Abstract
The debate over the ratification of the Constitution began in Pennsylvania essentially at the moment the Philadelphia convention adjourned in September 1787. Within a few weeks, the newspapers in the state were filled with often acrimonious arguments for and against ratification, replete with biting satire, dire predictions, and creative name-calling. Among those who opposed the Constitution, none spoke with a louder voice than that of Centinel, a Philadelphia writer who published more essays against the Constitution than any other. Samuel Bryan, the author behind the pseudonym Centinel, was a radical democrat even by the standards of majoritarian Pennsylvania.