The United States in Congress assembled shall never engage in a war, nor grant letters of marque and reprisal in time of peace, nor enter into any treaties or alliances, nor coin money, nor regulate the value thereof, nor ascertain the sums and expenses necessary for the defense and welfare of the United States, or any of them, nor emit bills, nor borrow money on the credit of the United States, nor appropriate money, nor agree upon the number of vessels of war to be built or purchased, or the number of land or sea forces to be raised, nor appoint a commander-in-chief of the army or navy, unless nine States assent to the same; nor shall a question on any other point, except for adjourning from day to day, be determined unless by the votes of a majority of the United States in Congress assembled.
The Congress of the United States shall have power to adjourn to any time within the year, and to any place within the United States, so that no period of adjournment be for a longer duration than the space of six months; and shall publish the journal of their proceedings monthly, except such parts thereof relating to treaties, alliances, or military operations, as in their judgment require secrecy; and the yeas and nays of the delegates of each State on any question shall be entered on the journal when it is desired by any delegate; and the delegates of a State, or any of them, at his or their request, shall be furnished with a transcript of the said journal, except such parts as are above excepted, to lay before the legislatures of the several States.
Art. 10. The committee of the States, or any nine of them, shall be authorized to execute, in the recess of Congress, such of the powers of Congress as the United States in Congress assembled, by the consent of nine States, shall, from time to time, think expedient to vest them with; provided that no power, be delegated to the said committee, for the exercise of which, by the Articles of Confederation, the voice of nine States, in the Congress of the United States assembled is requisite.
Art. 11. Canada, acceding to this confederation and joining in the measures of the United States, shall be admitted into, and entitled to all the advantages of, this union; but no other colony shall be admitted into the same unless such admission be agreed to by nine States.
Art. 12. All bills of credit emitted, moneys borrowed, and debts contracted by or under the authority of Congress, before the assembling of the United States, in pursuance of the present confederation, shall be deemed and considered as a charge against the United States, for payment and satisfaction whereof, the said United States and the public faith are solemnly pledged.
Art. 13. Every State shall abide by the determinations of the United States in Congress assembled on all questions which, by this confederation, are submitted to them. And the articles of this confederation shall be inviolably observed by every State, and the union shall be perpetual; nor shall any alteration at any time hereafter be made in any of them, unless such alteration be agreed to in a Congress of the United States, and be afterwards confirmed by the legislatures of every State.
And whereas, It hath pleased the Great Governor of the World to incline the hearts of the legislatures we respectively represent in Congress to approve of and to authorize us to ratify the said Articles of Confederation and perpetual union: Know ye that we, the undersigned delegates, by virtue of the power and authority to us given for that purpose, do by these presents, in the name and in behalf of our respective constituents, fully and entirely ratify and confirm each and every of the said Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union, and all and singular the matters and things therein contained. And we do further solemnly plight and engage the faith of our respective constituents, that they shall abide by the determinations of the United States in Congress assembled on all questions which, by the said confederation, are submitted to them; and that the articles thereof shall be inviolably observed by the States we respectively represent, and that the union shall be perpetual. In witness whereof we have hereunto set our hands in Congress. Done at Philadelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania, the ninth day of July, in the year of our Lord 1778, and in the third year of the Independence of America.
CHAPTER VIII.
THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR FROM 1776 TO 1783.
July 4—The British troops had been driven from Boston about the middle of March. From that time to the last of June no British soldiers had a foothold anywhere in the thirteen colonies. England had been preparing, however. The aid of German troops had been secured, and an expedition made ready. It was a fortunate respite, after a great success, and finding the mother country inexorable in her determination, in which to carefully consider the situation. That consideration had produced that noble protest of freemen against tyranny—The Declaration of Independence. It now remained to make it good by force of arms against a rich and powerful European empire, which was summoning its energies to the work of subjugation. On the 28th of June General Howe landed the late garrison of Boston, and other troops, on Staten Island.
July 12—Lord Howe arrived from England; Gen. Clinton returned from his repulse at Fort Moultrie, several Hessian regiments soon after arrived, and the British force amounted to 24,000; Gen. Carleton was near Lake Champlain with 13,000 men. The forces under Washington did not amount to half as many, but the British had a salutary respect for American prowess, and were laboring to win the American leaders back by promises of pardon.
