as shall, when agreed to in Congress, and confirmed by the states, render the Federal Constitution adequate to the exigencies of government, and the preservation of the Union," and fixed the second Monday of May as the day for holding the convention. The resolution thus adopted was presented by the delegates from Massachusetts, and the preamble referred particularly to the action of New York in reference to a convention.

The convention was organized in Philadelphia on the 25th of May, 1787, by the election of George Washington as president, and William Jackson as secretary. The convention adjourned on the 17th of September. It transmitted the constitution to Congress, with the recommendation that it be submitted to conventions chosen by the people in the several states, and that it be put in operation upon receiving the assent of nine states. Congress approved this action, and conventions were accordingly held for the purpose of considering the new constitution. It was ratified by the states in the following order: Delaware, December 7, 1787; Pennsylvania, December 12, 1787; New Jersey, December 18, 1787; Georgia, January 2, 1788; Connecticut, January 9, 1788; Massachusetts, February 6, 1788; Maryland, April 28, 1788; South Carolina, May 23, 1788; New Hampshire, June 21, 1788; Virginia, June 26, 1788; New York, July 26, 1788; North Carolina, November 21, 1789; Rhode Island, May 29, 1790.

PREAMBLE.

WE, the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, ensure domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America:

Note. The character of the national government as distinguished from state governments has been pointed out in the Introduction. The manner in which the national government came into existence is specifically declared in the preamble, where it is said that the people of the United States "do ordain and establish this Constitution." The Constitution is therefore clearly the act of the people.

This subject was considered by Chief Justice Marshall in the case of M'Culloch v. Maryland (1819) 4 Wheat. 316, 4 L. ed. 579, in which the court unanimously sustained the act of Congress of the 10th of April, 1816, incorporating a national bank. In the course of his opinion the Chief Justice, referring to the action of the Continental Congress by which the proposed Constitution was to be submitted to conventions chosen by the people in the several states, said: "They acted upon it in the only manner in which they can act safely, effectively, and wisely on such a subject, by assembling in convention. From these conventions the Constitution derives its whole authority. The government proceeds directly from the people; is 'ordained and established' in the name of the people;" for the purposes specified in the preamble. "The assent of the states, in their sovereign capacity, is implied in calling a convention, and thus submitting that instrument to the people. But the people were at perfect liberty to accept or reject it; and their act was final. The government of the Union, then,

is emphatically and truly a government of the people. In form and in substance it emanates from them. Its powers are granted by them, and are to be exercised directly on them, and for their benefit." The power to incorporate a national bank was held to be one of the incidental powers conferred by the people on the national government.

Chief Justice Taney in the Dred Scott Case (1857) 19 How. 393, 15 L. ed. 691, considering the status of a descendant of African negroes imported into this country as slaves, said: "Every person, and every class and description of persons, who were, at the time of the adoption of the Constitution, recognized as citizens in the several states, became also citizens of this new political body; but none other; it was formed by them, and for them and their posterity, but for no one else. And the personal rights and privileges

guaranteed to citizens of this new sovereignty were intended to embrace those only who were then members of the several state communities, or who should afterwards by birthright or otherwise become members according to the provisions of the Constitution and the principles on which it was founded."

According to this decision, neither slaves, nor the descendants of slaves who had been emancipated, were counted as a part of the people by and for whom the Constitution was ordained and established. See the 14th Amendment and notes, post, 166.

The Constitution has been the subject of frequent consideration by the courts and by other public officers who have been obliged to apply it in the administration of the government. Plain as most of its provisions seem to be, many conditions have arisen which could not have been known to the men who made the Constitution, and the courts have had frequent occasion to determine whether it actually did apply to these new conditions. Officers of the government, in the absence of any other guide, exercise the right to determine what the Constitution means, and how it should be applied in a given case, but doubtful or disputed questions must be submitted to the courts, which have the final power to determine the meaning and application of the Constitution. Eminent judges have devoted their great talents to an examination of the Constitution for the purpose of ascertaining its proper meaning, and the applications of its provisions to various public affairs, and also to statutes which have been passed by Congress and by state legislatures. The judgment of the courts in these cases is conclusive within their proper sphere, and must control and regulate the action of public officers and of the people themselves.

No student can fail to appreciate the wisdom, the learning, and the extent of historical research displayed in many of the great opinions in which the principles of our form of government have been examined and explained by the courts. A few notes to the Constitution are here made, for the most part to provisions which may be supposed to possess a special interest to the reader who desires further information concerning the history of the instrument and

the policies intended to be established. There are hundreds of judicial decisions in which various provisions of the Constitution have been considered, but it is impracticable in a book of this kind to do more than suggest here and there a brief explanation of some of the more important parts of the instrument.

It will be observed that these notes contain many extracts from opinions written by some of our greatest judges who have studied the history and also the meaning of various provisions of the Constitution. In some cases, acts of Congress have been quoted or cited for the purpose of showing the manner in which the Constitution has been put into operation. It is hoped that these notes, though brief, will aid the reader in obtaining a more accurate view of the Constitution and of his own relations to our system of government.

ARTICLE I.

SECTION I.

1. [Legislative power.]-All legislative powers, herein granted, shall be vested in a congress of the United States, which shall consist of a Senate and House of Representatives.

Note.-Legislative power is vested primarily in Congress, and cannot, in general, be delegated to any other authority. Wayman v. Southard (1825) 10 Wheat. 42, 6 L. ed. 262; Interstate Commerce Commission v. Cincinnati, N. O. & T. P. R. Co. (1896) 76 Fed. 183, Affirmed (1897) in 167 U. S. 479, 42 L. ed. 243, 17 Sup. Ct. Rep. 896. But power to regulate administrative details may be delegated to officers who are charged with the duty of administration in particular cases. United States v. Ormsbee (1896) 74 Fed. 209.

SECTION 2.

1. [House of Representatives; qualification of electors.]-The House of Representatives shall be composed of members chosen every second year by the people of the several states; and the electors in each state shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the state legislature.

Note. The right to vote for members of the House of Representatives is conferred by this section (Wiley v. Sinkler [1900] 179 U. S. 62, 45 L. ed. 88, 21 Sup. Ct. Rep. 17) and may be exercised by citizens of a state who are by its laws qualified to vote for the most numerous branch of the legislature (United States v. Goldman [1878] 3 Woods, 187,