How did the Three-fifths Compromise Arise?
The Continental Congress originally agreed that each state would be treated as a sovereign nation and would have a single vote in balloting on a motion or resolution. However each large state felt that it should have more influence than a small state on governance (and thus more votes in the balloting), while each small state felt that it should be asked to pay less in taxes than a large state. While the delegates might agree that some sort of proportionality was acceptable, there are many different ways in which a state can be large — geographic area, population, and economic wealth are several options. Article Eight of the Articles of Confederation said that the tax requested of each state should be “in proportion to the value of all land within each State, granted or surveyed for any person, as such land and the buildings and improvements thereon shall be estimated….” The Articles were adopted in 1781, but by 1783 only a few states had submitted a report of their valuations. Clea