Aug. 27—The battle of Long Island. The Americans, 9,000 strong, are attacked by the British, 15,000 strong. The Americans are worsted, but hold their intrenched camp. Washington silently and safely retreats during the night. The Americans lost 1,600 in killed, wounded and prisoners. British killed and wounded, 400.
Sept. 1—General Howe sends General Sullivan (American, taken prisoner in the late battle), to Congress to discuss a compromise of the dispute between England and the Colonies. Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, and Edward Rutledge, are appointed to meet English commissioners. They meet on Staten Island, but can make no arrangements.
Sept. 15—British army takes possession of New York. General Washington’s army being largely made up of militia, which come and go, he adopts “The Fabian Policy” of avoiding general engagements, keeping the enemy harrassed and in constant movement. This saved the American cause.
Sept. 26—Benjamin Franklin, Silas Deane, and Arthur Lee appointed commissioners to France.
Nov. 1—Henry Laurens, of South Carolina, chosen President of Congress.
Nov. 16—Fort Washington, at the north end of Manhattan Island, assaulted by the British, in force. The fort was taken with 2,000 prisoners. The British loss was 1,200 in killed and wounded.
Nov. 18—Americans evacuate Fort Lee, on the Hudson, above New York.
Nov. 28—Washington retreats across the Delaware into Pennsylvania.
Dec. 7—Gen. Lee disobeys the instructions of Washington and is taken prisoner by the British.
Dec. 8—A British naval force takes possession of Newport, Rhode Island.
Dec. 12—The British army being stationed along the Delaware, in New Jersey, Congress adjourns from Philadelphia to Baltimore.
Dec. 26-27—Washington suddenly crosses the Delaware and surprises Trenton. He captures 1,000 Hessians and six cannon, with a loss of four killed. In this year about 350 British merchant vessels had been taken by Americans.
1777.
Jan. 2—Washington having re-occupied Trenton, Lord Cornwallis marches a strong force to attack him.
Jan. 3—The American army silently retreat in the night and capture Princeton, with 300 prisoners. British loss in killed and wounded, 100. American loss about the same. General Mercer killed.
Feb. 6—Letters of Marque and Reprisal granted by the English against American commerce.
March 4—Congress returns to Philadelphia.
” 23—American stores destroyed at Peekskill, New York.
April 26—Danbury, Connecticut, burned by the British.
May 24—This outrage is retaliated by Colonel Meigs, of Connecticut, who lands on Long Island with 200 men, destroys twelve vessels, large quantities of provision and forage, takes ninety prisoners, and retreats without the loss of a man.
May 27—Button Gwinnett, of Georgia, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, is killed in a duel.
June 22—Gen. Howe evacuates New Brunswick, New Jersey, and retires in order to draw Washington into a battle. Washington advances till he penetrates the design of the enemy, when he retreats to a strong position and foils the British.
June 30—General Howe embarks 16,000 troops at Staten Island for Philadelphia. About this time the French Marquis De Lafayette, a youth of nineteen, arrived in America, with twelve other foreign officers, to aid the American cause.
July 1—British Gen. Burgoyne appears before Fort Ticonderoga.
” 5—Americans evacuate Ticonderoga.
” 7—Americans retreating from Ticonderoga, are defeated at Hubbardton.
” 7—United States frigate Hancock captured by three English vessels.
” 29—Burgoyne’s army, constantly victorious, reaches the Hudson.
Aug. 3—British Gen. St. Leger invests Fort Stanwix (Utica, New York).
” 6—American Gen. Herkimer defeated near Fort Stanwix. American loss 400. Gen. Herkimer killed.
” 16—Battle of Bennington, Vermont. A victory for the “Green Mountain Boys.” British lost 200 killed, 600 prisoners, 1,000 stand of arms, 1,000 swords, and four cannon. American loss fourteen killed and forty-two wounded. This turned the tide against Burgoyne.
” 22—Gen. Arnold raises the siege of Fort Stanwix. St. Leger loses his artillery, tents, and stores.
” 11—Washington’s army defeated by the British at the battle of the Brandywine, near Wilmington, Delaware. Washington retreats in good order.
