242 lines
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242 lines
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ARRoGANT CoURiERS WiTH ESSaYS
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Grade Level: Type of Work Subject/Topic is on:
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[ ]6-8 [ ]Class Notes [Essay on Day by Day ]
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[x]9-10 [ ]Cliff Notes [of the Constitutional ]
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[ ]11-12 [x]Essay/Report [Convention ]
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[ ]College [ ]Misc [ ]
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Dizzed: 11/94 # of Words:1804 School: ? State: ?
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<EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>><3E><><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>><3E><><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>>Chop Here><3E><><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>><3E><><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>><3E><><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>><3E><><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD><EFBFBD>
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Constitutional Convention
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May 29, 1787
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After these few short days of the convention here in Philadelphia, I
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realized that it would be important to keep personal records of this
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convention to assist in future discussion. This will also help me with
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remembering details of the events.
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Today the "Virginia Plan" was presented by that state's delegates.
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They proposed a series of many resolutions that seemed well thought out to
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me. The plan was written by James Madison but was given to us by Edmund
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Randolph who was a very effective speaker and clear orator.
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I enjoyed listening to the resolutions and the fresh new ideas I heard
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in the Virginia Plan. First, the Virginia Plan recommended a bicameral
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legislature with representation to be determined by the size of the
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population in each area. The lower body of this legislature would be
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elected by voters while the upper house would be elected by the members of
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the lower house.
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Every night the delegates go down to the taverns at Head House Square
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and discuss what they have heard. I will debate with them the notions
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which we have been privy to. One of my personal goals of this convention
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is to talk freely with Ben Franklin about his ideas about government. Mr.
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Franklin has traveled widely and has seen many nations. He is old and wise
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and I want to talk to him before he passes away. Right now he is at the
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age of 81, I think.
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May 31
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Recently the convention has become vexatious. The summers in this
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towne are very humid. We are forced to keep the window open everywhere.
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Flies are about at all times and it is hard to concentrate. Also, some of
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the discussions at this convention are sluggish and tiresome.
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One good thing about the weather is that it has given me time to
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reflect on the Virginia Plan proposed a few day ago.
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The one point I disagree with regarding the Virginia Plan is that it
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gives more power to all the states with higher population, thus giving the
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smaller states no voice.
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June 3
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It is a shame that Tom Jefferson, Mr. Madison's Virginia neighbor, is
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not here. He feels that we are trampling upon the poor farmers. It's
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reported that he feels there should be a new government set up every few
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years because any existing government becomes tyrannical. We must take
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into regard people who feel this way. I hope we can prove Mr. Jefferson
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wrong by showing that a stronger, consistent government can protect all its
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citizens.
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June 4
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Today I stayed home sick. I was well leeched and now feel much
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improved.
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June 6
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I realized today that I should have begun this diary with the points
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on the convention that we have all unanimously agreed upon, before it
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began.
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First, we agreed that these meetings should be closed to the public so
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that there could be frank debate and discussion about government, people,
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and problems. The next thing agreed was that each state could have one
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vote on topics, making all states equal. Finally we all agreed that no
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subject could be closed permanently, even if it had been previously voted
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on. These points have been ALL very helpful in making things run smoothly.
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June 8
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Today I took a walk down along the Delaware River with New York's
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Alexander Hamilton. Despite my personal feelings that Mr. Hamilton is a
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autocrat who cares little about most people, I found him enjoyable to talk
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to. Mr Hamilton has written much about the need for a federal government.
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When I asked him about this, he commented that "Unless we place country
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under the foundation of the law, we cannot survive."
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June 11
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Today several of the delegates and I, including James Madison, went to
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visit John Bartram out in the countryside surrounding Philadelphia. His
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house was large and his gardens beautiful. Dr. Bartram has researched
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vegetation and knows much about what to grow and when. His approach is
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scientific and he has found many new types of plants. I admire his
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achievements.
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June 15
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Eighteen days after the Virginia Plan was proposed, the first
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alternative plan came up. The very scholarly William Patterson introduced
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today the "New Jersey Plan". This plan proposed some interesting ideas of
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how the government should be run. It suggests a single house of congress
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which would appoint the executive branch and the courts. In this congress,
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each state would get one vote (not very different from what we have at this
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convention). Also in this congress, they planned to add two new powers:
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taxation and the regulation of commerce (something I feel is very
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important). Finally this plan named the power of the national government
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as the greatest law of the land, as it could override anything from the
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state government.
