For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us : For protecting them, by a mock trial, from punishment for any murders which they should commit on the inhabitants of these ftates:

For cutting off our trade with all parts of the world:
For impofing taxes on us without our confent :

For depriving us, in many cafes, of the benefits of trial by jury:
For transporting us beyond feas to be tried for pretended of-

fences:

For abolishing the free fyftem of English laws in a neighbouring province, establishing therein an arbitrary government, and enlarging its boundaries, fo as to render it at once an example and fit inftrument for introducing the fame abfolute rule into these colonies:

For taking away our charters, abolishing our most valuable laws, and altering fundamentally the forms of our governments : For fufpending our own legiflatures, and declaring themfelves invested with power to legiflate for us in all cafes whatsoever. He has abdicated government here, by declaring us out of his protection, and waging war against us.

He has plundered our feas, ravaged our coafts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is, at this time, tranfporting large armies of foreign mercenaries to complete the works of death, defolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumftances of cruelty and perfidy fcarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the head of a civilized nation.

He has conftrained our fellow-citizens, taken captive on the high feas, to bear arms against their country, to become the executioners of their friends and brethren, or to fall themfelves by their hands.

He has excited domeftic infurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the mercilefs Indian favages, whofe known rule of warfare is an undiftinguished deftruction of all ages, fexes, and conditions.

In every stage of these oppreffions we have petitioned for redress in the most humble terms: our repeated petitions have been anfwered only by repeated injury. A prince whofe character is thus marked by every act which may define a tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have we been wanting to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts made by their legiflature to extend an unwarrantable jurifdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumftances of our emigration and fettlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them, by the ties of our common kindred, to difavow thefe ufurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correfpondence. They, too, have

B 2

been

been deaf to the voice of juftice and confanguinity. We muft, therefore, acquiefce in the neceffity which denounces our feparation, and hold them, as we hold the reft of mankind, enemies in war, in peace friends.

We, therefore, the Reprefentatives of the United States of America, in General Congrefs affembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, folemnly publish and declare, That thefe United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, FREE and INDEPENDENT STATES; that they are abfolved from all allegiance to the British crown, and that all political connection between them and the ftate of GreatBritain is, and ought to be, totally diffolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full power to levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do all other acts and things which independent ftates may of right do. And for the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our facred honour.

JOHN

NEW-HAMPSHIRE,

MASSACHUSETTS-BAY,

RHODE-ISLAND, &c.

CONNECTICUT,

NEW-YORK,

NEW-JERSEY,

HANCOCK.

Jofiah Bartlett,
William Whipple,
Matthew Thornton.
Samuel Adams,
John Adams,

Robert Treat Paine,
Elbridge Gerry.
Stephen Hopkins,
William Ellery.
Roger Sherman,
Samuel Huntington,

William Williams,

Oliver Walcott: \

William Floyd,
Philip Living fton,
Francis Lewis,
Lewis Morris.
Richard Stockton,
John Witherspoon,
Francis Hopkinfan,
John Hart,
Abraham Clark.

PENNSYLVANIA,

6.)

ARTICLE S

O F

CONFEDERATION AND PERPETUAL UNION

BETWEEN

The States of New-Hampshire, Massachusetts-Bay, Rhode-Island, and Providence Plantations, Connecticut, New York, New-Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, North-Carolina, South-Carolina, and Georgia.

Article I. T

HE ftile of this confederacy fhall be, "United
States of America.”

Art. II. Each ftate retains its fovereignty, freedom, and independence, and every power, jurisdiction, and right, which is not by this confederation exprefsly delegated to the united states in congrefs affembled.

Art. III. The faid ftates hereby feverally enter into a firm league of friendship with each other, for their common defence, the fecurity of their liberties, and their mutual and general welfare, binding themselves to affift each other against all force offered to, or attacks made upon them, or any of them, on account of religion, fovereignty, trade, or any other pretence whatever.

Art. IV. The better to fecure and perpetuate mutual friendfhip and intercourfe among the people of the different ftates in this union, the free inhabitants of each of these states, paupers, vagabonds, and fugitives from juftice excepted, fhall be entitled to all privileges and immunities of free citizens in the feveral ftates; and the people of each ftate fhall have free ingrefs and regrefs to and from any other ftate, and shall enjoy therein all the privileges of trade and commerce, fubject to the fame duties, impofitions, and reftrictions, as the inhabitants thereof refpectively, provided that such restrictions fhall not extend fo far as to prevent the removal of property imported into any ftate to any other state of which the owner is an inhabitant; provided alfo that no impofition, duties, or restriction, fhall be laid by any state on the property of the united states, or either of them.

If any perfon guilty of or charged with treafon, felony, or other high mifdemeanour in any state, shall flee from juftice, and be found in any of the united states, he fhall, upon demand of the governor or executive power of the ftate from which he Aed, be

delivered

delivered up and removed to the ftate having jurifdiction of his offence.

Full faith and credit fhall be given in each of these states to the records, acts, and judicial proceedings of the courts and magiftrates of every other state.

Art. V. For the more convenient management of the general interefts of the united states, delegates fhall be annually appointed in fuch manner as the legislature of each ftate fhall direct, to meet in congrefs on the firft Monday in November of every year, with a power referved to each ftate to recal its delegates, or any of them, at any time within the year, and to fend others in their ftead, for the remainder of the year.

No ftate fhall be reprefented in congrefs by lefs than two, nor more than seven, members; and no perfon fhall be capable of being a delegate for more than three years, in any term of fix years; nor fhall any perfon, being a delegate, be capable of holding any office under the united states, for which he, or any other for his benefit, receives any falary, fees, or emolument, of any kind.

Each state fhall maintain its own delegates in a meeting of the states, and while they act as members of the committee of the states. In determining questions in the united states in congress affembled, each state fhall have one vote.

Freedom of fpeech and debate in congrefs fhall not be impeached or queftioned in any court or place out of congrefs, and the members of congrefs fhall be protected in their perfons from arrefts and imprisonments during the time of their going to and from and attendance on congrefs, except for treafon, felony, or breach of the peace.

Art. VI. No ftate, without the confent of the united states in congrefs affembled, fhall fend any embafly to, or receive any embaffy from, or enter into any conference, agreement, alliance, or treaty, with any king, prince, or ftate; nor fhall any perfon holding any office of profit or truft under the united states, or any of them, accept of any prefent, emolument, office, or title, of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign state; nor fhall the united ftates in congrefs affembled, or any of them, grant any title of nobility.

2. No two or more states fhall enter into any treaty, confede ration, or alliance whatever between them, without the confent of the united states in congrefs aflembled, specifying accurately the purposes for which the fame is to be entered into, and how long it fhall continue.

3. No ftate fhall lay any impofts or duties which may interfere with any ftipulations in treaties, entered into by the united states in congrefs affembled, with any king, prince, or ftate, in purfuance of any treaties already propofed by congress to the courts of France and Spain.

4. No