The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1895-09-22

Legislation Ought to be COnfine
strictly to a Revenue Staudard-Hi
Famous Proclamation 10 the PecpI
of South Carolina.
written for Sunday News and Observer.
WASHINGTON, d. c., Sept. 90.
In the brief history given last weel
of General Jackson's successful struggl
with the B INK of the United States,
omitted to state his principle of constitu
tional Interpretation, which was the sub
ject of much criticism at the time by the
Wings. He states it as follows:
IF the opinion of the Supreme Court
covered the whole ground OF this act, il
ought not to control the co ordinate au
thorities of this government. The Con
gress, the Executive and the Court,
must each for itself be guided by its own
opinion of the Constitution. Each pub
lie officer, who takes an oath to support
the Constitution, swears that he vii
support it as he understands it, and moi
as it is understood by others. 1t is as
much the duty of the House Of
Representatives, of the Senate, and Of
the President, to decide upon the consti
nationality Of any bill or resolution which
may be presented TO them for passage OIL
approval, as it is of the Supreme Court
when it may be brought before them fol
judicial decision. The opinion of the
Judges has 10 more authority over Con
gress than the opinion of Congress has
over the judges, and, on that point, the
President is Independent of both"
Doubtless President Jackson over
stated the principle in conceding the
right of independent construction tC
leach public officer who takes an oath to
support the Constitution" for that
phrase would make it discretionary with
subordinate administrative officers to en-
force an act of Congress, or to disregard
it, as suits his fancy.
But as regards the President and Con,
gress, he was clearly right; and all par
ties have acted on that principle. In
general, such differences between the CO
ordinate departments of the govern ment
involve no conflict of authority.
In this case the Supreme Court bad
decided that the Bank of 1916, or certain
features of it, were consistent with the
Constitution but they had not pro-
nounced an opinion upon the bill that
General Jackson vetoed. The Supreme
Court had decided the Fugitive Slave
Act to be constitutional, and yet all Re-
publicans trampled that decision under
their feet and repealed the act before the
amendments were added.
AS rule, the dominant party will find
constitutional authority for carrying out
its measures. Mr.. JEFF, rson, a strict con-
structionist, found constitutional author
ity for his embargo, by which foreign
commerce was prohibited, and found a
way to get Louisiana without that
authority; and the President of the
present day finds constitutional or other
authority for sending troops into State
without the invitation of the Legislature
or the Governor thereof, for the suppress
sion of instruction.
The recent act of the Comptroller,
Mr. Bowles, in refusing to pay Ambas-
sador Ransoa's salary, cannot be said
to come under the Jackson rule of con-
struetion. He was governed by the facts
involved, and withheld pay where every
body will admit he had no authority to
do otherwise The President and Senate
had appointed a Senator to an office the
salary of which had been increased
during that Senator's term in the Senate;
a procedure which was direct violation
of the second clause of the sixth section
of the first article of the Constitution,
which forbids that very thing. The
President and Senate had overlooked
this state of the facts.
But a deliberate measure of govern
ment, which has been adopted to q
greater or less extent, from the founda-
ton of the government, could not be SET
aside as unconstitutional by a subordi-
nate ministerial officer without great
presumption. The President may veto q
new measure of that kind, in disregard OF
any number of Supreme Court decisions,
but no Democratic President would hes
itate about having the revenue collected
under protective tariff which had beer
adopted in preceding administration.
Mr.. Madison had been an anti bank
man, up to the year 1916; but he signed
the bank act of that year, and said the
constitutional question was precluded
by repeated recognitions of the validity
of such an institution by every branch
of the government. Still, there can be
no doubt that be would have vetoed the
bin if he had not become convinced Of
the utility Of the bank as a financial
agent of the government.
General Jackson cannot be quoted as
free trader, nor as a prorectionist
He was not a doctrinaire, nor a theori
ser upon that subject; but acquiesced in
the necessity or policy of so adjusting
the duties on imports as not to discour.
age domestic manufacturers; and where
manufactures had grown up under tht
protection afforded by the tariff, he helC
that that protection ought not to b.
suddenly withdrawn, to the serious
injury, or ruin Of the manufacturers
But in his fourth annual message b,
said that Those who take an enlarged
view of the condition of our country
must be satisfied that the policy of pro
lection must be ultimately limited t.
those articles of domestic manufacture
which are indispensable to our safety il
time of war. Within this scope, on
reasonable scale, it is recommended b,
every consideration Of patriotism ant
duty, which will doubtless secure to it
liberal and sufficient support But be
yond this object, we have already seei
the operation of TIE system productiy
of discomfort.
The day has long passed by when pro
lection TO the manufacture of gun pow
der and firearms was necessary to sup
ply the needs of the country: and at u