C

PART IV

SELF-GOVERNMENT IN THE UNITED STATES

CHAPTER XXX

OUR FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

287. A Union of States. We have now studied the governments of our States. We have seen that each is an organization through which the people of the State cooperate in making rules under which all must live and in doing many other things to make life safer and happier. Now we come to the study of a new kind of government, formed by uniting these States together under one constitution. The people made this union because there were a number of things which the union could do better than the separate States could do them. Later on in the book we shall discuss a union of countries or larger states, through which we also hope to do still other things on a yet larger scale. But now our task is to see clearly why a union of our States was wise and useful, and therefore why it was profitable to wage a great war from 1861 to 1865 to preserve this union.

288. Separation from England. Nearly a century and a half ago what now is the United States consisted of thirteen English colonies. But the colonial leaders became restless under the government that ruled in England at that time. Many people both in England and in America

thought that government ne nos; and so some of the American colonies declared that they ought to be independent of England. It was necessary to wage a war with the Mother Country to gain independence, but the aims of the colonists were supported in this war by many of the best people in England, who felt that the rulers there at that time were dealing unjustly not only with the colonies but with the very principles of English freedom. England was at war with many other countries at that time, and therefore the little colonies were able to secure their independence and to set up a separate government of their

own.

289. Thirteen Separate States. Each of the colonies became a separate little country when the war was won. It is true they were united for the purpose of carrying on the war, and their leaders intended to continue to live together under some sort of a union. But the connection was a very weak one, not much stronger than that between the allies which have been fighting Germany. Our leaders had for a long time, even before we declared our independence, thought that the. American colonies should be united; but they had not been able to unite them because each colony had thought more of its separate interests than of the benefits of working together. Even while the War for Independence was going on it was almost impossible to get them to help each other. They had formed a constitution called the Articles of Confederation, but Maryland for many years refused to join it because Virginia would not turn over her western lands to the government of the union. Virginia finally agreed to do this in order to get the other States to come in, which was a very fine act on her part. This is only one illustration of the difficulties.

Other colonies distrusted each other for various reasons, but the wise leaders finally persuaded all to unite at least for the waging of the war. This union was strengthened by the fact that Massachusetts was willing to have a Virginia general, George Washington, command all the armies as the allies agreed to let General Foch command all the forces in the great war against Germany.

290. The Articles of Confederation. We now think the Articles of Confederation formed a very poor government indeed; but it was the best that could be formed at that time because the States were so lacking in foresight. They were not willing to give any real powers to the government of the union. It had no governor or president to enforce the laws; it had no good way of raising an army or fleet; it had no way of getting money unless the States were willing to give voluntarily. The vote of one State could prevent the congress from improving the government. It is easy to find fault with this first union; but it is better to congratulate ourselves on the fact that the little colonies did not fall apart and become separate countries which would have been in constant danger of war with each other.

291. Difficulties after the War. The war ended in 1783, and the States of America were independent and free to organize their own government as best they could. Few if any people in Europe believed that a country without a king could live in peace. Many were certain that the States would fall into anarchy and would have to join themselves again to some powerful European country. Some of the wisest people in America also feared that self-government was impossible; they were sure that the States would go to war with each other and thus bring confusion. There were many signs which pointed to this sort of anarchy.

292. Trade on the Potomac. Virginia is on one side of the Potomac River and Maryland is on the other. We are now so used to our rivers being free for the use of all the people that it is hard for us to think of two States quarreling about the way ships shall bring cargoes into them. But Virginia and Maryland each wished to control this river and to say what tariff duties should be collected on it. At that time Washington owned lands in the western part of the colonies and thought the river should be improved so that ships could use it more easily. He was a wise business man and the richest landholder in the country. But there was no government strong enough to provide for the improvement of the river. Washington was determined that this condition should be corrected and that there should be some way through which the States could coöperate. Therefore he called a meeting to discuss improving the government. This meeting led to others and finally to the calling of a convention at Philadelphia to revise the Articles of Confederation.

293. Other Troubles. But Washington could not have got the people in other States to aid him in this plan if they themselves had not also been suffering from the weakness of the government. Some of the disagreements among them seem to us now almost like the quarrels of spoiled children. But grown people are very like children when they give way to their selfish interests. For example, the government of one State taxed the trade from other States. Connecticut and Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey, and other pairs of States were almost at war over petty trade disputes. Georgia and South Carolina had come almost to blows over trade on the Savannah River. Many of the boundaries between the States could not be fixed sat

isfactorily. There was no money which people in all the States could trust, and therefore business was in great confusion. In this anarchy people everywhere began to wonder if democratic government was not a failure after all. There are always pessimists who hope for the worst and refuse to aid their fellow-citizens in trying to make life better through the making of good laws and the selection of capable officers.

294. Our Great Leaders. George Washington is called the Father of His Country. Some people call him this because he was the leader of our armies in the war with England; but he deserves the name much more because he was the leader in our war against anarchy and confusion. A great general is always popular after he has won a war. Even the people who did nothing to help him to win it then admire him. Therefore Washington had much power for good. He was one of the few great generals in the history of the world who was not ambitious and who saw that power must be used for the general good. He, therefore, used all his great power to build up a real government between the States so that conservation, business, and education could be aided. He was supported in this by his friends Alexander Hamilton of New York, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, John Adams of Massachusetts, and others.

295. The Convention of 1787. These leaders persuaded their States to send delegates to the convention in Philadelphia to see if they could not make a government for the union of States which would remove some of the greatest difficulties. It was a hard thing to do because most people are afraid of any change, and it is hard to persuade them that a strong government under the control of the people is