DEFENCE OF THE CONSTITUTIONS OF THE
UNITED STATES

Volume I

A Da Capo Press Reprint Edition

This Da Capo Press edition of A Defence of the Constitutions of Government of the United States of America is an unabridged republication of the first edition published in London in 1787-1788.

Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 69-11328 SBN 306-71176-1

Published by Da Capo Press A Division of Plenum Publishing Corporation 227 West 17th Street New York, N.Y. 10011 All Rights Reserved

Manufactured in the United States of America

A

DEFENCE

OF THE

CONSTITUTIONS OF GOVERNMENT

OF THE

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

BY JOHN ADAMS, LL. D.

AND A MEMBER OT THE ACADEMY OF ARTS AND SCIENCES AT BOSTON.

All nature's difference keeps all nature's peace. Pope.

LONDON:

MINTED FOR C. DILLY, IN THE POULTRY.

M.DCC.LXXXVII.

CONTENTS.

		[Preface]
	LETTER	[Subject]	Page
	I.	Preliminary Observations	3
	II.		5
	DEMOCRATICAL REPUBLICS.
	III.	St. Marino	8
	IV.	Biscay	16
		The Grisons	21
		The United Provinces of the Low Countries	22
	V.	Switzerland	22
		Appenzel	23
	VI.	Underwald	26
	VII.	Glaris	28
	VIII.	Zug	31
	IX.	Uri	32
	X.	Switz	34
	ARISTOCRATICAL REPUBLICS.
	XI.	Berne	35
	XII.	Fribourg	39
	XIII.	Soleure	42
	XIV.	Lucerne	45
	XV.	Zurich	47
	XVI.	Schaffhause	49
		Mulhouse — Bienne	50
	XVII.	St. Gall	51
		Geneva	52
	XVIII.	Lucca — Genoa	56
	XIX.	Venice	58
		The United Provinces of the Low Countries	69
	MONARCHICAL REPUBLICS.
	XX.	England	70
	XXI.	Poland	72
	XXII.	Poland	74
	XXIII.	Recapitulation	91
	PHILOSOPHERS.
	XXIV.	Dr. Swift	97
	XXV.	Dr. Franklin	105
	XXVI.	Dr. Price	121
	MIXED GOVERNMENTS.
	XXVII.	Machiavel	141
	XXVIII.	Sidney	148
		Montesquieu	153
	ANCIENT REPUBLICS, AND OPINIONS OF PHILOSOPHERS.
	XXIX.	Harrington	158
	XXX.	Polybius	169
	XXXI.	Polybius	177
	XXXII.	Dionysius Halicarnassensis — Valerius	184
	XXXIII.	Plato	188
	XXXIV.	Sir Thomas Smith	207
	ANCIENT DEMOCRATICAL REPUBLICS.
	XXXV.	Carthage	210
	ANCIENT ARISTOCRATICAL REPUBLICS.
	XXXVI.	Rome	215
	ANCIENT MONARCHICAL REPUBLICS.
	XXXVII.	Tacitus	225
	XXXVIII.	Homer — Phæacia	232
	XXXIX.	Homer — Ithaca	237
		Homer	242
	ANCIENT ARISTOCRATICAL REPUBLICS.
	XL.	Lacedæmon	249
	ANCIENT DEMOCRATICAL REPUBLICS.
	XLI.	Athens	260
	XLII.	Antalcidas	286
	XLIII.	Achaia	295
	XLIV.	Crete	305
	XLV.	Corinth	308
	XLVI.	Argos	311
	XLVII.	Iphitus	315
	XLVIII.	Thebes	318
	ANCIENT ARISTOCRATICAL REPUBLICS.
	XLIX.	Crotona — Pythagoras	322
	ANCIENT DEMOCRATICAL REPUBLICS.
	L.	Sybaris — Charondas	327
	LI.	Locris — Zaleucus	331
	LII.	Rome	334
	CONCLUSION.
	LIII.	Congress	362
	LIV.	Locke, Milton, and Hume	365
	LV.	Conclusion	372
		Postscript	383

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