<P> Six amendments approved by Congress and proposed to the states for consideration have not been ratified by the required number of states to become part of the Constitution . Four of these are technically still pending, as Congress did not set a time limit (see also Coleman v. Miller) for their ratification . The other two are no longer pending, as both had a time limit attached and in both cases the time period set for their ratification expired . </P> <Ul> <Li> The Congressional Apportionment Amendment (proposed 1789) would, if ratified, establish a formula for determining the appropriate size of the House of Representatives and the appropriate apportionment of representatives among the states following each constitutionally mandated decennial census . At the time it was sent to the states for ratification, an affirmative vote by ten states would have made this amendment operational . In 1791 and 1792, when Vermont and Kentucky joined the Union, the number climbed to twelve . Thus, the amendment remained one state shy of the number needed for it to become part of the Constitution . No additional states have ratified this amendment since . To become part of the Constitution today, ratification by an additional twenty - seven would be required . The Apportionment Act of 1792 apportioned the House of Representatives at 33,000 persons per representative in consequence of the 1790 census . Reapportionment has since been effected by statute . </Li> <Li> The Titles of Nobility Amendment (proposed 1810) would, if ratified, strip United States citizenship from any citizen who accepted a title of nobility from a foreign country . When submitted to the states, ratification by thirteen states was required for it to become part of the Constitution; eleven had done so by early 1812 . However, with the addition of Louisiana into the Union that year (April 30, 1812), the ratification threshold rose to fourteen . Thus, when New Hampshire ratified it in December 1812, the amendment again came within two states of being ratified . No additional states have ratified this amendment since . To become part of the Constitution today, ratification by an additional twenty - six would be required . </Li> <Li> The Corwin Amendment (proposed 1861) would, if ratified, shield "domestic institutions" of the states (which in 1861 included slavery) from the constitutional amendment process and from abolition or interference by Congress . This proposal was one of several measures considered by Congress in an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to attract the seceding states back into the Union and to entice border slave states to stay . Five states ratified the amendment in the early 1860s, but none have since . To become part of the Constitution today, ratification by an additional 33 states would be required . The subject of this proposal was subsequently addressed by the 1865 Thirteenth Amendment, which abolished slavery . </Li> <Li> The Child Labor Amendment (proposed 1924) would, if ratified, specifically authorize Congress to limit, regulate and prohibit labor of persons less than eighteen years of age . The amendment was proposed in response to Supreme Court rulings in Hammer v. Dagenhart (1918) and Bailey v. Drexel Furniture Co. (1922) that found federal laws regulating and taxing goods produced by employees under the ages of 14 and 16 unconstitutional . When submitted to the states, ratification by 36 states was required for it to become part of the Constitution, as there were forty - eight states . Twenty - eight had ratified the amendment by early 1937, but none have done so since . To become part of the Constitution today, ratification by an additional ten would be required . A federal statute approved June 25, 1938, regulated the employment of those under 16 or 18 years of age in interstate commerce . The Supreme Court, by unanimous vote in United States v. Darby Lumber Co. (1941), found this law constitutional, effectively overturning Hammer v. Dagenhart . As a result of this development, the movement pushing for the amendment concluded . </Li> </Ul> <Li> The Congressional Apportionment Amendment (proposed 1789) would, if ratified, establish a formula for determining the appropriate size of the House of Representatives and the appropriate apportionment of representatives among the states following each constitutionally mandated decennial census . At the time it was sent to the states for ratification, an affirmative vote by ten states would have made this amendment operational . In 1791 and 1792, when Vermont and Kentucky joined the Union, the number climbed to twelve . Thus, the amendment remained one state shy of the number needed for it to become part of the Constitution . No additional states have ratified this amendment since . To become part of the Constitution today, ratification by an additional twenty - seven would be required . The Apportionment Act of 1792 apportioned the House of Representatives at 33,000 persons per representative in consequence of the 1790 census . Reapportionment has since been effected by statute . </Li> <Li> The Titles of Nobility Amendment (proposed 1810) would, if ratified, strip United States citizenship from any citizen who accepted a title of nobility from a foreign country . When submitted to the states, ratification by thirteen states was required for it to become part of the Constitution; eleven had done so by early 1812 . However, with the addition of Louisiana into the Union that year (April 30, 1812), the ratification threshold rose to fourteen . Thus, when New Hampshire ratified it in December 1812, the amendment again came within two states of being ratified . No additional states have ratified this amendment since . To become part of the Constitution today, ratification by an additional twenty - six would be required . </Li>

What is the main purpose of the first three articles of the constitution