The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-06-21

0rS CHOSEN Tor That purpose Oy tue people,
and to remain in office during life. The
executive to have the power Of negativing
all laws; to make war or peace with the
advice Of the senate; to make treaties with
their advice, but to have the sole direction
of all military operations. and to send am
bassadors and appoint all military officers
and to pardon all offenders, treason ex-
cepted, unless by the advice OF the senate:
On his death or removal, the president OF
the Senate to officiate, with the same
power, until another is elected. Supreme
judicial officers to be appointed by the
President and the Senate. The legislature
to appoint the courts in each state so as TO
make the state governments unnecessary
to it.
which contravene the general laws. An
officer to be appointed in each state TO have
negative on all state laws. All the mill
tia and the appointment Of officers to De
under the national government
II confess that this plan and that from
Virginia are very remote from the people
Perhaps the Jersey plan is nearest their
expectations. But the people are gradually
ripening in their opinions Of government;
they begin to be tired of an excess OF de-
mocracy; and what even is the Virginia
plan, but pork still, with q little change OF
sauce!"
HAMILToN's POINT OF ATTACK.
These were Colonel Hamilton's ideas OF
suitable plan Of government" They
were received by the convention with ST.
lence, not to say contempt, and were heard
Of no more. The men of the revolution
had even less taste for that sort Of govern
ment than the men of to-day; and Colonel
Hamilton and his few advanced friends,
failing in their plan Of monarchy, were
forced to make reluctant choice between
the several plans Of the Republicans. They
ate the pork" but they never so much as
pretended that the:.- liked it
But the constitution was passed without
q bill of rights, and without declared rule
of construction. and the advocates OF strong
government were not without hope. There
was room for wide difference of inter
probation, and, with favorable administra-
tons, Hamilton foresaw the possibility OF
building up an immense superstructure,
undreamed of by the trainers, upon the
basis of implied powers. There had crept
into the preamble, through ''mere inatten-
tion." as Madison put it, ''to the phrase
ology," few words copied from the arti-
cles of confederation, and these words-"to
provide for the common defense and pro-
mote the general welfsre''-taken alone
and without reference to the enumeration
OF specific powers in the body of the in
strument, seemed comprehensive enough to
warrant the assumption of any conceivable
|
adoption OF the constitution. He saw In II
but the germ of the government OF the
future; 1t would grow: it would
expand; fixed constitution was to
him an absurdity; power would
''gravitate'' to the centre; 'the rich
and well born'' would gradually assert
themselves over the swinisn "msny," and,
pleased to call "pork'' from the working
charter, the "fewn would ultimately as
sumo the distinct and permanent share"
of authority which properly belonged to
them.
THE DECLARATION OF RIGHTS.
The states hesitated to ratify the consti-
tuition in this form; it was clearly most
hazardous experiment; but the great name
of Washington, and the clear understand
ing that he would become the first presi-
dent, overbore the better judgment Of the
firmest Republicans. But, unfortunately
for Hamilton's scheme of revolution by
construction, the first congress supplied
the declaratian Of rights, and the intiexible
rule of Interpretation in the ten amend
ments which were Immediately proposed
and ratified. Indeed, most OF the states
had ratified only upon the distinct under
standing that these amendments should be
made; and in nearly every case the all
important tenth amendment-"Thep powers
prohibited by 1t to the states, are reserved
TO the states respectively, or to the people"
was strenuously insisted upon. Even
Colonel Hamilton's own New York put
this in her declaration OF rights which &C
companied the ratification, with peculiar
soemnity and uncommon precision of
words.
Colonel Hamilton had now nothing left to
stand upon but the half-dozen inadvertent
words of the preamble. limited and re-
strained as they were by the specific grants
IN the operative. words of the constitution.
But he did not despair. He WAS confident
that this small piece of elastic material in
the framework Of the new government
might be stretched out wide enough to sup
port banks, paper money, corporations, in
ternal improvements, bounties, subsidies,
armies and an aristocracy of money, pat
ronage TO corrupt and force TO intimidate
the people. No sooner was the constitution
put IN operation than he appeared in that
identical place where of all others, an ad-
ministration hostile TO its whole spirit
might be readily engineered. Washington
had applied to Robert Morris for advice on
the finances. Great as were his services in
the revolution, Morris was a testy old
aristocrat. He was then just fresh from
Paris, where ne had spent months shut up
in his house cursing Jacobins. He was
heartily sick of Democrats, perhaps of Re
publicans, and recommended Hamilton to
the task for which he had no stomach him
self.
PROGRESS TOWARD MONARCHY
have neither space nor inclination to re-
capitulate the history of the first admins
tration. Much of it Washington sincerely
regretted; much Of it ne permitted to be
made with evident reluctance; and it is
clear now that If he had really proved the
figure of clay which he was expected to DO
in the hands of his leading minister, the
government would have been revolution
lied before it was fairly insugurated. Ham,
ilton's measures were all OF piece, taken
in due succession and with single view.
The funding bill was grand speculation
1t was matured and promulgated in such a
manner as to enable the favorites of the
treasury to realize large fortunes in
twinklIng Members of Congress were
permitted to participate in the plumber, and
so was formed the treasury band'' in the
two houses. Here also was created imme-
diately the nucleus OF that moneyed aris-
holders of the public debt,
suddenly enriched by the very act of &C
curing (which Hamilton believed would
ultimately become the great conservative
force in the government. The assumption
of the state debts followed in the same di-
rect;on; another speculation, more influ-
ence to the treasury, further increase of
the debt and Of the power Of the debt hold
ers Then came the bank. With that
monster" and its progeny the Hercules of
Democracy has been contending, with
brief intervals, ever since. The treasury
report on manufactures was mere expan-
sion of the system. 1t undertook 10 estab-
lish the doctrine that Congress might take
the money of one class of citizens aud give
1t to another under the plea of encouraging
q desirable industry. II laid the foundation
Of monopoly deep and wide. Here, to be
sure, was a fine beginning Patronage,
corruption, manipulation of the debt, bank