Government and Administration of the United States Part 1

Government and Administration of the United States.

by Westel W. Willoughby and William F. Willoughby.

CHAPTER I.

Preface.

These chapters were originally prepared for and used as a manual in the public schools of the District of Columbia. In a revised and amplified form they are now published as one of Johns Hopkins University Studies in History and Politics.

The aim of this revision is to furnish a.s.sistance to students beginning the study of the history and practical workings of our political inst.i.tutions. It is not the purpose to furnish a complete text-book upon the government of the United States and its administration, but, by a clear, concise statement of the salient points of our federal system, and a description of the actual workings of the characteristic features of our inst.i.tutions, to give to the student a better understanding of the manner in which the same are administered, than is to be obtained from the ordinary text-books on Civil Government.

These Outlines are intended as an aid to both teacher and pupil, and for use in a cla.s.s whose members are already familiar with the leading events and names in United States history. The work is intended to furnish such supplementary information as can be obtained only with great difficulty by most teachers, and which for the most part cannot be obtained at all by the pupils.

The authors have endeavored to make prominent the fact that our present form of government is far from being contained in the written const.i.tution of 1787, and consequently, that a study of that instrument alone will give a very inadequate idea of our government as it is. The const.i.tution was but a foundation upon which to build a government.

Nothing like an a.n.a.lysis or commentary upon the const.i.tution of the United States is here attempted. The public is already well supplied with books covering that ground. History proper, except as showing the basis and reason for the establishment of our inst.i.tutions, has likewise found no place here.

The book is to be used chiefly as a manual, to supply information that would otherwise need to be dictated by the instructor. The Outlines are in many particulars merely suggestive. Many topics are simply mentioned, which the teacher must elaborate and explain at greater length.

Lastly, though this book does not pretend to give a connected account of our administration or politics, yet the subjects have been carefully arranged in such an order as would most naturally be followed in a course to which the work is intended to be an aid.

CHAPTER II.

Government.

From the earliest times of which history furnishes authentic record, and in all countries inhabited by man, people have found it necessary to bind themselves together by civic regulations so that certain things may be done by all in common--in short, to establish some form of government.

Now, as has always been the case, there are certain things which, from their very nature, cannot be left to each individual to do, or not to do, as he may choose, or to do in his own way. First of all, there is the necessity of some means by which the weak may be protected from the strong. The individual must be protected in his life and liberty, and there must be some guarantee to him, that if he is industrious the enjoyment of the product of his labor will be secured to him. Human nature being imperfect, disputes and injustice are sure to arise. Hence comes the necessity of some power above the citizens and able to command their obedience, some power that can administer justice according to the rights and not according to the strength of individuals.

To thus control the actions of individuals, this power above the citizens, this government, must possess functions of three kinds. First, legislative power, or power to declare the rules of conduct to which the citizen must conform; second, judicial power, or power to interpret and declare the true meaning of these rules, and to apply them to the particular cases that may arise; and third, the executive power, or power to carry into execution these laws, and to enforce the obedience of the citizens.

To the student nothing could be more interesting and instructive, than to trace how, as tribes and nations have progressed in civilization, government has advanced in its development. How, as men have progressed, first from the condition of savage hunters to the roving feeders of flocks, then to tillers of the soil with fixed places of abode, and finally to builders of cities teeming with trade, commerce and manufactures; how as men have thus improved in civilization and material well-being, their mutual duties and common interests have become more and more important and numerous, and government as controlling these interests and duties, has developed in form and improved in structure until it has become an all-powerful, complex machine, controlling in many ways the actions, and even the lives of its citizens.

For thousands of years, governments have been developing and changing in form and functions, and a very large part of the history of the nations of the globe is identified with the history of the development and changes of their governments. As new conditions and needs have arisen, governments have adapted themselves to them. In some cases this has been done peacefully, as in England, and in others violently, by revolutionary means, as in France. In some cases functions previously exercised have been relinquished, in others, new powers have been a.s.sumed; but in the majority of cases, the change has been merely in the manner of exercising this or that power.

All peoples have not the same characteristics, nor have they developed under the same conditions of climate, soil or situation. Different nations have, therefore, developed for themselves different forms of government. Yet these governments, however different in their structures and administration, are in all cases distinctly referable to four well defined types: Monarchy, Aristocracy, Democracy, and the Republic.

