <a href="#Page_163">163</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Springfield arsenal, <a href="#Page_181">181</a>, <a href="#Page_185">185</a>.<br /> +<br /> +States, powers denied to, <a href="#Page_272">272</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Stormont, Lord, <a href="#Page_45">45</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Story, Joseph, <a href="#Page_276">276</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Strachey, Sir Henry, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Strong, Caleb, <a href="#Page_228">228</a>, <a href="#Page_252">252</a>, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>, <a href="#Page_324">324</a>, <a href="#Page_327">327</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Succession disputed, <a href="#Page_289">289</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Suffrage, limitations upon, <a href="#Page_70">70</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Sugar trade, <a href="#Page_138">138</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Temple, Lord, <a href="#Page_44">44</a>, <a href="#Page_46">46</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tennessee, <a href="#Page_18">18</a>, <a href="#Page_189">189</a>, <a href="#Page_199">199</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Thayendanegea, <a href="#Page_50">50</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Thomas, Isaiah, <a href="#Page_165">165</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Thompson, Gen., in Massachusetts convention, <a href="#Page_324">324</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Thurlow, Lord, <a href="#Page_5">5</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Thurston, member of Virginia legislature, <a href="#Page_144">144</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tithing-men in New England, <a href="#Page_76">76</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tobacco as currency in Virginia, <a href="#Page_165">165</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tories, American; see Loyalists.<br /> +<br /> +Tories, British, <a href="#Page_42">42</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Townshend, Thomas, <a href="#Page_17">17</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Trade, barbarous superstitions about, <a href="#Page_134">134</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Travelling, difficulties of, a century ago, <a href="#Page_61">61</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Treaty of 1783, difficulties in the way of, <a href="#Page_8">8</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">strange character of, <a href="#Page_24">24</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">provisions of, <a href="#Page_25">25–33</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">a great diplomatic victory for the Americans, <a href="#Page_34">34</a>, <a href="#Page_189">189</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">secret article relating to Florida boundary, <a href="#Page_33">33</a>, <a href="#Page_208">208</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">adopted, <a href="#Page_45">45</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">news arrives in America, <a href="#Page_50">50</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">Congress unable to carry out its provisions, <a href="#Page_119">119–132</a>, <a href="#Page_154">154</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Trespass Act in New York. <a href="#Page_123">123–128</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Trevett <i>vs.</i> Weeden, <a href="#Page_176">176</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tucker, Josiah, <a href="#Page_58">58</a>, <a href="#Page_141">141</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Tyler, John, the elder, <a href="#Page_214">214</a>, <a href="#Page_337">337</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Union, sentiment of, <a href="#Page_55">55</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Unitarianism, <a href="#Page_86">86</a>.<br /> +<br /> +University men in Federal Convention, <a href="#Page_224">224</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Vaughan, Benjamin, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>, <a href="#Page_35">35</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Vergennes, Count de, <a href="#Page_12">12</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">wishes to satisfy Spain at the expense of the United States, <a href="#Page_18">18–21</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">thwarted by Jay, <a href="#Page_22">22</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">accuses the Americans of bad faith, <a href="#Page_33">33</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">tired of sending loans, <a href="#Page_104">104</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Vermont, troubles in, <a href="#Page_151">151–153</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">riots in connection with the Shays rebellion, <a href="#Page_183">183</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Vice-presidency, <a href="#Page_282">282</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Victoria, Queen, <a href="#Page_293">293</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Vincennes, riot in, <a href="#Page_210">210</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Violence of political invective, <a href="#Page_39">39</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Virginia, church and state in, <a href="#Page_78">78–85</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">on five per cent. impost, <a href="#Page_104">104</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">paper money in, <a href="#Page_170">170</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">takes possession of northwestern territory, <a href="#Page_188">188–191</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">cedes it to the United States, <a href="#Page_194">194</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">plan for new federal government, <a href="#Page_233">233–242</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">its reception by the convention, <a href="#Page_242">242</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">compromise as to representation of slaves, <a href="#Page_259">259–262</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">resents the compromise between South Carolina and the New England states, <a href="#Page_265">265</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">debates on the Constitution, <a href="#Page_335">335–337</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">ratifies it, <a href="#Page_337">337</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +"Visionary young men," i.e., Hamilton, Madison, Gouverneur Morris, etc., <a href="#Page_318">318</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Waddington, Joshua, <a href="#Page_127">127</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Walpole, Horace, <a href="#Page_16">16</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Walpole, Sir Robert, <a href="#Page_296">296</a>.