1. He has refused his assent to laws the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

2. He has forbidden his governors to pass laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operations till his assent should be obtained; and, when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

3. He has refused to pass other laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of representation in the Legislature—a right inestimable to them, and formidable to tyrants only.

4. He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the repository of their public records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

5. He has dissolved representative houses repeatedly, for opposing, with manly firmness, his invasions on the rights of the people.

6. He has refused, for a long time after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the legislative powers, incapable of annihilation, have returned to the people at large for their exercise; the State remaining, in the meantime, exposed to all the dangers of invasions from without, and convulsions within.

7. He has endeavored to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the laws for the naturalization of foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migration hither, and raising the conditions of new appropriations of lands.

8. He has obstructed the administration of justice, by refusing his assent to laws for establishing judiciary powers.

9. He has made judges dependent on his will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

10. He has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.

11. He has kept among us in times of peace, standing armies, without the consent of our Legislatures.

12. He has affected to render the military independent of, and superior to, the civil power.

13. He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitutions, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his assent to their acts of pretended legislation:

14. For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us;

15. For protecting them, by a mock trial, from punishment for any murders which they should commit on the inhabitants of these States;

16. For cutting off our trade with all parts of the world;

17. For imposing taxes on us without our consent;

18. For depriving us, in many cases, of the benefits of trial by jury;

19. For transporting us beyond seas, to be tried for pretended offences;

20. For abolishing the free system of English laws in a neighboring province, establishing therein an arbitrary government, and enlarging its boundaries, so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these colonies;

21. For taking away our charters, abolishing our most valuable laws, and altering, fundamentally, the forms of our governments;

22. For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

23. He has abdicated government here, by declaring us out of his protection, and waging war against us.

24. He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burned our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

25. He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the head of a civilized nation.

26. He has constrained our fellow-citizens, taken captive on the high seas, to bear arms against their country, to become the executioners of their friends and brethren, or to fall themselves by their hands.

27. He has excited domestic insurrection among us, and has endeavored to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers the merciless Indian savages, whose known rule of warfare is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes, and conditions.

In every stage of these oppressions we have petitioned for redress in the most humble terms; our repeated petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have we been wanting in our attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them, from time to time, of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They, too, have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity which denounces our separation, and hold them as we hold the rest of mankind—enemies in war; in peace, friends.

We, therefore, the representatives of the United States of America, in general Congress assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name and by the authority of the good people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare that these united colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British crown, and that all political connection between them and the state of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved, and that, as free and independent States, they have full power to levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and do all other acts and things which independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.

The foregoing declaration was, by order of Congress, engrossed, and signed by the following members:

JOHN HANCOCK.

NEW HAMPSHIRE. JOSIAH BARTLETT, WILLIAM WHIPPLE, MATTHEW THORNTON.

MASSACHUSETTS BAY. SAMUEL ADAMS, JOHN ADAMS, ROBERT TREAT PAINE, ELBRIDGE GERRY.

RHODE ISLAND. STEPHEN HOPKINS, WILLIAM ELLERY.

CONNECTICUT. ROGER SHERMAN, SAMUEL HUNTINGTON, WILLIAM WILLIAMS, OLIVER WOLCOTT.

NEW YORK. WILLIAM FLOYD, PHILIP LIVINGSTON, FRANCIS LEWIS, LEWIS MORRIS.

NEW JERSEY. RICHARD STOCKTON, JOHN WITHERSPOON, FRANCIS HOPKINSON, JOHN HART, ABRAHAM CLARK.

PENNSYLVANIA. ROBERT MORRIS, BENJAMIN RUSH, BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, JOHN MORTON, GEORGE CLYMER, JAMES SMITH, GEORGE TAYLOR, JAMES WILSON, GEORGE ROSS.

DELAWARE. CAESAR RODNEY, GEORGE READ, THOMAS M'KEAN.

MARYLAND. SAMUEL CHASE, WILLIAM PACA, THOMAS STONE, CHARLES CARROLL, of Carrollton.

VIRGINIA. GEORGE WYTHE, RICHARD HENRY LEE, THOMAS JEFFERSON, BENJAMIN HARRISON, THOMAS NELSON, JUN., FRANCIS LIGHTFOOT LEE, CARTER BRAXTON.

NORTH CAROLINA. WILLIAM HOOPER, JOSEPH HEWES, JOHN PENN.

SOUTH CAROLINA. EDWARD RUTLEDGE, THOMAS HEYWARD, JUN., THOMAS LYNCH, JUN., ARTHUR MIDDLETON.

GEORGIA. BUTTON GWINNETT, LYMAN HALL, GEORGE WALTON.



CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES

WE, the People of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defence, 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.



ARTICLE I.—Legislative Department.

SECTION I. 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.

SECTION II.

CLAUSE 1. 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.

CLAUSE 2. No person shall be a representative who shall not have attained to the age of twenty-five years, and been seven years a citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen.

CLAUSE 3. Representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole number of free persons, including those bound to service for a term of years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three-fifths of all other persons. The actual enumeration shall be made within three years after the first meeting of the Congress of the United States, and within every subsequent term of ten years, in such manner as they shall by law direct. The number of representatives shall not exceed one for every thirty thousand, but each State shall have at least one representative; and until such enumeration shall be made, the State of New Hampshire shall be entitled to choose three; Massachusetts, eight; Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, one; Connecticut, five; New York, six; New Jersey, four; Pennsylvania, eight; Delaware, one; Maryland, six; Virginia, ten; North Carolina, five; South Carolina, five; and Georgia, three.

