The Beginnings of American Government Topic Test

In describing the problems created by the Articles of Confederation, George Washington said, ". . . we are one nation today and 13 tomorrow. Who will treat with us on such terms?" Which of the following most accurately restates this idea?

We claim to be one nation, but are on the verge of splitting into 13 separate states. No other nation will want to deal with such an unstable country.

Which of the following is MOST directly related to the idea that government should be restricted in what it can do?

limited government

Which of the following are considered to have contributed the MOST to creating the Constitution?

James Wilson and James Madison

The colonists built their governments based on customs and ideas borrowed from England and early civilizations, including unwritten, judge-made law developed over centuries. This type of law is known as

common law.

Amos Singletary, a delegate to the Massachusetts constitutional ratifying convention, made this statement: "These lawyers, and men of learning, and monied men, that talk so finely and gloss over matters so smoothly, to make us poor illiterate people, swallow down the pill, expect to get into Congress themselves; they expect to . . . get all the power and all the money into their own hands, and then they will swallow up all us little folks . . . just as the whale swallowed up Jonah." What was he expressing?

The Anti-Federalist concern that the central government would become too powerful.

Early on, the Constitutional Convention adopted the following proposal. "Resolved . . . that a national government ought to be established consisting of a supreme Legislative, Executive, and Judiciary." What debate among the delegates to the Convention was solved by this resolution?

whether the Articles of Confederation should be revised or replaced

The Magna Carta established the idea that

a monarch's power was not absolute

". . . that the pretended power of suspending the laws, or the execution of laws, by regal authority, without consent of Parliament is illegal . . . that levying money for or to the use of the Crown . . . without grant of Parliament . . . is illegal . . . that it is the right of the subjects to petition the king . . . and that prosecutions for such petitioning are illegal . . ." —English Bill of Rights

The king needed the consent of Parliament in order to tax people.

In deciding the population of a State for purposes of representation, a disagreement arose as to whether enslaved persons should be counted. Study the map. Which statement is consistent with what the map shows?

North and South Carolina probably favored counting enslaved persons as part of their populations.

"The Virginia Plan set the agenda for much of the convention's work. Its major support came from the three most populous States: Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts. But some delegates—especially those from New York (then only the fifth most populous State) and the smaller States of Delaware, Maryland, and New Jersey—found it too radical. Soon they developed their counterproposals." What does this suggest was an important factor in determining how alliances among convention delegates were formed?

The population of a State was a major factor.

The cartoon shows columns representing those States that had ratified the Constitution being placed in a row by the Hand of God (on the column representing North Carolina).In what way does this cartoon illustrate the notion of federalism?

This is a Federalist cartoon that suggests that the States should stand together to build a strong country.

The end of law is not to abolish or restrain, but to preserve and enlarge freedom. For in all the states of created beings capable of law, where there is no law, there is no freedom." —John Locke, The Second Treatise of Government, 1690 Which statement BEST reflects Locke's meaning?

Laws actually make people more, not less, free.

What was the compromise's other main feature?

In the Senate, the States would be represented equally. In the House, the States would be represented based on population.

Which of the following was one compromise related to the Declaration of Independence that was agreed to by the delegates to the Second Continental Congress?

Language condemning the trade of enslaved people was removed.

". . . there shall be One Governor, One Deputy-Governor, and Twelve Assistants, to be from time to Time constituted, elected and chosen out of the Freemen . . . which said Officers shall apply themselves to take Care for the best disposing and ordering of the general Business and affairs of and concerning the Land . . . and the Government of the People thereof . . ." —Charter of Connecticut, 1662

the means by which government leaders would be chosen

"John Adams, a rising lawyer in Boston, was also present [at the First Continental Congress]. Adams had defended the British officers accused of murder in the Boston Massacre, despite his opposition to British colonial policies. By the time of the First Continental Congress, he had become a staunch supporter of independence as well as a brilliant political analyst." By making sure the British officers got a fair trial, Adams upheld which cornerstone of English law?

the right to due process

John Jay represented New York at the First and Second Continental congresses. He was a moderate and favored a cautious approach to a formal separation from Britain. Which of the following actions by the Second Continental Congress shows John Jay's influence?

The Olive Branch petition was written, signed, and sent to King George III.

Which of the following was another way the colonists protested against British policies?

Declaration of Rights and Grievances

Laws passed by the legislatures in the royal colonies had to be approved by the governor and the Crown. This went AGAINST which of the following basic concepts of government?

limited government

Which of the following did all of the first State constitutions have in common?

limited government, separation of power, checks and balances

". . . I agree with this Constitution with all its faults, if they are such; . . . I doubt . . . whether any other Convention we can obtain, may be able to make a better Constitution. For when you assemble a number of men to have the advantage of their joint wisdom, you inevitably assemble with those men, all their prejudices, their passions, their errors of opinion, their local interests, and their selfish views. . . . It therefore astonishes me, Sir, to find this system approaching so near to perfection as it does. . . ." —Benjamin Franklin Which of the following is the most accurate rewording of his statement?

The Constitution is not perfect, but considering all the different points of view of the men at the convention, it is remarkably good.

"In October of 1765, nine colonies—all except Georgia, New Hampshire, North Carolina, and Virginia—sent delegates to a meeting in New York, the Stamp Act Congress." "Delegates from every colony except Georgia met in Philadelphia on September 5, 1774. . . . For nearly two months, the members of that First Continental Congress discussed the worsening situation and debated plans for action." What does the difference in the number of colonies that sent delegates to the Stamp Act Congress versus the First Continental Congress indicate about what was happening in the colonies?

The conflicts with Britain were slowly uniting the colonies.

Use the chart comparing the Virginia and the New Jersey plans to answer the question.A third difference between the plans was concerned with which topic?

the way States would be represented in Congress

In 1787, Congress called on the States to send delegates to Philadelphia ". . . for the sole and express purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation and reporting to Congress and the several legislatures such alterations and provisions therein as shall when agreed to in Congress and confirmed by the States render the [Articles] adequate to the exigencies of Government and the preservation of the Union." What does this request reveal about the general attitude in Congress toward the Articles of Confederation? The general idea was that the Articles of Confederation would be replaced by a

The general idea was that the Articles of Confederation needed revision, but not complete replacement.