Table Of ContentVolume I
DOCUMENTS
AMERICAN HISTORY
To
1898
TENTH EDITION
DOCUMENTS
of
AMERICAN HISTORY
I to 1898
volume
edited by
HENRY STEELE COMMAGER
and
MILTON CANTOR
PRENTICE HALL, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey 07632
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publieation Data
Documents of American historv.
Includes indexes.
Contents: v. 1. To 1898 — v. 2. Since 1898.
1. United States—History—Sources. I. Commager,
Henrv Steele II. Cantor. Milton.
E173.D59 1988 973 87-32704
ISBN 0-13-217274-7 (v. 1)
ISBN 0-13-217282-8 (v. 2)
Editorial/production supervision: Serena Hoffman
Cover design: Edsei Enterprises
Manufacturing buyer: Ed O'Dougherty
■ © 1988 by Prentice-Hall. Inc.
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To
EVAN
WHO LIKED THEM
PREFACE
These documents are designed to illustrate the course of American history from the Age
of Discovery to the present. Exigencies of space and of circumstance have required that
the term document be interpreted in a very narrow sense. Properly speaking, almost every*
thing of an original character is a document: letters, memoirs, ballads, folk-lore, poetry,
Action, newspaper reports and editorials, sermons and speeches, to say nothing of inscrip
tions, stamps, coins, buildings, painting and sculpture, and all the innumerable memorials
which man has left in his effort to understand and organize his world. 1 have tried to limit
my selection to documents of an official and quasi-official character, though I have been
no more consistent in this than in other things. 1 have not included selections often, and
mistakenly, referred to as “readings”; even partially to illuminate American history from
letters, memoirs, travelers’ descriptions, etc. would require many volumes; this material,
too, should be read in its entirety rather than in excerpt, and is readily available to students.
What is presented here, then, is part of the official record, and students know that the
official record is neither the whole record nor in every case the real record. I cannot say that
I have been guided in my choice of material by any rigid principles of selection. The choice
has been determined by the experience of the class-room, by personal interest, and by avail
ability. I have attempted to include those documents with which students should be familiar,
such as the Northwest Ordinance or Mar bury v. Madison; those which are illustrative or
typical, such as colonial charters or land laws; those which focussed upon themselves the
attention of the country, such as the Missouri Compromise or the Lincoln-Douglas Debates;
those which serve as a convenient point of departure for the study of some economic or
political development, such as labor cases or party platforms; those which illuminate some
phase of our social life, such as the constitution of the Brook Farm Association or the
Mooney-Billings Report; those which have certain qualities of interest, eloquence or
beauty, such as Lee’s Farewell to his Army or Holmes’ dissent in the Abrams Case.
No one can be more acutely conscious of the inadequacies of such a collection than is
the editor. Students familiar with the sources of American history will find many omissions
and will discover many episodes unilluminated. To most of these charges I can plead only
the exigencies of space; to some I must confess personal idiosyncrasy and fallibility. Stu
dents will look in vain for Webster’s Reply to Hayne or Stephen’s Cornerstone speech, for
Hamilton's Report on Manufactures or the Federal Reserve Act, for the diplomatic cor
respondence on the X.Y.Z. affair or the Trent episode. These, and scores of similar selec
tions, were omitted because I was not able to achieve a satisfactory condensation and did
not feel that they could be included in extenso. While I have made efforts to find documents
which would illustrate phases of our social and economic history, there are fewer of these
than is desirable. Such documents are hard to come by: spiritual forces do not readily
translate themselves into documents. I would have liked to have included Emerson’s Divin
ity School Address, FiUhugh’s Pro-Slavery Argument, the platform of the American Eco
nomic Association; to have yielded to this temptation would have opened the ffood-gates
of miscellaneous source material. It cannot be pretended that presidential messages, supreme
court decisions, or statutes, reveal much of the undercurrents of our social life. To discover
these it would be necessary to go to church records, school reports, the minutes of fraternal
orders, the records of labo.r organizations and agricultural societies, the records of probate
courts, etc. American historians have been distressingly backward in the appreciation and
publication of such material. These records therefore are not readily available, nor would
a lifetime be sufficient to canvass them and take from them that which is typical.
Neither the notes nor the bibliographies which accompany these documents pretend to be
extensive. In the notes I have attempted to state only what is essential for an understand
ing of the background of the document; the bibliographies are designed to indicate ad
ditional reading for the orientation of the document and additional bibliographical refer
ences. I have only occasionally included references to the rich deposits of material in
vii
viii P re f a c e
periodicals and the publications of learned societies: for these the student will have to go
to specialized bibliographical guides and to the invaluable Writings on American History
which Miss Griffin has compiled. The documents themselves have been taken from and
collated with the sources indicated. No effort has been made to standardize spelling, capital
ization or punctuation, or even to correct obvious errors in the originals: to have under
taken this, even granting its propriety, would have produced confusion. I have taken very
few liberties with these documents. Omissions have been indicated by the customary ellipsis
sign, but I have omitted such phrases as “be it also enacted” and ‘‘done at the city of
Washington, etc.” without any indication. I have in most instances abbreviated Article to
Art. and Section to Sec., and I have frequently substituted numbered dates for the lengthier
form. I have no doubt that in the many processes of copying, collating, and printing, num
erous errors have crept in; for these 1 beg the indulgence of the reader.
