Many men of great and various powers played important parts in effecting this change of government which at length established the American Union in such a form that it could endure; but the three who stood foremost in the work were George Washington, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton. Two other men, whose most important work came somewhat later, must be mentioned along with these, for the sake of completeness. It was John Marshall, chief justice of the United States from 1801 to 1835, whose profound decisions did more than those of any later judge could ever do toward establishing the sense in which the Constitution must be understood. It was Thomas Jefferson, president of the United States from 1801 to 1809, whose sound democratic instincts and robust political philosophy prevented the federal government from becoming too closely allied with the interests of particular classes, and helped to make it what it should be,--a "government of the people, by the people, and for the people." In the _making_ of the government under which we live, these five names--Washington, Madison, Hamilton, Jefferson, and Marshall--stand before all others. I mention them here chronologically, in the order of the times at which their influence was felt at its maximum. When the work of the Federal Convention was sanctioned by the Continental Congress and laid before the people of the several states, to be ratified by special conventions in each state, there was earnest and sometimes bitter discussion. Many people feared that the new government would soon degenerate into a tyranny. But the century and a half of American history that had already elapsed had afforded such noble political training for the people that the discussion was, on the whole, more reasonable and more fruitful than any that had ever before been undertaken by so many men. The result was the adoption of the Federal Constitution, followed by the inauguration of George Washington, on the 30th of April, 1789, as President of the United States. And with this event our brief story may fitly end. COLLATERAL READING. The following books may be recommended to the reader who wishes to get a general idea of the American Revolution:--