<br /> +<br /> +War, the Civil, <a href="#Page_55">55</a>, <a href="#Page_256">256</a>, <a href="#Page_262">262</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">contrast with Revolutionary, <a href="#Page_101">101–103</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">cost of Revolutionary, <a href="#Page_166">166</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Washington, George, marches from Yorktown to the Hudson River, <a href="#Page_51">51</a>;<br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">disbands the army, <a href="#Page_51">51</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">resigns his command, <a href="#Page_52">52</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">goes home to Mount Vernon, <a href="#Page_53">53</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his "legacy" to the American people, <a href="#Page_54">54</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">on the right of coercion, <a href="#Page_100">100</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">urges half-pay for retired officers, <a href="#Page_106">106</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">supposed scheme for making him king, <a href="#Page_107">107</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his masterly speech at Newburgh, <a href="#Page_110">110</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">president of the Cincinnati, <a href="#Page_115">115</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">on the weakness of the confederation, <a href="#Page_162">162</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">wishes to hang speculators in bread-stuffs, <a href="#Page_164">164</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">disapproves of Connecticut's reservation of a tract of western land, <a href="#Page_193">193</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">approves of Ohio Company, <a href="#Page_203">203</a>;</span><br /> +<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_368" id="Page_368">[Pg 368]</a></span><span style="margin-left: 1em;">his views on the need for canals between east and west, <a href="#Page_212">212</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">important meeting held at his house, <a href="#Page_214">214</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">is chosen delegate to the Federal Convention, <a href="#Page_221">221</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">president of the convention, <a href="#Page_229">229</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his solemn warning, <a href="#Page_231">231</a>, <a href="#Page_303">303</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his suggestion as to the basis of representation, <a href="#Page_252">252</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">asks if he shall put the question on the motion of Wilson and Pinckney, <a href="#Page_277">277</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">disapproves of electing executive by the legislature, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">sends draft of the Constitution to Congress, <a href="#Page_307">307</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">called a fool by the Antifederalists, <a href="#Page_313">313</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">approves of amendments, but opposes a second convention, <a href="#Page_329">329</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">unanimously chosen president of the United States, <a href="#Page_346">346</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his journey to New York, <a href="#Page_349">349</a>;</span><br /> +<span style="margin-left: 1em;">his inauguration, <a href="#Page_350">350</a>.</span><br /> +<br /> +Washington, William, <a href="#Page_334">334</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Watson, Bishop of Llandaff, <a href="#Page_83">83</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Watt, James, <a href="#Page_60">60</a>, <a href="#Page_267">267</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wayne, Anthony, <a href="#Page_50">50</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wealth as a basis of representation, <a href="#Page_257">257</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Webster, Daniel, <a href="#Page_56">56</a>, <a href="#Page_206">206</a>, <a href="#Page_276">276</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Webster, Pelatiah, <a href="#Page_101">101</a>, <a href="#Page_222">222</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Weems, Mason, <a href="#Page_83">83</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wesley, John, <a href="#Page_85">85</a>.<br /> +<br /> +West, Rev. Samuel, <a href="#Page_322">322</a>.<br /> +<br /> +West India trade, <a href="#Page_138">138</a>, <a href="#Page_164">164</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Whigs, British, sympathize with revolutionary party in America, <a href="#Page_2">2</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Whiskey as currency in North Carolina, <a href="#Page_165">165</a>.<br /> +<br /> +White, Abraham, <a href="#Page_324">324</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Whitefield, George, <a href="#Page_85">85</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Whitehill, Robert, <a href="#Page_313">313</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Whitney, Eli, <a href="#Page_267">267</a>.<br /> +<br /> +William the Silent, <a href="#Page_55">55</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wilson, James, <a href="#Page_228">228</a>, <a href="#Page_243">243</a>, <a href="#Page_246">246</a>, <a href="#Page_248">248</a>, <a href="#Page_251">251</a>, <a href="#Page_261">261</a>, <a href="#Page_274">274</a>, <a href="#Page_277">277</a>, <a href="#Page_279">279</a>, <a href="#Page_281">281</a>, <a href="#Page_282">282</a>, <a href="#Page_299">299</a>, <a href="#Page_300">300</a>, <a href="#Page_312">312</a>, <a href="#Page_313">313</a>, <a href="#Page_316">316</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Witenagemot, <a href="#Page_66">66</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Worcester Spy, <a href="#Page_165">165</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wraxall's Memoirs, <a href="#Page_2">2</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wyoming, troubles in, <a href="#Page_148">148–150</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Wythe, George, <a href="#Page_228">228</a>.<br /> +<br /> +<br /> +Yates, Robert, <a href="#Page_225">225</a>, <a href="#Page_242">242</a>, <a href="#Page_244">244</a>, <a href="#Page_246">246</a>, <a href="#Page_254">254</a>, <a href="#Page_340">340</a>, <a href="#Page_341">341</a>.<br /> +<br /> +Yazoo boundary, <a href="#Page_33">33</a>, <a href="#Page_208">208</a>.