I am under obligation to many people for cooperation in the compilation of this volume.
The officials of the libraries of New York University bore patiently with my demands. To
my colleagues in the Department of History, Mr. Cochran, Mr. Craven, Mr. Hoffman,
Mr, Musser, and Mr. Wettereau, to Mr. Stein of the Department of Economics, Mr. Thach
of the Department of Government, and Dean Sommer of the Law School of New York
University, I am grateful for suggestions. Without the faithful and intelligent assistance of
Miss Margaret Carroll this volume could never have been prepared.
Henry Steele Commacek
TABLE OF CONTENTS
DOC. NO. PACK
1. PRIVILEGES AND PREROGATIVES GRANTED TO COLUMBUS. April 30, 1492 . . . . 1
2. papal bull initR Caetera. May 4, 1493 2
3. TREATY OF TORDESILLAS. June 7, 1494 4
4. LETTERS PATENT TO JOHN CABOT. March 5, 1496 5
5. charter to sir Walter RALEGH, March 25, 1584 .......................................................6
6. first charter of Virginia. April 10, 1606 8
7. second charter of Virginia. May 23, 1609 10
8. third charter of Virginia. March 12, 1 6 1 2 ...................................................................12
9. ordinance for Virginia. July 24, 1621 13
10. LEYDEN AGREEMENT. 1 6 1 8 .......................................................................................................14
11. Mayflower COMPACT, November 11, 1620 15
12. first charter of massachusetts. March 4, 1629 ....................................................... 16
13. CAMBRIDGE AGREEMENT. August 26, 1629 18
14. CHARTER OF FREEDOMS AND EXEMPTIONS TO PATROONS. June 7, 1629 . . . . 19
15. charter of Maryland. June 20, 1632 21
16. fundamental orders of Connecticut. January 14,1 639 ........................................... 22
17. plantation agreement at providence. August 27, 1640 ............................................ 24
18. NEW ENGLAND CONFEDERATION. May 19, 1643 26
19. MASSACHUSETTS SCHOOL LAW OF 1642................................................................................. 28
20. MASSACHUSETTS SCHOOL LAW OF 1647................................................................................. 29
21. CAMBRIDGE PLATFORM. 1648 ................................................................................................ 29
22. MARYLAND TOLERATION ACT. April 21, 1649 ..................................................................... 31
23. NAVIGATION ACT OF 1660 ....................................................................................................... 32
24. INDEPENDENCY IN COLONIAL MASSACHUSETTS
1. declaration of liberties. June 10, 1 6 6 1 .............................................................34
2. ANSWER to MR. solicitor’s OBJECTIONS. October 2, 1678 .................................. 34
25. CONCESSIONS TO THE PROVINCE OF PENNSYLVANIA. July 11,1 6 8 1 ..............................35
26. earliest protest AGAINST slavery. February 18, 1688 ............................................... 37
27. navigation act of 1696 ....................................................................................................... 38
28. PENN’S plan of union. 1697 ................................................................................................ 39
29. Pennsylvania charter of PRIVILEGES. October 28, 1701 ..................................... 40
30. molasses act. May 17, 1733 ................................................................................................ 42
31. ALBANY PLAN OF UNION. 1754 ............................................................................................... 43
32. Otis’ speech against writs of assistance, February 24, 1761 ............................ 45
33. proclamation of 1763. October 7. 1763 ..................................................................... 47
34. frontier grievances from Pennsylvania. February 13, 1764 .............................. 50
35. stamp act. March 22, 1765 ................................................................................................ 53
36. VIRGINIA STAMP ACT RESOLUTIONS. May 30, 1765 ....................................................... 55
37. INSTRUCTIONS OF TOWN OF BRAINTREE, MASSACHUSETTS. October 14. 1765 . . 56
38. resolutions OF THE stamp act congress. October 19. 1765 ............................ 57
39. Northampton COUNTY resolutions on stamp act. February 11, 1766 . . 59
40. PETITION of LONDON merchants. January 17, 1766 .............................................. 59
41. declaratory act. March 18, 1766 .................................................................................. 60
42. quartering act. March 24, 1765 ........................................................................... 61
43. TOWNSHEND REVENUE act. June 29, 1767 .................................................................... 63
44. FUNDAMENTAL LAW AND THE BRITISH CONSTITUTION
