The sun., 1893-07-09

| law Of real property. the criminal law. even tn
electoral law may be utterly different at Meer
lopolis and at Sikyon. Mt New York and !
Illinois, at Zurich and at Geneva Nor II thor
any power in tho Assembly at higion, tho Con
gress at Washington. or tho Federal Council
st Berne. to bring their diversities int
harmony. From one point OF view. ther
is only a single commonwealth. whicl
is rs truly q national whole as France o
Spain: from another point Of view. thero is
collection Of sovereign ntommonvealths, whicl
| arc al independent Of ono another as Franc,
and Spain can be. We may then recognize n
q true and perfect federal commonwealth any
| collection OF States in which It Ia equally un
| lawful for the central power 10 interfere with
the purely internal Legislation OF the several
| members. and for the several members to en-
| ter into any diplomatic relations with other
powers. Where the first condition does not
obtain. tho several members are not sover-
aign: their Independence however extensive
In practice. is a merely municipal independ-
ence. Where the second condition does not OBJ
tain. the union. however ancient and intimate,
is what Mr.. Freeman would call mere Con-
fedcracy. rather than real Con federation.
But another distinction must be noted. Even
among those commonwealths which ut once
secure to every member full internal inde-
pendence and refuse to every member every
separate external action. there may be wide
diversities as to the way in which the central
power exercises its peculiar functions. 1t Is
here that we reach that division Of federal
governments into two classes which has been
laid down ny German writer's on tho subject
the distinction. namely. between a Staten
hnnd and q Bundesstaat-that Is to say, be-
tween federation Of States and federal
State In the former class, the federsl power
represents only the governments OF the
several members Of the Union its immediate
action is confined to those governments: its
power consists simply in issuing reanisitions
to the State governments. which. when within
the proper limits of the federal authority. It
is the dIty OF those governments to
carry out. If men or money b. needed for
federal purposes. the federal power will de-
mand them of the several State governments.
which will raise them In such ways as each
may think best. In the other class. the federal
power will be in the strctest sense II govern
ment. which in the other class it can hardly be
called. It will act not only on the governments
oil the several States. but directly on every clti-
zen OF those States. 1t will be. in short. a
government coordinate with the State gov
sovereign in it's own sphere. as they
are sovereign in their sphere 1t will be
government with the usual branches legis-
lative. executive. and judicial. with the direct
power OF taxation and the other usual
powers OF government: with its army. It's
navy. its civil service. and all the ordinary ap-
parntus Of n government. all bearing directly
upon every citizen Of the Union without any
reference to the governments of the several
States. The Stato administration within its
own range will he carried on as freely rs IL
there were no such thing as union the fed
eral administration within its own range will
be carried on as freely us II there were no such
thing rs separate State. A government OF
this latter class is what writer's on international
law call q composite State. or supreme federal
government (Bundesstant): the former class |
they commonly remand to the head OF more
or at most systems OF confed-
crate States tStantenbundl.
1t is quite possible. however, to conceive the |
existence Of federal commonwealth in which |
he federal power shall act solely upon the !
several State governments, which yet shall fully
answer the true condition OF external unity |
lnder the articles Of Confederation for
,ade diplomatic action to the several
states: 1t therefore formed a single common
wealth in tho eyes Of other nations. Yet the
edernl power acted only on tho several State
Governments. and not at all directly ON in
lividUal citizens The Swiss Confederation OF
Sl5 even allowed diplomatic action to the
everal cantons within certain prescribed
limits. Yet. on the whole. even the Swiss Con-
ederation. and. much more. the American
OF 1778. had far more in COM
non with perfect federal or composite States
than with lax confederacies like
he German Staatenbund. which came to an
I'd in 1886. Prof. Freeman lays his finger on
he rcnl difference between the two classes
'hen lie says that the ono is Q good and the
ther bad way OF comprising the same OBJ
.ct. The attributes Of Congress under the
rtices Of Confederation and under the Con-
titution were. with some exceptions. the same
What was done by the Constitution was to
lake all those attributes effective in the only
ossible way. by making them operate directly
n the people OF the States instead OF OH the
tatcs themselves. Both America and Switzer-
md found by experience that without tho di-
oct action OF the federal power upon indi-
iduals the objects OF federal union could
OF be carried out. The several State govern
rents are indeed under tho other system con-
bound to carry out all requisi-
ons which do not transcend the limits OF tho
sderal authorities. But the State govern
tents will always lie under O strong tempta-
on TO disobey such reQuisitions not only
hon they really transcend the limits OF the
'deral authority. but also when they are
imply displeasins to local interests or wishes.
uch a compact In short. may constitutionally
D federal union. but practically 1t will
mount to little more than precarious alli-
nee. Still. confederation Of this eort aims,
owever Intellectually. at being q true federal
MON. Tho American Confederation. started
! 171S professed. while the German Con-
'deration. which collapsed after sadowa.
Id not profess to form one power. ono
alton. In the face OF other powers and .
ltions. Tho American Articles of Confeder-
ion wholly failed to carry out their own
lrpose and the closer union OF 1887, under
10 existing Constitution. was the result
II. q
The most interesting chapter OF this book is I
at in which Prof. Freeman contrasts the ad- I
Intages and drawbacks of small city COM d
onweaths on the one hand with those of 9
Statas upan tia athar aftas s.LiaL H. | !.