COLONIAL ORIGINS O FrnTHE AMERICAN CONSTITUTIONrnA Study in Legal and Social History and PhilosophyrnEdited and with an Introductory Essay by Donald S. Lutzrn/ / T ocal government in colonial America was the seedbed ofrnJ—/American constitutionalism.” So begins the introductory’rnessay to this landmark collection of eight}’ documents createdrnby the American colonists—and not English officials—that arernthe genesis of American fundamental law and constitutionalism.rnMost of these documents, commencing with Agreementrnof the Settlers at Exeter in New Hampshire, July 5, 1639, andrnconcluding with Joseph Galloway’s Plan of Union, 1774—”thernimmediate precursor to the Articles of Confederation”—havernnever before been accessible to the general reader or in arnsingle volume. As Professor Lutz points out, the documentsrnare chosen to make possible “a careful examination of [thernAmerican] people’s attempt at self-interpretation.” All of thernprincipal colonial documents are included, as are all documentsrnattempting to unite the colonies, beginning with The NewrnEngland Confederation of 1643. Bicameralism, popular sovereignt}’,rnthe separation of powers, checks and balances, limitedrngovernment, and religious freedom—in sum, the hallmarks ofrnAmerican constitutionalism—were first presented to the worldrnin these writings.rnDonald S. Lutz is Professor of Political Science at the University’ of Houston.rn396 + xl pages. Preface, introductory essay, bibliography.rnHardbackrnPaperbackrn$17.00rn$ 9.00rn0-86597-156-0rn0-86597-157-9rn(Indiana residents add 5% sales tax)rnCall 800-955-8335rnFax 317-579-6060rnor write:rnLiberty Fund We payrnUPS shipping onrnprepaid orders.rn8335 Allison Pointe Trail, Suite #300, Dept. CHR8, Indianapolis, IN 46250rnExplore Liberty Fund’s catalogue on the World Wide Webrnat lA-ww.libertyfund.orgrnrnrn