The Short ConstitutionWade, Martin J. (Martin Joseph)
History
The Short Constitution
Wade, Martin J. (Martin Joseph)
United States. Constitution
During the discussions in the convention one hundred and thirty
allusions were made to the government and institutions of England.
The allusions made to France numbered nineteen. Those made to the
German States were seventeen. Those made to Holland were nineteen.
Greece was referred to thirteen times; Switzerland was alluded to
five times; and Rome was alluded to sixteen times.
The English government and institutions were held up as a model to
be imitated fifty times; as an example to be avoided, twenty-four
times. France was held up as a model three times, and as a warning
five times. Rome was cited five times as a model and seven times as
a warning.
From the standpoint of training, experience, and general
qualifications for constitution makers, the delegates who sat in the
Federal convention at Philadelphia were the most remarkable group of
statesmen the world has ever seen. Sixty-five delegates were chosen,
of whom fifty-five attended the convention and of these thirty-nine
signed the Constitution, three were present but refused to sign, and
thirteen were absent on the last day. Of the fifty-five who sat in
the convention, twenty-five were from northern States and thirty
from southern States. Of the thirty-nine signers, nineteen were from
the North and twenty from the South.
Of the fifty-five men thirty were college men, twenty-six had
degrees, forty-seven were afterwards prominent in public life; of
the remaining eight, at least four died soon after the close of the
convention. The most noted men were: Washington, Franklin, Hamilton,
Madison, Wilson, Patterson, Gerry, Sherman, Pinckney, and Randolph.
Six men who signed the Constitution had also signed the Declaration
of Independence—Benjamin Franklin, James Wilson, Robert Morris, and
George Clymer of Pennsylvania, Roger Sherman of Connecticut, and
George Read of Delaware.—Meyerholz’s _The Federal Convention_.
36 Montesquieu, a famous French writer of the eighteenth century, tells
us that political liberty consists in the security one feels in
doing whatever the law permits. However we must remember that the
laws themselves must likewise be sound.
37 We must notice that Article I of “The Short Constitution” commences,
“_Congress shall make no law_” etc., which means that these first
eight amendments to the Constitution of the United States apply only
to the Federal government, and are limitations on the powers of
Congress rather than on the powers of the States. However most
States have similar provisions in their Constitutions.
38 Article X is important because it tells in a few words the exact
relation of the States to the Federal government.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account