[Footnote: PREAMBLE.—Name the six objects of the Constitution. Who "ordained and established" this Constitution? Is the "union" one of states or of people? What branches of government are established under the first three articles of the Constitution?

ARTICLE I.—Section 1. What body has the "power of legislation"? (Note.—The "power of legislation" is that of making laws.) Of what does Congress consist?

Section 2. Who compose the House of Representatives? Who choose the representatives? What are the necessary qualifications of an elector (or voter) for a representative? How long is the term of a representative? Name the three qualifications necessary for a representative. Is a foreign-born person eligible to the office of representative? How are representatives and direct taxes to be apportioned among the states? How was the representative population of the different states to be determined? What limit is there to the number of representatives? Is every state entitled to representation? How many members were there in the first House of Representatives? How often must the Census be taken? How are vacancies in the House to be filled? Who elect the officers of the House? What body has the sole power of impeachment?]

[Footnote: (Notes.—The first census was taken in 1790; the "ratio of representation" being one representative for 33,000 persons. The census of 1870 gave 1:3,533 persona as the "ratio of representation," The number of representatives is fixed by Congress each decade: at present it is 292. In March of the odd year there is a new House of Representatives. Each organized territory has a delegate who can sit in the House, but not vote. The states are each divided, by its own laws, into congressional districts, as many as Ihe number of representatives to which it is entitled; and the electors in each one of these vote for their representative. The phrase "all other persons" meant "slaves": but this has been amended by the XIVth Amendment. The speaker is always a member of the House; the clerk, sergeant-at-arms, chaplain, etc., are not members. To impeach an officer is to accuse him of official misconduct.)]

CLAUSE 4. When vacancies happen in the representation from any State, the executive authority thereof shall issue writs of election to fill such vacancies.

CLAUSE 5. The House of Representatives shall choose their Speaker and other officers; and shall have the sole power of impeachment.

[Footnote: Section 3. Of how many members does the Senate of the United States consist? Who elect the senators? What is a senator's term of office? Explain the classification originally made. What was the object? How are vacancies filled? State the three qualifications necessary for a senator. Who is the president of the Senate? When only can he vote? Who chooses the other officers of the Senate? When can the Senate choose a president pro tempore (for the time being)? What "sole power" does the Senate possess? Who presides when the President of the United States is impeached? What number is needed to convict? What penalties can be inflicted in case of conviction? Is a person so convicted liable to a trial-at-law for the same offence?]



SECTION III.

CLAUSE 1. The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two senators from each State, chosen by the Legislature thereof, for six years; and each senator shall have one vote.

CLAUSE 2. Immediately after they shall be assembled in consequence of the first election, they shall be divided as equally as may be into three classes. The seats of the senators of the first class shall be vacated at the expiration of the second year; of the second class, at the expiration of the fourth year; and of the third class, at the expiration of the sixth year, so that one-third may be, chosen every second year; and if vacancies happen by resignation, or otherwise, during the recess of the Legislature of any State, the executive thereof may make temporary appointments until the next meeting of the Legislature, which shall then fill such vacancies.

CLAUSE 3. No person shall be a senator who shall not have attained to the age of thirty years, and been nine years a citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that State for which he shall be chosen.

CLAUSE 4. The Vice-President of the United States shall be president of the Senate, but shall have no vote, unless they be equally divided.

CLAUSE 5. The Senate shall choose their other officers, and also a president pro tempore, in the absence of the Vice-President, or when he shall exercise the office of President of the United States.

CLAUSE 6. The Senate shall have the sole power to try all impeachments: when sitting for that purpose, they shall be on oath or affirmation. When the President of the United States is tried, the Chief-Justice shall preside; and no person shall be convicted without the concurrence of two-thirds of the members present.

CLAUSE 7. Judgment in cases of impeachment shall not extend further than to removal from office, and disqualification to hold and enjoy any office of honor, trust, or profit under the United States; but the party convicted shall nevertheless be liable and subject to indictment, trial, judgment, and punishment, according to law.

[Footnote: Section 4. Who prescribes the "time, place and manner" of electing representatives and senators? What power has Congress over the state regulations? How often, and when, must Congress meet? (Note—Congress has prescribed that senators shall be chosen in the following manner. The Legislature elected last before the end of the senatorial term, on the second Tuesday after its first session, shall choose the next senator. The two branches of the Legislature shall meet separately and vote viva voce. They shall then assemble together, and if they agree on any person, he shall be considered duly elected; if they disagree, the joint meeting shall vote viva voce from day to day, at 12 M., until a choice is made.)]



SECTION IV.

CLAUSE 1. The times, places, and manner of holding elections for senators and representatives shall be prescribed in each State by the Legislature thereof; but the Congress may at any time, by law, make or alter such regulations, except as to the places of choosing senators.

CLAUSE 2. The Congress shall assemble at least once in every year, and such meeting shall be on the first Monday in December, unless they shall by law appoint a different day.

