Page:The Iowa journal of history and politics, v. II.pdf/18

4 Wednesday in February, and that the new Congress should meet on the first Wednesday in March —this last clause fixed Inauguration Day on March 4.

It now devolved upon the States to provide by legislative acts, so far as was necessary, for the election of electors, representatives, and senators, and to proceed to their election. The States at once began to move after the passage of the resolution of September 13, 1788, no State having taken any action previously. With poor facilities for communication and travel, the time for choosing electors, less than four months, was short enough. Pennsylvania passed the necessary legislation during her legislative session of September 2-October 4; Connecticut and Delaware, in October; South Carolina, New Hampshire, Virginia, Georgia, Massachusetts, and New Jersey in November; Maryland in December; and New York in January, 1789. North Carolina and Rhode Island did not adopt the Constitution until some time after it went into effect.

In choosing electors the States followed one of two methods. Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Virginia, Maryland, and Massachusetts, (except the latter State's two electors at large), elected by popular vote. In Connecticut, New Jersey, Delaware, South Carolina, and Georgia the electors were chosen by the legislature. New York was not represented in the first electoral colleges. In all the States the election of representatives was by the people, and of senators, of course, by the legislatures. Massachusetts, New York, Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina were divided into districts, each of which chose one represent-