” 18—Congress adjourns from Philadelphia to Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
” 19—Battle of Stillwater between Gates, American, and Gen. Burgoyne. Burgoyne held the field, but lost 500 men; Gates 300.
Sept. 16—Washington advances across the Schuylkill to attack the British, when a violent storm stops the conflict. The arms of the Americans are rendered unserviceable by the rain.
” 20—Gen. Wayne, surprised at Paoli, retreats with loss of 300 men.
” 26—The British enter Philadelphia.
Oct. 4—Battle of Germantown. Washington, with an inferior army, is again defeated. British loss 600. American loss over 1,000.
” 7—Battle of Saratoga. Burgoyne is defeated, and part of his camp with stores and ammunition, much needed by the Americans, captured. British loss 400. They retreated in the night.
” 15—Kingston, New York, burned by the British. They had taken forts Clinton and Montgomery, defending the river below, October 6th. This was an effort to aid Burgoyne, but it failed, being too late, and they retreated down the river.
” 17—Gen. Burgoyne surrenders his whole army to Gen. Gates. The prisoners amounted to 5,647. Burgoyne had lost about 4,000 since his capture of Ticonderoga. Thirty-five brass field-pieces and 5,000 stand of arms fell into the hands of the Americans. Washington, as commander-in-chief, had diminished his own army till it was much inferior to the British he was facing, to secure the success of the northern army against Burgoyne. This was the turning point of the war. Its immediate result was a treaty of alliance with France.
” 22—Count Donop, with 1,200 Hessians, attacks the American fort at Red Bank, below Philadelphia, and is repulsed by Colonel Green with 400 men. Donop is killed, and the British retire with a loss of 500 men and two vessels of war.
Nov. 15—“The Articles of Confederation” adopted by Congress.
” 16-18—Americans abandon Mud Island, and Fort Mercer, below Philadelphia.
Dec. 11—Washington establishes his army in winter quarters at Valley Forge. During this year American prisoners were treated with great cruelty at New York. General Gates, who had really succeeded in capturing Burgoyne only by the aid of Generals Schuyler and Arnold, intrigues against Washington. When this became known the general indignation killed the scheme.
1778.
The American cause was really gained by the war of the previous year. The Americans were so far unanimous, and so spirited, that the British had not been able to get a permanent hold on any part of the country, save what was occupied by their armies in force.
Jan. 30—A treaty of alliance is made with France.
Mar. 4—The American frigate Alfred, of twenty guns, captured by two English vessels of war.
” 20—The American Minister presented at the French Court.
Apr. 18—Count d’Estaing leaves Toulon, France, with a fleet to aid the Americans in the war.
Jun. 12—Philip Livingston, of New York, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, died.
” 17—The British Parliament having appointed three Commissioners, the Earl of Carlisle, Lord Auckland, and Governor Johnstone, to treat for peace with the colonies, on the basis of granting everything they had asked, except independence, Congress replies, refusing all intercourse unless the independence of the States were first recognized, and the English army withdrawn. Two years before, this would have been eagerly accepted. England had lost, at the beginning of this year, twenty thousand men, and 550 vessels, taken by American cruisers, worth twelve million dollars, and had spent one hundred million dollars on military armaments in America.
” 18—The English, afraid of being blockaded in the Delaware river, by the French fleet, evacuate Philadelphia.
Jun. 28—Battle of Morristown; Washington wins. The British retreat in the night. Lord Cornwallis commanded.
July 4-5—“The massacre of Wyoming” by the Indians, under Tory influence. About 400 troops, and most of the inhabitants killed.
Aug. 15—General Sullivan besieges the English in Newport.
” 28-29—Count d’Estaing, who was to have supported General Sullivan by a naval attack on Newport, Rhode Island, having suffered severe loss in an engagement with the English fleet, and withdrawn to Boston to refit, Sullivan retires, but is attacked by the British. He repulses them, and retreats from Rhode Island.
Dec. 29—Savannah, Geo., taken by the British.
1779.
The British direct their main efforts, this year, to the Southern States, and overrun Georgia and part of South Carolina.
Mar. 3—American force under Ashe surprised by Brigadier-General Prevost; loss 1,600.
May 2—Verplank’s Point, on the Hudson river, surrenders to British forces.
