The Lexington advertiser. [volume] (Lexington, Miss.) 1904-1985, 1963-02-14
The Editor

L
officers, both of the United States and
of the several states, shall be bound by
oath or affirmation to support that
Constitution. We cannot think that so
important a provision in the para
mount law of the land was intended to
be merely directory, and not absolute
ly necessary to be complied with"
In the case of Mississippi State
Tax Commission VS.. Brown the Missis-
sippi Supreme Court said: @
"The requirement that the mem
bers of the several state legislatures,
and all executive and judicial officers,
both of the United States, and of the
several states, shall be bound by oath
or affirmation to support the Constitu-
tion, imposes upon all those exercising
the powers of n office the duty of
supporting the Constitution, which
carries with it the duty of careful ex-
animation of the Constitution, and of
the construction placed upon it by the
highest Court - which interpretation
is binding upon every officer of the
Federal Government, and of the state
government" n1s
The law in Mississippi may be
summarized thusly:
a. The Constitution of the state
of Mississippi expressly recognizes that
the federal law is the paramount law
Of the land. a ,r.
b. The Constitution of the state
of Mississippi vests full management
and control of the affairs of the Uni
versity of Mississippi in the Board of
Trustees for. the Institutions of High
er Learning. This includes The ydues-9
tion of the admission of students. to the
university. A2s@ sll'o 3i1 80 ala :
g Under the Constitution of the
state of Mississippi the governor of
the state has no authority or control
of the internal affairs of the Univer-
sity of Mississippi, nor can he admit
or deny admission to any STUDENT
ID Under the Constitution of the
state of Mississippi it is the duty of
the governor as the chief executive of
the state to see that law and order is
maintained in the state, and to sup
press riots and Instructions.
e) Under the Constitution of the
state of Mississippi the governor can
not determine what the law is, or what
laws should be obeyed, but he is bound
under his oath of office to enforce the
laws of the land as iudiciallv deter
mined by the courts of the land.
f) Under the Consultation of the
state OF Mississippi neither the state
legislature nor the state courts can in
terfere with the enforcement of the
final courts of the United States.
g The Mississippi Supreme Court,
constituting the Constitution of the
state Of Mississippi and the Constitu-
ton of the United States, has held
that the interpretations of the Consti-
tuition of the United States Supreme
Court of the United States are binding
upon all state officials and constitute
the law of the land"
Governor Barnett clearly acknow-
ledged that he had no statutory or con-
stitutional authority to interfere with
the admission of James Meredith to
the university. In a letter dated Octo-
Der 25, 1862, he wrote the Southern
Association of Colleges and Secondary
Schools as follows: "- all statutory
and constitutional authority for oper-
ating the state institutions of higher
learning in Mississippi is in the hands
of the duly appointed members of the
Board of Trustees of State Institutions
of Higher Learning. It is not my wish
or purpose to accept or assume any
of these prerogatives.'
If Governor Barnett had admitted
that this was the law on September
10th instead of waiting until October
25th, the tragedy at Oxford would not
have taken place.
Did he violate his solemn oath of
NJ. = - x<nns,v = = - 31srsa q, -