COMMENTARIES, 9 NOVEMBER 1787

24. In Letter XI of Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania, John Dickinson stated: "A
perpetual jealousy, respecting liberty, is absolutely requisite in all free-states." See Paul
Leicester Ford, ed., The Writings of John Dickinson (Memoirs of the Historical Society of
Pennsylvania, XIV [Philadelphia, 1895]), 386. Letter XI was first published in the Penn-
sylvania Chronicle on 8 February 1768.
25. Both of these states, which imported foreign goods and merchandise from New
York, complained that they paid more for such imports because of the New York state
impost, the proceeds of which did not benefit either of them. See "Introduction"
(above).
26. In the second printing of the Letters "correspondents" was changed to "corre-
sponds."
27. In the second printing of the Letters the word "all" was inserted here.
28. In the second printing of the Letters "morrisites" was rendered "m--ites." The
reference is to the followers of former Confederation Superintendent of Finance Robert
Morris, the leader of Pennsylvania's Federalists.
29. For Shays's Rebellion in Massachusetts in 1786 and 1787 and for examples of
agrarian discontent in other states, see CC:18; and RCS:Mass., xxxviii-xl.
30. Approximately 1,650 delegates were elected to the state ratifying conventions.
31. In the second printing of the Letters "blessings" was changed to "blessing."
32. For the actions taken by Federalists on 28 and 29 September, inside and outside
the Pennsylvania Assembly, to call a state ratifying convention, see "New York Reprinting
of the Address of the Seceding Members of the Pennsylvania Assembly," 9-18 October
(above).
33. For the refusal of some Boston printers to publish Antifederalist material unless
the authors were willing to have their names divulged to the public, see CC:131; and
"The Boston Press and the Constitution," 4 October-22 December (RCS:Mass., 41-50).
34. The text in angle brackets is on page 38 of the Letters. "A Countryman" VI stated
that "In page 38, there is an expression, which does not seem to be altogether consistent
with the general tenor of the whole, but, perhaps not worth your notice at this time"
(New York Journal, 14 February 1788, III below).
35. In the second printing of the Letters "amendment" was changed to "amendments."
36. In the second printing of the Letters "and" was changed to "not."
37. In the second printing of the Letters "itself" was changed to "presented."
38. See note 3 above.
James Kent to Nathaniel Lawrence
Poughkeepsie, 9 November 17871
I have not had leisure till now, owing to one intervening circum-
stance & another, to answer your favor of some time since on the poli-
tics of the Day-You expressed your Sentiments quite unfavorably of
the new Constitution, & tho you acknowledged that our only alternative
if we rejected it, was to expect our next form of Government from the
Sword, yet you seemed to be in doubt whether it would not be our
least evil to take our chance of a new one & reject it.-I do not wish
my Friend, to make our friendly Correspondence the Subject of alter-
cation & therefore I shall not dwell on the Subject-I however certainly

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