[Footnote: Section 5. Who decides upon the "elections, returns and qualifications" of the representatives and of the senators? What number of the members is necessary for a quorum (needed to do business)? What business can a minority transact? What power is given each House of Congress of making and enforcing rules? What is the law with regard to keeping and publishing a journal of the proceedings? When must the yeas and nays be entered on the journal? What restriction is there upon the time and place of adjournment?]

SECTION V.

CLAUSE 1. Each house shall be the judge of the elections, returns, and qualifications of its own members, and a majority of each shall constitute a quorum to do business; but a smaller number may adjourn from day to day, and may be authorized to compel the attendance of absent members, in such manner, and under such penalties, as each house may provide.

CLAUSE 2. Each house may determine the rules of its proceedings, punish its members for disorderly behavior, and, with the concurrence of two-thirds, expel a member.

CLAUSE 3. Each house shall keep a journal of its proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such parts as may in their judgment require secrecy, and the yeas and nays of the members of either house on any question shall, at the desire of one-fifth of those present, be entered on the journal.

CLAUSE 4. Neither house, during the session of Congress, shall, without the consent of the other, adjourn for more than three days, nor to any other place than that in which the two houses shall be sitting.

[Footnote: Section 6. Who fixes and pays the salaries of members of Congress? What special privileges are granted to members of Congress? To what offices are members of Congress ineligible? Can a Congressman hold another office at the same time?]

SECTION VI.

CLAUSE 1. The senators and representatives shall receive a compensation for their services, to be ascertained by law, and paid out of the treasury of the United States. They shall in all cases, except treason, felony, and breach of the peace, be privileged from arrest during their attendance at the session of their respective houses, and in going to and returning from the same; and for any speech or debate in either house, they shall not be questioned in any other place.

CLAUSE 2. No senator or representative shall, during the time for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil office under the authority of the United States, which shall have been created, or the emoluments whereof shall have been increased, during such time; and no person holding any office under the United States shall be a member of either house during his continuance in office.

[Footnote: Section 7. What bills must originate in the House of Representatives? What authority is given the Senate with regard to such bills? Describe the three ways in which a bill may become a law—(1) With the President's concurrence, (2) over his veto (I forbid); and (3) by non-return within ten dayss? What "orders, resolutions and votes" must be submitted to the President? What is the object of this provision? (Notes.—In case a vacancy occurs in the senatorial representation of any state, the governor of the state can appoint a senator to fill the place, who can hold office only until the next session of the Legislature. The method of representation in the Senate gives in that body perfect equality to all the states, Rhode Island having the same power as Virginia. A senator is chosen by the Legislature, a representative by the people; a senator serves for six years, a representative for two. The Senate tries an officer for misconduct, but he must be impeached by the House of Representatives. The salary of a Congressman is now $5,000 per year, and mileage (20 cents per mile for every mile of travel by the usual route in coming and going). The speaker of the House has double a member's salary, and the president of the Senate has a salary of $8,000. One-third of the Senate retire from office every two years. By the term "a Congress" is meant the body of senators and representatives holding office during any one representative term of two years; the Congress which began its term March 4, 1879, is the 46th. Each Congress "ends at noon of the 4th of March next succeeding the beginning of its second regular session." The committees in the House are appointed by the Speaker; those in the Senate by itself. The classification of the Senate makes it a more efficient and conservative body than the House, since in the former there are always two thirds of the number old members, while the House is all new every two years. If the president of the Senate were a senator, it would give extra power to one state, which would be contrary to the plan of that body.)]

SECTION VII.

CLAUSE 1. All bills for raising revenue shall originate in the House of Representatives; but the Senate may propose or concur with amendments, as on other bills.

CLAUSE 2. Every bill which shall have passed the House of Representatives and the Senate, shall, before it become a law, be presented to the President of the United States; if he approve, he shall sign it, but if not, he shall return it, with his objections, to that house in which it shall have originated, who shall enter the objections at large on their journal, and proceed to reconsider it. If after such reconsideration, two-thirds of that house shall agree to pass the bill, it shall be sent, together with the objections, to the other house, by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved by two-thirds of that house, it shall become a law. But in all such cases the votes of both houses shall be determined by yeas and nays, and the names of the persons voting for and against the bill shall be entered on the journal of each house respectively. If any bill shall not be returned by the President within ten days (Sunday excepted) after it shall have been presented to him, the same shall be a law, in like manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress by their adjournment prevent its return, in which case it shall not be a law.

CLAUSE 3. Every order, resolution, or vote to which the concurrence of the Senate and House of Representatives may be necessary (except on a question of adjournment) shall be presented to the President of the United States; and before the same shall take effect, shall be approved by him, or being disapproved by him, shall be repassed by two-thirds of the Senate and House of Representatives, according to the rules and limitations prescribed in the case of a bill.