” 10—Norfolk and Portsmouth taken and partially burned by the British. Stony Point, on the Hudson, evacuated by the Americans and occupied by the British.
” 12—Prevost makes an attempt on Charleston, South Carolina, but fails.
June 6—Patrick Henry, a distinguished patriot, died, aged 63.
” 20—Gen. Lincoln, American, attacks Prevost, at Stone River. He is repulsed, and Prevost retires to Georgia.
July 4—Governor Tryon makes a descent, in Connecticut, destroys the shipping at New Haven, and burns Fairfield, Norwalk, and Greenwich. He is called off
July 16—from this barbarous work by the alarm of Gen. Clinton at the attack of Gen. Wayne on Stony Point. It was a complete surprise. Sixty of the British were killed and 550 made prisoners. American loss, 100.
” 19—Major Lee (“Light Horse Harry”) captured the garrison at Paulus’ Hook (Jersey City). The British lost 30 killed, and 159 prisoners.
Aug. 29—Gen. Sullivan is sent with an army to punish the Indians for the massacre of Wyoming and Cherry Valley. He defeats them in a fight near Elmira, New York, and lays waste their country. He burned more than forty of their towns, and destroyed their provisions and crops.
Sept. 24—Paul Jones, in a desperate naval engagement with seven English vessels, on the coast of Scotland, captures two of the enemy’s vessels.
Oct. 9—The combined French and American forces make an attack on Savannah, Geo. They are repulsed with a loss of 1,000 men. Count Pulaski was killed.
Joseph Hewes, of N. C., Thomas Lynch, of S. C., and George Ross, of Pa., signers of the Declaration of Independence, died during this year.
1780.
Jan.—The British send a large force to capture Charleston, S. C., and overrun that State.
Feb. 11—British troops are landed on St. Johns Island, and the fleet blockades Charleston.
May 6—Fort Moultrie, being invested by sea and land, surrenders to the British.
” 12—Charleston surrendered by Gen. Lincoln.
” 29—Col. Tarleton surprises Buford, American, at Waxhaws. Buford is totally defeated. South Carolina is now treated as a royal province, all opposition being overcome, for the present.
June 23—A sharp action between the British Generals Kniphausen and Clinton, with 6,000 troops, and Gen. Greene, with 1,500. The town of Springfield was burned, but Greene, taking a strong position, stopped the advance of the enemy, and he retired to Staten Island.
July 10—The Count de Rochambeau, with a fleet and 6,000 French troops, arrives at Newport, R. I. They are blockaded by the British.
Aug. 6—Col. Sumter gains a brilliant victory at Hanging Rock, S. C.
” 16—Battle of Camden, between Lord Cornwallis and Gen. Gates. The American army was superior in numbers (5,600; Cornwallis not much more than 2,000). Gates’ army was largely composed of militia, which caught a panic at the first attack. The Americans lost 1,800 killed, wounded, and prisoners. British loss, 325.
” 18—Tarleton surprises and totally defeats Sumter.
Sept. 21—Major André, of the British army, arranges with Arnold for the surrender of the fortress of West Point, on the Hudson, to the British. The plot miscarries, Arnold escapes, and André is captured.
Oct. 2—Major André is hung as a spy.
” 7—The British commander, Ferguson, is defeated and killed by a body of American back-woodsmen, at Kings Mountain, South Carolina. 300 British killed and wounded, and 800 made prisoners.
John Hart, of New Jersey, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, died this year.
1781.
Jan.—An insurrection broke out among the Pennsylvania and other troops of the American army in this month, on account of the failure of Congress to pay them. It threatened serious consequences, but was subdued by the moderation and influence of Washington.
” 4—Arnold, the traitor, landed in Virginia, and laid waste the country.
” 17—Battle of the “Cowpens,” South Carolina. Colonel Morgan, American, totally defeated Colonel Tarleton, who lost six hundred men, with his baggage and artillery. Morgan lost eighty men.
Feb. 23—George Taylor, of Pennsylvania, signer of the Declaration of Independence, died.
” 28—Richard Stockton, of New Jersey signer of the Declaration of Independence, died.
” 15—Battle of Guildford Court House North Carolina. Gen. Greene, American commander, and Lord Cornwallis, after long skirmishing, came to a battle. Greene’s army was mostly raw militia, which broke and fled. Greene was worsted, but retreated in quiet. His loss was 400; Cornwallis’, 500. So heavy a loss was as bad as a defeat to Cornwallis.
