ABSTRACT
Since George Bancroft and Jared Sparks in the nineteenth century, historians have been picking apart the deliberations of the federal convention in Philadelphia, and although they have had their disagreements (some major) about the delegates’ motives there is a general consensus today about the origins of the big decisions. 1 Differences between big states and small states and between slave and non-slave states were the major drivers. Differing sentiments about westward expansion also were a factor and intersected to some degree with the slave and non-slave state conflict. The purpose here is to examine the extent to which classical republican procedures (and the principles and concerns which gave rise to them) also influenced voting behavior as the delegates pursued their competing interests.
