New Hampshire | A town clerk's copy of formative Articles

New Hampshire

Articles in Addition to and Amendment of the Constitution of the State of New Hampshire, Agreed to by the Convention of Said State, and Submitted to the People Thereof for Their Approbation. Exeter: Printed by Henry Ranley, 1792

8vo (208 x 132 mm). Letterpress text, woodcut head- and tailpieces, votes on the amendments recorded in ink by John Dow, with a manuscript statement signed by Dow (p. 34); minor browning. Stab-sewn in self wrappers, woodcut ornament to title; new thread, chipped at top with loss. In custom slipcase and folding chemise, spine gilt-lettered. 

The present represents the first of two canvasses of the people of New Hampshire, seeking approval of amendments to the constitution of 1784, a complex process that resulted in the adoption of the third New Hampshire constitution in 1792. The 1792 constitution has remained in effect and largely unchanged for over two centuries. 

This copy was completed by John Dow, the Town Clerk of Atkinson, New Hampshire, who, beside each of the amendments, noted the number of votes for and against. In his postscript, Dow writes: "I believe that there was a number of persons who did not fully understand the meaning of sundry articles in this book, but seemed rather to be inclined for the Old Constitution to stand[.]"

REFERENCE:

ESTC W36224; Evans 24578