The Mystery of the Pinckney Draught

by Charles C. Nott

In these newly found papers of Wilson this provision making the compensation of the national legislators dependent upon the action of the State legislators appears just as it stands in the draught of the Committee of Detail. Did Wilson originate this or did he get it from the Pinckney draught?

There is good reason for believing that such a provision would be found in Pinckney's draught. On the 22nd of June when the clause of the 3d resolution declaring that members "ought to be paid out of the public treasury" had been advocated by some of the strongest men in the Convention, and the Convention apparently were about to adopt it, their immediate action was blocked by South Carolina; "The determination of the House on the whole proposition was, on motion of the Deputies of the State of South Carolina, postponed until to-morrow," says the Journal. A State had this right under the Rules of the Convention, and the Deputies of South Carolina exercised it, Pinckney being one of them. On the following day they succeeded in defeating the adoption of the clause. On the 26th of June General Pinckney "proposed that no salary should be allowed" to Senators. "This branch" he said "was meant to represent wealth; it ought to be composed of persons of wealth." And "on the question for payment of the Senate to be left to the States" South Carolina voted "aye."

But there is no good reason why we might expect to find this provision in Wilson's draught. The resolutions did not so direct; and there had not been a single vote of the Convention which committed this matter of compensation to the States; and Wilson's personal bias could not have misled him for he condemned it. On the 22nd of June he had said in the Convention that "he thought it of great moment that the members of the National Government should be left as independent as possible of the State Governments in all respects," and during the same debate he had moved that the salaries of the 1st branch "be ascertained by the National Legislature." The explanation is that Wilson working with Pinckney's draught before him gave his attention to improving its phraseology; and that the other members of the Committee confiding in Wilson's scrupulous carefulness and particularity overlooked his mistake.

We have before us a third illustration:

The Constitution of New York provided, "The supreme legislative power within this State shall be vested in two separate and distinct bodies of men; the one to be called the Assembly of the State of New York; the other to be called the Senate of the State of New York; who together shall form the legislature, and meet once at least in every year for the despatch of business."

The draught of Pinckney varies slightly; "The legislative power shall be vested in a Congress, to consist of two separate houses; one to be called the house of Delegates; and the other the Senate, who shall meet on the —— day of —— in every year."

The draught of Wilson also follows this with little variation:

"The Legislative power of the United States shall be vested in two separate and distinct Bodies of Men, the one to be called the House of Representatives of the People of the United States, the other the Senate of the United States."

So far we have in these three instruments the same earmark: "the one to be called the Assembly of the State of New York; the other to be called the Senate." "One to be called the House of Delegates and the other the Senate." "The one to be called the House of Representatives, the other the Senate." But the draught of the Committee of Detail departs both in words and structure from this form: "The Legislative Power shall be vested in a Congress to consist of two separate and distinct bodies of men, a House of Representatives and a Senate; each of which shall in all cases have a negative upon the other."

Here it was possible that Wilson followed the Pinckney draught, which was in his possession, but it was not possible that Pinckney copied Wilson's draught which was then unpublished and unknown. The words that Pinckney and Wilson both used, "the one to be called the House, the other the Senate" are clews which lead from Pinckney directly to the Constitution of New York. The Committee changed the words and changed the structure of the sentence and thereby rendered it certain that Pinckney did not derive his provision from their draught.