The Tucumcari news and Tucumcari times. [volume] (Tucumcari, N.M.) 1907-1921, 1910-10-22

tutAoh VI tut 1hANtu 9NtttS, WHICH ut@
clares that Congress shall guarantee
to each state u republican form Of gov.
eminent. II is in my Judgment an or.
ror and incorrect view OF that provision
of the United States Constitution to
hold that IL concerns Congress alone
and that n state may violate il at it,
law 80 long as Congress ioes not choose
TO interfere.
The provision declares a great con
stitutional principle. and must be oh.
served by all coming within it's purvicw.
The correct construction is that given
by the United States Supreme Court
in Minor VS.. llappersett, Il Wallace,
1852 where il said:
1.-The guarantee necessarily impos.
~ n duty on the part of the states
themselves 10 provide such a govern.
p,ent. Therefore. every act done 10y a
state which is inconsistent with and
violate of the theory Of a republican
form Of government is invalid
Now, what is a republican form of
government These words are not H..
fined IN the Constitution itself. Like
other words used in that instrument. we
must look for their meaning 10 the gen
eral aud usual source and authorities
which determine the Specification OF
English words aud phrases. An eNnmin.
alton of this source leaves no doubt ~
To the meaning 1T the phrases in ques.
ton. II is defined in the federalist in
Legislative debates aud Judicial opinions.
IN text books Of law and in the stand.
ard dictionaries of the language. shall
quote from these authorities. The mean.
ing Of the phrases as derived from these
words is correctly and concisely stated
in Wcbstcr's Dictionary M follows:
! "A state IN which the sovereign pow.
er resides in Il whole body of the PEG.
pie il exercised by representatives So.
lected by them. 4 republican form of
government ~ one in which the people
select those who are to make their laws,
aud is radically different from the pure
democracy in which the people cullcc.
lively and ~ their own original act
make the laws and whenever under
our American system of republican gov.
eminent. u state undertakes 10 destroy
the representative system. and install in
IT, place rs the law making power the
people-either by acting in n mass 1T, ct.
N or enacting laws by ballot in their
original capacity, ~ undertake 20 do
sn unconstitutional thing. which il void.
The learned Judge goes on at some
length in the same strain and concludes
by saying: 1T admits the very evil
which the representative form Of gov.
ernment wa intended TO guard against.
canot refrain from expressing regret
at the apparent readiness Of many PEG.
pie of the state 10 abandon permanent
features of our American system of gov.
eminent, the wiscst aud best system
ever vet devised and put into success.
full operation.
Under the authorities ahov" cited |
think ! am justified in saving that il
is a question whether OF not the initia.
1--WE ard referendum il pduutcd hv The
state ot New Mexico would he repub.
licEn in form and not ~rcpugnant 10 the
Constitution of the United States as
the Enabling Act declare, IL shall he.
II ~ the ,alfornla curt holds it il
a political question for Congress 10 de.
eide, who can say that Congress will
hold such n provision c~oustitutioral'
And II ~ be Il judicial qnsa'ion who
can say that the supreme Court of the
United States will hold that il is in
violation of Section I Article 4 Of the
Constitution OF the United Statesi
That ither of those bodies have the
power and authority 10 do 80 is un.
questionable should tha matter come
before them in the proper proceeding.
Nv the Enabling Act Congress expressly
reserved the right 20 pass upon whether
the Constitution adopted by New Mex.
leo meets with the requirements of that
hill, and il seems 10 me that rs n purely
legal question IL is worthy Of consid.