ment by taking the power of choice away from the people and placing it in the hands of another political body. The problem with representation was of paramount concern to the anti-Federalists, who believed that by uniting the states into a large republic, the rights and power of the people and their beloved democracy would by lost. Another problem with representation were the doubts that representatives would mirror the interests of the people, since they were generally from a moneyed, aristocratic class. Would aristocrats voluntarily abandon their interests for the sake of the unseen masses? This was viewed as highly unlikely by the anti-Federalist, “A Farmer and Planter,” as he warned, “Aristocracy…is therein concealed…to entrap a free people…Observe well the rich men who are to be your only rulers, lords and masters in future…Does not riches beget power, and power, oppression and tyranny ?” The issue of the size of the new nation, in terms of proper representation, was of prime importance to the anti-Federalists, in their arguments against the undemocratic nature of the Constitution. They believed that by extending the nation, it would make it impracticable for the majority of citizens to assert their political power of direct pressure, simply because of logistical difficulties. Then governor of New York, George Clinton, offers a helpful analogy to describe the lessening of power and representative effectiveness as the political territory spreads. He follows that “These principles are, in their exercise, like a pebble cast on the surface of a river – the circles begin in the center, and are small, active and forcible, but as they depart from that point, they lose their force, and vanish into calmness .” Furthermore, because of this great distance between politician and the people, the representative was not as compelled to serve the interests of the people of...