<br /> +</p> + +<hr /> +<div class="footnotes"><h3>FOOTNOTES:</h3> + +<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_1_1" id="Footnote_1_1"></a><a href="#FNanchor_1_1"><span class="label">[1]</span></a> In recent years Georgia has been one of the first states to +abandon this bad practice.</p></div> + +<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_2_2" id="Footnote_2_2"></a><a href="#FNanchor_2_2"><span class="label">[2]</span></a> I suppose it was this same Mason Weems that was afterward +known in Virginia as Parson Weems, of Pohick parish, near Mount Vernon. +See <i>Magazine of American History</i>, iii. 465–472; v. 85–90. At first an +eccentric preacher, Parson Weems became an itinerant violin-player and +book-peddler, and author of that edifying work, <i>The Life of George +Washington, with Curious Anecdotes equally Honourable to Himself and +Exemplary to his Young Countrymen</i>. On the title-page the author +describes himself as "formerly rector of Mount Vernon Parish,"—which +Bishop Meade calls preposterous. The book is a farrago of absurdities, +reminding one, alike in its text and its illustrations, of an overgrown +English chap-book of the olden time. It has had an enormous sale, and +has very likely contributed more than any other single book toward +forming the popular notion of Washington. It seems to have been this +fiddling parson that first gave currency to the everlasting story of the +cherry-tree and the little hatchet.</p></div> + +<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_3_3" id="Footnote_3_3"></a><a href="#FNanchor_3_3"><span class="label">[3]</span></a> <i>History of England in the Eighteenth Century</i>, iii. 447.</p></div> + +<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_4_4" id="Footnote_4_4"></a><a href="#FNanchor_4_4"><span class="label">[4]</span></a> A very interesting account of these troubles may be found +in the first volume of Professor McMaster's <i>History of the People of +the United States</i>.</p></div> + +<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_5_5" id="Footnote_5_5"></a><a href="#FNanchor_5_5"><span class="label">[5]</span></a> This subject has been treated in a masterly manner by Mr. +H.B. Adams, in an essay on Maryland's Influence upon Land Cessions to +the United States, published in the Third Series of the admirable <i>Johns +Hopkins University Studies in History and Politics</i>. I am indebted to +Mr. Adams for many valuable suggestions.</p></div> + +<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_6_6" id="Footnote_6_6"></a><a href="#FNanchor_6_6"><span class="label">[6]</span></a> It would be in the highest degree erroneous, however, to +suppose that the Constitution of the United States is not, as much as +any other, an instance of evolution from precedents. See, in this +connection, the very able article by Prof. Alexander Johnston, <i>New +Princeton Review</i>, Sept., 1887, pp. 175–190.</p></div> + +<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_7_7" id="Footnote_7_7"></a><a href="#FNanchor_7_7"><span class="label">[7]</span></a> The slave-population of the United States, according to the +census of 1700, was thus distributed among the states:—</p> + +<div> +<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="North Slave Population."> +<tr> + <td align='center' colspan='2'><i>North.</i></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>New Hampshire</td> + <td align='right'>158</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Vermont</td> + <td align='right'>17</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Massachusetts</td> + <td align='right'>—</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Rhode Island</td> + <td align='right'>952</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Connecticut</td> + <td align='right'>2,759</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>New York</td> + <td align='right'>21,324</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>New Jersey</td> + <td align='right'>11,423</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Pennsylvania</td> + <td align='right'>3,737</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='right'>———</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='right'>40,370</td> +</tr> +</table></div> + +<div> +<table border="0" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="South Slave Population."> +<tr> + <td align='center' colspan='2'><i>South.</i></td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Delaware</td> + <td align='right'>8,887</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Maryland</td> + <td align='right'>103,036</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Virginia</td> + <td align='right'>293,427</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>North Carolina</td> + <td align='right'>100,572</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>South Carolina</td> + <td align='right'>107,094</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Georgia</td> + <td align='right'>29,264</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Kentucky</td> + <td align='right'>11,830</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Tennessee</td> + <td align='right'>3,417</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='right'>———</td> +</tr> +<tr> + <td align='left'> </td> + <td align='right'>657,527</td> +</tr> +</table></div> + +<div> +<table border="0" width="40%" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="0" summary="Total Slaves."> +<tr> + <td align='left'>Total</td> + <td align='right'>697,897.</td> +</tr> +</table></div> +</div> + +<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_8_8" id="Footnote_8_8"></a><a href="#FNanchor_8_8"><span class="label">[8]</span></a> Since this was written, this last and most serious danger +would seem to have been removed by the acts of 1886 and 1887 regulating +the presidential succession and the counting of electoral votes.</p></div> + +<div class="footnote"><p><a name="Footnote_9_9" id="Footnote_9_9"></a><a href="#FNanchor_9_9"><span class="label">[9]</span></a> The history of President Cleveland's tariff message of +1887, however, shows that, where a wise and courageous president calls +attention to a living issue, his party, alike in Congress and in the +country, is in a measure compelled to follow his lead.</p></div> +</div> + +<div>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 27430 ***</div> +</body> +</html> + diff --git a/27430-h/images/003.jpg b/27430-h/images/003.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..47ef337 --- /dev/null +++ b/27430-h/images/003.jpg diff --git a/27430-h/images/map.jpg b/27430-h/images/map.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..8ccc8a9 --- /dev/null +++ b/27430-h/images/map.jpg diff --git a/27430-h/images/mapfull.jpg b/27430-h/images/mapfull.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..94af820 --- /dev/null +++ b/27430-h/images/mapfull.jpg |
