CHAPTER I. STATE OFFICERS. State Constitution.-Prior to the admission of a State into the Union, it is required to form a Constitution that shall be essentially republican. The theory of a republic is that all the powers which are wielded by the government must be conferred by the whole people. A Constitution must determine what powers are conferred, and within what limits the functions of the government shall be exercised. Accordingly provision is made for the calling of a constitutional convention, the office of which is to frame what is called the constitutional or the fundamental principles which lie at the basis of a State government. When their work is completed, it must be submitted to the whole people for ratification. All subsequent legislation must be strictly within the limits which are defined by the Constitution. In England they have what is called an unwritten constitution, which rests upon common usage, special grants, and judicial decisions. It really consists in the gradual surrender of what are called the vested rights acquired by the aristocracy in feudal times, and of the absolute power the monarch. Revision and Amendments.--The Constitution may be revised or amended by a constitutional assembly, the call of which is authorized by the Legislature, and must be again submitted to the people for ratification; or single amendments may be suggested by the Legislature and submitted to the people. This latter method has now come to be the more general practice. Members of the Legislature, and executive and judicial officers, before entering on the duties of their respective offices, are required to take and subscribe the following oath or affirmation: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of this State, and that I will faithfully discharge the duties of the office of according to the best of my ability." Departments of Government.-The government of the State is divided into three departments,—the legislative, the judicial, and the executive. The legislative department makes the laws, the judicial interprets them, and the executive carries them into effect. No officer belonging to one department can exercise the powers properly belonging to any other. The officer whose duty it is to execute the laws can not decide the guilt or innocence of those accused of breaking the laws, and those who make the laws are not allowed to apply or carry them into execution. The great safeguard of all free governments is to keep these three departments entirely distinct, so that they may mutually act as a check upon each other. When the legislative, judicial, and executive functions are exercised by one person, the government becomes a despotism. State Officers.-At the general election, which occurs every two years, State officers are elected. They are called State officers, because their duties pertain to the whole State. The executive officers of the State are, 1. Governor, 2. Lieutenant Governor, 3. Secretary of State, 4. Treasurer, 5. Auditor General, 6. Commissioner of the Land Office, 7. Attorney General, 8. Superintendent of Public Instruction. |