Fasttrack to America's Past
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Page 31
 Page 31 - Study Checklist

Background for the discussion questions  

1. Compare and contrast the...

   Settlers who came to Virginia were motivated mainly by the hope of getting land and gaining wealth.  For most people in England, land was very difficult to obtain.  The big estates, for example, were usually inherited entirely by the oldest son.  A small merchant, tradesman, or laborer usually could not afford to buy even a small farm.
   In Massachusetts, most of those who came in the early years were motivated by religion.  The Pilgrims at Plymouth and the Puritans who followed in large numbers all hoped to create communities guided by religious principles. 
   Land, of course, was also important to the settlers in Massachusetts.  But the geographic pattern of their settlements points to the central role of religion.  They gathered in towns centered on the meeting house, or church.  Their fields were arranged just outside the town. 
   The pattern of settlement in Virginia was different.  Large farms called plantations spread along the shores of the rivers, rather than being grouped around towns.  As a result, Virginia had far fewer towns than Massachusetts.

2.  Explain why slavery became...

   Slavery became much more common in the Southern colonies mainly because of the crops that were grown there.  Tobacco, for example, grows extremely well in the climate and fertile soil of the South.  It was very profitable, but required constant attention and labor.  Laborers, however, were scarce, even with the practice of importing indentured servants.  Slaves solved this problem, and slavery spread to the Southern colonies from the example already existing on the Spanish sugar plantations of the West Indies.
   The climate and soil conditions of New England do not support the kind of large "cash crop" plantations that were common in the South.  Most farms in the New England states were small, and were operated by a family mainly for their own support. 
   It's important to remember that slavery does not represent free labor to the slave holder.  Slaves were expensive to purchase, and required housing, food, and care.  Unless the wealth that could be created with slave labor was greater than their expense, holding slaves represented an economic loss.  In most cases, farmers in New England states found that using slave labor was more expensive that alternative choices, such as hired labor or indentured servants.
 
3.  How was the "holy experiment" of...

   Both the Quakers and the Puritans were religious groups with a strong desire to create a better, more compassionate society.  The Puritan minister John Winthrop speaks (on page 41) of building a community in which everyone works together for the common good in a spirit of love and sharing.
   The Quakers also hoped to build a society based on love and friendship.  Philadelphia, their main settlement, means "City of Brotherly Love" in Latin.  They believed in complete social equality, and refused to fight in wars.
   There are some important differences between the beliefs of the Puritans and the Quakers, however.
   Puritans had little confidence in the individual's ability to make the morally right choices in life.  The community had a role in watching, and punishing, anyone who strayed from the right path.  One result of this view of human nature was that the Puritans had no tolerance for other religious views.  Such views might prove too big a temptation to the weak-willed.
   The Quakers had far more confidence in the individual's own ability to find a make the morally right choices in life.  They believed each person had an "inner light" of divine guidance.  As a result, the Quakers were far less rigid about their own beliefs and practices, and more willing to accept people with different religious views.

4.  Describe the role that each...

   Colonial assemblies (such as the House of Burgesses in Virginia) were the elected law-making bodies in the colonies.  They did not have the wide  powers that state legislatures have today, of course.  Over the colonial assemblies would typically be an appointed royal governor and his appointed council of advisors.  Higher up the ladder was the British Parliament, and of course, the King or Queen. 
   As is mentioned in the reading on page 51, the assemblies were places where a colony's problems could be discussed.  The assemblies also typically had the "power of the purse," that is, the power to approve taxes and spending. 
   Royal Governors were appointed by the king, and had great power in running the affairs of the colonies that had them.  (Not all did.)  On the other hand, they had the practical necessity of getting along with the most influential of the colonists, so they could not rule as a dictator. 
   Town meetings were a form of local government or decision making in the New England colonies.  Townspeople met, discussed local problems and issues, and voted on proposals.  For example, a meeting might discuss whether to build a new school house, or give money to help a widow and her children.

5.  How was the French and Indian War...

   As the English colonies grew during the 1600s and 1700s, the line of settlement moved steadily westward.  By 1750, some colonists were moving over the Appalachian Mountains.  That area was also claimed by the French.  Fighting over control of the territory just west of the Appalachians developed into the French and Indian War. 
   The British (including the American colonists) won the war, and with it, control of most of North America.  However, the victory changed the relationship between the American colonies and Great Britain.  Colonists no longer felt threatened by the French, and thus felt less need for the protection of the British army and navy. 
   Also, the war left the British strained financially.  There was a large debt from the expense of the war, and the cost of administering the vast area they now controlled.  British leaders expected the colonists to pay a fair share of taxes.  They blundered, however, in forcing taxes such as the Stamp Act and the tea tax on the colonists without the colonists' own consent.  The taxes, and the presence of British troops in the colonies, were increasingly resented by the American colonists.

6.  Describe how the colonists' heritage...

   By the 1700s, England had developed a government that had sharply limited the power of the king.  He did not hold absolute power as some other European monarchs did, but shared lawmaking power with the Parliament.
   England had also developed vitally important ideas such as the rule of law, and recognized certain basic rights of individuals.  These included, for example, the right to a jury trial for those accused of breaking a law, and the right of elected representatives to approve any taxes. 
   In the 1760s and early 1770s, most American colonists considered themselves loyal British subjects.  They increasingly resented attempts by King George III and the British Parliament to tighten control over the colonies, however.  Laws like the Stamp Act and Tea Act - which were never approved by elected assemblies in the colonies - deeply alarmed the colonists.  The colonists feared that they were being turned into second-class citizens who did not have the same rights as the English people back in England.  Many decided that they would rather fight than risk that possibility.
 






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   Copyright 2018 by David Burns.  All rights reserved.  Illustrations and reading selections appearing in this work are taken from sources in the public domain and from private collections used by permission.  Sources include: the Dover Pictorial Archive, the Library of Congress, The National Archives, The Hart Publishing Co., Corel Corporation and its licensors, Nova Development Corporation and its licensors, and others.  Maps were created or adapted by the author using reference maps from the United States Geological Survey and Cartesia Software.  Please see the home page for this title for more information.