The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-07-05
The Unique Thlnssln American
Government.

ehoSc VINO Iouudeu our constitution
may be sustained by consideration of
the principles on which our govern
ment is founded. That here were re-
publics and federated republics, too,
before our own. goes without saying;
that the justice of the principle of gov
eminent by the people had been recoS-
nized by masters of the science of civil
government is equally true: but that
never before in the history of the world
has there been developed such highly
complex system of government. none in
which there has been such balancing
and fair adjustment of powers, will be
conceded by every student of history
and of civil government In the first
place. the division of the sovereign
power of government into three CO.
ordinate and independent departments,
both in the state; and in the nation
the executive, the legislative and the
judicial departments-is more insisted
upon than in any other government
that has ever been established. Then
again, in the division of the sovereign
power as between the states and the
general government it is unique. On
the one side the general government
Is more limited and on the other more
extended than in any other republic
ever founded. Limited in that the gem
eral government is confined to powers
expressly conferred upon it by the
constitution, while all other powers of
government are reserved TO the states
or to the people, respectively. The side
on which its powers are more extended
than in any previous confederation is
in this, that power is conferred upon
the general government to execute its
Owl; laws. with its own machinery, and
upon all citizens within any one and
m all the states. The French philoso-
pher, De Tocqueville, declares that the
principle of our republic rested upon
"a wholly novel theory, which may be
considered as a great discovery in
moderS political science, and for which
there is as yet no specific name" En-
iarging upon the subject. he said:
This constitution. which may at first
be COMPOUNDED with the federal con-
stitution which nearly preceded it.,
rests. in truth, upon q wholly novel
theory, which may be considered as a
great discovery in modern political
science. In all the considerations
which preceded the American consti-
tuition in 1889. the allied states for a
common object agreed to obey the in
functions of federal government: but
they reserved TO themselves the right
of ordaining and embracing the execu-
ton of the laws of the Union. The
1879 agreed that the federal govern
ment should not only dictate, but
should execute its own enactments. In
both cases the right is the same. but
the exercise of the right is different,
and this difference produced the most
momentous consequences. The new
word, which ought to express this
novel thing, does not yet exist. The
human understanding more easily in
ANTS Ia
We are hence constrained to employ
many improper and inadequate express
sions''
Our own national experience proves
that it is the adoption of this principle
In our system of government which
supplies the element of strength that
is usually supposed to be lacking in re-
publican forms of government, and
makes it possible for a republic to per-
sist, to be strong, and at the same time
conserve the freedom of the people.
The principle, however, which most
concerns us here today in our delibe-
rations is the great and fundamental
principle of our system of government
the law of laws" as De Tocqueville
calls 1t, the doctrine of the sovereignty
of the people" government of the peo-
pie, by the people and for the peo-
pie" This principle is. of course, the
foundation not only of our republic.
but of all republics. 1t has. however,
in our American system received in
creased emphasis: it has taken on new
life; it has become a reality There are
not wanting writer's on civil govern
ment who say this principle is active
in all governments. and, indeed, to
some extent, that is true; but for the
most part, in modern times, until the
establishment of our own government,
this principle found expression only 'in
the purchased suffrages of a few of the
satellites of power" At other times
lin the votes of the timid or interested
Or else it was discovered
in the silence of the people and based
on the supposition that the fact of sub
mission establishes the right to gov
ern." But in our system this principle
is not barren or concealed: II is recog-
nized by the customs of the people. as
well as proclaimed by the laws. 1T
spreads freely and arrives without i'm
pediment at its most remote conse-
quences," as De Tocqueville urges
and it has direct application to the af-
fairs of government 1t is a principle
that takes government out of the
hands of a favored few, and recognizes
civil power as resident in the people
1t upsets the doctrine of the divine
right of kings to rule. and of priests to
interfere. only as they may exercise
their rights of citizenship i'm common
with their fellowcitizens. That utter
ance of our Declaration of Independ-
ence, which says governments derive
their just powers from the consent of
the governed" may seem at first
glance to be an unimportant
statement, but tremendous con-
sequences draw 1t, and it was
truly revolutionary In it's char
acter. as matters stood in the
political affairs of the British empire
at the time it was proclaimed. And
when we say that we believe that the
of our country was estab-
ished by a divine inspiration, working
through the men who formulated it. we
should remember that we stand COM
mitted to this doctrine of government
by the people; and to such of us who
hold to a divine inspiration in our con-
stitution, that principle of our govern
nent is God-ordained.
Referring to this idea that the con-
of our country is an inspired
l am tempted to believe
that we fail to appreciate
The seriousness Of that doctrine. We
ire apt to speak of 1t too glibly. and as