Ipswich High School - Tiger Yearbook (Ipswich, MA)

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was pointed out that slav e trade could no longer exist after 1808, there was no more objection to al- lowing it to exist for the next twenty years as provided. Finally after all this momentous and significant discussion, the Con- stitution was presented to our Massachusetts Convention for rati- fication on February 6, 1788. The vote was carried by the very small majority of 19, there being 187 votes for it and 168 against it. You may wonder why the Constitution was accepted without a Bill of Rights; it was agreed among the delegates that they could prepare amendments to submit to Congress immediately after the ratification of the Constitution by nine states. Each of the four Ipswich delegates cast their votes in favor of the Constitu- tion. Let us just stop to think for a moment how important these four votes were to the ratification of the Constitution in Massachusetts, there being such a small majority. It is of great significance that John Han- cock and Samuel Adams were influ- enced enough by the debate to vote in favor of the new government. In turn, their votes influenced many other delegates to vote in favor of the Constitution — delegates not only from our state but from neigh- boring states also, when the Consti- tution was presented to them for ratification. Massachusetts was now the sixth state to ratify our Consti- tution, and it is a well-known fact that had our state voted against it, so great was the influence of Massa- chusetts at that time that we should in all probability be living now un- der a different form of government. Thus, as we have seen, our Con- stitution because of its elastic clause has stood the tests of West- ward Expansion, the Civil War, the Reconstruction period, “big busi- ness” development, currency prob- lems, tariff, the World War, humani- tarian movements, and the New Deal. It is the belief of the majority that our Constitution is flexible enough to undergo any strain in the future, but the sentiment that our Constitution will not stand any more amending and that there is strong need for re- form is growing daily. In closing I would urge that before we listen to the would-be reformers, sincere and otherwise, we remember the words of Mr. Charles H. Cole- man in his article “The Constitution Up To Date”: “The virtue of oper- ating under a written charter is demonstrated when we realize that our government is one of the oldest in the world, despite our comparative youth as a nation. Nearly every im- portant country in the world has un- dergone a change in its form of gov- ernment since 1789, usually by a revolutionary process. This country survived its only revolutionary at- tack (the Civil War), and the method of peaceful development involving constitutional changes when needed is firmly established as the American method.” We must also bear in mind that the Constitution was made by 21

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of us to know that the Rowley dele- gate, Capt. Thomas Mighill, favored the Constitution. In fact, all the well-to-do, who were frightened by the insurrection of Shay’s Rebel- lion, were strongly in favor of the Constitution. They felt that until there was a strong federal govern- ment in control of domestic and foreign trade, there would be no hope for successful businesses and banking systems. In truth, all the seacoast towns from Boston to Maine that had developed their commerce, as well as their indus- tries, were for the stability and pro- tection of the Constitution. On the other hand, there was a powerful opposition to the Consti- tution. Probably the most important causes for resistance were the half- heartedness of Samuel Adams, then president of the Massachusetts Sen- ate, and John Hancock, then gov- ernor of Massachusetts and presi- dent of the Convention. As I have said before, the refusal of Elbridge Gerry to sign the document was probably next in importance. Eight- een of the men who had participated in Shay’s Rebellion were present at the Boston Convention. These dele- gates strongly opposed the Consti- tution, because they felt that under this new form of government, action against debtors and poor farmers would be more severe. Because the Province of Maine was a part of Massachusetts at that time and was hoping eventually to become an in- dependent state, her delegates op- posed the Constitution for fear that it would prevent her from gaining her independence. Another opposi- tion was the intense devotion to state’s rights and town meetings that had thrived in the hearts of the New Englanders. Every clause of the Constitution was debated at the Massachusetts Convention. One of the most im- portant subjects that called for a lengthy discussion was the absence of the Bill of Rights. No mention was made of religious freedom, free- dom of speech and of the press, rights to petition the government, or methods of punishment for crim- inal offences. Another long debate took place when the question of the election of Represen tatives for two years was brought up. All agreed with Samuel Adams that this term was too long; but when Adams asked Caleb Strong why so long a term had been decided on, he answered that a compromise had been necessary in order to please all the delegates. Adams then re- plied, “I am satisfied.” So great was the faith of the people in the judgment of the Father of the Revo- lution, that no more was said on this subject. The fact that the Consti- tution failed to provide religious tests for candidates caused much disorder at the meeting, but, strange to say, it was not the clergy who wanted these. In fact, the clergy had definitely modernized its ideas on this subject. The attack on slave trade was next; but when the fact 20

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and for the people, not the people for the Constitution. Just as our American policy of settling important matters through friendly debate and a final vote was satisfactory in bringing to a favor- able close the arguments on the rati- fication of the Constitution, so we confidently hope that the rising ques- tions of today may be settled in the same way. The History of the Nobel Award by Victoria Machaj TT ' OR the past thirty-seven years the people of every nation have either heard of or read about the Nobel Prizes, but only a very small per- centage are well acquainted with their history. Most people have little more than a rather vague conception of the magnitude of these awards. Be- cause of the importance of these prizes and the emphasis placed on re- ceiving them by the great men of our day, I shall endeavor to show the origin, extent, and significance of these awards. Alfred Nobel, the donor of these awards, was born in Stockholm, Swe- den, on October 21, 1833, of a family of distinguished scientists. His father operated factories for the manufac- ture of explosives in Russia. It was the constant contact with his brother and father and the innumerable visits to his father’s factories that gave Alfred such an extensive interest in science. Even as a youth, he showed a great aptitude for science, physics, and mechanical engineering. During this period, the uncontroll- able nitroglycerine, one of the prod- ucts of his father’s factory, was caus- ing many dangerous explosions. It was in one of these explosions that Alfred Nobel lost his brother. This caused him to exert all the initi- ative that he possessed in experiment- ing and attempting to produce an explosive less dangerous, but still as powerful as nitroglycerine. After long study and constant experimenta- tion, Alfred Nobel invented a com- pound in 1867 which he called dyna- mite, made by mixing the nitro- glycerine oil with porous absorbing material, thus converting it into a paste, the resulting dynamite being much more insensitive to shock or blow. At that time Mr. Nobel found it very difficult to introduce his in- vention to the world; but gradually it was introduced into the different countries and marks such an epoch in the history of civilization that by the time the inventor was forty years old, he was making a fortune, for dynamite was being manufactured in almost every country in the world. As Alfred Nobel was approaching the last years of his life, the question of the disposal of his fortune occu- pied his attentions. He had no chil- dren and felt it an unwise plan to leave his fortune to relatives who had not deserved it. He believed that ex- 22