[Footnote: Section 8. Eighteen clauses now follow which enumerate the powers granted to Congress. What power has Congress with regard to taxes? Duties (taxes on imported or exported articles)? Imports (taxes on imported articles)? Excises (taxes on articles produced in the country)? Borrowing money? Regulating commerce? Naturalization? Bankruptcies? Coining money? Counterfeiting? Post-offices and post-roads? Authors and inventors? Inferior courts? Piracies? Declaring war? Raising and supporting armies? A navy? Government of the land and naval forces? Calling forth the militia? Organizing the militia? Over what places has Congress exclusive legislation? What power is finally given to Congress to enable it to enforce its authority? What four restrictions upon the Congressional powers are made in this section? (See clauses 1, 2,16 and 17.) (Notes. —Taxes may be either direct or indirect; the former are laid directly upon the person; the latter upon articles exported, imported or consumed. Naturalization is the process by which a foreign-born person becomes a citizen. The process of naturalization is as follows (1.) The person declares, on oath before the proper authority, his intention of becoming a citizen of the United States. (2.) Two years, at least, having elapsed, the person takes the oath of allegiance, when he must prove by witness that he has resided in the United States five years and in the state where he seeks to be naturalized one year; that he has borne a good moral character, and has been well-disposed toward the government. The copyright, or exclusive right of publishing a book, is given to an author for 28 years, with the privilege of extension 14 years longer. It is issued only to a citizen or resident of the United States. A patent is now granted to an inventor for 17 years, without the privilege of extension. Any crime punishable with death is a felony. "Letters of marque and reprisal" are commissions given to persons authorizing them to seize the property of another nation By the term "high seas" is meant the open sea, the highway of nations.)]

SECTION VIII.

CLAUSE 1. The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes, duties, imposts, and excises, to pay the debts and provide for the common defence and general welfare of the United States; but all duties, imposts, and excises shall be uniform throughout the United States;

CLAUSE 2. To borrow money on the credit of the United States;

CLAUSE 3. To regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several States, and with the Indian tribes;

CLAUSE 4. To establish an uniform rule of naturalization, and uniform laws on the subject of bankruptcies throughout the United States;

CLAUSE 5. To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign coin, and fix the standard of weights and measures;

CLAUSE 6. To provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the securities and current coin of the United States;

CLAUSE 7. To establish post-offices and post-roads;

CLAUSE 8. To promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing, for limited times, to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries;

CLAUSE 9. To constitute tribunals inferior to the Supreme Court;

CLAUSE 10. To define and punish piracies and felonies committed on the high seas, and offences against the law of nations;

CLAUSE 11. To declare war, grant letters of marque and reprisal, and make rules concerning captures on land and water;

CLAUSE 12. To raise and support armies, but no appropriation of money to that use shall be for a longer term than two years;

CLAUSE 13. To provide and maintain a navy;

CLAUSE 14. To make rules for the government and regulation of the land and naval forces;

CLAUSE 15. To provide for calling forth the militia to execute the laws of the Union, suppress insurrections, and repel invasions;

CLAUSE 16. To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining the militia, and for governing such part of them as may be employed in the service of the United States, reserving to the States respectively the appointment of the officers, and the authority of training the militia according to the discipline prescribed by Congress;

CLAUSE 17. To exercise exclusive legislation in all cases whatsoever over such district (not exceeding ten miles square) as may, by cession of particular States, and the acceptance of Congress, become the seat of the government of the United States, and to exercise like authority over all places purchased by the consent of the Legislature of the State in which the same shall be, for the erection efforts, magazines, arsenals, dockyards, and other needful buildings;—And

CLAUSE 18. To make all laws which shall be necessary and proper for carrying into execution the foregoing powers, and all other powers vested by this Constitution in the government of the United States, or in any department or officer thereof.

[Footnote: Section 9. Eight clauses now follow, enumerating the powers denied to Congress. What prohibition was made concerning the slave trade? Writ of habeas corpus? Bill of attainder? Ex-post-facto law? Direct tax? Exports from any state? Trade between the United States? Payments from the Treasury? Titles of nobility? United States office-holder receiving presents from a foreign power? (Notes.—The object of the first clause was to destroy the foreign slave trade or the importation of negroes from Africa for the purpose of enslaving them. In 1808, a law was passed prohibiting the trade, and in 1820 it was declared to be piracy. A writ of habeas corpus is a written order from a magistrate directing that a certain person shall be brought before him; its object is to guard against false imprisonment or trial in a prejudiced court. A bill of attainder is an English term, meaning an act which without trial inflicts death for treason: attainder of treason cannot in the United States work "corruption of blood" so as to prevent a person from transmitting lands to his descendants. An ex-post-facto law makes an act criminal or penal which was not so at the time it was committed. A United States office-holder, wishing to accept a present or distinction offered him by any foreign power, must ask permission of Congress before he can receive it.)]

SECTION IX.

CLAUSE 1. The migration or importation of such persons as any of the States now existing shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a tax or duty may be imposed on such importation, not exceeding ten dollars for each person.

CLAUSE 2. The privilege of the writ of habeas corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in cases of rebellion or invasion the public safety may require it.

CLAUSE 3. No bill of attainder or ex-post-facto law shall be passed.

CLAUSE 4. No capitation or other direct tax shall be laid, unless in proportion to the census or enumeration hereinbefore directed to be taken.

CLAUSE 5. No tax or duty shall be laid on articles exported from any State.

CLAUSE 6. No preference shall be given by any regulation of commerce or revenue to the ports of one State over those of another; nor shall vessels bound to, or from, one State, be obliged to enter, clear, or pay duties in another.

CLAUSE 7. No money shall be drawn from the treasury but in consequence of appropriations made by law: and a regular statement and account of the receipts and expenditures of all public money shall be published from time to time.

