Evening star., 1898-06-04
vICTORIA's LIMITED POWERS.
ThfnSs the English Queen Can DO
and CannOt DO.
From the Home Journal.

FROM the Home Journal
Considerable as are the powers of Queen
Victoria. they are not unlimited. There
are some very curious restrictions on the
royal prerogative. The queen cannot, for
instance. communicate with her subjects
a' can the most menial Of her servants;
nor can she receive presents from her
people save through officers of state or
friends personally known to her majesty
The queen could sell or give away the
ityal navy. or declare war with Russia
but she could not spend a single farthing
Of public money without the consent Of
Parliament. The queen has no power over
taxation, and could not create any new
office with fees attached TO II. Neither
could she annex new fees to old Offices.
She could not increase the wages OF one of
her foo.men, unless she did il out of ker
private funds, or without exceeding the
allowance made to her by parliament.
a curious curtailnent of the royal pre-
rogative is effected by act of parlia-
ment passed in the reign Of George Ill
Tbs act deals with Sabbath breaking and
in it Il is distinctly stated that the monarch
cannot pardon offenders who have been
convicted of certain form of Sabbath
breaking. Yet her majesty could pardon 80
per cent of all the prisoners in the land.
Though no act Of parliament is complete
Until it has been signed by the queen. her
majesty Is subject to the laws that she
s.gns and cannot issue a proclamation
cCEtrary to law. If. for instance. IL were
the law of England that no train should
travel at a rate exceeding fifty miles an
hour the queen could not issue procla-
Ration eXempting certain train from the
Operation of the law. Nor can her majesty
issue a proclamation which would injUre
the community. such as. for example. a
prOclama ton eNempting a whole town or
neiShborhood from serving on jury.
Though the queen could recall any sub
ject from abroad. she cannot compel a
subject to leave Great Britain. This disa-
biiity does not cease to operate even in time
of war, and, though at such a time the
queen could call upon every able man TO
take up arms. she could not force "A single
civilian to leave the country, even TO carry
on a necessary war.
Her majesty could not set up courts such
as the star chamber, the child of Henry
WIS misguided genius, nor could she in
"est Il spiritual court with temporal I-ower.
Though her decision is absolute after a
prisoner has been sentenced, she could not
interfere with the course of Justice before
the sentence has been passed. nor could
she exert any influence over the judges.
Neither could she interfere in of
private opposed TO public wrong.
The queen is the only person who cannot
arrest a suspected felon. No action can be
taken against her for breaking the law,
and therefore, she is preclUded from making
an arrest. as. supposinS the suspected pris-
OF er were innocent. no action for false i'm
prisonnent could be taken against her ma
jesty. The law, indeed. assumes that the
queen can do no wrong. which seems about
as absurd as the legal assumption that The
queen cannot be under age and cannot die.
The queen ot.exclude a member from
parliament after he has been duly elected.
nor can she delegate the duty of signing
laws to any one. Her power OF dispcsing Of
territory in time of peace has been disputed.
In time of war her majesty could haai
over London TO France to bring the war to
an end. but * seems clear that in time OF
peace her majesty cannot subject any part
of the empire to the sway of a foreign