Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1858-09-18
FORMATION OF THE UNION.

On Monday. the 9TH September, l774. ther,
was assembled in Carpenters Hail. in the city Of
Philadelphia, number of delegates who had
been chosen and appointed by the several Eng
lish colonies in North America to hold con.
gress for the purpose of discussing certain griev
ances imputed against the king and his officials
This Congress resolved on the next day thai
each colony should have one vote only.
On Tuesday, July . l776, the Congress re-
solved, THAT these united colonies are, and o
right ought to be, free and independent states. :
etc. and on Thursday, the 4th July, the whole
Declaration of Independence having been agreed
upon, it was publicly read to the people. Short
ly after, on the 9th September it was resolved
that the words United Colonies should be nc
longer used, and that the United States o.
America" should thenceforward be the style ant
title of the Union.
On Saturday, the 10Th November, III, Gar
ticles of Confederation and Perpetual Union o
the United States of America" were agreed up.
on by the State delegates, subject TO- thc ratiIi
cation VI tire i'tdtr icgSlatureS severallY Eight
OF the States had ratified these articles by the
9Th July, l17S; one did so on the 2lst July
one on the 9th July; one on the 26th Nov. OF
the same year; one on the 22d February. | 779
and the last one on the lst March, 1871. Here
was bond of union among thirteen independ-
ent States, whose delegates in Congress legis-
lated for the general welfare, and executed GER
tam powers, so far as they were permitted by
the articles aforesaid. The war of the Revolu-
ton was closed in 1888, and thus the Union,
which hitherto had existed only 2e tdcto, now
became government de j,f,e
On the 4th March, 1889, the present consti-
tuition, which had been adopted in convention
ana ratified by the requisite number of States,
went into operation. The dates at which the
State legislatures ratified this instrument were
Delaware, 1881; Pennsylvania, 1881; New
Jersey, 1887 Georgia, l7SS; Connecticut, 7Ss;
Massachusetts, 1888; Maryland, 1855 South
Carolina, l7SS; New Hampshire, l7SS; Vir-
ginic, llSS New York, 1888; North Carolina,
1850 and Rhode Island, 1890.
The privilege of becoming members of the
Union by ratityrlg the constitution was contin-
ed to those States that were parties to the con-
federation by which the constitution had been
framed. This constitution had been adopted
by the convention on the 18th day of Septem-
Der, 1857. 1t required that nine States should
ratify it before its provisions could go into eff
feet. On the 18th OF September, l7SS, Congress
determined that, as sufficient number of States
had complied with with this reservation, eleven
having done so, it should become operative on
the first Wednesday (the 4th) of March, 1889.
North Carolina and Rhode Island had not vet
given it sanction; but as soon as they had ac-
ceded 10 it, they We're admitted to participa-
ton of its benefits.
Since the period of the adoption of the con-
stitution twenty new States have been admitted
into the Union. These are as follows: Vermont,
1892; Kentucky, 1892 Tennessee, 1896 Ohio,
1902 ! Louisiana, 1872 Indiana, 1916; Mis-
sissippi, 1917 Illinois, 1885, Alabama, 1919
Maine, 1920 Missouri, 1921 Arkansas, 1886
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