the North, ten. At the desire of Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, Washington was unanimously elected president of the convention. During the organization it was noticed that the delegates from Delaware were prohibited from changing the article in the confederation establishing the equality of votes among the states.*

On the twenty-eighth, the representation was increased to nine states by the arrival of Massachusetts and Maryland. A letter was read from men of Providence, Rhode Island, among them John Brown, Jabez Bowen, Welcome Arnold, and William Barton, explaining why their state would send no delegates to the convention, and hopefully pledging their best exertions to effect the ratification of its proceedings. The letter was forwarded and supported by Varnum, a member from Rhode Island in congress.

The delegates from Maryland, chosen at a time when the best men of the state were absorbed in a domestic struggle against new issues of paper money, and its senate by its stubborn resistance was estranged from the house, did not adequately represent its public spirit; yet the majority of them to the last promoted the national union. Of the fifty-five in the convention, nine were graduates of Princeton, four of Yale, three of Harvard, two of Columbia, one of Pennsylvania; five, six, or seven had been connected with William and Mary's; Scotland sent one of her sons, a jurist, who had been taught at three of her universities, and Glasgow had assisted to train another; one had been a student in Christ Church, Oxford, and he and three others had been students of law in the Temple. To many in the assembly the work of the great French magistrate on the "Spirit of Laws," of which Washington with his own hand had copied an abstract by Madison, was the favorite manual; some of them had made an analysis of all federal governments in ancient and modern times, and a few were well versed in the best English, Swiss, and Dutch writers on government. They had immediately before them the example of Great Britain; and they had a still better school of political wisdom in the republican constitutions of their several Gilpin, 723; Elliot, 124.

*

+ Gilpin, 727; Elliot, 125, and Appendix No. 1.

states, which many of them had assisted to frame. Altogether they formed "the goodliest fellowship of" lawgivers "whereof this world holds record." In their standing rules they unanimously forbade any registry to be made of the votes of individuals, so that they might, without reproach or observation, mutually receive and impart instruction; and they sat with closed doors, lest the publication of their debates should rouse the country to obstinate conflicts before they themselves should have reached their conclusions.

On the twenty-ninth, Edmund Randolph, the governor of Virginia, opened the business of the convention in this wise: "To prevent the fulfilment of the prophecies of the downfall of the United States, it is our duty to inquire into the defects of the confederation and the requisite properties of the government now to be framed; the danger of the situation and its remedy.

"The confederation 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 encroachments of the states. From the manner in which it has been ratified in many of the states, it cannot be claimed 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."

He then proposed fifteen resolutions, which he explained one by one.

"The articles of confederation ought to be so corrected and enlarged as to accomplish the objects proposed by their institution; namely, 'common defence, security of liberty, and general welfare.'

"The rights of suffrage in the national legislature ought to be proportioned to the quotas of contribution, or to the number of free inhabitants.

"The national legislature ought to consist of two branches, of which the members of the first or democratic house ought to be elected by the people of the several states; of the second, by those of the first, out of persons nominated by the individual legislatures.

"The national legislature, of which each branch ought to possess the right of originating acts, ought to enjoy the legislative rights vested in congress by the confederation, and moreover to legislate in all cases to which the separate states are incompetent, or in which the harmony of the United States might be interrupted by the exercise of individual legislation; to negative all laws passed by the several states contravening the articles of union; and to call forth the force of the union against any member of the union failing to fulfil its duty under the articles thereof.

“A national executive, chosen by the national legislature and ineligible a second time, ought to enjoy the executive rights vested in congress by the confederation, and a general authority to execute the national laws.

"The executive and a convenient number of the national judiciary ought to compose a council of revision, with authority to examine every act of the national legislature before it shall operate.

"A national judiciary ought to be established; to consist of supreme and inferior tribunals; to be chosen by the national legislature; to hold their offices during good behavior, with jurisdiction to hear and determine all piracies and felonies on the high seas; captures from an enemy; cases in which foreigners and citizens, a citizen of one state and a citizen of another state, may be interested; cases which respect the collection of the national revenue; impeachments of national officers; and questions which may involve the national peace and harmony.

"Provision ought to be made for the admission of states lawfully arising within the limits of the United States.

"A republican government and the territory of each state ought to be guaranteed by the United States to each state.

"Provision ought to be made for the completion of all the engagements of congress, and for its continuance until after the articles of union shall have been adopted.

"Provision ought to be made for the amendment of the articles of union; to which the assent of the national legislature ought not to be required.

"The legislative, executive, and judiciary powers, within the several states, ought to be bound by oath to support the articles of union.

"The amendments which shall be offered to the confederation by the convention ought, after the approbation of congress, to be submitted to assemblies of representatives, recommended by the several legislatures to be expressly chosen by the people to consider and decide thereon."

Randolph concluded with an exhortation to the convention not to suffer the present opportunity of establishing general harmony, happiness, and liberty in the United States to pass away unimproved.*

The new articles of union would form a representative republic. The nobleness of the Virginia delegation appeared in the offer of an option to found representation on "free inhabitants" alone. The proposed government would be truly national. Not the executive, not the judges, not one officer employed by the national government, not members of the first branch of the legislature, would owe their election to the states; even in the choice of the second branch of the national legislature, the states were only to nominate candidates.

It is worthy of note that, as Randolph declared the proportioned rule of suffrage to be "the basis upon which the larger states could assent to any reform," saying, "We ought to be one nation," William Paterson of New Jersey made note that "sovereignty is an integral thing," meaning that in the new union the states must be equal unless they all were to be merged into one. The house referred the propositions of * Gilpin, 731-735; Elliot, 126-128. + Paterson MSS.

Virginia to a committee of the whole on the state of the union.* Charles Pinckney of South Carolina, a young man of twentynine, then presented a plan for a constitution, "grounded on the same principles † as the resolutions" of Virginia. It received the same reference, but no part of it was used, and no copy of it has been preserved.

On the morning of the thirtieth, Nathaniel Gorham of Massachusetts having been elected chairman of the committee of the whole, Randolph offered a resolution, which Gouverneur Morris had formulated, "that a national government ought to be established, consisting of a supreme legislative, executive, and judiciary." The force of the word "supreme" was explained to be, that, should the powers to be granted to the new government clash with the powers of the states, the states were to yield.#

Pierce Butler of South Carolina advanced the business of the day by saying in the spirit of Montesquieu: "Heretofore I have opposed the grant of new powers to congress because they would all be vested in one body; the distribution of the powers among different bodies will induce me to go great lengths in its support." I

"In all communities," said Gouverneur Morris, "there must be one supreme power and one only. A confederacy is a mere compact, resting on the good faith of the parties; a national, supreme government must have a complete and compulsive operation." Mason argued "very cogently": "In the nature of things punishment cannot be executed on the states collectively; therefore such a government is necessary as can operate directly on individuals." A

Roger Sherman, who arrived that morning and enabled Connecticut to vote, was not yet ready to do more than vest in the general government a power to raise its own revenue; ◊ and against the negative of his state alone, New York being divided, the motion was carried by Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and the two Carolinas, on this day aided by Delaware.