Apr. 25—Battle of Hobkirks Hill. General Greene attacked by Lord Rawdon. The Americans driven from the field. Loss on each side, 250.
May 10—Lord Rawdon evacuates Camden, South Carolina.
” 21—Several British forts in South Carolina captured by Marion and Sumter, the British losing in them 800 troops.
” 28—The American frigate Alliance captures two British sloops of war.
June 5—General Pickens, with militia, captures Augusta, Georgia. Lafayette had been maneuvering with the British forces in Virginia since April, with great ability. Though much inferior, he constantly held them in check, and avoided a battle.
July 6—Cornwallis, after a sharp skirmish with Lafayette, at Jamestown, retires to Portsmouth, Virginia. The British troops had, in three months, destroyed $10,000,000 worth of property in Virginia.
Aug. 1—Cornwallis takes post at Yorktown, Virginia, and fortifies it. His force consists of 8,000 men.
” 17—It is arranged that the combined French and American forces shall attack Cornwallis, in Virginia.
” 25—Supplies and money for the American armies landed at Boston, from France.
Sept. 5—Forts Trumbull and Griswold, in Connecticut, taken by the British, under Arnold, with circumstances of great atrocity, and New London burned.
” 8—Battle of Eutaw Springs. Both sides claim the victory. The loss was about equal—seven hundred on each side. The advantage, in the end, was in favor of the Americans, though they were repulsed. The British soon retired.
” 10—The French fleet enter the Chesapeake Bay with heavy artillery for the siege of Yorktown, while De Grasse, the French Admiral, with a large squadron, guards the entrance against the British.
Oct. 6—The allied army, 16,000 strong, commence the siege of Yorktown.
” 19—Cornwallis surrenders Yorktown, and 7,000 troops, prisoners of war.
” 25—Colonel Willett repulses 600 tories, at Johnstown, New York, with loss.
Dec. 31—Henry Laurens, United States Minister to France, sometime a prisoner in London, England, was exchanged for Gen. Burgoyne.
1782.
The war was now practically concluded. The finances of the United States, the sad condition of which had so much interfered with the collection and support of strong and well-disciplined armies, had been lately supported by loans from France and Holland. The Americans were stronger than ever, the British could not hold possession even of the Southern States, where there were more royalist inhabitants than further north; and the aid of France on the sea really made the Americans invincible. England could no longer raise the money or the troops to continue the struggle.
The year 1782 was mostly spent in negotiations. The difficulties of arranging the terms were great; and the boundaries of the new Government were a subject of much dispute.
Mar. 4—Resolutions were passed in the English Parliament, in favor of peace.
Apr. 19—Holland acknowledges American independence.
July 11—Savannah, Georgia, evacuated by the British, and occupied by General Wayne. The British carried off 5,000 negroes. Great discontent arose in the army in regard to pay, and only the great influence of Washington, and the wise moderation of American statesmen in Congress, prevented serious outbreaks.
Franklin, Adams, Jay, and Laurens, were the American Commissioners who arranged terms of peace.
Various Indian wars raged on the frontiers during this year.
1783.
Jan. 20—The preliminary treaty, providing for the cessation of hostilities between England and the United States, was signed.
Feb. 5—The Independence of the United States acknowledged by Sweden.
Mar. 24—The Independence of the United States acknowledged by Denmark. The Independence of the United States acknowledged by Spain.
Apr. 19—Cessation of hostilities officially proclaimed in the United States—just eight years from the beginning of the war. Estimated loss of men during the war, seventy thousand.
CHAPTER IX.
THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION OF 1787.
The successful termination of the Revolutionary War of seven years made the United Colonies which had commenced it, in fact, as well as in their Declaration, Free and Independent States. Toward the close of the war they had adopted Articles of Confederation. These were soon found to be inadequate to secure the general welfare, and without sufficient authority to carry their measures into effect. No sufficient means were supplied by them to maintain the public credit, and all the interests of the country languished.
They formed the Bond of Union for six years or more, and served an excellent purpose in calling the attention of statesmen and the people to the points most important in the constitution of a vigorous government. It was the trial essay, and the intelligence of the leading men of that period turned it to great profit.
