History of Northampton, Massachusetts, from its settlement in 1654;

1780.] REVOLUTION—CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION. 429
Caleb Strong and Doctor Shephard " to take the several
amendments as voted by the Town into a new draught
together with the reasons for the same & report" at the
adjourned meeting which was held on the 22'' of May. At
that time the committee chosen to make the " new
draught '' reported that they had placed the matter in the
hands of a subcommittee with instructions to report such
a document, but not being satisfied with it had " agreed not
to report it to the town ; " whereupon Major Hawley moved
that the report of the subcommittee should be submitted
to the meeting. This report was then read and "largely
debated," an entire day being devoted to its consideration.
No copy of this report survives, and it is not known
whether or not it embodied all the changes suggested by
Mr. Hawley. There seems to have been no further action
upon this report as a whole, but the town voted that the
reasons offered by the committee "respecting the Quallifications
of voters for Representatives," and for a Governor,
should be sent "to the Convention for framing the
Constitution." " The Question was then put in the words
of the second resolve of the Convention and it Passed in
the affirmative, and upon a Division it appeared that 57
votes were for it and 29 against it." This resolve recommended
to the several towns that they should empower
"their delegates at the next session of the convention to
agree upon a time when the form of government should
take place without returning the same again to the people,
provided that two thirds of the votes in the state had
agreed to the same, or the convention had made it conform
to the sentiments of two thirds of the people. When the
convention resumed its sittings in June, it was found that
the voters had accepted the constitution as it stood in
printed form, submitted to their revision by the resolves of
March 2^
Laws against Monop- Throughout the War, particularly in its
oiy and Oppression,
gj-gt years, there was much complaint of
extravagance, and luxury, and dissipa-
tion. Much sham patriotism, great irreligion and profane-
ness were said to exist, and a spirit of monopoly and extor-