Commentary The Constitution begins with an introduction called the “preamble,” a word from the Latin praeambulus, meaning “walking before.” The preamble to a legal instrument identifies the parties, states crucial facts, and/or explains the purpose of the document. The “Whereas” clauses appearing in some documents are preambles. As is true of the Constitution in general, there’s far more to its preamble than first meets the eye. Gouverneur Morris was the principal author of the Constitution’s final draft. Morris lived in New York State, but he was visiting Philadelphia when the Constitutional Convention was about to meet. Pennsylvanians were so impressed that they chose him as one of their convention delegates. Pennsylvanians were like that: A few years previously they had tapped John Dickinson to be president of their state at the very time when Dickinson was serving as president of Delaware. The Constitution is a grand and important document, so …