Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1901-01-16
Outline of the Work of the Consti-
tutional Convention.
QUESTIONS THAT WERE TO Be MET
Spanish Guarantees and American
Forms Copied.
UNIFORMITY OF LAWS
oc;o, corresnondence of The Evening Star.

pleted and made public there VIII pe uiS
cussion and probably some changes IN the
instrument But as it now STANDS lar
idea can be formed of the capacity which
the delegates have showp for their TASK.
No one who knows Cuba deceives himsei1
that making a constitution is the real test
of ability to sustain a stable government
and maintain free institutions, yet In Its
way it is one test and merits analysis.
Americans who have not been following
the proceedings of the delegates In their
secret sessions may be surprised when theS
wake up and find that the constitution as
framed is for sovereign and independent
nation When the delegates come to for
mulate the relations with the United safes
they may or may not suggest a plan Whch
will nulify some of the provisions of their
constitution. l do not give any OPINION OH
that point at present. The incorporation
of the substance of the joint resolution Oh
Congress. which is in the constitution as 1t
now stands may by some persons be inter-
preted to mean that Cuba acknowledges her
dependence on the United States. That in
terpretation will depend on future develop
ments There is also the clear and speclnc
definition of what constitutes the territorial
extent of Cuba the Isle of Pines being IN
cluded within the definition If the United
States has any purpose of claiming the Isle
of Pines as American territory under the
treaty of Paris, the Washington authorities
will have TO raise that question at once.
Outlines of the Constitution.
Viewed apart from the relations to the
United States, the constitution may be ex-
amined in outline. The outlines are clear
enough 1t is Furthermore right to judge
of the constitution by what is not In 1t, as
well as by what is in ii. l think the COM
mon verdict will be that the attempt TO
draft an organic law without overlooking it
with eXtraneous matter and special leglsla-
ton has been fairly successful. There is
more of the Cuban constitution than of the
Constitution of the United States, but some
subjects. such as municipalities, that have
no parallel in the American Union, had to
be included. Moreover, there was the
natural effort to be explicit in defining
everything that related to personal liberty
and the rights of citizens.
I'VE have some absurd things" said one
of the mos, influential members of the con-
vention, but after IA time We can amend
them out of our constitution just as the
United States amended some things into It's
Constitution
Rubbish Left Out.
This is an excuse that has weight. If a
good deal of rubbish is found in the pro-
posed organic law of the Cuban common
wealth allowance should be made Tor the
much larger amount Of rubbish that has
been kept out of it. OF the rubbish which
originally it was proposed to force into the
constitutions and which has been rejected
is the mixture of French and British par
liamentary system with the American sys-
tenn of legislative and executive respon-
sibiiity. AT one time there was a prob
ability that French ideas would gain foot
ing. 1t was proposed to have ministries
which would rise and fall with every pass
ing breeze of popular passion, and winch
would be solely responsible to the congress
of which they would be the servants. 1t
was even proposed that the president Oh
the republic should be elected by the two
chambers of the congress. All these prop
ositions have been rejected The formation
of a cabinet is left to a general law, and
the plan of having the cabinet members
also members of the congress with the right
to take part in the debates and to vote in
| one chamber does not meet with favor.
This was one of the provisions in the au-
! tonomous constitution which Spain offered
/ Cuba in the last days of her control of the
! island.
| CO-Ordfnate Powers.
Something which is entirely new to the
| inha bitants of the island is the co-ordna-
| ton of executive, legislative and judicial
! mowers In this respect the United states
! is patterned after minutely. Under Spanish
rule Cuba never had known legislative
! function which would be representative of
! the popular will, and the judicial tribunals
were mere tools of the higher authority.
| a supreme court which shall be indepen-
dent of the executive and which shall pass
on the validity of the laws that are made
| nv the congress is to the Latin mind The
greatest innovation. Under the American
military control naturally there has been
no such division of powers as exist In the
| United States. The constitution makers
! have worked out the theory satisfactorily
and the practice Is one of the problems of
! the future.
One of the longest sections in the consti-
| tuition relates to the guarantees OF personal
and political liberty. 1t will surprise many
! Americans to know that most of these ar
ticles are taken word for word from the
constitution of Spain. Then to them is
added something from the bill OF rights and
the earlier amendments to the Constitution
of the United States
WHY Spanish Guarantees Are Copied.
A question will be asked why, If the gov
.rnment of Spain so oppressive, the
r,nban commonwealth should copy its con-
stitutional guarantees. One answer is that
the constitutional guarantees are fitted to
the Roman system Of Jurisprudence, and
that as the Spanish laws will continue the
basis of Cuban law the guarantees OF per-
sonal and political liberty are better as
sured by drafting them in accordance with
the system of Jurisprudence on which the
Spanish constitution is based. Though ha-
beas corpus did not exist in name, theoret-
ically it exists in the constitution of Spain
In the provisions made against unlawful
arrest and detention.
Another answer to this question would
be that, though the constitution Of Spain
was made applicable to Cuba shortly after
the ten years war, 1t had little practical
effect for the governing authority ignored
| 1t or modified 1t at convenience without
judicial or legislative restraint. Then there
was always the subterfuge Of suspending
the constitutional guarantees by applying
what was known as the law Of public order.
which In substance was martial law. With
this understanding the Cubans may not
seem foolish in adopting the language of
the Spanish constitution with reference to
the inviolability of dOmicile, the right of
early trial of the accused, Of a free press
| of the inviolability Of correspondence and
public meeting, of private property as pro-
| from c0nfisca ti0n and NJ siuoil =