In 1786 the legislature of Virginia proposed a convention of commissioners to improve the condition of trade and commerce. These commissioners met and recommended Congress to call a General Convention to revise the Articles of Confederation. This convention assembled in May, 1787, in Philadelphia; all the States except Rhode Island being represented. George Washington was chosen president. The members of this convention were the representatives of a people who had proved their firmness and attachment to liberty during a long war and against great difficulties. The delegates were men of tried patriotism, and the event has proved their wise and discriminating foresight. The system of government they planned is their most eloquent eulogy. The severe tests to which the expansion of the nation and the conflicts of sections and interests have subjected it, have served only the more fully to reveal how perfectly they comprehended the principles of a republican government, and their singular skill in arrangement. They combined the utmost vigor with the greatest security of rights. It is a glorious monument to their political insight. They, themselves, were not aware how profound was the wisdom, how complete the adaptation of its provisions. They signed it with many misgivings, on the 17th of September, 1787, after four months of diligent labor. It was then presented to the people for their ratification. They were cautious and prudent in those times, and could not appreciate as we do now, the extreme value of the work that had been accomplished. Time was required to bring out its excellences, and show how few and comparatively unimportant were its defects. It was examined with careful attention, and finally adopted as follows:
| By Convention of | Delaware | 7th December, 1787 |
| ” ” | Pennsylvania | 12th December, 1787 |
| ” ” | New Jersey | 18th December, 1787 |
| ” ” | Georgia | 2d January, 1788 |
| ” ” | Connecticut | 9th January, 1788 |
| ” ” | Massachusetts | 6th February, 1788 |
| ” ” | Maryland | 28th April, 1788 |
| ” ” | South Carolina | 3rd May, 1788 |
| ” ” | New Hampshire | 21st June, 1788 |
| ” ” | Virginia | 26th June, 1788 |
| ” ” | New York | 26th July, 1788 |
| ” ” | North Carolina | 21st November, 1789 |
| ” ” | Rhode Island | 29th May, 1790 |
As shown above, two years passed before it was finally ratified by all the States. Both the delay and the final unanimity in its acceptance, giving testimony to the prudence and thoughtfulness of the people.
Electors of President and Vice-President were chosen in the winter of 1788-1789. March 4th had been appointed as the time for the government to go into operation, but a delay in assembling the members of Congress deferred the inauguration of Washington, as first President, until April 30th. Congress immediately organized the new government, and, in conjunction with the President, appointed the necessary officers. Some minor provisions were added or changed by the first Congress in the manner provided by the Constitution itself, that is, by a two-thirds vote in both Houses, and ratification by three-fourths of the States.
Ten amendments were made at this time. The eleventh amendment was added in 1794. The twelfth in 1803. The thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth amendments have been added since 1863.
A resolution to amend is passed by the requisite majorities in both Houses, sent to the legislatures of the States, and, when three-fourths of them have approved it, the Secretary of State causes the resolution and amendment to be published in all the States and Territories, and it becomes valid as part of the Constitution.
Containing the wisest provisions of English law, it rejects all that is not in harmony with our circumstances, and our fundamental doctrine that all men have equal rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. This it keeps continually in view, and, by the sense of dignity and worth which it tends to promote in the humblest man, gradually educates him up to the standard necessary for a free citizen, and, by its respect for the rights of all, tends to induce in each the same disposition.
The wisest men of the Republic, by infusing into this document their own self-respect, and respect for others, gave tone and direction to all the future. Their own characters were so far imparted to their work as to exert a salutary influence on the destiny of the people whose fundamental law they compiled.
This document is the law of the land, obliging the highest to obedience, to justice, and right, and raising the lowest to an equal share in its political privileges, and to its vigorous protection. Consequently a steady improvement in these respects has marked the growth of the country, and the benign influence of this respect for man and his rights has gone forth from the American Republic as a Regenerator among the nations of the earth.
CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, AND ITS AMENDMENTS.
We, the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.
Article I.
Section 1. All legislative powers herein granted shall be vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives.
Sec. 2. The House of Representatives shall be composed of members chosen every second year by the people of the several States, and the electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State Legislature.
