Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1910-09-27
The NJ a king Of a
CONSTITUTION

q terday morning by Attorney Genera
Frank w. Clancy. the assembly roon
being crowded with students. facult
members and others who listened 4
the republican theory OF a state con
stitution with close interest. Mr.
Clancy said:
Ladies and Gentlemen: | have beef
admonished that there Is a time liml
OF forty minutes which must he oh
served by those who address you upoi
the more salient aud important mat
tiers to be embodied, or avoided, n
a state constitution.
It will be unfortunate If the max.
ing Of our constitution is To be treat
4 ed as q partisan political matter. ant
il is to be hoped that on few. II any
questions, viii our approaching con-
V|ention be divided ON party lines, al
though there are strong efforts heina
made TO bring about such an unde-
sirablc condition, ] am quite sure that
many democrats would agree with me
as TO the greater part of what / shall
say To YOU today. and l am equally
sure that some republicans would not.
To the student of our political history,
who has familiariEed himself with the
principles Of the great political part
les Of our country, il Will he clear
that my views are In harmony with
| Att ttlAtAr VI AitdA ItAA w NfAAftu at hAA~
ferent times federalists, whig, repub-
lican. which has always stood for
strength and stability of government,
| combined with due protection of the
citizen. and for concentration of pow
er and consequent increased sense Of
responsibility. as cOntrasted with that
| opposite school Of thought, which,
while ardently devoted TO the adVo-
Cacy OF the rights OF the individual. is
based upon hostility to. and jealousy
of, all exercise Of governmental power,
ca remnant Of the feeling of past ages
whom government was by the few,
under clean ana divine right" against
the many. and which, could il have
had fun control in the first years of
the republic, unchecked by a federal
list supreme court, would almost GER
tainly have dissntegrated our national
government.
! shall avoid any criticism of the
| motives of those who 10 not agree
with my views and also appeal to pop
ular prejudice or party political feel
ing. although ! cannot refrain from
calling attention 20 the fact hat those
who do not agree with what I have
to say, appear to consider vitupera-
tion. personal abuse ana eloquent de-
nunciation as argument OF such qucs-
tons.
In the consideration of the subject
of the making of a constitution for our
new state. il will be well at the outset
to present some distinct and definite
idea of what a constitution is. or
should be. While it Is true hat we
an may have in mind definitions or a
constitution, yet a clear. concise state
ment. %embodying the substance of the
best OF them. may tend to make more
Ineligible what may be said on the
subject
1t may be taken rs automatic in this
country that the source OF all govern
mental power is TO be found in the
people themselves, or in the consent
OF the governed" A state constitution.
then. must be an expression of the WIN
OF the peopie-an expression of the
consent OF the goyerned-as to the
method by which government shall be
carried on. From the numerous Ju-
diclal expressions by the appellate
courts of the country we may con-
dense. as "a satisfactory ana compre-
hensiYe definition, that a state con-
stitutiOn is q compact by and between
the citizens TO govern themselves IN
a specified manner setting out lirst
principles of fundamental law as the
permanent viii Of the people, regulat-
ing the division of governmental pow
ers while at the same time limiting
and controlling their exercise. and
should, in brief. constitute the frame
work of the government. Being thus
%propcrlv only q framework. il should
not descend to 4 regulation of the de-
tails OF governmental business nor at
tempt by provisions akin TO legisla-
ton, to provide Tor immediate, posi-
bly temporary. ~eXigencies. but should
do no more than indicate on broad.
a.DnNuI Hn4N Tho tBNegTa nj tho Diff /
ferent departments of the government
and the necessary limitations on the
exercise of those powers.
From this IL wiz be readily seen as
a general proposition that, in the
making OF q state constitution there
would seem To be no limit upon the
power and authority of the people, but
there Is one general limitation which
must always be kept in mind. and that
Is. the constitutional guarantee that
every state shah have a republican
form of government. which naturally
leads to a consideration of what IS
meant 10y tine phrase, "a republican
form of government. as used In the
constitution ot the United States. II
IS obvious that W. must limit ourselves
to what was intended by the authors
of the constitution. The words ere
public and republican haVe in the
HlNANfN WA tAf MNAA A ftth NFIAAtN W.
varying forms ot government. many OF
which are quite different from our
ideal of republics. This is clearly
pointed out by Mr.. Madison ia No. SO
The Federalist. where he sets
out what are She essential requisites of
"a republican form OF government. and
declares that the federal constitution
Is in the most rigid sense conformahle
to the standard ot a. republican form.
We might well take the government ef
the United States as created hy the
constitution as a criterion hy which
10 judge whether any state govern
meut is or IS not republican Ia form.
~ we lind ans substantial fundament- {
iI departure from the general prin-
ANA general form of government
Bag the national constitution,
should believe thar such depart
would mot Doe consistent with the 4.
institutional idea of n republican
form of government Upon his point A.,
however. we have the authority of the 4
greatest SQUIRT iu the world AS Co what .
ibis language means. In the case OF ,
Minor as Haupersett. - Wallace 49,
the court used the following language .
The -uurtuty Is sd "a republican ,
form OF government Ne particular ,
government ls designated rs Tepuui'-
neither is the exact form 10 be
e-uarauteed. ia any N especially 1
designated. Here. as ln other parts I
ef ths Instrument. we are compelled a Z
resort elsewhere Ga ascertain what I
Intended. ;