consulted, and the result is the jumble now to be seen in the records of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania. It interests us only for our present purpose to know that William Penn adhered, through all the changes of detail, to the fundamental purpose expressed by him in 1676 in relation to West Jersey affairs: "We lay a foundation for after ages to understand their liberty as men and Christians, that they may not be brought in bondage but by their own consent; for we put the power in the people." Out of this mass of suggestions arose Penn's "Fundamental Constitutions"-being twentyfour clauses embracing his general ideas of government, one constitution, as we would express it. This was not adopted exactly as promulgated. Other influences were afterwards brought to bear, and changes were made which did not improve the plan. The original is among the Penn MSS. and has only recently been published.* It is interesting as probably being the nearest approximation possible to Penn's ideas of government. What he wanted was "the frame of government that shall best preserve Magistracy in reverence with the people and best keep it from being hurtful to them." He cast aside *" Pennsylvania Magazine," October, 1896. everything which would not conduce to the general peace and prosperity. "For it were a most condemnable superstition to perpetuate anything for being ancient or domestick that were not otherwise useful." In the forefront of his "Constitutions " he places the right of every one to worship according to his conscience and pledges himself to secure it. He further declares it a fundamental that an Assembly having the privileges of an English House of Commons be elected yearly, which shall meet whether called by the governor or not. For the purposes of election there shall be small districts, each one sending two men to the Assembly. These shall bring with them the written instructions of their electors, and if they are violated the Assemblyman shall be ineligible "unless the people, sensible of his repentance, shall forgive and choose him." They shall be required, moreover, to secure the approbation of their electors to each law or appropriation during the session of the Assembly, "that they may always remember they are but deputies." The Assembly might contain three hundred and eighty-four members, and had the power to select forty-eight Councilmen out of their own number as a permanent board and upper house of legislature, with co-ordinate powers. During the sessions of the Assembly this Council 'shall consult with the larger body in order to send a law to the Governor. The Council has also executive duties. The Governor can veto laws within fourteen days of their presentation. Primogeniture shall be abolished except that in deference to the Jewish law the oldest son may receive double the share of each of the others. Imprisonment for debt for small sums shall be abolished, and for large ones when the debtor is not worth ten pounds. Capital punishment for felony shall e abolished. Affirmations chall be substituted for oaths. The law of Habeas Corpus shall be observed. There shall be no tavern or ale houses, and horse racing, bull and bear baiting and games of cards and dice shall be prohibited. All children,-girls and boys,-shall be taught useful trades. For each local office two names shall be chosen by the electors, and the Governor shall appoint one of the two. If he fail to do so, the one first named shall hold the office. This is a remarkable Constitution for the year 1681. It anticipates by two centuries in some respects the best ideas of the most advanced republics. There could not well be anything more democratic than the Assembly. The initiative The pro and the referendum are both here. hibitionist will find there his plan for suppressing saloons. Nothing of vital consequence now in our American Constitution relating to individual liberty and the rights of popular assemblies is denied except the privilege of passing laws over the Governor's veto. It would have saved some friction had these "Constitutions" stood. But Penn must have a colony before he could legislate for it, and we may well imagine that it was an uppermost subject with him to induce the right sort of men to emigrate in large numbers. As he truly said, "Let men be good and the government cannot be bad. If it be ill they will cure it. But if men be bad, let the government be ever so good, they will endeavor to warp and spoil it to their turn."* It is therefore probable that in order to conciliate large land purchasers he gave the Council, his upper house, in his final draft the sole power to originate laws-the Assembly being authorized only to pass on such laws as were presented to it. It was supposed that the largest property holders would constitute the Council, and he exalted it at the expense, not only of the Preface to the Frame of Government. |