_#Monarchy.#_--A monarchy is a nation at whose head is a personal ruler, called King, Emperor, or Czar, who has control of the government, appoints the princ.i.p.al officers of state, and to whom in theory at least, these appointees are responsible for their actions. Thus England, Germany, Spain, Italy, Sweden, and others are monarchies. The sovereign holds his position for life, and usually acquires his throne by inheritance. Where the crown is nominally elective, as in England, kings.h.i.+p is practically hereditary, the regular line of descent being departed from only upon rare occasions.

The amount of power actually exercised, the responsibility borne by the sovereign varies widely in different countries, and upon the basis of these differences monarchial forms of government are cla.s.sified under the two heads, Absolute and Limited Monarchies.

_#An Absolute Monarchy.#_--An absolute monarchy is one in which the sovereign or ruler is possessed of supreme power and authority, and controls absolutely, without limitation or interference, all the powers of government. His word is law and requires not the sanction of the people. His commands are absolute and require not the formality of judicial procedure, and are not necessarily in conformity with existing laws. Implicit obedience to his commands, however arbitrary, may be demanded, and there is no appeal. These are, theoretically, the powers of the absolute monarch. Practically, however, he is constrained to keep within fair bounds of justice and good policy, lest his subjects be goaded to rebellion and revolution. The absolute form of monarchy exists to-day in the empires of Russia and Turkey.

_#A Limited Monarchy.#_--A limited monarchy is one in which the ruler, though at the head of the government, is not absolute, but is limited in his powers by the action of a body of men, selected by the people, who make the laws by which the nation is to be governed. The respective rights and powers of the sovereign and of the law-making body, are determined by a collection of rules, written or unwritten, collectively known as the const.i.tution. The const.i.tution contains the fundamental law of the land. All acts of the government to be valid, must be const.i.tutional, that is to say, in conformity with the rules laid down in the const.i.tution. For this reason limited monarchies are also known by the name of Const.i.tutional Monarchies.

England is the most conspicuous example of a limited or const.i.tutional monarchy. In consideration of our former connection with her, and the extent to which we have derived our ideas of government from her political inst.i.tutions, it will be of great a.s.sistance to us if we stop for a moment to consider her government, before proceeding to a study of our own.

The sovereign of England is termed King or Queen. Originally possessed of almost absolute power, the English ruler, at the present day possesses very little actual power and influence, much less in fact than the people of the United States have entrusted to their President. The const.i.tutional history of England is largely the narrative of the successive steps by which the people have wrested from royal hands and taken under their own control, the powers of government.

The rights of the English people in the partic.i.p.ation of their own government are not contained in the written doc.u.ment, such as we possess in our const.i.tution, but rest upon established custom and precedent, and various charters wrested from their kings.

The English Parliament, or, to speak more exactly, the lower branch of the Parliament, called the House of Commons, rules the English people.

The Parliament or law-making branch of the English government, is divided into two houses, the House of Lords, and the House of Commons.

The House of Lords is, as its name denotes, composed mainly of members of the n.o.ble families of England, who owe their seat in that body to the chance of birth. Theoretically possessed of powers of legislation equal to those exercised by the lower and more numerous branch (the Commons), the Lords have in reality but a small voice in the control of public affairs. The House of Commons is composed of members elected by the people. In this body reside almost all the powers of government. Its acts require the a.s.sent of the House of Lords and of the King, but this a.s.sent is almost wholly formal. The sphere of legislation allowed the English Parliament is unlimited, differing in this respect fundamentally from our Congress, which is limited in its legislative field by the Const.i.tution. From the English Parliament is selected the "Cabinet"

consisting of the princ.i.p.al executive officials, who guide the House in its legislation, and at the same time conduct the executive affairs of the nation. These ministers, as they are called, are appointed by the king from the party in the majority in the House of Commons. They are responsible to that body for all their actions, and retain their offices only so long as they retain the confidence and good will of the Commons.

_#An Aristocracy.#_--An aristocracy is a government in the hands of a select few, called the aristocracy, who transmit this authority to their children. There are to-day no aristocratic governments proper, though many nations exhibit aristocratic tendencies. In nearly all of the European countries, one branch, at least, of their legislatures is composed of members holding their seats on account of n.o.ble birth, thus admitting the aristocratic element into their governments.