No person shall be a Representative who shall not have attained to the age of twenty-five years, and been seven years a citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen.
Representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole number of free persons, including those bound to service for a term of years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three-fifths of all other persons. The actual enumeration shall be made within three years after the first meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent term of ten years, in such manner as they shall by law direct. The number of Representatives shall not exceed one for every thirty thousand, but each State shall have at least one Representative; and until such enumeration shall be made the State of New Hampshire shall be entitled to choose three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode Island and Providence Plantations one, Connecticut five, New York six, New Jersey four, Pennsylvania eight, Delaware one, Maryland six, Virginia ten, North Carolina five, and Georgia three.
When vacancies happen in the representation from any State, the Executive authority thereof shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies.
The House of Representatives shall choose their Speaker and other officers, and shall have the sole power of impeachment.
Sec. 3. The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, chosen by the Legislature thereof for six years; and each Senator shall have one vote.
Immediately after they shall be assembled in consequence of the first election, they shall be divided as equally as may be into three classes. The seats of the Senators of the first class shall be vacated at the expiration of the second year, of the second class at the expiration of the fourth year, and of the third class at the expiration of the sixth year, so that one-third may be chosen every second year; and if vacancies happen by resignation or otherwise, during the recess of the Legislature of any State, the Executive thereof may make temporary appointments until the next meeting of the Legislature, which shall then fill such vacancies.
No person shall be a Senator who shall not have attained to the age of thirty years, and been nine years a citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that State for which he shall be chosen.
The Vice-President of the United States shall be President of the Senate, but shall have no vote unless they be equally divided.
The Senate shall choose their other officers, and also a President pro tempore, in the absence of the Vice-President, or when he shall exercise the office of President of the United States.
The Senate shall have the sole power to try all impeachments. When sitting for that purpose they shall be on oath or affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief Justice shall preside. And no person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two-thirds of the members present.
Judgment, in cases of impeachment, shall not extend further than to removal from office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United States; but the party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to indictment, trial, judgment, and punishment according to law.
Sec. 4. The times, places, and manner of holding elections for Senators and Representatives shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time by law make or alter such regulations, except as to the places of choosing Senators.
The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year, and such meeting shall be on the first Monday in December, unless they shall by law appoint a different day.
Sec. 5. Each house shall be the judge of the election, returns, and qualifications of its own members, and a majority of each shall constitute a quorum to do business; but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the attendance of absent members in such manner and under such penalties as each house may provide.
Each house may determine the rules of its proceedings, punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence of two-thirds, expel a member.
Each house shall keep a journal of its proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such parts as may in their judgment require secrecy; and the yeas and nays of the members of either house on any question shall, at the desire of one-fifth of those present, be entered on the journal.
Neither house, during the session of Congress, shall, without the consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other place than that in which the two houses shall be sitting.
Sec. 6. The Senators and Representatives shall receive a compensation for their services, to be ascertained by law, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States. They shall in all cases, except treason, felony, and breach of the peace, be privileged from arrest during their attendance at the session of their respective Houses, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any speech or debate in either House they shall not be questioned in any other place.
No Senator or Representative shall, during the time for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil office under the authority of the United States, which shall have been created, or the emoluments whereof shall have been increased during such time; and no person holding any office under the United States, shall be a member of either house during his continuance in office.
Sec. 7. All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments as on other bills.
Every bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it becomes a law, be presented to the President of the United States; if he approve he shall sign it; but if not, he shall return it, with his objections, to that House in which it shall have originated, who shall enter the objections at large on their journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If, after such reconsideration, two-thirds of that House shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, together with the objection, to the other House, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two-thirds of that House, it shall become a law. But in all such cases the votes of both Houses shall be determined by yeas and nays, and the names of the persons voting for and against the bill shall be entered on the journal of each House respectively. If any bill shall not be returned by the President within ten days (Sundays excepted), after it shall have been presented to him, the same shall be a law, in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress, by their adjournment, prevent its return, in which case it shall not be a law.
Every order, resolution, or vote to which the concurrence of the Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary (except on a question of adjournment), shall be presented to the President of the United States, and before the same shall take effect shall be approved by him, or, being disapproved by him, shall be repassed by two-thirds of the Senate and House of Representatives, according to the rules and limitations prescribed in the case of a bill.
