CHAPTER I

The English Government of the Eighteenth Century

• Struggle between the many and the few 3
• The Great Charter 4
• Development of a bicameral parliament 6
• Limited and irresponsible government 8
• Class influence as seen in statute and common law 10

CHAPTER II

The American Government of the Revolutionary Period

• Conditions favoring growth of democratic ideas 12
• The Declaration of Independence 13
• Numerical strength and character of the conservatives 14
• Democracy in the early state constitutions 16
• Supremacy of the legislature 20
• The Articles of Confederation 22

CHAPTER III

The Constitution a Reactionary Document

• Causes of political reaction 27
• The Constitution a product of eighteenth-century 28
• The framers' fear of democracy 29
• Effort to limit the power of the majority 35

CHAPTER IV

The Significance of the Amendment Feature of the Constitution

• Amendment of democratic and undemocratic constitutions 40
• Reasons for making amendment difficult 41
• Patrick Henry's objection to the amendment feature of the Constitution 44
• The amendments to the Constitution 52
• Amendment of the Articles of Confederation 57
• Amendment of the early state constitutions 58
• Amendment in other countries 62

CHAPTER V

The Federal Judiciary

• Relation of the judicial to the other checks 65
• The constitutional status of judges in England 67
• The American was not a copy of the English judicial system 68
• Hamilton's defense of the Federal judiciary 73
• His desire to limit the power of the people 82
• Relation of the judicial to the executive veto 85
• Revival of the judicial veto in the state governments 87
• The judicial veto was not mentioned in the Constitution 90
• The Federalist appointments to the Supreme Bench 94
• Significance of the veto power of the Supreme Court 97
• A monarchical survival 103
• Political and judicial powers 107
• Power to veto laws not judicial 108
• Character of the laws vetoed by the Supreme Court 111
• Decline of the belief in judicial infallibility 113
• Government by injunction 116
• The judicial veto in relation to treaties 119
• The disadvantages of a deferred veto 123

CHAPTER VI

The Checks and Balances of the Constitution

• A cure for the evils of democracy 125
• Evolutionary classification of governments 128
• Substitutes for king and aristocracy 130
• Relation of the theory of checks and balances to laissez faire and anarchism 131
• Purpose of indirect election 134
• Subordination of the House of Representatives 137
• Impeachment made difficult 142
• Significance of the President's oath of office 146
• The House of Representatives in relation to the budget 148
• Lack of adequate provision for publicity 150
• Attitude of the framers toward criticism of public officials 152
• Federal versus national government 160
• Relation of the general to the state governments not clearly defined 162
• Effort to lay the foundation of a national government 164
• Origin and development of the doctrine of nullification 168
• Calhoun's theory of the Constitution 174
• The judiciary act of 1789 182

CHAPTER VII

Undemocratic Development

• The influence of checks upon the development of our political institutions 186
• The House of Representatives an irresponsible body during the second regular session 189
• Congress has power to remedy the evil 191
• The committee system a check on the majority 193
• The speaker's power to thwart legislation 199
• The system encourages log-rolling 200

CHAPTER VIII

The Party System

• Conservative opposition to party government in the eighteenth century 203
• The effort of the framers to guard against the possibility of responsible party government 205
• Difference between the English and the American party system 208
• Influence of the Constitution upon the party system not generally recognized 210
• The evils of our party system attributed by conservative writers to majority rule 212
• Character of our party platforms 218
• True party government impossible under our constitutional system 226

CHAPTER IX

Changes in the State Constitutions After 1787

• Development of the judicial veto 230
• Limitation of the power to impeach 231
• Extension of the term of office of governor and members of the legislature 232
• Amendment of the constitution made more difficult 235
• Influence of democracy upon the state constitutions 239
• Division of authority in the state government 243
• Lack of effective responsibility 245

CHAPTER X

Municipal Government

• Municipal government at the time of the Revolution 249
• Changes in municipal government after the adoption of the Constitution 250
• The municipality a creature of the state legislature 252
• Hostility of the courts to municipal self-government 254
• The attitude of the courts made state interference necessary 255
• Abuses of legislative interference 256
• Constitutional provisions limiting the power of the legislature to interfere 261
• Effort to establish municipal self-government 265
• Limitation of the power of the majority in constitutions granting municipal self-government 266
• The object of home rule provisions largely defeated by judicial interpretation 268
• Limitation of the taxing and borrowing power of home rule cities 272
• Origin of the constitutional limitations of municipal indebtednes 273
• Fear of municipal democracy 277
• Municipal ownership as a means of taxing the propertyless class 280
• Why our state governments have not been favorable to municipal democracy 285
• Limitation of the power of the majority the main cause of municipal corruption 288

CHAPTER XI

Individual Liberty and the Constitution

• The eighteenth-century conception of liberty negative 291
• Influence of the Revolution upon the conception of liberty 293
• Why present-day conservatives advocate the eighteenth century view of liberty 295
• Liberty to the framers meant the limitation of the power of the majority 297
• The doctrine of vested rights 299
• Survival of the old view of liberty in our legal literature 301

CHAPTER XII

Individual Liberty and the Economic System

• The economic conditions under which the old view of liberty originated 304
• Influence of the industrial revolution upon the liberty of the worker 306
• The laissez faire policy 308
• Protection has been maintained as a class policy 312
• The need of protection to labor 316
• Limitation of governmental powers in the interest of the capitalis 318
• The policy of the Supreme Court a factor in corrupting the state governments 325

CHAPTER XIII

The Influence of Democracy Upon the Constitution

• Modification of the system as originally set up 331
• The extension of the suffrage 333
• Defect in the method of electing the President 333
• Three reforms needed in the case of the Senate 338
• Possibility of controlling the Supreme Court 341
• Power of two-thirds of the states to call a constitutional convention 346
• Effort to secure the responsibility of public officials 349
• Direct versus representative democracy 351
• Reliance of the conservative classes on the courts 355
• Election of United States senators by the legislature incompatible with its other functions 357

CHAPTER XIV

Effect of the Transition from Minority to Majority Rule Upon Morality

• Higher standards of morality 361
• The growth of publicity in relation to immorality 363
• Decline in the efficacy of old restraints 364
• The conflict between two opposing political systems 367
• The need of more publicity 372
• Corporate control of the organs of public opinion 375
• Lack of respect for law 377

CHAPTER XV

Democracy of the Future

• The progress of democratic thought 379
• Influence of printing upon the growth of democracy 380
• The immediate aim of democracy political 383
• Relation of scientific and industrial progress to democracy 384
• Democracy would make government a science 386
• Dependence of man's industrial activities on the social environment 388
• Necessity for equality of opportunity ignored by conservative writers 390
• The scientific justification of democracy's hostility to privilege 394
• Democracy's attitude toward the doctrine of laissez faire 397

---