CLAUSE 8. No title of nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no person holding any office of profit or trust under them, shall, without the consent of the Congress, accept of any present, emolument, office, or title, of any kind whatever, from any king, prince, or foreign state.

SECTION X.—CLAUSE 1. No State shall enter into any treaty, alliance, or confederation; grant letters of marque and reprisal; coin money; emit bills of credit; make anything but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts; pass any bill of attainder, ex-post-facto law, or law impairing the obligation of contracts, or grant any title of nobility.

CLAUSE 2. No State shall, without the consent of the Congress, lay any impost or duties on imports or exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing its inspection laws; and the net produce of all duties and impost, laid by any State on imports or exports, shall be for the use of the treasury of the United States; and all such laws shall be subject to the revision and control of the Congress.

CLAUSE 3. No State shall, without the consent of Congress, lay any duty of tonnage, keep troops, or ships-of-war, in time of peace, enter into any agreement or compact with another State, or with a foreign power, or engage in war, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent danger as will not admit of delay.



ARTICLE II.—Executive Department.

SECTION I.

CLAUSE 1. The executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. He shall hold his office during the term of four years, and, together with the Vice-President, chosen for the same term, be elected, as follows:

CLAUSE 2. Each State shall appoint, in such manner as the Legislature thereof may direct, a number of electors, equal to the whole number of senators and representatives to which the State may be entitled in the Congress; but no senator or representative, or person holding an office of trust or profit under the United States, shall be appointed an elector.

CLAUSE 3. The Congress may determine the time of choosing the electors, and the day on which they shall give their votes; which day shall be the same throughout the United States.

CLAUSE 4. No person except a natural-born citizen, or a citizen of the United States at the time of the adoption of this Constitution, shall be eligible to the office of President; neither shall any person be eligible to that office who shall not have attained to the age of thirty-five years, and been fourteen years resident within the United States.

CLAUSE 5. In case of the removal of the President from office, or of his death, resignation, or inability to discharge the powers and duties of the said office, the same shall devolve on the Vice-President, and the Congress may by law provide for the case of removal, death, resignation, or inability, both of the President and Vice-President, declaring what officer shall then act as President; and such officer shall act accordingly until the disability be removed, or a President shall be elected.

[Footnote: Section 10. Three clauses now follow enumerating the powers denied to the several States. What prohibition was made with regard to treaties? Letters of marque and reprisal? Coinage of money? Issuing bills of credit (bills to circulate as money)? Making any other legal tender than gold or silver? A bill of attainder? An ex-post-facto law? The impairing of contracts? Titles of nobility? Imposts? Keeping troops? Making peace or war?

ARTICLE II.-SECTION 1. In whom is the executive power vested? (Note—The executive power is that of executing the laws.) How long is the President's term of office? The Vice President's? Who are the presidential electors? How many are there from each state? Who are ineligible to the office? Describe the method of electing a President, as originally directed by the Constitution. (Note.—This has been superseded by the XIIth Amendment.) What power has Congress over the electors? What are the necessary qualifications for the office of President? In case of a vacancy, who would become President? (Note.—In case of a vacancy in the office of both President and Vice-President, the president pro tempore of the Senate, and in case of a vacancy in that office, then the speaker of the House would act as President. The electors are now chosen on "the Tuesday next after the first Monday in the last November" of each presidential term of office. The electors meet to cast their ballots, generally at the capital of each state, on "the first Wednesday in the last December" of each presidential term of office. When the plan of choosing electors was originally adopted it was intended to choose good men who should themselves select the President, but it soon came about that the electors were pledged to their respective candidates before their own election. The President's salary is $50,000 per year, together with the use of the White House.) Can the salary of a President be changed during his term of office? Can he receive any other emolument from the national or any state government? Repeat the President's oath of office.]

CLAUSE 6. The President shall, at stated times, receive for his services a compensation which shall neither be increased nor diminished during the period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not receive within that period any other emolument from the United States, or any of them.

CLAUSE 7. Before he enter on the execution of his office, he shall take the following oath or affirmation:—"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will, to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States."

SECTION II.

CLAUSE 1. The President shall be commander-in-chief of the army and navy of the United States, and of the militia of the several States, when called into the actual service of the United States; he may require the opinion, in writing, of the principal officer in each of the executive departments, upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices; and he shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offences against the United States, except in cases of impeachment.

CLAUSE 2. He shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to make treaties, provided two-thirds of the senators present concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate shall appoint ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the United States, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law; but the Congress may by law vest the appointment of such inferior officers, as they think proper, in the President alone, in the courts of law, or in the heads of departments.

CLAUSE 3. The President shall have power to fill up all vacancies that may happen during the recess of the Senate, by granting commissions which shall expire at the end of their next session.

[Footnote: Section 2. Three clauses now follow enumerating the powers granted to the President. What authority has the President over the United States army and navy? State militia? The chief officers of the different executive departments? (See note, p. 151.) Reprieves and pardons? The making of treaties? Appointment of ambassadors? Judges of the Supreme Court, etc.? Filling vacancies?]

SECTION III.—He shall from time to time give to the Congress information of the state of the Union, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on extraordinary occasions, convene both houses, or either of them, and in case of disagreement between them with respect to the time of adjournment, he may adjourn them to such time as he shall think proper; he shall receive ambassadors and other public ministers; he shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed, and shall commission all the officers of the United States.

