The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1927-09-16
U. S. CONSTITUTION IS UNEQUALED
AMONG STATE PAPERS OF THE WORLD

4
every idea and principle established
! by the constitution had been pos
sessed and tried BY governments and
\ state, IN the past, bat n.Nnr before
I mad tInr same een welded torcthr
I INTO one complete whole, and never
wa. the charter OF Il state - we'll
fitted and adapted u nee; me co'-
ditfoaS ,hat existed The con,,itu-
ton of the n,.d State, j. really
the result Of growth in political de-
velopment beginning with 1920 ut
Plymouth. Mas. and 1907 II James
town, Virginia. We are apt TO mn
agine that i, came forth rs al in
! spirat .on complete and pc, rect. ne
rallas. fully panoplicd. irolh the
head Of Jovc. The constitution. IN
truth. : the result of compromises
after bitter fights and disagree
ments: irtu it there went selfish a
we'll ~ generous motives. Necessity
PLAYED ain important part. The roar~
of the British Lion still echoed faint
Is through the colonIe, and many o!
the delegates. who were against the
constitution IN is final form and in
tr,l~eiy hostile To Hamilton, who
believed III 4 strong central govern
urnt, were compelled To vote for ~
a Il ntntter of safety TO thcmse!vc
and the colonies
some Of the colonies had advan
tauc~ with respect To trade and com
mere. which they were very reluctant
to surrender The concerns of buSl-
mes, II well "a, politics played a con
,idefabl" part in the evolution of the
constitution Delegates fought for
what they supposed 10 he local in
,ere-ts. much like our modern pOiiti-
clans sometimes fight for local advan-
tagc> and privileges. 1t must be borne
ia mind tha, tn. different colonies
were To al ntcnts and purposes III
d,pcndrnt nations and each was call
ed upon to surrenae, many. of what
they consi dcrcd. sovereign rights.
The constitution was, therefore, the
result of compromise, Of give and
take. and Of accepting the best that
they could obtain. At the begin
ming Of the convention no one desired
such An instrument IL, was finally
evolved a. ii came finished from
the convention. il was not the IN
>trument that anyone had hoped for
or expected. but il was better than
any one of the separate plans or
drafts that were proposed at the con
vention. The reason 1t has endured
is because il embodics the hard COM
mon sense OF its makers and is
combination Of idralism, eXprdiencv
and necessity. The dross was all
burned out and only the gold remains.
If the instrument had not been in
response to actual needs, it would
never have been recognized, respected
and obeyed by the people. II is
wonderful instance OF how we'll the
people will obey the mandates Of
government when they are suitable
and adapted to the conditions under
which the people live. The constitu
ton was not in advance Of its time.
The time for it was ripe. Such an in
strument could never have been
evolved or adopted one hundred years
before 1t took the struggle with
King George and the revolutionary
War to make the people ready for it.
The federal constitution is our
greatest heritage. but like all good
things handed down To US from the
past il may be lost. We may lose it
and still keep the document. We
may 50 clutter it up with amendments
that its purpose us the organic law
| will be defeated In the opinion Of
many statesmen and profound think
Iers most il not all Of the later amend
ments have been Of that character.
BY the 10th amendment the people
Of the United States took upon them
| selves Il burden grievOus to be borne,
and did so after the Supreme Court
| had once protected them for their
own folly exercised through congress
| >iOnal action. | refer to the income
tax amendment. 1t has been the ex-
perience of mankind that when new
methods of taxation are devised they
will always he employed. and the
other tax burdens heretofore exist
ing. are seldom lessened thereby.
The 18th amendment provided for
the popular election of United States
| Senators. also Il distinct backward
| step in the opinion Of a large num-
Der of patriotic and well informed
people. 1t was Il direct attack upon
the theory of government which lay
in the minds of the founders of the
republic. The purpose of electing
senators by the legislature instead
/! Of directly by the people was to insti-
| tute 4 conservative branch of the ma
tlonal congress. The popular. or may
we say radical. element had their
representatives in the House. elected
directly. This amendment removes
to a degree the check by one house
| upon the doings Of the other. and to
date has most certainly not resulted
in better senators.
As to the two remaining amend
ments. presume we have our in
divldual opinion. Many able states
men and constitutional lawyers
doubted the real constitutionality of
the 18th amendment. that is. its con
stitutional nature or character as dis
tinguished from the legality Of its
passage. etc. Some of the best peo-
pie and ablest statesmen of our coun-
try believe that legislation under the
constitution as it was and moral sua-
sion would have reached the evils OF
intemperance better and more in con
sonance with the right theory of con
stitutlonal moral and statutory law
This amendment as we'll as some
others is legislative in its nature
rather than organic or constitutional
On September H. 1887, l4O years
ago Saturday, this week, the Phila
delphia convention completed its
labors and reported the draft of the
constitution to the Continental Con.
gress to be submitted to the severa
states for ratification.
On September %, 1897, Congress
resolved that the constitution be sub
mitted to the several state legisla
lures for their ratification. The as
sent Of nine states was necessar,
to make the instrument operative
BY September, 1888, nine states hae
ratified the constitution although
some Of the others did not do so fol
several years thereafter. On Septem
Der II, 1888. 1879 years ago today, tn.
necessary number Of states havinl
ratified the constitution, congress.
fixed a date for the election Of ,
pres idcnt to be held on the first Wed
nesday in February, 1889. and tn,
time and place for commencing