The Honolulu republican. [volume] (Honolulu, T.H.) 1900-1902, 1900-10-10

1 rutssz over the territory. l. contra j
/ 20 The holding OF the Supreme court o.
I he United States above cited TO the
/ effect tnat the general government IS
I cns IF enumerated powers. and car
/ claim and exercise no power not
/ granted 10 il by the constitution. either
I expressly or By Eecssssry implication
/ ut = clear thai the general govern
I rnenf cannot legisla1e over territory
/ VIE m. constitution from which its
very power Is derived does not extend.
Ee CUlsIirutior must Be la force over
q territory before the general govern
msns can have any authority 10 Iegis-
I late respecting IL No foreign sovereign
/ can invest the general government with
an legislative power"
Can Only Exist Under Constitution.
The plain. obvious and undeniabIe
| fact Is that the general government o.
[ the United States. created by the cons
I titution and possessing no vitality or
power not directly drawn from that in
S -Tument, can only exist and iegisiate
where the constitution Is in force. and
that every tract OF territory that comes
under the sovereignty of the United
States comes necessarily under that
constitution which alone gives life TO
AAA1N SNf Il CAehA- stA-@ ~ O<4d ~ AkEN4 N44N
sovereignty must cease" Eek parte Or
tiz. 100 F. SOL
The nrst ten amendments to the con-
Stituiion OF the United States have been
called the Federal Bill OF Rights. Rob
srtson Baldwin. l65 L. S 30 And il
/ is we'll understood that none Of these
amendments were adopted TO announce
new principles or 20 declare AMI define
new rights but We're intended 10 carry
forward and reaffirm the rights and
privileges Of freemen. well known and
Them and whose ancestors had, ut great
sacrifice. forced their acknowledgment
from the hand of unlimited power.
MIR. Justice Cooley says: The truth
is the Bill of Rights in the American
constitution have not been drafted for
TIE introduction of new law, but to Sc
cure old principles against abrogation
or violation. They are conservatory
instruments rathe- than reformatory
and they assume that the existing prin-
cipies of the common law are example for
the protection o. individual rights. when
once incorporated in the funda mental
law and thus secured agains, viola
ton" Weimer V. Bunbury, 80 Mich
214
Mr.. Justice Matthews. speaking for
the Court. said: In this Country writ
ten constitutions We're deemed essential
10 protect the rights and liberties Of
the people against the Entertainments
OF power delegated to their governments.
and the provisions of Magma Charta
were INCORPORATED into Bills of Rights
There were limitations upon all the
powers of government. legislative, as
well as executive and judicial" Hur-
taco VS.. California. no L. S. PIP. 531-2
What Judge Edmunds Says.
Hon. George F. Edmunds. who is
justly regarded as one of greatest liv-
ing expounders of the constitution, said
But the constitution as such. / sup
pose all admit, Is not subject to the
control of Congress. either to enlarge
or to diminish. extend or contract or
TO be applied to or withdrawn from any
people or place. 1t is not movable
Thing like the Ark of the covenant of
the Israelites, to be set up and moved
here or there as the tribes might wan
der. 1t is the actual event and condi-
ton and not the legislative or executive
viii that must in the nature of things
determine the status of a man or "a
country under it.
The instances in which Congress had
declared in statutes organizing terrific
ries that the constitution and laws
should be in force there are no evidence
that the constitution and laws were not
already there, for Congress and all le-
gislatiye bodies have often made
enactments that in effect merely de-
clared existing law. In such cases
they declare pre-existing truth 10
ease the doubts OF casuists."
Letter of. Senator Proctor. dated
March 21st. 1900 and published in Con-
gressional Record. March 80, 1900 p.
1887
Cannot Depend on Will of Congress.
We cannot assent to the doctrine that
the operation Of the constitution in the
territories belonging to the United
States depends upon the will or action
of Congress extending it there This
doctl inc necessarily carries with it the
admission that what one Cong -ess can
give. the same or succeeding Con-
gress can take away: that although
Congress by the Organic Act. organizing
the Territory of Hawaii, extending the
constitution and laws of the United
tates to this Territory. the next Con-
gress might repeal that part of the
VI -hCt anu tudt lueu the p6Opit
If this territory would have none Of
: he guarantees of life. liberty and pro-
reFty provided in the constitution and
might thereafter be governed as pro-
vince. Crown colony. or In any man
ner that Congress in its wisdom, or I'M
gisdom. might provide: that a tariff
MIGHT be levied on the products of the
Islands going into the states. and citi-
ems of this territory might be denied
E Re rights and privileges of citizens Of
lie United States residing in other
Farts of its imperial domain.
from the above citation of authori-
ties We reach the easy conclusion that
those negative provisions OF the con-
Stitution. adopted to declare and pro
tect the life, liberty and property of the
citizens were in force in the Hawaiian
Islands as soon as the same became a
subject TO the sovereign domain there
Of 1t is not necessary in order to de-
eide the case at bar TO express an OPT
Mon as TO whether the constitution
ex-proprio vigore, and as a whole ex-
tends 20 and is in force in all territory
subject to the sovereignty of the Unit |
ed States, II is clear and well settled
that some of the provisions of the con- |
81 ution do not apply TO the territories
ss,st1er tnere Is an Act or Congress
T-ressly extended them there or not. /
for the reason that they are totally in
applicable to the conditions existing In !
TIE territories However the ablest and
mast earnest advocates Of the unlimit-
81 power Of Congress TO legislate for |
the territories. unrestricted by the pro-
visions of the constitution. frankly adj |
nit that those negative provisions of the |
inserted to protect the life |
and property of the citizen are in force
in the territories and are so far limifa- |
ton on the poyypr of fs0nYrpSs in IeIis-