In contrast to Hamilton, Madison and Jay who supported ratification of the Constitution of the United States, many others did not. While the former's works were more logically organized (and eventually won the debate), the Antifederalist writers were nonetheless articulate. Serious questions were raised which eventually led to some of the Federalist writings that served as answers to allegations of the Antifederalists.
No serious student of the Constitution can be without both sides of the story. Some Antifederalist prophecies have strangely come true. Writings by "Brutus" and "A Federal Farmer," particularly relating to the "necessary and proper" clause (Article I, Section 8, Clause 18), view the future under an unrestrained Congress. Although the "necessary and proper" clause was never meant to be a blanket grant of power, over the years, as the intentions of the Founding Fathers have passed further and further from our memories, all three branches of the federal government have assumed things that simply do not -- and never did -- exist. As the states have forgotten how to be a check against a Congress run amok, things are getting worse.
This document, like the Federalist Papers themselves, cannot be considered all inclusive. Many other pro and con pieces appeared in newspapers, in the state ratification conventions, in pamphlets, books, and other sources of the time. But these are considered the premier Antifederalist writings, organized somewhat to coincide with the Federalist Papers.
I personally scanned this document into ASCII, converted the text, spell checked it, and proofed it several times. Undoubtedly, I may have missed a dropped character, hyphenation may be inadvertently missing, or other minor flaws may appear. Please note any such mistakes and call them to my attention so that future releases can be more accurate.
Also note it was scanned from the following document:
The Antifederalist Papers
Edited with an Introduction by Morton Borden
Michigan State University Press, 1965
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 65-17929
This authors writings have been removed, so as to keep the information strictly public domain. Mr. Borden's intellect on the subject matter is very good, and the reader of this text is strongly encouraged to review the book cited above for a more thorough inquiry into the names behind the alias', and other such pertinent insights provided by Mr. Borden's original works on the Antifederalist papers. (Deleting this information has also saved considerable space, and that should be a welcome note to those of us who are craming more and more onto our limited storage capacity.)
No intention is made to plagiarize Mr. Borden or the Michigan State University Press. This work is considered public domain to the extent that the information is historic, and intended for non-commercial, informational purposes only. Any other uses are hereby denied and rejected by LEADERS. Full credit is given to Mr. Borden and the Michigan State University Press for their work in assembling this information. Questions regarding content should be directed to them.
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