Several, however, refused to put their name on the Constitution.
Edmund Randolph of Virginia and Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts said they could not sign the document. They believed it would not beapproved by the states. And that, Gerry said, would lead to civil war.
George Mason of Virginia also refused to sign. He had several reasons, but his first objection was that the document did not guarantee enough liberties. "There is no declaration of any kind, for preserving the liberty of the press, or the trial by jury in civil causes; nor against the danger of standing armies in time of peace." Mason wanted to add a “Declaration of Rights.”
Randolph, Gerry and Mason were the only delegates present in Philadelphia who did not sign the Constitution.
Four other delegates who opposed it went home before the signing. So did nine delegates who supported the Constitution but went home early.
Few of the delegates in Philadelphia could feel sure that enough states would approve the Constitution to make it the law of the land. As several of them said later, they wrote it the best they could.
Without it, the young nation would break apart before it even had a chance to succeed.
If future generations did not like the Constitution, it offered ways for them to change it. Here is George Washington played by an actor.
“I’m a practical man. I hope for the best, but I plan for the worst. And that’s what this document does.”
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2013-11-25
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