is now occupied by the Continental Convention, which is now sitting." John F. Watson, in his Annals of Philadelphia, confirms this statement and gives the additional information that the street pavement was covered with earth that the labors of this august assembly might not be disturbed by passing traffic.1

The first duty was to choose a presiding officer. As president of the state in whose capitol the convention was meeting, as well as by virtue of his age and reputation, Franklin might have considered himself entitled to that honor. But when the session opened on the morning of the twentyfifth with a majority of the states in attendance, Robert Morris on behalf of the Pennsylvania delegation formally proposed George Washington for president. Franklin himself was to have made the nomination, but as the weather was stormy he had not dared to venture out. No other names were offered, and the convention proceeded at once, but formally, to ballot upon the nomination. Washington was declared to be unanimously elected, and was formally conducted to the chair by Robert Morris and John Rutledge. With equal formality, but "in a very emphatic manner," Washington thanked the convention for the honor they had conferred upon him and in apparently stilted terms "lamented

1 Edition of 1857, vol. I, p. 402.

his want of better qualifications” for the position. He then proposed that a secretary should be appointed.

The emoluments of the secretaryship were hardly worthy of consideration and it must have been the hope that it might lead to some future political preferment that induced several candidates to apply for the position. One of these was Major William Jackson, who had seen active service in the Revolution, had been secretary to John Laurens on his mission to France in 1781, and afterwards had been appointed assistant secretary of war. Jackson very shrewdly did some electioneering in advance by writing himself to some of the more important delegates and by getting his friends to write for him. The advantage of this was seen when the appointment was made. Jackson received the vote of five states, while the only other formal nominee, Franklin's nephew, Temple Franklin, obtained but two.

The next stage in the procedure was to read the credentials of the deputies, and it was noticed with some concern that those from Delaware were prohibited from changing the principle of the confederation of each state having an equal vote. George Mason commented on this in a letter to his son, and added that "no other State .. hath restrained its deputies on any subject.” A committee of three was then elected by ballot

to prepare standing orders and rules, and after appointing a messenger and a doorkeeper the convention adjourned until Monday.

On Monday two more states were represented and the day was spent in considering the report of the committee on rules. Aside from the ordinary methods of parliamentary procedure, two things were agreed upon that are essential in understanding the working of the convention. In the first place, the whole organization of the convention was on the basis of state representation: each state having one vote, seven states making a quorum, and a majority of states present being competent to decide all questions, though the deputies of a state by simply requesting it might postpone the vote upon any question until the following day. This matter of state representation had been the subject of informal discussion during the days that elapsed while the delegates present were waiting for a quorum. The Pennsylvania delegates and Gouverneur Morris in particular urged "that the large States should unite in firmly refusing to the small States an equal vote, as unreasonable, and as enabling the small States to negative every good system of Government." The Virginia delegates, however, succeeded in stifling the project for fear that it "might beget fatal altercations between the large and small States."

In the second place, it was considered important that the delegates should be protected from criticism, and that their discussions should be free from the pressure of public opinion. Accordingly it was decided not to permit calling for the yeas and nays, and it was further ordered that "no copy be taken of any entry on the journal without leave of the House,' that "members only be permitted to inspect the journal," and that "nothing spoken in the House be printed, or otherwise published or communicated without leave." In other words, the sessions were to be strictly secret. We have a contemporary account revealing the excessive care taken to protect the convention from intrusion, which states that "sentries are planted without and within-to prevent any person from approaching near-who appear to be very alert in the performance of their duty."

Two days and a part of the third day were given up to the work of organization, and when the main business of the convention was begun on May 29, there were ten states represented with some forty delegates in attendance. With the exception of one adjournment of two days over the Fourth of July and another of ten days, from July 26 to August 6, to allow an important committee to prepare its report, the convention remained in continuous session (except for Sun

days) until September 17. There was one week in the latter part of August when the time of adjournment was set at four o'clock, but otherwise the hours of the daily sessions seem to have been from ten in the morning to three in the afternoon.

So scrupulously was the order of secrecy observed that it was not until many years afterward that anything definite was known of what took place in the convention. In the period following the War of 1812, when important questions involving constitutional interpretation were before the public, congress ordered to be printed all of the acts and proceedings of the convention that were in the possession of the government. The result was disappointing. The minutes of the secretary had not been well kept, and were never written out as they should have been into a complete journal. At best, they consisted only of formal motions and of the votes by states. But the seal of secrecy was broken and at various times from that day to this there have come to light the notes and records kept by different members. Most of these are fragmentary. There was one man, however, who recognized the importance of this gathering, and appreciated the interest that in all probability would attach to its proceedings, and who determined to leave as complete a record as was possible of all that