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I am going to have to try harder to actually have my long awaited
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conversation with Mr. Franklin. It seems every time I approach him, he is
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busy. Tonight I'm going to sleep early. We have a long discussion of the
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New Jersey plan tomorrow.
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June 19
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After four days of discussing the New Jersey plan, we have finally
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rejected both the New Jersey plan and the Virginia plan. We have discovered
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that one problem we had until today was that we had never formally voted to
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discard the Articles of Confederation. Finally, today, we have set the
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Articles aside and now we can right past wrongs. The inability to regulate
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trade and commerce between the states, maintain order and levy taxes of the
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Confederation made its government ineffectual.
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Roger Sherman of Connecticut says he has a solution. He is going to
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propose it on the twenty-fifth. Perhaps this will be the perfect plan.
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June 22
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I decided today to talk to Roger Sherman over lunch and try to gather
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a piece of information on the plan that will come tomorrow. The roast
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chicken lunch was excellent! Unfortunately, all I learned from my
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conversation is that his plan will incorporate the best ideas from both the
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Virginia and the New Jersey plan.
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June 25
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Today Mr. Sherman gave his presentation which took me by total
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surprise! It was incredible organized and greatly accepted. Mr. Sherman
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opened saying he listened quietly to all the proceeding and came up with a
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plan that will agree with everyone, because it has the best points of each
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side.
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He proposed having the bicameral legislature of the Virginia Plan, but
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now there would be one house from each plan! The Virginia Plan suggested a
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population based house, which Mr. Serman calls the House of
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Representatives. He also thought we should have another house where each
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state has one vote, the "Senate". After some talk we agreed the senate
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should instead have two members for each state instead of one.
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June 26
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Today, more elements came out of Rodger Sherman's plan of
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"compromise", which Mr. James Madison (who is in great favor of this plan)
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has coined the phrase "The Great Compromise".
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Mr. Sherman now suggests if we have any law going into effect as a
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bill, it should pass through both houses of Congress before it can be
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approved by a president. I think this is a excellent way to give equal
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power to both houses! More details will come out over the next week or so.
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I will give a summary of those ideas then.
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July 6
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This past week and a half have been incredibly productive! We have
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finished many important details and have a few problems left. The first
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point agreed on was the base of powers would be the national government,
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and it would give reserved powers to the state (similar to the power idea
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of the New Jersey plan).
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Next thing we did (which I felt we should have done earlier), was
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clarify and have a definite government set. We decided to have the three
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branches of government of legislative (two houses), the judicial (a Supreme
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court going absolutely by the constitution), and, finally, the executive.
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We next agreed that when voting for the President and the
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Vice-President, the votes should be counted under an electoral college.
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The electoral college would be based on the number of people in congress
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representing each state.
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The final thing we did was we found problems with how the slave
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population should be counted or if slavery should be abolished. We will
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begin work on this tomorrow. With all this new sudden progress, I regret
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not having more time around this beautiful, big city.
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July 11
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These days are going by much quicker compared to when we first arrived
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here. The weather has improved, not much, but it is notably cooler.
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In our discussions of slavery, some of us (including myself), brought
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into question abolishing slavery altogether. Unfortunately, Georgia and
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South Carolina brought up the fact that if we abolished slavery, it would
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never be accepted by many states, and we would defeat the purpose of
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holding this convention at all, which is bringing these states together
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under a government. I know that what these delegates say is true, even
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though I wish it were not that way! We then agreed to count slaves as part
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of the population but as three-fifths of it.
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July 16
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Today we finally agreed on all our discussion points and will begin
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debating, discussing, and writing this document until September
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seventeenth, when it will be read out and those who wish to, will sign it.
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After all these days since I first got here in Philadelphia, I finally
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got to have lunch with Mr. Franklin. It was truly a great experience
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talking to a man that had accomplished so much. I asked him what he thought
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of the constitutional work that had been done thus far. He told me he did
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not agree with everything in the document, but he knew it was necessary and
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thus supported it. We then talked about the city, I learned it was planned
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to continually expand much larger. In our conversation I mentioned the
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great art work of the sun on the horizon behind Mr. Washington's seat. He
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told me he had not noticed it and would look.
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When we met back in the convention later, we discussed for about an
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hour many finalizing topics. When Mr. Washington said "If there are no
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final questions... this meeting will be adjourned." "I have one..." called
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out Mr. Franklin "On the picture of the sun behind you, is that sun rising
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or is it setting ?". We all knew that Mr. Franklin was being symbolic and
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really asking if this was the beginning or the end of a country. Mr.
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Washington grinned. "It is rising..." He replied. This concludes the
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records of my trip to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, 1787.
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