_#Democracy.#_--A pure democracy is a government in which all the people rule directly, meeting in popular a.s.semblies in which is determined by the votes of the majority how the government is to be administered. This form of government is obviously possible only in very small communities.

Several of the Grecian states governed themselves after this manner. No perfect example of a nation with this form of government can be said to exist at this time. The nearest approach to pure democracy is found in certain cantons of Switzerland. The Roman historian Tacitus tells us that the early Germans governed themselves in a purely democratic manner, and the first governments of several of our American colonies were of the democratic type. When we come to the study of local government in the United States we shall see the democratic form followed in the New England Town Meetings.

_#Republic.#_--A republic is a democracy adapted by means of the introduction of the representative principle, to the government of a large and widely separated people. Under this form of government the people rule themselves, not directly, as in a democracy, but through agents or representatives of their own selection. The partic.i.p.ation of the people in their own government consists therefore merely in the choice of officers to represent them and carry out their wishes. There exist at present several republics, the tendency seeming to be for nations to approach more nearly this form of government. France has been, since 1870, the best European example of a republic. Our own government--the United States of America--is to us the most interesting and important example of a republic.

_#Popular Government.#_--By the word 'popular' is meant, of or by the people, and by popular government is to be understood a government in the administration of which the people as a whole partic.i.p.ate. Every change by which new and greater political powers are given into the hands of the common people is considered a step towards the full realization of popular government. During the last one hundred years great strides have been made in this direction by all European nations except Turkey and Russia. The extent to which this movement towards popular control of government can be safely and successfully carried is a question of very great importance. To a very large extent it depends upon the intelligence, previous training, and natural political ability of the people who are to be entrusted with their own government.

CHAPTER III.

The Functions of Government.

Broadly speaking, the functions performed by government are of a threefold order: the establishment, interpretation, and enforcement of laws. A division of government into three branches is thus called for: the legislative, the judicial and the executive. The manner in which these departments are related to each other, the extent to which they are vested in the same hands, and the degree in which they are separate from each other and independent in their workings, differ in different countries. In England, as we have seen, the executive and legislative functions are closely united. In our government, as we shall see when we come to consider its structure, complete independence of the three departments has been aimed at.

All statesmen agree that a good government should possess ample power to interpret its own laws, and sufficient strength to fully enforce them.

When we come, however, to the question of what are the proper subjects for control by government, and what for free management by individuals, we reach a subject upon which writers and thinkers have been unable to agree.

Under the great question, over how broad a field it is expedient and right to extend the activities of government, are embraced many of the great topics at present agitating the public mind. Difference upon this point has been one of the underlying causes of the existence of political parties in the United States, and has furnished one of the real springs of our history. Communism, socialism, and anarchy, may be embraced under this question. This it is that makes the study of the principles of government, especially in the United States, so important to every one who would understand the political life around him, and be able to form an intelligent decision upon the questions of the day.

Shall the nation or the state own and manage the railroads, the telegraph lines, and the ca.n.a.ls? Shall education receive the support of the state? Shall the employment of women and children in mines and factories be regulated by law? Shall the city own its own street railways, its markets, its water and gas supply, its telephones, and its water fronts? Shall this or that duty be delegated to the city or to the state, or shall it be left to the chance performance of individuals or corporations? These are some of the many questions of supreme importance that meet us at every point, and the better we understand the true nature and structure of our government, the better shall we be able to give intelligent answers.

Among the many functions of government, there are many so obviously necessary to the existence of a nation, however organized, that there is no discussion concerning the expediency of their exercise by the state.

We may, therefore, group governmental duties under two heads: the necessary, and the optionable; or, as Professor Wilson has named them, the _Const.i.tuent_ and the _Ministrant_.[1] Under the first head is embraced all those functions which _must_ exist under every form of government; and under the second t.i.tle those "undertaken, not by way of governing, but by way of advancing the general interests of society."

The following is Professor Wilson's cla.s.sification:

_#I. The Necessary or Const.i.tuent Functions.#_--

(1). The keeping of order and providing for the protection of persons and property from violence and robbery. (2). The fixing of the legal relations between man and wife, and between parents and children.

(3). The regulation of the holding, transmission, and interchange of property, and determination of its liabilities for debt or for crime.

(4). The determination of contract rights between individuals.

(5). The definition and punishment of crime.

(6). The administration of justice in civil causes.