When, therefore, these same men at Philadelphia made their proposal of November, 1777, that other constitutional Articles of government be made in America, the proposed Articles of Union between nations, it might have been natural that this proposal also should have suggested ratification of _these_ Articles by the people themselves. It would have seemed all the more natural, when we remember that one of the leaders at Philadelphia in that time was Jefferson, the historic champion of human individual freedom against all governments. But the Americans of that generation and their leaders were not as the leaders of our own time. They knew very accurately the difference between a _national_ Article of government, which gave ability to interfere with human freedom, and a _federal_ Article, which gave no ability _of that kind_ but only ability to govern nations or states, as political entities. With this accurate knowledge of the vital distinction between a _national_ and a _federal_ Article, they naturally knew that either the people themselves or the legislative attorney in fact of the nation, which makes all agreements for the nation with other nations, may validly make a _federal_ Article. Therefore, they sent the proposed Articles of Confederation between nations (not one of which gave _national_ power to the proposed _federal_ government) to the legislatures of the respective nations for ratification or rejection on behalf of the nations. As Marshall later summed up the knowledge which prompted that sending of those _federal_ articles to the legislatures: To the formation of a league, such as was the Confederation, the State sovereignties were certainly competent. (M’Culloch v. Maryland, 4 _Wheat._ 316.) Each state legislature acted favorably upon the proposed articles and ratified them. By July 9, 1778, the legislatures of ten states had ratified. The legislatures of New Jersey and Delaware followed before the end of February, 1779. The legislature of Maryland did not ratify until March 1, 1781.