the measures themselves, and saw the impossibility that we should ever again be united with Great Britain, yet they were against adopting them at this time: That the conduct we had formerly observed was wise and proper now, of deferring to take any capital step till the voice of the people drove us into it: That they were our power, and without them our declarations could not be carried into effect: That the people of the middle colonies (Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania, the Jerseys, and New York) were not yet ripe for bidding adieu to British connection, but that they were fast ripening, and, in a short time, would join in the voice of America. against the policy or the right of separation from Britain, nor had supposed it possible we should ever renew our connection; that they had only opposed its being now declared: That the question was not whether, by a declaration of independence, we should make ourselves what we are not; but whether we should declare a fact which already exists: That as to the people or Parliament of England, we had always been independent of them, their restraints on our trade deriving efficacy from our acquiescence only, and not from any rights they possessed of imposing them ; and that so far our connection had been federal only, and was now dissolved by the commencement of hostilities: That as to the king, we had been bound to him by allegiance, but that this bond was now dissolved by his consent to the late act of Parliament, by which he declares us out of his protection, and by his levying war on us— a fact which had long ago proved us out of his protection, it being a certain position in law, that allegiance and protection are reciprocal, the one ceas-* ing when the other is withdrawn: That James II. never declared the people of England out of his protection; yet his actions proved it, and the Parliament declared it: No delegates, then, can be denied, or ever want, a power of declaring an existent truth. That the delegates from the Delaware Counties having declared their constituents ready to join, there are only two colonies, Pennsylvania and Maryland, whose delegates are absolutely tied up, and that these had, by their instructions, only reserved a right That the resolution entered by this house on the 15th of May, for suppressing the exercise of all powers derived from the crown, had shown, by the ferment into which it had thrown these middle colonies, that they had not yet accommodated their minds to a separation from the mother country: That some of them had expressly forbidden their delegates to consent to such a declaration, and others had given no instructions, and consequer tly no powers to give such consent: That if the delegates of any par of confirming or rejecting the meas ure: That the instructions from Pennsylvania might be accounted for from the time in which they were drawn, near a twelvemonth ago, since which the face of affairs has totally changed: That within that time it had become apparent that Britain was determined to accept nothing less than a carte blanche, and that the king's answer to the lord mayor, aldermen, and common council of London, which had come to hand four days ago, must have satisfied every one of this point: That the people wait for us to lead the way; that they are in favor of the measure, though the instructions given by some of their representatives are not: That the voice of the representatives is not always consonant with the voice of the people, and that this is remarkably the case in these middle colonies. That the effect of the resolution of the 15th of May had proved this; which, raising the murmurs of some in the colonies of Pennsylvania and Maryland, called forth the opposing voice of the freer part of the people, and proved them to be the majority even in these colonies: That the backwardness of these two colonies might be ascribed, partly to the influence of proprietary power and connections, and partly to their having not yet been attacked by the enemy: That these causes were not likely to be soon removed, as there seemed no probability that the enemy would make either of these the seat of this summer's war: That it would be vain to wait ei ticular colony had no power to declare such colony independent, certain they were, the others could not declare it for them; the colonies being as yet perfectly independent of each other: That if such a declaration should now be agreed to, these delegates must retire, and possibly their colonies might secede from the Union: That it was prudent to fix among ourselves the terms on which we would form alliance, before we declared we would form one at all events. ther weeks or months for perfect unanimity, since it was impossible that all men should ever become of one sentiment on any question: That the conduct of some colonies, from the beginning of this contest, had given reason to suspect it was their settled policy to keep in the rear of the confederacy, that their particular prospect might be better, even in the worst event: That, therefore, it was necessary for those colonies who had thrown themselves forward, and hazarded all from the beginning, to come forward now also, and put all again to their own hazard: That the history of the Dutch Revolution, of whom only three states confederated at first, proved that a secession of some colonies would not be so dangerous as some apprehended : That it would be idle to lose time in settling the terms of alliance, till we had first determined we would enter into alliance. In the course of