02370cam a22003133u 450000100060000000300070000600500170001300600020003000700050003200800410003704000110007804100170008905000070010610000470011324501180016026400510027830000470032933600260037633700260040233800360042850000310046450801190049552012480061453400450186265300440190765300450195185600430199699900170203928067UtSlPG20260610133636.0mcr n260607r2009||||utu|||||o|||||||||||||| d  aUtSlPG 7aen2iso639-1 4aJK1 aSmith, J. Allenq(James Allen),d1860-192614aThe Spirit of American Government :bA Study Of The Constitution: Its Origin, Influence And Relation To Democracy 1aSalt Lake City, UT :bProject Gutenberg,c2009  a1 online resource :bmultiple file formats  atextbtxt2rdacontent  acomputerbc2rdamedia  aonline resourcebcr2rdacarrier  aRelease date is 2009-02-13  aProduced by Juliet Sutherland, Graeme Mackreth and the
Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net  a"The Spirit of American Government" by J. Allen Smith is a historical account written in the early 20th century. The book explores the origins, influences, and implications of the United States Constitution, particularly in relation to democratic principles. It examines how the framers' intentions, shaped by the political context of the 18th century, impact the functioning of American democracy today.  The opening of the work sets the stage for a critical analysis of the U.S. Constitution, arguing that it was designed to maintain conservative control rather than genuinely foster democracy. Smith elucidates that the state of governance in the U.S. has been significantly influenced by the Constitution's inherent undemocratic features, which stem from the framers' fears of majority rule and desire to restrict popular influence. He highlights historical contexts, including property qualifications for suffrage and the legacy of slavery, that illuminate the complexities of the constitutional framework. Through this introduction, Smith invites readers to reassess the perceived democratic nature of the U.S. government, laying the groundwork for deeper discussions in subsequent chapters. (This is an automatically generated summary.)  nOriginal publication data not identified  aConstitutional history -- United States  aUnited States -- Politics and government40uhttps://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/28067  c68976d68976