The age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1897-1902, 1899-11-20
SENATOR MORCAKS OPINION ON
CONST|TUT|ONAL|TY Of EXPANSION
Holds That Under The International Law the United States Has
Right to Acquire and Govern Territory

meanor In office and its violation would be,
a void act by whomsoever it is performed.
and void beyond the power of ratification
by any department of the government.
1t Is II Guarantee
at is a guarantee-the only one In the
constitutfon-and must operate directly In
favor of the people. 1t was made for their
/ benefit, to secure them against any attempt
to place them under regal, or monarchic,
or oligarchic, or dictatorial rule
Wherever there are people within the
sovereign limits of the United States, in
habfting territory belonging to the United
States, and subject to our government,
this guarantee is appended, created a gov
ment shall be republican IN form.
1.-THE body of constitutional law to which
this guarantee is appended, created gov
ernment republican in form, with organic
provisions so complete that no other than a
state, with a government republican in
form, could be a member OF The union.
"a guarantee Of the status quo was not
needed to secure a republican form o. gov
ernment to the states that then, or 2fter-
ward, were admitted into the union. This
guarantee applied more oppositely to states
or inhabited territory that shoud come
within the jurisdiction of the United States
in the course of Its growth as a nation
This guarantee applied broadly to the
distinctive and established form of the
government created by the constitution, III
stead of prescribing or defining certain
specific features that would make it rcpub-
lican in form. The republican form gave
the wider distinction and greater freedom
of action as to the manner of leading up
new, incohate states into the dignity, pow
ers and rights of states admitted into the
union. 1t was not possible in the beginning
to forecast all the features that might be-
come useful in adopting government, repGb-
lican in form. to the necessities of ire vari-
Gus people whom we hoped to bring within
the scope of our grand system of republic
can government.
Leading Feature
"The grand, leading feature of this pro-
vision of the constitution, standing out
alone, as a landmark for a nation that was
born to grow, and had prospective growth
in all it's organic laws, is this guarantee of
self-sustained liberty, progress and securi-
ty to all peoples who might become inhab-
itants or citizens of the United States. 1t
was mtended TO exciuue mOnarcnlal rule
forever from all lands over which our flag
should float in token of our permanent
sovereignty, and to secure government
there, republican in form, against all other
forms of government.
1--WE would violate this guarantee by re-
fusing to annex any country when that be-
comes a national duty with view to its
conversion into a republic And, equally,
we would violate this guaranty If we should
turn over any part of our dominion to a
monarch, king, autocrat or dictator, after it
had been brought permanently within the
sovereign jurisdiction of the United States.
at was on this great guaranty that the
trainers of our constitution based the di-
vision line between monarchy, or imperial
ism, and government by the people. and
committed the generations that should fol-
low them to the decree that will stand for
the deliverance of many peoples, that
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