this debate it appeared, says Jefferson, "that the colonies of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and South Carolina were not yet matured for falling from the parent stem, but that they were fast advancing to that state;" and it was therefore deemed prudent to postpone the final decision to the 1st of July. In the mean time, however, a committee was appointed to draft a declaration to the effect "that the United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independ ent States; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British crown; and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved." The committee consisted of Jefferson, J. Adams, Franklin, Sherman, and R. R. Livingston. Next day, the 11th of June, a resolution was adopted to appoint a committee to prepare and digest a form of confederation to be entered into between the colonies, and an other committee to prepare a plan of treaties to be proposed to for eign powers. On the 25th of June, a declaration of the deputies of Pennsylvania, in their provincial conference assembled, expressing their willingness to concur in a vote declaring the United Colonies free and independent States, was laid before Congress. On the 28th of June, the committee appointed to draft a declaration of independence brought it in, and it was ordered to lie on the table. On Monday the 1st of July, a resolution of the convention of Maryland, passed on the 28th of June, authorizing the deputies of that colony to concur in declaring the United Colonies free and independent States, was laid before Congress and read. On the same day the house "resolved itself into a committee of the whole and resumed the consideration of the original motion made by the delegates of Virginia, which, being again debated through the day, was carried in the affirmative by the votes of New Hampshire, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, and Georgia. South Carolina and Pennsylvania voted against it. Delaware had but two members present, and they were divided. The delegates from New York declared they were for it themselves, and were assured their constituents were for it; but that their instructions having been drawn near a twelvemonth before, when reconciliation was still the general object, they were enjoined by them to do nothing which should impede that object. They, therefore, thought themselves not justifiable in voting on either side, and asked leave to withdraw from the question; which was given them. The committee rose and reported their resolution to the house. Mr. Edward Rutledge, of South Carolina, then requested the determination might be put off to the next day, as he believed his colleagues, though they disapproved of the resolution, would then join in it for the sake of unanimity. The ultimate question, whether the house would agree to the resolution of the committee, was accordingly postponed to the next day, when it was again moved, and South Carolina concurred in voting for it. In the mean time, a third member had come post from the Delaware Counties, and turned the vote of that colony in favor of the resolution. Members of a different sentiment attended that morning from Pennsyl vania also: her vote was changed, so that the whole twelve colonies, who were authorized to vote at all, gave their voices for it; and within a few days (July 9) the convention of New York approved of it, and thus supplied the void occasioned by the withdrawing of her delegates from the vote. "Congress proceeded, the same day, to consider the Declaration of Independence, which had been reported, and laid on the table the Friday preceding, and on Monday referred to a committee of the whole. The pusillanimous idea that we had friends in England worth keeping terms with still haunted the minds of many. For this reason passages which conveyed censures on the people of England were struck out, lest they should give them offence. The clause, too, reprobating the enslaving the inhabitants of Africa, was struck out in complaisance to South Carolina and Georgia, who had never attempted to restrain the importation of slaves, and who, on the contrary, still wished to continue it. Our Northren brethren also, I believe, felt a little tender under those censures; for though their people had very few slaves themselves, yet they had been pretty considerable carriers of them to others. The debates, having taken up the greater part of the 2d, 3d, and 4th days of July, were, on the evening of the last, closed; the Declaration was reported by the committee, agreed to by the house, and signed by every member present, except Mr. Dickinson." (Writings of Jefferson, i. p. 14.) It was thereupon resolved" that copies of this Declaration be sent to the several assembles, conventions, and committees or councils of safety, and to the several commanding officers of the Continental troops, that it may be proclaimed in each of the United States, and at the head of the army." If we examine the matter of this venerable constitutional document, we discover in it no pretensions to originality or novelty. The doctrine of the natural equality of men; the inalienability of certain human rights; the obligation of governments to secure them; the necessity of the consent of the governed to the validity of governments; and the right of the people to alter or abolish governments which become destructive of their proper ends, are all derived from Locke's treatise on government. The proposition that the king had abdicated government here by declaring us out of his protection |