[Footnote: Section 3. Defines the duties of the President, Name these duties with regard (1) to Congress, (2) to ambassadors, and (3) to United States officers? (Note.—Washington and Adams in person read their messages to Congress; the present plan of sending the message by a private secretary was commenced by Jefferson.)]

SECTION IV.—The President, Vice-President, and all civil officers of the United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.

[Footnote: Section 4. For what crimes and in what way may any United States officer be removed from office?]



ARTICLE III.—JUDICIAL DEPARTMENT.

SECTION I.—The judicial power of the United States shall be vested in one Supreme Court, and in such inferior courts as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. The judges, both of the Supreme and inferior courts, shall hold their offices during good behavior, and shall, at stated times, receive for their services a compensation which shall not be diminished during their continuance in office.

[Footnote: ARTICLE III.—Section 1. In what is the judicial power of the United States vested? (Note.—The judicial power is that of interpreting and applying the laws.) How long do the judges hold office? Can their salary be changed during their term of office?]

[Footnote: Section 2 defines the jurisdiction of the United States Courts. Name the cases to which the judicial power of the United States extends. In what cases does the Supreme Court have original jurisdiction? Appellate jurisdiction? What is the law with regard to trial by jury? Where must such a trial be held? Where may a crime be committed "not within a state"? (Notes. —The Supreme Court consists of a chief justice and eight associate justices. The salary of the chief-justice is $10,500 and that of an associate $10,000 per annum. This court meets at Washington annually on the first Wednesday in December. A citizen of the District of Columbia, within the meaning of the Constitution as above, is not a citizen of a state. By original jurisdiction is meant the court in which the case begins; by appellate, is indicated a trial after an appeal from a lower court.)]

SECTION II.

CLAUSE 1. The judicial power shall extend to all cases, in law and equity, arising under this Constitution, the laws of the United States, and treaties made, or which shall be made, under their authority;—to all cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers, and consuls;—to all cases of admiralty and maritime jurisdiction;—to controversies to which the United States shall be a party;—to controversies between two or more States;—between a State and citizens of another State;—between citizens of different States;—between citizens of the same State claiming lands under grants of different States, and between a State, or the citizens thereof, and foreign states, citizens, or subjects.

CLAUSE 2. In all cases affecting ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, and those in which a State shall be party, the Supreme Court shall have original jurisdiction. In all the other cases before mentioned, the Supreme Court shall have appellate jurisdiction, both as to law and fact, with such exceptions and under such regulations as the Congress shall make.

CLAUSE 3. The trial of all crimes, except in cases of impeachment, shall be by jury; and such trial shall be held in the State where the said crimes shall have been committed; but when not committed within any State, the trial shall be at such place or places as the Congress may by law have directed.



SECTION III.

CLAUSE 1. Treason against the United States shall consist only in levying war against them, or in adhering to their enemies, giving them aid and comfort.

[Footnote: Section 3. In what does treason consist? What proof is required? Who fixes the punishment? What limit is assigned?]

CLAUSE 2. No person shall be convicted of treason, unless on the testimony of two witnesses to the same overt act, or on confession in open court.

CLAUSE 3. The Congress shall have power to declare the punishment of treason, but no attainder of treason shall work corruption of blood, or forfeiture, except during the life of the person attainted.



ARTICLE IV.—General Provisions.

SECTION I.—Full faith and credit shall be given in each State to the public acts, records, and judicial proceedings of every other State. And the Congress may by general laws prescribe the manner in which such acts, records, and proceedings shall be proved, and the effect thereof.

[Footnote: ARTICLE IV.—Section 1. What is the law with regard to state records, judicial proceedings, etc.?]

SECTION II.

CLAUSE 1. The citizens of each State shall be entitled to all privileges and immunities of citizens in the several States.

CLAUSE 2. A person charged in any State with treason, felony, or other crime, who shall flee from justice, and be found in another State, shall, on demand of the executive authority of the State from which he fled, be delivered up, to be removed to the State having jurisdiction of the crime.

CLAUSE 3. No person held to service or labor in one State, under the laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in consequence of any law or regulation therein, be discharged from such service or labor, but shall be delivered up on claim of the party to whom such service or labor may be due.

[Footnote: Section 2. What privileges has the citizen of one state in all the others? Can a criminal or an apprentice escape by fleeing into another state? (Note.-Clause 3 originally included fugitive slaves, but that application was annulled by the XIIIth Amendment.)]

SECTION III.

CLAUSE 1. New States may be admitted by the Congress into this Union; but no new State shall be formed or erected within the jurisdiction of any other State; nor any State be formed by the junction of two or more States, or parts of States, without the consent of the Legislatures of the States concerned as well as of the Congress.

[Footnote: State the law with regard to the formation and admission of new states. What power has Congress over the territory and propeity of the United States?]

CLAUSE 2. The Congress shall have power to dispose of and make all needful rules and regulations respecting the territory or other property belonging to the United States; and nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to prejudice any claims of the United States, or of any particular State.

SECTION IV.-The United States shall guarantee to every State in this Union a republican form of government, and shall protect each of them against invasion, and on application of the Legislature, or of the executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic violence.

