The Constitution of the United States: A Variorum

Abstract

This variorum of the Constitution of the United States contains readings from four early versions of the text:–Text P is the famous parchment signed by the delegates to the Philadelphia Convention.–Text F is the September 18 print struck off by John Dunlap and David C. Claypoole at the Philadelphia Convention's behest.–Text C is the September 28 print forwarded by the Confederation Congress to the states.–Text CS is the form of the text Francis Childs and John Swaine, official "Printers to the United States," included in their 1789 session-laws volume, Acts Passed at a Congress of the United States of America, Begun and Held at the City of New‐York, on Wednesday the Fourth of March, in the Year 1789.For a discussion of the variants and their significance, see my essay "How Different Are the Early Versions of the United States Constitution? An Examination" (forthcoming).