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The "Anarchiad" was published in the New Haven Gazette and Connecticut Magazine as a series. The first poem was published on October 26, 1786, and the last on September 13, 1787. It is a satirical, mock-epic poem, authored by David Humphreys, Joel Barlow, John Trumbell and Lemuel Hopkins, although at publication they were anonymous. The subtitle of the poem is "A Poem on the Restoration of Chaos and Substantial Night" which, along with the title, refers to the premise that there is a state of anarchy or lawlessness and disorder due to the absence of governmental authority. The poem is decidedly pro-federal government. In this issue, the Anarch has had success with his mobs preventing the sitting of the courts. Preventing taxes is equated with learning the "noblest art, that art to cheat." It also implies that men are praising Daniel Shays and his actions more highly than George Washington. The whole poem was reprinted in book form with a forward and appendixes in 1861. It was edited by Luther G. Riggs.

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