Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1910-08-24
Some Studies in
Constitution Building
Gathered From Our Country's History.
By DIR. GEO. T. GOULD.
sUIRsT PApEfD

/. gress then had to ask the sovereign
power-the people Of the states-to
change or amend the constitution,
giving congress the right to pass an
income tax law. This proposal is now
before the people of the states, and
three-fourths Of the ~forty-siX states
must ratify the amendment before
congress can Ass the desired law.
There is one other way to change
a written constitution. and that is to
throw it away ana write a new one.
France has exceeded all other nations
in this particular. Her numerous
constitutions have passed into a by
word.
At the beginning Of the revolution
nry war the thirteen American colonies
formed a confederation which they
named the United states of America,
A constitution was adopted, called
Articles Of Confederation 1t con-
sisted of thirteen articles and was
signed at Philadelphia, July 3, TIN
on behalf of the colonies by their
delegates in the continental congress.
In 1887. or nine year afterward, the
confederation, having proven a failure
in peace. though it proved efficient
during the long war, a convention OF
delegates from the several states was
called to amend the articles. This they
did by throwing overheard the old
constitution and making an entirely
new one. They changed the govern
ment of the United states from a con-
federacy to a federation. IN April 30,
1889, Washington took his seat as the
first president under the constitution
which is still governing the country.
In the Intervening one hundred and
twenty-one years the number of pro-
posed amendments to the constitution
presented to congress has been large,
but that body has given the necessary
two-thirds majority to only twenty OF
them. OF the twenty thus sent to the
states for ratification, fifteen have
been adopted, and one-the income
tax amendments now is the n
of the states.
On the fifteen adopted amendments.
ten were offered in 1883, by the first
session of the first federal congress
They are generally called the "Bill OF
Rights" their purpose being to more
clearly define and limit the powers OF
the federal government. The elev-
enth, adopted in 1898, gives to each
state immunity from being sued in a
federal court.
In the original constitution. he be-
came president who received the larg-
est electoral vote, and the one re-
ceiving the second largest vote be-
came vice-president. After political
parties became thoroughly established,
To prevent ths, election of a president
from one party aud a Efce-president
from another. the twelfth amendment
was adopted IN 1894. This requires
each candidateit to run for but n office
in the presidential election, n which
one he seeks must be specifically de-
signated.
For the next sixty-one years no
amendment Of the constitution was
made. After the close of the civil
war-April. 1S61-three amendments
were added. They were the thirteenth
adopted in 1865; the fourteenth In
1868; and the fifteenth in 1870. Their
purpose was the abolition of slavery
the Acknowledgement of the whites in
the south. and the giving of the citiz-
enship and the ballot to the negro. In
the subsequent forty years the constit-
ution has not been amended.
eThis is the first of a series OF three
papers on constitution building writ
ten for the Morning Journal by Dr..
George r. Gould.