nd responsibilities of debtors and creditors. The economic downturn of the mid-1780s and the difficult lives of farmers made relations between debtors and creditors a major source of controversy. In Rhode Island, the two parties struggled to control the state government in annual elections. These struggles resulted in rapidly changing state laws that slowed interstate commerce. Some states demanded – and some achieved – the enactment of paper money laws, which would spur inflation so that debtors could more easily satisfy the creditors. However, the inflation hurt the creditors bit the value of the paper money and the stability of interstate transactions. In states where debtors could not secure relief through politics, they sometimes took arms to defend their homes against what they deemed to be cruel and heartless creditors and an indifferent judicial system. One of these rebellions was Shay’s Rebellion, which took place in Western Massachusetts. However, it was not limited to only Massachusetts. Soon outbreaks of violence ranged from Vermont to Virginia. In the winter of 1787 Shay’s Rebellion was put down, but its lessons and its warnings lingered in the thoughts of many people. This demonstrated to many Americans the urgent need for a sound, strong government. The government had little power to deal with international and national issues. For example, in 1786, the Spanish minister to the United States, Son Diego de Gardoqui, offered the Confederation’s Secretary of Foreign Affairs, John Jay, a deal by which the United States would receive a commercial treaty with Spain in exchange for giving up its claims to free navigation of the Mississippi. Jay believed that the future population growth would force the Spanish to give in on access to the Mississippi, but the delegates of the five southern states voted to reject the plan. If the government had the power to make the decision in this cas...
