The Provincial Congress of North Carolina 1774-1776 Page: 105

                                
105
Jones, unquestionably the dominant figure in his party.
Richard Caswell and Alexander Martin, "being found at times
on both sides, were best classified as "moderates.So
great was the division between the two groups that Samuel
Johnston, presiding officer of both the convention and the
committee, wrote to James Iredell that there were few in
attendance capable of "forwarding business—many of retard-
ing it," and that it would be virtually Impossible for him
to take any part in the execution of a document passed under
such circumstances."^ The major points of conflict between
the two groups werei the voting qualifications; a bicameral
versus a unicameral legislature; the method of choosing
judges; the term of office of elected official^; and the
73
powers of the executive.
On the last day of April, after a week of fruitless
discussions, Congress voted not to adopt a. state constitu-
tion. The original committee was discharged and a new nine-
man committee was appointed with ln$tructions to form a tem-
porary government to last until the end of the next session
of Congress.Eleven days later the new committee reported
          - 11   11 11     11 1 1 "IM   "    " '     "    
73-lbld., p. 21.
"^McRee, Life and Correspondenpe of James Iredell, I, 2 75.
"^Fletcher Green, Constitutional Development in the South
Atlantic States, 1776-1780  A Study in the evolution of Demo-
cracy (Chapel toll, mO), p 
7^Journal of the provincial Congress of April, 1776,
p. 27. The new committee was composed of fKomas Burke,Robert
Howe, John Ashe, Richard Caswell, William Hooper, Thomas Per-
son, Abner Nash, John Klnchen, Thomas Jfones, and James Coor.