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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why is the Province of Maine worried about the new Constitution?
(a) They think it gives too many rights to Southern states.
(b) They think it is too restrictive on commerce.
(c) They think it prevents their separation from Massachusetts to become an independent state.
(d) They think it interferes with provincial government regulations.

2. What does the Committee of Detail present to the Convention on August 6th?
(a) A revision of the Great Compromise.
(b) An amended version of the Virginia Plan.
(c) A final draft of the Constitution.
(d) An amended version of the New Jersey Plan.

3. The delegates pass a motion that the official Convention papers are kept by whom?
(a) Alexander Hamilton.
(b) James Madison.
(c) Benjamin Franklin.
(d) George Washington.

4. Which delegate is the only Northerner at the Convention who refuses to sign the Constitution?
(a) Elbridge Gerry.
(b) Edmund Randolph.
(c) Alexander Hamilton.
(d) Roger Sherman.

5. Why is Amos Singletry opposed to the Constitution?
(a) He believes that Massachusetts loses too much power under a national government.
(b) He believes it prevents Maine from separating from Massachusetts.
(c) He believes that it offers too much to the citizens of the Southern states.
(d) He believes it favors the lawyers and the elite at the expense of the less-educated and less-well-to-do farmers.

6. Who is elected president of the Massachusetts Convention to ratify the Constitution?
(a) John Hancock.
(b) Samuel Adams.
(c) Elbridge Gerry.
(d) Alexander Hamilton.

7. Which member of the Committee of Style and Arrangement is said to be unequaled as an orator?
(a) Elbridge Gerry.
(b) William Samuel Johnson.
(c) Edmund Randolph.
(d) Rufus King.

8. Which delegate argue that restrictions on the citizenship of legislators are left for Congress to decide?
(a) Edmund Randolph.
(b) Robert Morris.
(c) Charles Pinckney.
(d) James Madison.

9. What does Congress do eight days after receiving the Constitution?
(a) Propose a series of amendments to the Constitution for the states to consider.
(b) Pass a motion that the Constitution is approved, pending approval of nine states.
(c) Pass a series of amendments to the Constitution.
(d) Pass a recommendation that states call conventions for the purpose of ratification.

10. What is the purpose of the Committee of Detail?
(a) To put Convention resolves, amendments, and suggestions into a workable document.
(b) To offer suggestions about issues that are not yet considered.
(c) To keep a clear record of all the votes on the issues.
(d) To publish the final proceedings of the Convention in a format everyone understands.

11. Why does Madison oppose the popular election of the President?
(a) He is concerned that political parties unduly effect the outcome of a popular election.
(b) He believes the government is in the form of a monarchy.
(c) He believes people prefer to elect a citizen from their own state and smaller states have a disadvantage.
(d) He believes that the people are not smart enough to understand the consequences of a popular election.

12. What is Deism?
(a) The religious foundation for the state of Massachusetts.
(b) A political movement advocating test oaths with a religious basis.
(c) A religious belief that god is to be found through belief, not revelation.
(d) The practice of disagreeing with organized religion.

13. What is the delegates' decision regarding the location of a fixed seat for the national government?
(a) The first President chooses where government is located.
(b) The decision is left to Congress.
(c) A new area, known as Washington, is created.
(d) Government continues moving between major Eastern cities.

14. Which delegate proposes that the positive vote of seven states constitutes ratification of the Constitution?
(a) James Wilson.
(b) James Madison.
(c) Pierce Butler.
(d) David Carroll.

15. Why does the Convention need to end by September?
(a) The Pennsylvania Assembly re-convenes in September and needs to use the room.
(b) Delegates realizes they do not have a quorum after September because some delegates need to return home for the harvest season.
(c) Congress sets September as the time for the Convention to disband.
(d) Congress resumes their session in September and some Convention delegates are also in Congress.

Short Answer Questions

1. What are foreign visitors to America surprised they don't see more frequently?

2. Which delegate is vehemently against the idea of a standing army?

3. Oliver Ellsworth argues that which state should ratify the Constitution or risk being overtaken by New York?

4. What new phrase does Governor Morris insert in the short preamble to the Constitution?

5. What does Widgery do after the Constitution is ratified by the Massachusetts Convention?

(see the answer keys)

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