Show CIVIL GOVERNMENT Hon F S Richards Lecture la the Social Hall Last Eitnln An Interesting lecture on the above suJject was delivered last evening by the Hon FB Rich ards under the auspices of the Students Society of the Latterday audience Saints College There was a large The lecturer commenced by stating stat-ing the vasinrss of tlie julject and hue consequent necessity for general rather than specIal 1 treatment Civil government is l that form of control which b t deal with the political Interests I of the people Monarchies aristocracies and democracies are the three forms of government the frt being the strongest t fir a centralized cower Is concerned Tim mnre forms of monarchies are the absolute and the limited in the first of which the sole power rests In the monarch the latter form rec gnlies the potter as ditided between the sovereign and the legislative body In every governnieut a sovereignty mutt exist in connection with which i the power t make law In monarchical governments this sovereignty L in the king D in absolute monarchies or in the legislative legis-lative assembly a In limited ones while In the aristocratic form such is in the hands of a select few of there of higher birth called tear te-ar Many claim Uiat the last named form of government Is the best for the better educated I class would lit to a clear idea of the needs of the people at largf But such a centralization of power Is not good The port democracy IS I that formin which all tlietMjplenieetand make the laws while in the case of UiU republic the I power h delegated to the representatives of the I people The frt although the mot highly distributed in hewer Is imprac ticalJe except where the I pw le are few in number The latter form which is that existing In the United Status posseSKes miiiy advantages over the other forms Sometimes all the forms u combined together to-gether a in the caws of Great Britain the being a sovereign t represent the monarchical form the House of Lords the aristocrat and the House of Commons the republican There are certain rights which properly belong to all den ahd laws are enacted t preserve these per na rights from interference on tbe part ol others The first of these Is the right man IIOSCSM to act n he chooses so long as he does not infringe r the rights I of others 1 Someofthoo natural rights are I given up by tho Individual to I the state in return for Its protection This protection can J exercised only through law and hence the necessity of law Political rights or privileges are conferred by lawaman them being the rights of voting holding office etc In addition ad-dition t these n e havecertain rights which can not 0 liken away from us without due process of IMI I law although the political privileges may be taken away by f legislature I legisla-ture without I such process Civil j rights may however 0 taken from a man by the infliction of fines I I imprisonment etc but this mutt 0 done only by a process of law The Pilgrim Fathers all gathered I together for tile transaction of business In the early jiart of their history but alkrwards the representative form of government had t 0 adopted on account of the increasing numbers of the people Virginia before thu time had framed the first constitution giving t all men equal right She ran be mlJ to have taken the lead in this matter and we can point with pride to tie f tct that complete conUtu tlonal liberty had iU origin In our country The lecturer referred t tire early colonial history when charters of a more or less liberal I diameter seem granted t tho coir uiU by the Ivlng of England Theso charteTsVCJf referred t In some detail I bin shown that privileges i pri-vileges were granted t tie two branches of the legislature t make laws under tic restrictions that no I law shall 0 parsed in opposition t any act of Parliament and that all laws were subject t absolute t by the governor Tho parallel between the territorial I form of government now rioting I f t in rf InS I nnfJWie colonial co-lonial government was pointed out it being shown that in some respects spects our condition I worse than wns that of tie colonists for while they could make no law at variance with thesUtutesof Parliamentthat body was denied the authority l legislate for the colonists as Congress Con-gress now legislates for us without mutual consent For purposes of mutual aid the colonies formed I clonie Comle a confederation aiming l ltraerv < the former right of each colony and sUII more to ccmcntthe union between be-tween the established communities The articles of confederation provided vided that Congress should loC l-oC ono house the members voting according t ble But this Congress Con-gress was comparatively weak there being no possibility of enforcing It law Under the circumstances I was thought necessary t form constitution and as a result of the calling of a convention artists purpose that grand instrument instru-ment known as the Constitution of the United States originated Its foundation llesln thestatement that all men arc created equal and endowed en-dowed with certain inalienable right this Idea having first been enunciated in tie Declaration of Independence This principle In t is the cornerstone rc the government gov-ernment of the United States and all attacks upon I tend t jeopardize the entire fabric The members of the constitutional convention had many difllculties t met and it was only by