Los Angeles herald., 1907-08-27

of commerce which may or may not be
destined to enter later into interstate
commerce.
1T Is insisted that any attempted reg
ulation may be made effective by pro-
hibiting the goods of the manufacturer
or the crops of the farmer from the chan
nels of interstate commerce. These vari-
GUS contentious, some of them so new
and so stratling, represent only few
Of the many.
'"The object which their advocates have
in view is undoubtedly laudable. But
that is not enough, If in the execution of
their plans, they violate the federal con-
stitution and directly lead toward the
destruction of our dual government.
Washington's solemn admonition, in his
farewell address, as to our duty in such
an emergency, should be faithfully ad-
hered to. He said: ''If In the opinion OF
the people the distribution or modifica-
tion of the constitutional powers be in
any particular wrong, let 1t be corrected
by an amendment in the way which the
constitution designates. But let there be
no change by usurption; for though this,
| in one instance, may be the instrument OF
| good, 1t Is the customary weapon by
which free governments are destroyed.
The precedent must always greatly over
/ DdldnCe III permanent CIVIL ally poi tidA "a
| transient benefit which the use can at
any time YIELD
'"The fathers who framed our consti-
, tuition as well as those of the original
| thirteen states, had wholesome fear of
arbitrary power. They sought to limit
governmental power by law, the source OF
which should be the people-the states
to be supreme as to all matters, and to
exercise all powers except those specific
MI fad m national government.
the constitution of each state to be the
supreme law and capable of amendment
only by its people.
Held In Check
"In this way the three departments
of government were to be held in check
and their several powers added to or
diminished from time to time as the
wisdom of the people should direct.
And upon the judiciary devolved the
duty of preventing violations of the
supreme lava duty which has been
faithfully executed Guided by the
ideas and principles which prevailed in
the creation of the state governments,
the trainers prepared the constitution
under which our national government
came into existence Every power with
which it was deemed necessary to en-
dow the national government was
given to it. and in the exercise of these
| 1t was made supreme. To prevent any
possible assertion by the national gov
ernment of inherent powers, those as
signed to it were carefully and ex-
pressly enumerated.
But to avoid even the possibility of
a contrary claim the constitution was
at once amended by the addition of ten
articles-every one of which operated
as a restraint upon the national gov
ernment. The last one, not only dis
closing the intent with which the con-
stitution was framed. but establishing
beyond even the possibility of cavil.
that the national government is limited
to the powers specified in the constitu-
tion creating 1t, reads: The powers
not delegated to the United States by
the constitution, nor prohibited by 1t to
the states, are reserved to the states re-
spectively or to the people, Other
powers have since been granted and In
the future still others may be given,
but the constitution as 1t now stands
forbids the exercise of any powers
other than those granted by 1T. 1t
leaves no room for finding in the lam
guage of the constitution a claim that
there are certain unmentioned and in
herent powers which the federal gov
ernmenL may exercise.
THAT claim has, however, been made
in the supreme court of the United
States on more than one occasion only
to be denied by it, Quite recently and
in that interesting and most important
case Kansas vs. Colorado, the court was
compelled by the contention of the gov
ernment of the United States to pass
upon its claim to exercise certain un-
mentioned powers as inherent and SOW
ereign. While the suit was between
Kansas and Colorado, the United States
interviewed, claiming. as stated by Justice
Brewer, that the determination OF the
rights OF the two states inter esse in re-
gard 10 the flow Of waters in the Ar
kansas river, Is subordinate to a SUI
perior right on the part of the national
government to control the Whole system
of arid lands. That involves the ques-
ton whether the reclamation of arid
lands Is one of the powers granted to
the national government
Continuing, the court says: AS here
tofore stated, the constant declaration of
this court from the beginning is that
this government is one of enumerated
powers. The government, then. of the
United States can claim no powers which
are not granted to 1t by the constitu-
ton. and the powers actually granted
must be such as are expressly given, or
by necessary implication. Story, j.. in
Martin vs. Hunters Lessee, ! Wheat, |
3O4, S26. The government of the United
States is one Of delegated, limited and