Sec. 8. The Congress shall have power—
To lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts and excises, to pay the debts and provide for the common defense and general welfare of the United States; but all duties, imposts, and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;
To borrow money on the credit of the United States;
To regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian tribes;
To establish a uniform rule of naturalization, and uniform laws on the subject of bankruptcies throughout the United States;
To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign coin, and fix the standard of weights and measures;
To provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the securities and current coin of the United States;
To establish post offices and post roads;
To promote the progress of sciences and useful arts, by securing, for limited times, to authors and inventors, the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries;
To constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court;
To define and punish piracies and felonies committed on the high seas, and offenses against the law of nations;
To declare war, grant letters of marque and reprisal, and make rules concerning captures on land and water;
To raise and support armies, but no appropriation of money to that use shall be for a longer term than two years;
To provide and maintain a navy;
To make rules for the government and regulation of the land and naval forces;
To provide for calling forth the militia to execute the laws of the Union, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions;
To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining the militia, and for governing such part of them as may be employed in the service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively the appointment of the officers, and the authority of training the militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress.
To exercise legislation in all cases whatsoever over such district (not exceeding ten miles square) as may, by cession of particular States and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat of the government of the United States, and to exercise like authority over all places purchased by the consent of the Legislature of the State in which the same shall be, for the erection of forts, magazines, arsenals, dock yards, and other needful buildings; and
To make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this Constitution in the government of the United States, or in any department or officer thereof.
Sec. 9. The migration or importation of such persons as any of the States now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a tax or duty may be imposed on such importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each person.
The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it.
No bill of attainder or ex post facto law shall be passed.
No capitation or other direct tax shall be laid, unless in proportion to the census or enumeration hereinbefore directed to be taken.
No tax or duty shall be laid on articles exported from any State.
No preference shall be given by any regulation of commerce or revenue to the ports of one State over those of another; nor shall vessels bound to, or from one State, be obliged to enter, clear, or pay duties in another.
No money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in consequence of appropriations made by law; and a regular statement and account of the receipts and expenditures of all public money shall be published from time to time.
No title of nobility shall be granted by the United States; and no person holding any office of profit or trust under them, shall, without the consent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolument, office, or title, of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign State.
Sec. 10. No State shall enter into any treaty, alliance, or confederation; grant letters of marque and reprisal; coin money; emit bills of credit; make anything but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts; pass any bill of attainder, ex post facto law, or law impairing the obligation of contracts, or grant any title of nobility.
No State shall, without the consent of the Congress, lay any imposts or duties on imports or exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing its inspection laws, and the net produce of all duties and imposts laid by any State on imports or exports, shall be for the use of the Treasury of the United States; and all such laws shall be subject to the revision and control of the Congress.
No State shall, without the consent of Congress, lay any duty on tonnage, keep troops or ships of war in time of peace, enter into any agreement or compact with another State, or with a foreign power, or engage in war, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent danger as will not admit of delay.
Article II.
Section 1. The Executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. He shall hold his office during the term of four years, and, together with the Vice-President chosen for the same term, be elected as follows:
Each State shall appoint, in such manner as the legislature thereof may direct, a number of electors, equal to the whole number of Senators and Representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress; but no Senator or Representative, or person holding an office of trust or profit under the United States, shall be appointed an elector.
[The electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote by ballot for two persons, of whom one at least shall not be an inhabitant of the same State with themselves. And they shall make a list of all the persons voted for, and of the number of votes for each; which list they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the government of the United States, directed to the President of the Senate. The President of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates, and the votes shall then be counted. The person having the greatest number of votes shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of electors appointed; and if there be more than one who have such majority, and have an equal number of votes, then the House of Representatives shall immediately choose by ballot one of them for President; and if no person have a majority, then from the five highest on the list the said House shall in like manner choose the President. But in choosing the President, the vote shall be taken by States, the representation from each State having one vote; a quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or members from two-thirds of the States, and a majority of all the States shall be necessary to a choice. In every case, after the choice of the President, the person having the greatest number of votes of the electors shall be the Vice-President. But if there should remain two or more who have equal votes, the Senate shall choose from them by ballot the Vice-President.][1]