The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-05-14

Mir Chairman, honorable judges, ladies
 and Gentlemen.
 I have taken for my subject, "The Constitution" feel that the subject | is so great, so lofty, so abundant in its blessings to us, that it is probably be- lyond any one to do it full justice but n know this: There is no work of man Ethat should be more ferventix revefed than the constitution.
 What is q constitution? 2
 "We, the people of the United States, in order to formSa more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tran quality, provide for the common de- fense, promote the general welfare and secure the blessings of liberty to our selves and posterity, do ordain and es- tablish this constitution for the United States of America.n
 This is the preamble of our consti- tuition; the greatest document ever composed by human beings in a given length of time. By those wonderfully 1nselfish patriotic framers, the bless ings, indeed, have been secured, to us, their posterity.
 This constitution is a collection of the fundamental principles, establishing justice to all, and democracy to our Ta- ton, A constitution may be written or unwritten rigid or flexible. The constitution of the. United States is written, and is of rigid type. It tells us what we may do; other laws tell us what we may not do.s It provides for three main divisions of government, legislative, judicial and executive. It is the duty of the legislature, the House of Representative and the Senate, to frame our laws. It is the function of the judiciary, our federal courts, to de- termine the valadity of such laws passed; and it is the duty of the execu7 tive, our President with his aids, to see that these laws are enforced--laws for the common good of the country
 dignified laws that command the respect of every true American. =,
 Now, let us briefly review the hiss tory of our constitution. In the month of May, 1787, convention met in Philadelphia. After four months of loyal labor; such as the world had never known, these most able statesmen of the time devised written constitution, and this constitution has been thes Rock of Gibraltar to this great American nation; it has been it's political Bible ]; it has been the very foundation upon which this glorious country was built
 The constitution of the United States went into effect on June Fl, 17SS, when its ratification by the necessary nine states was secured. It's adoption put an end to the anarchy that was threat ening disunion, and started the United States on Q great and glgrious career that will last as long as the American people continue to uphold and respect n. k4r stitution. Had not our forefathers re- spected and zealOusly upheld the con stitution in it's principles of justice and democracy, our country would have come to naught many years ago..
 The constitution has been supple mented by many ammendments nine teen in number. The most important are the first ten, commonly called The Bill of Rights" While the consfitu- ton had endured many tests, they were small compared with that terrible or deal of devastation. battle-scarred bodies and precious blood, the Civil war. Through the divine foresight, our martyred President, Abraham Lincoln, in sadness and sorrow, yet firm in the principle that the United States must endure, preserved to us the constitu- tion, and to the glory of these states reunited, our south has contributed more than it's full shaEe.
 With this reunion tof the nation in, the year 1865, the principles of democ- racy. upon which the constitution was founded, have spread throughout the world. Japan now has written con stitution, and a government somewhat like our own. Backward China, striv- ing for progress, has revised her goy-s ernment, and even Turkey-is fast chang- ing her old government for democratic. one.
 Now let us see the value of a good constitution. What has been the mat ter with Russia? The people were op- pressed and kept in ignorailce by the imperial government under the Czar and when they did revolt and gain control, the country was overrun by a series of civil wars. The fBolshe- wiki came unto power. They were sli- rectlS opposed 10 the forming of con 'sfimfion bv which the people could