born citizen of the United States, at least thirty-five years old, and for fourteen years a resident of the United States, and he shall take an oath faithfully to execute the office and to defend the constitution. His powers are defined as follows: 1. He shall be commander-inchief of the army and navy; 2. He shall make treaties with the concurrence of two-thirds of the senate; 3. He shall His Powers. appoint ambassadors, judges, and other officers with the consent of the senate, and, if congress gives him the power, inferior offices of his own accord; 4. He shall call congress in extra session; 5. He shall receive ambassadors and conduct negotiations with foreign states; 6. He shall see that the laws be executed; 7. He shall be liable to impeachment for "treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors"; 8. He shall have the power to pardon all offenses but cases of impeachment; and 9. He shall send to congress information on the state of the nation. President. The constitution also creates a vice-president, to serve when the president is incapacitated for office and to preside over the senate. He is chosen in the same way as the president. Originally The Vice- the electors were to vote for two men, and the one having the highest vote was to be president and the next to be vice-president. The growth of parties showed weakness in this feature of the system, and the twelfth amendment, 1804, provided that the presidential electors should vote separately for president and vice-president, the majority vote electing to each office. If no candidate for president has a majority, the election goes to the house of representatives, which, voting by states, shall choose from the three. highest candidates. The The president is given power to call on the heads of the executive departments for written opinions relative to their respective departments. This clause is all the constitution contains in reference to the cabinet. Out of it have grown important functions. It is held that a president may appoint or remove the members of his cabinet; but congress alone may create a new department, whose head thus becomes a member of the cabinet. In creating a strong executive and a congress with large powers of legislation, the constitution added greatly to the nationalism of the government. It went still further when it established a The Federal system of federal courts. It provides that the judicial power of the union shall reside in a supreme court and such lower courts as congress may establish. The judges are appointed as other federal officers and hold office during good behavior. Their most important jurisdiction extends to cases arising under the constitution, laws, and treaties of the United States, cases affecting foreign ministers and consuls, admiralty cases, cases in which the United States is a party, and controversies between two or more states, or between a state and citizens of another state, or between citizens Courts. LIMITATIONS ON THE STATES 253 of different states, or between a state or its citizens and a foreign state. The supreme court has original jurisdiction only in cases concerning foreign ministers and consuls and those in which a state is a party. In other cases it has appellate jurisdiction. Treason against the United States consists of "levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving them aid Treason and comfort"; and conviction of treason shall only occur on the evidence given in open court of two witnesses to the same overt act, or upon confession in open court. Defined. Their Jurisdiction. The old congress had as much judicial jurisdiction as the articles of confederation allowed to the central government. The makers of the constitution considered this union of legislative and judicial functions unwise, and they took pains to make the executive, legislative, and judicial organs independent of one another, holding that each would check the evil tendencies of the other. As a result, great power was given to the federal courts. They have become interpreters of the constitution and in that capacity have declared null laws of congress, laws of the states, and even state constitutions, when there has seemed to them to be a conflict with the powers of the general government. Creating the federal courts was one of the most powerful expressions of nationality adopted by the convention of 1787. Amend The constitution provides two methods of amendment: 1. Twothirds of each house may approve an amendment, and it becomes effective when accepted by three-fourths of the states; 2. The legislatures of two-thirds of the states may call for a constitutional convention, which congress must summon. The product of a constitutional convention becomes law when ratified by three-fourths of the states. ments. Limitations on the In several general ways the constitution modifies the power of a state: 1. It guarantees to each a republican form of government and to the citizen of one state residing in another all the rights of a citizen of that state; 2. Fugitives from justice and from labor are ordered to be surrendered on the States. demand of the state from which they fled. 3. No state may emit bills of credit, make anything but gold and silver coin a legal tender, or pass a bill of attainder, ex post facto law, or a law impairing the obligation of a contract; 4. No state may lay imposts or duties on imports or exports without the consent of congress; and 5. The constitution and laws in pursuance thereof are to be the supreme law of the land. Besides these specific limitations we must consider the immense national authority and prestige, which was bound to reduce the state's pretension to complete sovereignty. But the state felt its inferiority less because it had not exercised many of the powers now relinquished, and because it retained most of the functions vital to Overweening Prestige of the Nation. its own interests. It was still a self-governing community, making laws to govern personal and property relations, controlling its own plans for social improvement, regulating the police power over its own citizens, choosing its own government, administering its own laws in its own courts, and doing other things which were not themselves connected with the life of the general government. In all things properly within its own sphere it was conceded to be supreme. In 1789 the bounds between its authority and that of the nation were not well defined, and if there should be conflict between the Probable two in a matter of interpretation, it seemed probable that the stronger would win. Three features of the national constitution were ominous: 1. Congress had power to lay taxes to provide for the general welfare. If the phrase "general welfare" were given a broad interpretation, it was difficult to say what congress might not do. 2. The constitution and the laws of congress were made supreme law, and the federal courts were given power to declare null state constitutions and laws in conflict with them. If, therefore, a controversy between a state and the nation should come before such a court, it seemed probable that the federal supreme court would support the authority of the latter. 