Divine inspiration that the VI = i great and successful result of their labors was achieved Some of the representatives of the people maintained main-tained that there would be danger in attempting t take any rights from tie States but without this process no central government could b formed Oa the other liand there were two classes who favored the constitution The leader of one of these clashes was James Madison whocontended tbat only such powers pow-ers should be given t the central government n were absolutely necessary and that centralization should b avoided n much a possible possi-ble The other faction le by Alexander Hamilton favored an almost complete centralization of power a the only means of forming a government of any strength The constitution on its completion was submitted t conventions in the different States where I met with determinedopposition on the part of same but was finally adopted pr alllheStatea Upon being ratified I J however by the people of nine States It I went into effect eo far a Uioso States were concerned This I I constitution is not a compact of the thirteen original States but of the people of those States am others which have been formed since that lme In the first a any State e desiring could leave the Union but in the latter and the te true sense c an action If Imp abe This instrument C n tbe fundamental law of the land and prescribes the form powers and office of the government I may b change but I must not be disobeyed dis-obeyed IU object being to place certain limitations upon the officers of the government I also protects the minority against the encroachments encroach-ments of the majority which would have control of the complete cntl government gov-ernment were I not for the restrictions restric-tions of the Constitution Our government IB 1 divided into g three parts the legislative tbe executive ecutive and the Judicial This division di-vision is necessary as each of these branches acts as a check upon the others and thus an undue exercise of power in any portion of the government g ernment Ii cheeked The legislative body is divIded into two parts Uie Senate and the House of Representatives the I members mem-bers of the first being appointed by the legislatures of the States 1J which they comethat they may not b influenced too strongly by the people Senators n elected for six years and one third go out of oflice every two years In the case of the j House r Representatives its members mem-bers are elected by the people and the entire assembly i reelected every two years Each State has two Senators but the Representatives Representa-tives are apportioned to the States according to population the numbers num-bers ran e lug from one to as many as thirty Thespeaker defined at some length the lowers of each of these bodies showing tliut the House of representatives look after the In temtsofthepeople of the individual State while the Senators look after Uie interests of the States themselves them-selves Congress t restricted In some of Its lowers especially I I regarding the taking away of the rights of the people of the different States Lx fotl Jacto laU bills of attainder laws relating to special interests l rtn t thesplallnLfh of different States nil are nrohib itcd such restrictions being of a most wholesome character The chief executive power Is vested In the PfesUcnt of the United State rtllo d elected In a peculiar manner All Uib people I thcStates vote for electors who met and cast their ballot for President the returns being sent to the Ic Prcsldent who announces the result by declaring the one receiving receiv-ing the greatest number of all the electoral otu to 0 presidentelect In case no choice is made the election of President Is left t this House of Representative each State vote however having but one voteThe The third branch of the government govern-ment i the Judiciary which Is one of the strongest members of the governmental gov-ernmental body since it lIsa power through the Supreme Cjurt to nullify all acts of Congress This court is called the Voice < f Ihe ConsUtuUonEluculhitlMnri tit means no more nor Ins than the Supreme Court raj S I iliidni H wan thought by the fuuudns of thl government that 1 Lccofcory safeguards were placed arjLU both civil and religious rights but many of these safeguards safe-guards have melted away under the decisions of this court many of its decisions having been contradictory which fact the speaker pointed outer out-er fully 7 he different kinds of law were defined by the speaker the oljerts of each being clearly stated He stated that after all the law given by the great lawgiver Moses lien at the foundation of all human Coundaton al 1111 government gov-ernment and It I generally conceded con-ceded by writers Political science that no legislation at variance with Divine Lawran stand But the idea Ddne Lwmn tul t that the I will of the pcopla h the Constitution meets with ill olJec tlon that it is difllcull to determine the voice of the people at large and even when such can 0 done the Iople after all may lie entirely in the wroig The lecturer closed by exhorting all and esjtecially the young to a more complete understanding under-standing and appreciation of the t Jif tithe principles J of civil government for the lime will coon come w hen a knowledge of these principles will b considered necessary lo the prowr training of the youth of this people |