Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1913-01-09

constitutional restrictions the office may
Ibe vacated or abolished. The office is for
the benefit Of the public. the officer a
public servant If he3refused or neglects
10 perform the duties or his O.. .ce there
is no more reason why he should he re-
tanned than o private servant. Peace Of
ficers are especially charged with The
duty OF enforcing the penal laws. MOI
some Of them, but all of them. Such laws
are made for the protection OF life and
property and peace officers are elected
for tneir enforcement. They have no
other duties and If they fair in their per-
Torrance there should be a sure, speedy,
summary remedy, not ny the slow pro-
cess o. the ctrrts where the laws de7
lays might prevent removal until after
the term of office had expired, but a.fair,
speedy trial upon notice before some Of
ficer charged with the responsibility OF
enforcing tho laws. There certainly ought
to be a responsible head to the state
government, some official whom the peo-
pie might look to for the enforcement OF
law and hold responsible. There Is no
| business concern In the state without a
responsible head. Every store. farm,
city. bank. corporation. cO-partnership
and every family in the state has a re-
sponsible. head. some person or officer
who can be held responsible. If the
state should have a responsible head who
! should be The head? TO determine this
we should look to the constitution and
see If 1t in any way indicates that such
power could be given to n officer. and
there we find it expressly given in See.
n. which reads: .''The executive power
of the state Is vested in the governor
This is exactly the same language that
il used In the constitution OF the United
States vesting the executive power in the
president. Section 1, of Article 2 of the
constitution of the United States reads:
THE executive power shall be vested in
the President Of the United States Wat
son on the Constitution, says that this
means that the whole or all of the exec
utive power is vested in the President.
If it does, the same language in our con-
lstitution mean that the whole or all Of
the executive power Of the state Is vest
cd in the Governor. This section in the
constitution OF the United States was
considered by the members OF the con-
stitutiOnal convention one of the most
Important provisions in the constitution.
The separation Of governmental powers
into threes departments was a new de-
lparture, and having decided th3t there
should be an executive department. diff
~culties arose as to whether the executive
power should be vested in one man or a
board Of control, it being argued upon
one side that the power vested in a board
of control would insure elaboration and
prevent tyranny, while upon lie other,
the other, the power being vested in q
single individual would insure more eff
cient administration. And the necessity
for efficient administration had lead Ia
almost universal adoption of n single
executive head. quote again from Wat
son on the COnstitution THE conven-
ton was touching a new subject, was
creating a new department OF govern
ment, was establishing a power which
was to exercise great authority and one
which, ii the Republic was successful,
would become its dominant factor. 1t is
not strange, therefore, that there was
great diversity of opinion among the
members on almost all questions pertain
ing to the establishment of the executive
department: One thing beyond all 9TH
ers is plain and clear. The trainers of
the constitution Intended tha the eX-
ecutive should be the strong branch Of
the government. They had been born
and brought up under the rule of a king;
4 tyranny they held in contempt and re-
belled against, but they believed in au-
thOrity and in centralized responsibility
land It was their purpose lie creating the
executive department to confer upon the
executive great authority. This Is appar-
ent in that the convention refused to
create an advisory council for the
ecutive, for In contemplation OF the con
~ventiOn the executive was to be the guild
ing power Of the nation Mr.. Rutledge
said he was for Vesting the executive
F.! power in q single person, as a single
| person would feel the greatest response
bility and administer the public affairs
best. Mr.. Wilson favored a single magis-
trate as giving most energy, dispatch
and responsibility to the office. Mr..
Pincxney and Mr.. I'utlcr favored the
single magistrate, and Mr.. Madison, who
is known Il sthe Father of the COnsti-
tution,' said: 1T is absolutely neces-
saly that the President should have the
power of removing from office. 1t will
make him a peculiar power responsible
for their conduct n subject him to
Impeachment himself if he suffers them
to perpetrate with impunity high crime
or misdemcanors against the United
Estates. or neglects to superintend their
conduct so as to check their excuses
I " NlsSf S5AIIC w Z NIIN CIlIp y
OF the convention that framed the con
stitutiony No higher evidence can be
had. WyInan's Administrative Law, Sec.
I50.
If his language in the constitution Of
the United States, vesting the executive
power In the President. makes him the
guiding power OF the nation, then does
lit not follow that same language in our
constitution, taken apparently from the
constitution of the United States, makes
the Governor the guiding power Of the
state; and that the makers of our con-
stitutiOn were, like the makers Of the
constitution Of the United States, firm, in
their belief in authority and in central.
ixed responsibility, and 50 believing, ere.
ated an executive department, intending
TO confer. upon II great authority. The
makers Of our constitution adopted the
language Of the constitution Of the Unit
ed States relating to the executive,
wherever 1t, could be made applicable,
and hence 1t follows that the same con-
structioh that has been placed upon the
constitution OF the United States must,
as a matter Of law, be applied to the
same provisions in our constitution. In
i Sec. 3 of Art 2 If the constitution of the
limited States, is found this language:
HE, referring to the Presidency shall
take care that the laws be faithfully ex-
ecuted." This identical language is found
lin Sec. Is Of our constitution. So it APP
lpears tina in lone Is vested all the ex-
IAN the executive power Of She state and
I ~ l. = 49, = - /. 81 -~~