Unruly Americans and the origins of the Constitution

 by Woody Holton.  According to Holton (history, Univ. of Richmond), when most people articulate their favorite parts of the Constitution, they actually list things found in the Bill of Rights. However, the Constitution was ratified without these rights attached to it. Holton examines why the Constitution was ratified absent those rights. One explanation is that the Founders considered the states too democratic and the state legislatures too willing to appease the will of the majority. The author resurrects arguments by lesser-known political players who thought that the Union could be carried without abandoning legislative rule, and in the process he gives Charles Beard's economic interpretation a second look with surprising conclusions. State legislatures granted tax and debt relief in the years between the conclusion of the revolution and the ratification of the Constitution. Many citizens who demanded the legislature respond to their distress thought that their rebellion would bring about a democratic solution. State legislatures, absent pressure from the people, wrecked the economy. The motivation for the Constitution, therefore, is not merely based on the Founders' own self-interest--broadly felt domestic economic turmoil necessitated a more perfect Union.  --Choice (Check Catalog)