1. MASSACHUSETTS HOUSE TO EARL OF SHELBURNE. January 15, 1768 . . . 65
2. Massachusetts house to marquis of ROCKINCHAM. January 22, 1768 . . 65
3. Massachusetts house to lord Camden. January 29, 1768 . . . . 65
IX
X T a b l e of C o n t e n t s
»OC. HO. PAGE
45. massachusetts circular letter. February 11, 1768 ................................................ 66
46. boston non-importation agreement. August 1, 1768 ................................................ 67
47. petition from regulators of north Carolina. October 9, 1769 . . . . 68
48. new York sons of liberty resolutions ON tea. November 29. 1778 . . . 70
49. intolerable acts
1. boston port act. March 31, 1774 ........................................................................... 71
2. massachusetts government act. May 20, 1774 ......................................... 72
3. administration of justice act. May 20, 1774 ................................................73
4. Quebec act. June 22, 1774 74
50. Pennsylvania resolutions on boston port act. June 20, 1774 . . . . 76
51. NEW YORK CITY RESOLUTIONS ON BOSTON PORT ACT. July 6, 1774 76
52. RESOLUTIONS OF ALBEMARLE COUNTY, VIRGINIA. July 26, 1774 77
53. VIRGINIA INSTRUCTIONS TO CONTINENTAL CONGRESS. August 1, 1774 . . . . 78
54. VIRGINIA NON-IMPORTATION AGREEMENT. August 1, 1774 80
55. galloway’s plan of union. September 28, 1774 81
56. declaration and resolves of first continental congress. October 14, 1774 82
57. the association. October 20, 1774 84
58. petition of London merchants for reconciliation. January 23, 1775 . . 87
59. BATTLE OF LEXINGTON
1. AMERICAN ACCOUNT OF BATTLE OF LEXINGTON. April 26, 1775 . . . . 89
2. ENGLISH ACCOUNT OF BATTLE OF LEXINGTON. April 22, 1775 . . . . 90
60. ADDRESS OF CONTINENTAL CONGRESS TO INHABITANTS OF CANADA. May 29, 1775 91
61. DECLARATION OF CAUSES AND NECESSITY OF TAKING UP ARMS. July 6, 1775 . 92
62. PROCLAMATION OF REBELLION. August 23, 1775 95
63. INSTRUCTIONS FROM MALDEN. MASSACHUSETTS. FOR INDEPENDENCE. May 27, 1776 96
64. MECKLENBURG COUNTY RESOLUTIONS. May 20, 1775 ................................................ 98
65. RESOLUTION FOR INDEPENDENCE. June 7, 1776 ..................................................................... 100
66. DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE. July 4, 1776 100
67. Virginia bill of rights. June 12, 1776 103
68. CONCORD TOWN MEETING DEMANDS A CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION. October 21,
1776 ......................................................................................................................................... 101
69. treaty of alliance with France. February 6, 1778 ................................................ 105
70. MASSACHUSETTS BILL OF RIGHTS. 1780 107
71. QUOCK WALKER CASE. 1783 110
72. articles of confederation. March 1, 1 7 8 1 .................................................................Ill
73. commonwealth v. caton et al. 1782 .................................................................................. 116
74. treaty of peace with great Britain. September 3, 1783 117
75. resolution of congress on public lands. October 10, 1780 .................................... 119
76. Virginia’s cession of western lands. December 20, 1783 ......................................... 120
77. report of government for western territory. April 23. 1784 121
78. land ordinance of 1785. May 20, 1785 ........................................................................... 123
79. memorial of presbytery of hanover county, viRCiNiA October 24, 1776 . . 124
80. Virginia statute of religious liberty. January 16, 1786 125
81. shays’s rebellion. 1786 ...................................................................................................... 126
82. northwest ordinance. July 13, 1787 128
83. annapolis convention. September 14, 1786 132
84. Virginia plan of union. May 29, 1787 134
85. paterson plan of union. June 15, 1787 136
86. Hamilton’s plan of union. June 18, 1787 137
87. constitution of the united states. September 17, 1787 138
88. objections to federal constitution. 1787 149
89. bayard & wife v. singleton. 1797 ......................................................................................... 150
90. Washington’s first inaugural address. April 30, 1789 ......................................... 151
91. judiciary act of 1789. September 24, 1789 .............................................................. 153
92. Virginia resolutions on assumption. December 16, 1790 ................................... 155
93. Hamilton’s opinion on constitutionality of bank. February 23, 1791 . . 156
94. Jefferson’s opinion on constitutionality of bank. February 15, 1791 . . 1S8
95. CHISHOLM V. GEORGIA. 1793 ....................................................................................................... 160
