The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1912-03-15

those rights than to protest agains
the inomentary impulse Of a temporar!
majority of the electorate TO change
dividual or the voting minority or the
non-voting majority OF iiia!ienablt
rights. The constitution provided :
number OF checks and balances where
by every amendment to the constitu
ton must be adopted under form:
and with delays that are intended Il
secure much deliberation on the par
OF the electorate In adopting sucf
amendments.
Quotes from Daniel Webster.
cannot state the necessity fol
maintaining the checks and balances
In q constitution to secure the guar
anty of individual rights and well Or
dered liberty better than by quoting
from Daniel Webster. lie said:
THE first object OF free people Is
the preservation, il only to be pre-
served by maintaining constitutions
restraints and just divisions of polit
lcal power. Nothing is more decep
tense of desire to simplify govern
ment. The simplest governments are
despotism, the next simplest limited
monarchies, but all republics, all gov
ernments Of law, must impose numer
Gus limitations and qualifications O
authority and give many positive ant
many qualified rights. In other words
they must be subject to rule and reg
llation. This is the very essence o.
free political Institutions. The spirit
of liberty is indeed a bold and fear
less spirit, but it Is also q sharp-sight
ed spirit. 1t is cautious. sagacions
discriminating, far-seeing intelligence
IT is Jealous of encroachment, jealou:
Of power, jealous Of men. It demands
checks. It seeks for gourds. 1t in
sists on securities. 1t entereth iisel
behind strong defenses and fortifles
itself with all possible care agains
the assaults and ambition of passion
It does not trust the amiable weak
neSses of human nature, and there
fore 1t will not permit power to over
step its prescribed limits though be
nevolence, good intent and patriotic
purposes come along with il. Neither
does. it satisfy itself with fiashily ani
temporary resistance to illegal auth
ority. Far otherwise. 1t seeks fol
duration and permanence. 1t looks
before and after, and. building on the
experience of ages WHICH are past, il
labors diligently for the benefit Of
ages to come. This is the nature Of
constitutional liberty, and this is oul
liberty, if. we will rightly understand
and preserve it. =. 49,. o.. =. ....,.
every free government is necessar
lily complicated because all such gov.
ernments establish restraints as well
on the power of. government itself as
on that Of individuals. IL we will abol
ish the distinction, of branches and
have but one branch, if we will abol
ish jury trials and leave it all to the
Judge, if we will then ordain that the
legislator himself. be that Judge, and
II We will place the executive power
in:the same hands, we may readily sim
plify government. We may easily
bring 1t to the simplest of all possible
forms-a pure despotism, but a sepa
ration of departments so far as prac
teal and the preservation OF clear
lines of division between them is the
fundamental idea in the creation OF
all our constitutions, and doubtless
the continuance of regulated liberty
depends on maintaining those boun.
daGies.'' 49,
Three Branches of Government.
These checks and balances, as has
been pointed out, include the division
of the government into three independ.
ent branches, the legislative, execu.
tive, and the judiciary and the provl.
sions by which usurpation by one OF
the functions Of another is forbidden.
The executive, while he is bound to
act in behalf of all the people and to
regard their rights, is properly infiu.
enced by that discretionary policy
which he was elected by constituents
to carry out. In that sense, he rep.
resents the majority Of the electorate.
So to, the legislative members elected
to uphold certain governmental view
Of the majority, will properly favor
the embodiment Of uch/views in valid
legislation. But the judiciary are not
representatives in any such sense,
whether appointed or elected. The
moment they assume their duties they
must enforce the. law as they find it
They must not only interpret and en-
force valid enactments Of the legis.
fature according to its intention, but
when the legislature in its enactments
has transgressed the limitations set
upon its power in the constitution,
the judicial branch of the government
must enforce The fundamental and
higher law by annulling and declaring
invalid the offending legislative EN-.
aetments. Then the judges are to de.
eide between individuals on principles
Of right and justice. The great body
of law is unwritten, determined by
precedent and founded on eternal
principles of right and morality This
the courts have to declare and enforce
As between the individual aud the
state. as between the majority and the
minority, as between the powerful and
the weak. financially. socially, polite.
ally, court must hold an even hand
and give judgement without fear OF
favor In so doing, they are perform.