Quiz: The Federalist

15 questions drawn at random. Score 80% for a silver medal.

1. 1. How does No. 39 finally characterise the proposed Constitution?

   A purely federal league of sovereign states, much like the old Articles Neither wholly national nor wholly federal, but a composition of both A mixed monarchy on the British model A consolidated national government, as its opponents charged
2. 2. What point does No. 38 make about ancient governments framed with deliberation and consent?

   They were copied from Egyptian models They were imposed by foreign conquerors They were framed by single lawgivers, not assemblies They were framed by elected conventions of the leading citizens
3. 3. In No. 1, what question does Hamilton say the American people seem to have been reserved to decide?

   Whether agriculture or commerce should direct the policy of nations Whether a republic can survive without an established church Whether good government can be established by reflection and choice, or must come from accident and force Whether the former colonies should rejoin the British empire if offered seats in Parliament on better terms
4. 4. What does Hamilton call the poet’s maxim “For forms of government let fools contest”?

   A political heresy The wisest maxim of politics The principle of the convention A truth for monarchies only
5. 5. In No. 19, what followed when Donauwörth was put under the ban of the empire?

   The city appealed to the imperial chamber, which lifted the ban and restored its rights The Duke of Bavaria, sent to enforce it, annexed the city to his own domains The emperor pardoned the city after it paid a fine The Swiss cantons sent troops to defend the city
6. 6. In No. 46, what would oppose a federal army of twenty-five or thirty thousand men?

   A coalition of European powers bound by treaty to defend the states A state-officered militia of nearly half a million citizens The Supreme Court, which could order it disbanded as raised unconstitutionally The navies of the coastal states, which could cut off its supplies by sea
7. 7. What safeguard against standing armies does Hamilton find in the Constitution in No. 26?

   A two-thirds vote to declare war Army appropriations limited to two years A cap of 5,000 men in peacetime Election of army officers by the states
8. 8. What is Hamilton’s basic answer in No. 83 to the claim that the Constitution abolishes civil juries?

   Civil cases will be heard only by state legislatures Civil juries were abolished but will be restored by treaty with the states Silence on civil juries is not abolition; Congress may still provide them The Constitution expressly guarantees civil juries
9. 9. What precedent does No. 34 give for two coexisting legislative authorities?

   The Dutch States-General and the provincial states of Holland The Achaean council and assembly The English Lords and Commons The Roman comitia centuriata and comitia tributa
10. 10. How many state constitutions, according to No. 24, contained a ban on standing armies in peacetime?

    Eleven None Two Seven
11. 11. In No. 25, how did the Spartans evade their rule against appointing the same admiral twice?

    They suspended the law for one year by a special vote of the ephors They gave Lysander the real power under the title of vice-admiral They appointed Lysander’s son admiral and let the father advise him They let the allies elect the admiral
12. 12. How does No. 62 describe the equal vote of each state in the Senate?

    As a temporary arrangement meant to last only until the first census had been taken As a recognition of the states’ remaining sovereignty and a means of preserving it As an imitation of the British House of Lords As a device to protect the large states
13. 13. What does No. 21 call the most palpable defect of the Confederation it discusses next?

    Congress has no power to enforce its laws Congress cannot make treaties Congress cannot declare war Congress has no power to coin money or regulate its value
14. 14. According to No. 8, what effect does war have on the structure of government?

    It increases the executive at the expense of the legislative authority It strengthens the legislature, which must vote the supplies and raise the armies It increases the authority of the courts over the military It transfers power from the national government to the states
15. 15. According to No. 41, who introduced military establishments in time of peace in Europe?

    Charles VII of France Louis XIV of France William III of England Frederick the Great of Prussia