The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1892-08-20

The effect of the opinion in the Hyde
Park case is the same, as if the court had
said, that whenever enlightened public sen
timeBt demands it, State can pass a law
impairing the obligation of contract, but
we are the judges of when that sen tinent
exists. Thus we see that the constitutional
law of the country is not to bs found in our
written constitutions but in our unwritten
constitutions in large PARTLY which we
mean in the opinions of our courts, both
State and Federal. The written is for the
Supreme Court of the United States among
other things, to construe the Constitution;
the unwritten is for the Surreme Court of
theU nited States to make anon g other things
the Constitution-or constitutional law of
the United States. The strongest illustra.
ton of this is seen in its construction of the
fourteenth amendment in the Slaughter
House cases. Part of this amendment reads
as YOU all know, "no State shall make or
enforce any law which shall abridge the
privileges and immunities of the citizens of
the United States.'
This amendment meant in plain words a.
seen between The lines in the opinion
referred to, that no state should longer
legislate upon the greater part of the sub
Jects which the states have since the form a
ton of the Government legislated upon ex
cluslyely. Such for instance as the domestic
relations-parent and child, guardian and
ward, husband and wife, and master and
servant; the regulation of contracts and
the laws of inheritance-in fact all ques
tions arising under domestic and local
government. Thus the Federal government
in addition to the powers it was designed
to have and had always exercised, was to
be clothed with powers for the regulation
of all domestic affairs including civil rights
the rights of persons and of property.
The dream of Randolph, Madison and
Hamilton was to be realized, and our
Federal government was to be such in
name only. But in this country those who
contemplate any serious change in the
Constitution of the United States, without
taking into consideration the Supreme
Court of the United States, make a mistake
as supreme as the Court. The fourteenth
amendment was created by the Republican
party, and much to its credit be it said, the
Supreme Court was of the same political
complexion. By the time the Court finished
its so called construction of the amendment,
it had IN effect said, you have favored an
amen dment hostile to Federal Government
and one which you would all soon regret
and consequently we cannot allow it to
become operative"
Quoting from the opinion, "but W hatever
lamentations may be seen in the history of
public opinion on this subject during the
it will be found that this court, so far as its
functions required, has always held with
steady and an even hand the balance be
tween State and Federal power, and we
trust that such may continue to be the
history of its relation to that subject so long
as it shall have duties to perform, which
demand of it a construction of the constitu-
tion, or any of it's parts.
Happily, the better judgment of the court
nra oil a1 Il 70 1ntin ha
so called, was acquiesced in. TheRepublican
party and the Democratic party today bow
in respect to the wisdom of the court, and
surely no more far reaching opinion could
have been written. Each justice concurring
in that opinion did more for his country
than we can ever expect of any American
cruiser that floats.
Thus we see that our Federal constitution
is not merely the written but the unwritten
as well-the two being the result of all the
forces at play In society.
The English boast of the advantages of
their unwritten constitution, as comp AIRED
with our written one, forgetting that while
we have those advantages conceded to te
incidental to the written, we have substan.
tally all the advantages of the uuwritten.
May our club continue to lmpart success
in farming, fruit growing and gardening,
until our harvest is second to none, and
above all may our farms ever be the
abiding place, Of pure minds, stout hearts,
and strong arms, jealous of the government
-s-aslr fathers.