The Framers had good reason to seek to “insure” domestic tranquility. Literally “domestic Tranquility” means peace and quiet at home—at home in America, as opposed to in other nations. Tranquility for the Framers meant the absence of riots, rebellions, and similar symptoms of social disorder.
The slave patrols' function was to police slaves, especially runaways and defiant slaves. They also formed river patrols to prevent escape by boat. Slave patrols were first established in South Carolina in 1704, and the idea spread throughout the colonies.
