shall find upon inquiry and investigation, that there are good reasons for believing that the person so charged has committed the alleged offense.

2. This provision not only protects those who are charged with these crimes against the laws of the United States, but those also who may be charged with such offenses against the laws of any State; for no State can arrest and try any person for a capital or infamous crime without these preliminary proceedings of a Grand Jury; and should it do so, the United States Supreme Court would set its laws aside, as contrary to the Constitution of the United States. Here we see that the government is just as careful to protect its citizens from injustice by hasty judicial proceedings as it is to punish them after a fair and impartial trial.

3. A Grand Jury, when called to take cognizance of violations of the laws of the United States, to find indictments against those who are charged with them, is summoned by a judge of a United States court in the circuit or district where the alleged crime has been perpetrated; and it must take notice of all crimes against the laws of the United States, which may be brought to its knowledge, within the circuit or district in which it sits. Hence, if ordered by a Circuit Judge, its powers extend over all those States which lie in that circuit. But when ordered by a District Judge, its powers extend only to that district in which it sits, and a district never embraces more than one State, and in many cases a State is divided into two or three districts.

4. This shows us how much more extensive is the jurisdiction of a Grand Jury, when acting under the laws of the United States, than when acting under State laws. In the former it extends generally all over a State, and sometimes over several States. But in the latter it is confined to the county in which it sits.

GRAND AND PETIT JURIES.

A Grand Jury never acts bnt in criminal cases. A Petit Jury acts in both criminal and civil cases. The finding or

conclusion arrived at by a Grand Jury is called a presentment, or an indictment. The finding of a Petit Jury is called its verdict.

5. Second, a Grand Jury sits alone (not in the presence of the court), and deliberates upon such matters of a criminal character as it possesses knowledge of, or which may be brought to its notice by the court or by other persons; and when it finds that great evils exist, and wrongs have been perpetrated, it presents them to the court, and calls the attention of the law officers to them; which is equivalent to a recommendation that judicial proceedings should be commenced to abate the evil, or to punish the wrong-doer. This is called a presentment of the Grand Jury.

And when they find, upon such evidence as they have, that a great crime has been perpetrated, or that they have good reason so to believe, and that it has been perpetrated by some person specified, they report their finding or conclusion to the Court. This is called an indictment by the Grand Jury; after which the person so charged is arrested, if at large, and can be found, and is either imprisoned or held to bail for his appearance at court to stand trial.

6. A Grand Jury never tries a case. It only says to the court by its presentment or indictment, that the case presented, or the person indicted, ought to be brought before the court, and tried for the alleged wrong or crime.

A Petit Jury sits with the court, hears the pleadings and arguments of counsel on both sides, listens to the evidence of witnesses; and then hears the charge of the judge, as to the law applicable to the case; after which they withdraw and deliberate alone upon the case, and if they agree in a criminal case, their verdict is "Guilty," or "Not Guilty;" if in a civil suit, they say how much one party is indebted (if any), to the other.

7. The object aimed at in that article of the Constitution which stands at the head of this chapter, is to protect persons from false charges of crime, and hasty adjudication of such

charges; for it substantially amounts to a declaration that no person shall be punished for a capital or infamous crine, unless one jury, before trial, shall, upon information and belief, charge him with the offense; and another, after trial, shall find him guilty of the alleged crime.

The above remarks are as applicable to Grand and Petit Juries, acting under State, as those which act under the United States laws.

CHAPTER LXV.

LOCAL GOVERNMENTS.

1. The Supreme power in the United States is lodged in the general government, with its three branches: Legislative, Executive, and Judicial. The authority of this government, however, is restricted to the powers expressly conferred on it by the Constitution; all other power being reserved to the States, or the people. The States also are sovereign in their own limits, over all questions not expressly assigned to the General Government. Instead of conflict of authority there is true harmony. The people elect the members of both the classes of legislators and executives, and both are equally employed in attending to the interests of the people confided to their care; the first to General, the second to Local interests. All the members and officers of each are the servants of the Sovereign People.

2. As soon as the general government was organized under the Constitution, there arose two parties. One wished to render the General Government prominent in order to secure concentration of strength and vigor of action; the other desired to exalt the State governments in the fear that the general government might prove ambitious of too much power, and disregard the welfare of the people. As in almost all party platforms, both these seemed to take too narrow a view. Washington was held to sympathize more with the first, Jeffersor.

was the acknowledged leader of the second. Together they secured a very fair mingling of both these principles in the administration and general policy of the country. A strict adherence to the meaning and spirit of the Constitution would not seem to give special favor to either, or allow a conflict of interests.

3. The Supreme Court, or the Judiciary, is the regulating, or reconciling element, which the Constitution set over the whole to see that no undue or improper action should defeat its purposes, and that no collisions of authority should occur. Its decision is final, it being the last resort in cases of appeal; and, as the only final and authoritative interpreter of Constitutional Law, it may revise the action of all other branches of both general and local government, and put them in harmony.

4. It is plain that the authors of the Constitution intended to fuse the separate elements, or States, into one whole, where general matters were concerned; and to leave those elements perfectly free and absolute control of all questions involving only their separate and local concerns. The People, and their welfare, are the aim and end of both organizations. The possession of power for ambitious ends by general, State, or municipal organizations, or by individuals, was apparently as foreign to the thought of the whole Constitutional convention of 1787 as it scems always to have been to the mind of Washington. That great man was the leader of clear-sighted and pure-minded statesmen, and whatever weaknesses and faults have existed at any time (and there have always been an abundance of them, as there were in the times of Washington) among political leaders, it must be allowed that the Fathers had worthy sons who knew how to work correctly the problems left them by their predecessors. A single question proved quite unmanageable to the sons, as it had before to the fathers, and had to be settled by an appeal to arms; but it demonstrated the strength of the people and the ability of our institutions to withstand the severest shocks.

5. The original States adopted the Constitution after delib

same.

erate study, and all the States since admitted virtually do the Their general structure in their legislative, executive, and judicial arrangements is substantially the same as that of the General Government. The State Legislatures consist of two Houses, chosen in different ways, and for different terms; the relations between them being similar to those of Congress. Every State has a governor, answering to the President of the United States, who is the executive officer of the State government. The courts in all are organized on the same principle as the Supreme Court of the general government. Although there are small variations from the model, in various States, they do not affect the general resemblance; and, due allowance being made for the different subjects to be treated, the analysis of the general, or of any of State governments, will give a sufficiently correct view of all.

6. A State cannot make treaties with a foreign power, nor declare war against it. It cannot raise a revenue by duties on imports, nor control the postal service, or matters involving the interests of other States. It has therefore no Department for Foreign relations, its Secretary of State dealing only with State affairs. It has no Department of War, or Navy, and no Postmaster General. The Governor's signature is necessary to the validity of laws passed by the two branches of the legislature, and in most of the States he has a veto power similar to that of the President. He has an executive council answering to the Cabinet. The courts are more numerous than those of the general government, to meet the wants of all classes of the people; ranging from a Supreme or Constitutional court, whose office it is to interpret and apply the constitution of the State; through all grades, of Common Pleas, Circuit, District, Police, and Recorder's courts down to neighborhood courts held by Justices of the Peace, or Aldermen. There are various others in different States for special purposes.

7. States are subdivided for purposes of local government into counties and towns; and these into smaller portions for educational and other purposes.