The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1901-05-27

| ~
the crown. But while Parliament ha,
no power legally to delay, resist O.
annul' the action of the crown in sucl
matters, and although neither it's sane
ton nor its ratification is required t.
render valid treaties negotiated by the
crown with foreign states, yet the in.
dorsement of one of the cabinet minis
tiers is needed to give official and ma.
tional value to the agreement in Dues
| ton, and it is doubtful whether ar
agreement concluded, say, by King Ed
ward, Emperor William and Francis
Joseph of Austria, would be looked
upon as having any binding force upon
their respective empires unless coun-
tersigned by one of their cabinet minis
aers in each case.
| Should the treaty on becoming known
excite the disapproval of the national
| legislature, the latter can call to ac-
count the minister who has counter
signed the document, and who is there
fore responsible to Parliament for the
instrument. In extreme cases the min
lister can be impeached and punished.
Indeed, there have been cases of cabi-
net ministers who have suffered death
as the result of impeachment for their
Endorsement of wrongful acts of the SOW
erelgn, one of the most notable instances
being that of the Inflated English King
Charles rs minister, Lord Strafford,
who was executed on May -, 1862.
In order to appreciate the value to
the nation of this ministerial RESPONSE
bility it must be borne in mind that the
monarch in each constitutional country
is above the law in this sense, that no
court can have Jurisdiction over him,
either in criminal or in civil affairs.
True, in the case of private injuries an
individual who considers he has a just
claim upon the sovereign may petition
him in one of the courts OF law, where
the judges will administer right purely
as matter of grace. For the end of
such action in the words of Blackstone,
is not to compel the sovereign to OBJ
serve his contract, and to do what is
just in the matter, but merely to "per-
suade" him. AS far as public OF Off
cial injuries are concerned, that is to
say, where the sovereign, in the opinion
of his people, misuses his power, his
lieges have the remedy of impeaching
and indicting the responsible minister,
For the constitution of every eonstitu-
tional country provides that the mon
arch shall perform no sovereign act
without the cooperation and indorse-
ment Of a minister, and that there shall
be heavy punishment for the minister
or responsible counselor who dares to
assist the crown Chat is the sovereignty
in doing anything that is in contradic-
ton to the laws of the land and to the
veal of the nation. In word, the re-
sponsigle minister is, so to speak, the
whipping boy of the monarch, and he
has, in the event of any misuse of power
on the part of the crown, to bear the
odium and the penalties which would
Fall to the share of the sovereign We're
ne not, figuratively speaking, above the |
aw.
Among the compensations which the |
,rown derives from this limitation of |
authority is the fact that it is the re- |
iponsible minister, instead of the SOW |
,reign, who is called upon to bear the |
orunt of public ill will in the case of |
my distasteful measure either origina-
ed or executed by the crown. Thus
hat old Emperor William, grandfather |
If the present kaiser, was so immensely |
popular, from three years after his ac-
ession to the throne until his death,
learly three decades later was because
lis chancellor, Prince Bismarck was
leld responsible by classes and masses
like for every Objectionable act of the
rown. The, old emperor, they held,
ould not do wrong. Whatever harm |
nsued was due to his counselors and
minister's, who were alone responsible.
t is the same to-day in Austria Hun
airy, in England and in Italy, where
he loyalty and affection of the people
Or their rulers remains undisturbed by
he unpopularity of the acts of the
rown, the odium of which is saddled
pom their responsible ministers, who
ct, so to speak, as buffers between the
eople and the throne.
The present German emperor has
allied sufficiently to appreciate the
alue of these buffers. He has made
imself the working head of every
ranch of the administration and by
ppointing as ministers men whose
rinciple claim to note is Their bind sub
ervience to his will has made himself
rectly responsible to the people for ev-
rything that takes place. Having re-
iced ministerial responsibility in Ger
any to a mere figure of speech, is
1ly natural that when ever anything
oes wrong all eyes should turn to him;
I'd hence it is not the ministers, but |
le sovereign himself, who is abused, | !
no is threatened, and who has to bear
lie blame for every unpopular measure.
here is no ministry in the real sense
the word to stand between the kaiser
Id his people. He comes in for all the
iticism that would be restricted to his d
inisters We're the latter known to be
atesmen of character and Of indepen-
nee, such as Bismarck, OF even Ca
wi, instead of mere courters. 1t is
Is more than anything else that i'm
.irs the prestige of the crown, and di- .
nishes the reverence for what he him a
If describes as the sacred character
royalty"
made the great mistake Of t
agning that a strong and powerful | =
mister impaired the popularity of the
own and diminished it's Importance.
IT until Emperor William secures the
rvices of statesmen who possess the
of the. iron chancellor"
ficent to warrant them in refusing
cir sanction to acts Of the crown i
itch they know to be wrong, will the
Dple transfer all blame from the en- I
ror's shoulders to theirs, and be con- arr
!, !