[Footnote: What must Congress guarantee to every state? When must Congress protect the states?]



ARTICLE V.—Power of Amendment.

The Congress, whenever two-thirds of both houses shall deem it necessary, shall propose amendments to this Constitution, or, on the application of the Legislatures of two-thirds of the several States, shall call a convention for proposing amendments, which, in either case, shall be valid to all intents and purposes, as part of this Constitution, when ratified by the Legislatures of three-fourths of the several States, or by conventions in three-fourths thereof, as the one or the other mode of ratification may be proposed by the Congress; provided that no amendment which may be made prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any manner affect the first and fourth clauses in the ninth section of the first article; and that no State, without its consent, shall be deprived of its equal suffrage in the Senate.

[Footnote: State the two ways in which amendments to the Constitution may be proposed. The two ways in which they may be ratified. What restriction in this article has now lost all force? What provision for the benefit of the smaller states is attached to this article?]



ARTICLE VI.-Miscellaneous Provisions.

CLAUSE 1. All debts contracted, and engagements entered into, before the adoption of this Constitution, shall be as valid against the United States under this Constitution, as under the confederation.

[Footnote: What debts did the United States assume when the Constitution was adopted?]

CLAUSE 2. This Constitution, and the laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance thereof; and all treaties made, or which shall be made, under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme law of the land; and the judges in every State shall be bound thereby, anything in the Constitution or laws of any State to the contrary notwithstanding.

[Footnote: What is the supreme law of the land? Who are required to take an oath or affirmation to support the Constitution of the United States? Can a religious test be exacted?]

CLAUSE 3. The senators and representatives before mentioned, and the members 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 this Constitution; but no religious test shall ever be required as a qualification to any office or public trust under the United States.



ARTICLE VII.—Ratification of the Constitution.

The ratification of the conventions of nine States shall be sufficient for the establishment of this Constitution between the States so ratifying the same.

[Footnote: ARTICLE VII. What was necessary for the adoption of this Constitution? (Note, p. 143.) In what year was it adopted?]

Done in convention, by the unanimous consent of the States present, the seventeenth day of September, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty-seven, and of the independence of the United States of America the twelfth.

In witness whereof, we have hereunto subscribed our names.

GEORGE WASHINGTON, President, and Deputy from Virginia.

NEW HAMPSHIRE. JOHN LANGDON, NICHOLAS GILMAN.

MASSACHUSETTS. NATHANIEL GORHAM, RUFUS KING.

CONNECTICUT. WILLIAM SAMUEL JOHNSON, ROGER SHERMAN.

NEW YORK. ALEXANDER HAMILTON.

NEW JERSEY. WILLIAM LIVINGSTON, DAVID BREARLEY, WILLIAM PATERSON, JONATHAN DAYTON.

DELAWARE. GEORGE REED, GUNNING BEDFORD, Jr., JOHN DICKINSON, RICHARD BASSETT, JACOB BROOM.

MARYLAND. JAMES McHENRY, DANIEL OF ST. THOMAS JENIFER, DANIEL CARROLL.

VIRGINIA. JOHN BLAIR, JAMES MADISON, Jr.

NORTH CAROLINA. WILLIAM BLOUNT, RICHARD DOBBS SPAIGHT, HUGH WILLIAMSON.

[Footnote: AMENDMENTS. (Notes.—The first ten amendments were proposed in 1789 at the first session of the First Congress, and in 1791 were declared adopted. They are of the nature of a Bill of Rights, and were passed in order to satisfy those who complained that the Constitution did not sufficiently guard the rights of the people.)]

PENNSYLVANIA. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN, THOMAS MIFFLIN, ROBERT MORRIS, GEORGE CLYMER, THOMAS FITZSIMONS, JARED INGERSOLL, JAMES WILSON. GOUVERNEUR MORRIS.

SOUTH CAROLINA. JOHN RUTLEDGE, CHARLES C. PINCKNEY, CHARLES PINCKNEY, PIERCE BUTLER.

GEORGIA. WILLIAM FEW, ABRAHAM BALDWIN.

Attest: WILLIAM JACKSON, Secretary.

* * * * *



AMENDMENTS

To the Constitution of the United States, Ratified according to the Provisions of the Fifth Article of the Foregoing Constitution.

ARTICLE I.—Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for redress of grievances.

ARTICLE II.—A well-regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.

ARTICLE III.—No soldier shall, in time of peace, be quartered in any house, without the consent of the owner, nor in time of war, but in a manner to be prescribed by law.

ARTICLE IV.—The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

ARTICLE V.—No person shall be held to answer for a capital or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the militia, when in actual service in time of war and public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor to be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

* * * * *

[Footnote: ARTICLE I. What guarantees are provided concerning religious freedom? Freedom of speech and the press? Peaceable assembly and petition?

ARTICLE II. What guarantee is given with regard to the right of bearing arms?

ARTICLE III. What is provided with regard to quartering soldiers upon citizens?

ARTICLE IV. What is provided with regard to unreasonable searches and warrants?

ARTICLE V. What provisions are made with regard to a trial for capital offences? Can a person be tried twice for the same crime? Can a criminal be forced to witness against himself? When can private property be taken for the public use?]

ARTICLE VI.—In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the assistance of counsel for his defence.

[Footnote: ARTICLE VI. What important rights are secured to the accused in case of a criminal prosecution?]

