Letter from David Brearley to Jonathon Dayton (1787)

by David Brearley
  • July 27, 1787
The Convention adjourned from July 26 to August 6. What does Brearley suggest will occur during this period and upon the delegates return? How do these plans reflect the Convention's broader goals?
Why might delegates feel a heightened sense of obligation to arrive on time following the adjournment, given the numerous late arrivals at the Convention’s outset? What does this suggest about the delegates evolving understanding of their responsibilities? In what ways might their perspective have shifted since the Convention began?
Constitutional Convention

“David Brearley to Jonathon Dayton,” July 27, 1787. In Supplement to Max Farrand's The Records of the Federal Convention of 1787, edited by James H. Hutson. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1987.https://consource.org/document/david-brearley-to-jonathan-dayton-1787-7-27/20130122080314/

Yesterday we1 completed the great Principles, which we have been so long considering, and Committed them to five Gentlemen to put into proper form and detail. — The Committee are, Mr. Gorham2], Mr. Ellsworth3, Mr. Wilson4, Mr. Randolph5, and Mr. Rutledge6. We have adjourned to Monday the sixth day of August, at which time it is expected that the Committee will be ready to report. The most exact punctuality has been enjoined the members in meeting at the day and hour to which they are adjourned; and every one appeared so sensible of the propriety of this measure, that there is not a doubt of its being strictly complied with. Mr. Paterson7 expects that you will attend at the time, as he is under the necessity of being absent. We (the members of Jersey) purpose returning to this place on the Saturday previous to the day of meeting, in order to prevent any delay on our part. If you8 come on in the Stage on Saturday, I shall join you at Witts and take a seat with you to Philadelphia.

Footnotes
  1. 1. David Brearley (1745–1790), delegate from New Jersey.
  2. 2. Nathaniel Gorham (1738–1796), delegate from Massachusetts.
  3. 3. Oliver Ellsworth (1745–1807), delegate from Connecticut.
  4. 4. James Wilson (1742–1798), delegate from Pennsylvania.
  5. 5. Edmund Randolph (1753–1813), delegate from Virginia.
  6. 6.  John Rutledge (1739–1800), delegate from South Carolina and chair of the Committee of Detail.
  7. 7. William Paterson (1745–1806), delegate from New Jersey.
  8. 8. Jonathon Dayton (1760–1824), delegate from New Jersey.
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