Evening star., 1927-12-04
The Eighteenth Amendment.


ment was ratified and became a part
of the Constitution Of the United
States efforts have been made by op.
ponents OF prohibition to prove its in.
validity on one ground and another.
They have. however. all failed. and It
is somewhat surprising now to find
it seriously contended that the amend.
ment is not valid because it was not
submitted to the vote Of the people.
This proposition has been advanced
by Former Senator Williams Of Mis-
souri, in an address before the Okla.
homa Bar Association at Tulsa. His
contention is that the Constitution
may be amended either by the people
or by the state Legislatures: that the
subject matter Of the proposed amend.
ment determines who may ratify It.
If the proposed amendment relates to
the operations Of the Government, the
Legislatures have that power, but il
1t gives new power to Congress to
regulate the conduct of the people and
to punish them for the disobedience
Of laws passed under such powers. the
people must ratify it.
There is nothing whatever in the
Constitution itself that justifies this
argument. Article v Of the Constitu.
tion provides as follows;
The Congress, whenever two.thirds
OF both houses shall deem 1t necessary.
shall propose amendments to this Con.
stitution, or, on the application Of the
Legislatures Of two.third OF the sew.
eral States, shall call a convention for
proposing amendments. which. In
either case. shall be valid TO all in.
tents and purposes, a. part OF this
Constitution. when ratified by the
Legislatures of three.fourths Of the
several states. or by conventions in
the other mode of ratification may
be proposed by the Congress.
This citation shows that whatever
may have been in the minds OF the
Constitution makers regarding the
power OF ratification, they did not
write into the fundamental law any
provision requiring submission to
popular vote. The nearest approach to
that was the provision that Congress
might require that ratification be made
by conventions specifically called In
the States for that purpose. In other
words, Congress may attach to any
amendment adopted by it by q two.
thirds vote the stipulation that ratifi.
cation shall be effected in this man.
ner. It has, however, never exercised
that right. but has always submitted
proposed amendments to legislative
approval.
In some instances, a. In that OF the
eighteenth amendment, the changes
In the Constitution have been pro.
posed by Congress after the Legisla.
lures have been elected In some Of
the States, and that in consequence
ratification has been voted by those
Legislatures without mandate by the
people. But unless 1t is specified that
a certain length of time must elapse
before submission to the Legislatures,
after congressional adoption. in order
that every Legislature shall be chosen
with the proposed amendment pending
before the voters when they select
their State lawmakers. it Is inevitable
that some OF the Legislatures win be
in position to vote upon the amend.
ments without an expression Of public
win on the subject. This IL owing to
the fact that elections for Legisla.
lures occur in different years and the
terms Of Legislatures are Of varying
length. No amendment has ever been
proposed with such provision. A
time limit was in fact provided in the
case OF the nineteenth amendment,
within which 1t must be ratified in or.
der to become part OF the Constitution.
The contention of Mr.. Williams ID
barely Of academic Importance. His
separation OF amendments into two
categories II arbitrary, without justin
cation in the language Of the Con
stitution itself. His proposition may
evoke discussion, but 1t will not lead
to action.