ARTICLE VII.—In suits at common law, where the value in controversy shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be preserved, and no fact tried by a jury shall be otherwise re-examined in any court of the United States than according to the rules of common law.

[Footnote: ARTICLE VII. When is the right of jury trial guaranteed? How must a fact tried by a jury be re-examined?]

ARTICLE VIII.—Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.

[Footnote: ARTICLE VIII. What guarantee is given with regard to excessive bail or fine and unusual punishment?]

ARTICLE IX.—The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

[Footnote: ARTICLE IX. Does the enumeration of certain rights in the Constitution have any effect upon those not enumerated?]

ARTICLE X.—The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

[Footnote: ARTICLE X. What declaration is made concerning the powers neither delegated to Congress nor forbidden the states?]

ARTICLE XI.—The judicial power of the United States shall not be construed to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or prosecuted against one of the United States by citizens of another State, or by citizens or subjects of any foreign state.

[Footnote: ARTICLE XI. (Note.—This amendment was proposed at the first session of the Third Congress, 1794, and declared adopted in 1798) What restriction is placed on the judicial power of the United States? Can the citizens of one state bring a suit against another state?]

ARTICLE XII.—The electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote by ballot for President and Vice-President, one of whom, at least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same State with themselves; they shall name in their ballots the person voted for as President, and in distinct ballots the person voted for as Vice-President; and they shall make distinct lists of all persons voted for as President, and of all persons voted for as Vice-President, and of the number of votes for each, which lists they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the seat of the government of the United States, directed to the president of the Senate;—the president of the Senate shall, in the presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, open all the certificates, and the votes shall then be counted;—the person having the greatest number of votes for President, shall be the President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of electors appointed; and if no person have such majority, then from the persons having the highest numbers not exceeding three on the list of those voted for as President, the House of Representatives shall choose immediately, by ballot, the President. But in choosing the President, the votes shall be taken by States, the representation from each State having one vote; a quorum for this purpose shall consist of a member or members from two-thirds of the States, and a majority of all the States shall be necessary to a choice. And if the House of Representatives shall not choose a President whenever the right of choice shall devolve upon them, before the fourth day of March next following, then the Vice-President shall act as President, as in the case of the death or other constitutional disability of the President. The person having the greatest number of votes as Vice-President, shall be the Vice-President, if such number be a majority of the whole number of electors appointed; and if no person have a majority, then from the two highest numbers on the list, the Senate shall choose the Vice-president; a quorum for the purpose shall consist of two-thirds of the whole number of senators, and a majority of the whole number shall be necessary to a choice. But no person constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States.

[Footnote: ARTICLE XII. (Note—This amendment was proposed at the first session of the Eighth Congress, 1803, and declared adopted in 1804. It grew up out of the contest In the House of Representatives at the time of Jefferson's election; he was not chosen until the 36th ballot.) Describe in full the mode of choosing the President by the electors. The Vice-President. State the essential qualifications of Vice-President. (See Art II, Sec. I, Clause 4.) In case there is no choice by the electors, how is the President elected? Describe the mode of election in the House. If a President should not be chosen by March 4, who would act as President?]

ARTICLE XIII.

[Footnote: ARTICLE XIII. (Note.-This amendment was proposed at the second session of the Thirty-eighth Congress, 1865, and declared adopted in 1865. It grew out of the Civil War. See p. 282. ) Repeat the amendment abolishing slavery and involuntary servitude in the United States.]

SECTION 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime, whereof the person shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

SECTION 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

ARTICLE XIV.

SECTION 1.

[Footnote: ARTICLE XIV. (Note.-This amendment was adopted in 1868. See p. 284.) Section 1. Who are citizens of the United States? What restrictions are laid upon the states with regard to abridging the rights of citizens?]

All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law, nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

SECTION 2.

[Footnote: Section 2. How are representatives apportioned among the several states? How does this amend Art. I, Sec 2, Clause 3?]

Representatives shall be appointed among the several States according to their respective numbers, counting the whole number of persons in each State excluding Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at any election for the choice of electors for President and Vice-President of the United States, representatives in Congress, the executive or judicial officers of a State, or the members of the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabitants of such State, being twenty-one years of age and citizens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for participation in rebellion or other crime, the basis of representation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such State.

SECTION 3.

No person shall be a senator or representative in Congress, or elector of President or Vice-President, or hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or under any State, who, having previously taken an oath as a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, or as a member of any State Legislature, or as an executive or judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or rebellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies thereof. But Congress may, by a vote of two-thirds of each house, remove such disability.

[Footnote: Section 3. What persons are prohibited from holding any office under the United States? How may this disability be removed?]

SECTION 4. The validity of the public debt of the United States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for payment of pension and bounties for services in suppressing insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emancipation of any slave, but all such debts, obligations, and claims shall be held illegal and void.

[Footnote: Section 4. Repeat the provision with regard to the validity of the public debt. With regard to any debt incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion.]

SECTION 5. Congress shall have power to enforce, by appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article.

ARTICLE XV

SECTION 1. The rights of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States, or by any State, on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude.

SECTION 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.

ARTICLE XV (Note—This amendment was adopted in 1870. See p. 288) Repeat the amendment granting universal suffrage.

THE END