3. Congress was given control over interstate commerce. This was not of great apparent importance at the time, but the development of means of communication would increase interstate commerce, enlarge the activity of the federal government in supervision of it, and produce frequent situations in which a state should be unable to regulate commerce within its borders, on the ground that to do so would interfere with interstate relations. BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE General references are the same as for the preceding chapter. On the constitution, see the following secondary works: Meigs, Growth of the Constitution in the Federal Convention (1900); Taylor, Origin and Growth of the American Constitution (1911), gives too much importance to Pelatiah Webster's pamphlet; Story, Commentaries on the Constitution, 2 vols. (eds. 1873 and 1891); Curtis, Constitutional History of the United States, 2 vols. (1889-1896); Jameson, Studies in the History of the Federal Convention (Amer. Hist. Assn. Report, 1902); Beard, Readings in American Government and Politics (1909); Bryce, The American Commonwealth, 2 vols. (ed. 1911); Thayer, Cases on Constitutional Law, 2 vols. (1895); Learned, The President's Cabinet (1912); and Hare, American Constitutional Law, 2 vols. (1889). The original material on the convention has been many times published. The best edition is Farrand, Records of the Federal Convention (1911), 3 vols. It contains the journal of the convention and the notes on debate by Madison, Yates, Patterson, McHenry, King, Peirce, and Hamilton, each presented day by day. Vol. III contains in reprint many valuable speeches, letters, etc. The journal and most of the notes are in Elliot, Debates, 5 vols. (ed. 1836); also the debates in state ratifying conventions. Madison's Notes are in several editions, the best being by Hunt, vols. III and IV, in the Writings of Madison. There are several editions of The BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTE 255 Federalist, but the best are by P. L. Ford, Lodge, and Dawson. On the authorship of The Federalist, see Bourne and Ford, P. L., in American Historical Review, II, 443-460 and 675-687. Original pamphlets are reprinted in Ford, P. L., Essays on the Constitution (1892) and Pamphlets on the Constitution (1888). Another comprehensive list of original documents is in The Documentary History of the Constitution, 5 vols. (1895-1905). Much valuable information is in the writings and biographies of public men of the time. Of the former, see Ford, W. C., Washington, 14 vols. (1889-1893); Sparks, Washington, 12 vols. (1834-1837); Hunt, Madison, 9 vols. (1900-1910); Lodge, Hamilton, 9 vols. (1885-1886); Bigelow, Franklin, 10 vols. (1887-1888); Adams, C. F., John Adams, 10 vols. (1850-1856); Hamilton, Monroe, 7 vols. (1898-1903); and Ford, P. L., Jefferson, 10 vols.; (1892-1899). The most important biographies are: Hunt, Madison (1902); Rives, Madison, vols. (1859-1868); Jay, Wm., John Jay, 2 vols. (1833); Rowland, Mason, 2 vols. (1892); Henry, W. W., Patrick Henry, 3 vols. (1891); Wells, Samuel Adams, 3 vols. (1865); Stillé, Dickinson (1891); Austin, Gerry, 2 vols. (1828-1829); Lee, R. H. Lee (1825); and Randall, Jefferson, 3 vols. (1858). For Independent Reading Elliott, Biographical Story of the Constitution (1910); Landon, Constitutional History and Government (1889); Fiske, Critical Period (1888); Morse, Life of Franklir. (1889); Lodge, Alexander Hamilton (1882); and Morse, John Adams (1885). CHAPTER XII WASHINGTON'S PRESIDENCY-A PERIOD OF ORGANIZATION End of the Old Congress. THE WORK OF ORGANIZATION JULY 2, 1788, the president of the old congress, in session in New York, rose and announced that nine states having ratified the constitution, it was in order to take steps to establish the new government. His hearers agreed with him, and it was resolved that the states should choose presidential electors on the first Wednesday in January, 1789, who, a month later, should select a president and vice-president; and that a congress elected under the constitution should meet the first Wednesday in March following. After some debate, New York was selected for the place of meeting. This was the last important legislation of the congress which for fourteen years had guided the fortunes of all the states through the dangers of war and the hardly less difficult trials of peace. Would success crown the new system, over whose adoption there had been so vast an amount of dispute? Some wise ones had serious doubts, and the most hopeful admitted that it was an "experiment," but urged that it be given a An "Experiment." President. fair trial. For president the unanimous choice was Washington. He was a good general, though not a brilliant one. He was not a good speaker and was not versed in the principles of government. But Washington he was honest, fair-minded, dignified, and faithful to the the First liberty of America. He had the power of commanding obedience, and everybody, federalist and antifederalist, trusted him. With Washington at the helm, faction would be checked and the authority of the union respected. His personal character was worth a great deal to the "experiment." It gave it the confidence of Americans and foreigners. John Adams was elected vice-president. Congress At the time designated very few members of congress were in New York. The weak-hearted thought this was because nobody cared for the new plan, but others showed that it was because the roads were bad. April 6, the senate had a quorum, the electoral votes were counted, and a messenger went to summon the president-elect to the seat of government. April 30, he was in the city and took the oath of office. On his journey to New York he received every mark of affection from the people. |