Rye Neck High School - Scraps Yearbook (Mamaroneck, NY)

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comes more beautiful and perfect. A great golden golden light seems to hover about it, and emanate from it. It is the light of truth and equity, which makes the hearts of the American People glow with true happiness and prosperity.- The Constitution is the expression of the will of the people. It directly depends upon, and -had its birth from,ithe American citizen The British Parliament has the extreme power to make or unmake any law as it sees fit, in the United States only the people can change the American Constitution. It is the American individual, taken as a nation, that is omnipotent. His will is law, and hisflaw is Democracy. , Judson Benjamin LINCOLN, THE STANDARDBEARER OF THE 'CONSTITUTION V Looking back over the brief period of our Conastitutiorfs existence, we find, outstanding, the names of many who have, in one way or another, contributed to that sacred docuf ment. Never shall we forget Hamilton or Jefferson, those stalwart .patriarchs of its be- ginnings. Nor can we omit Monroe or Jack- son who so firmly upheld its principles from the Presidency. But, when we come to Lin' coln, we must stop, for fthe- contributions he made to the Constitution are far too great to be passed over witha mere breath. . The story of Lincoln and the Constitution is not one of direct incidents connecting,.LAinf coln with the Con-stitution but one of indif rect influences and implied powers. The only direct connection -Lincoln had with the Constitution was the 13th Amendment, which was adopted during his term of office- However, by his struggle for the vUnion,. by his struggle against slavery, 'Lincoln defended and upheld the Constitution. 3- - I When Lincoln stepped into the Presidency, he stepped into a-breach that could have been filled by no lesser man than he and into-the midst of such a crisis as had never before been known -in the history of the nation. However, Lincoln was prepared. He had not gone through those years of hardships in the backfwoods for tnothing. if He had not met with all the difficulties of his life merely to-throw this hardfearned experience away. So, realizing that this must be the task for which he had been prepared, realizing that he was the only one who -could cope with it, Lincoln fearlessly met it as the task for which his life had been destined, nor did he falter once or turn aside until it had been completed. , Secession! It hung like the mighty sword of Damocles over the seething nation threat' ening at any moment to descend and to rend it asunder. It seemed that the whole nation would be drowned in the turmoil of disunf ion. The North ever held firmly to the steadfast principles of union, while the South was balanced on the very edge of separation with' the mighty arm- of slavery pulling it down on the other side. 'Lincoln prophesied, I do not expect the Union to be dissolved, I-do not expect the house to fall, but I do expect it will cease to be divided. . In his purpose, however, Lincoln was somewhat misjudged, for, by some he was believed to give attention only to.the work of freeing the slaves. He did, indeed, wish slavery done away with, but above this, above everything else, he placed the -importance of the preservation of the Union under the Constitution. ..In aqletter he wrote to Horace Greeley, he stated, My paramount objectfin this struggle is to save the Union, and it is not either to save or to destroy slavery. However, Lincoln' did believe that the spirit of the Constitution was wholly op' posed to slavery, and although it could do nothing with the -slaves in the States, he firmly asserted thatcCongress had the power to+prohibit slavery in the territories. Then came the famous Dred Scott Case. The def cision, when made by the Supreme Court, declared that Congress had no such power. Lincoln, disagreeing with the decision, said, The people of these United States are the rightful masters of both Congress and courts, not to overthrow the Constitution, but to overthrowthe men who pervert thc Constitution. . i .V Finally, moreover, when Lincoln, believed that it was possible by freeing the slaves tO save the Union, he did not hesitate to issue the Emancipation Proclamation. This docuf ment was followed almost directly by the 15th Amendment having the same principles Page Twentyfsix

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ORATIONS ON THE CONSTITUTION THE ADAPTATION OF THE CONSTIf TUTION TO THE CHANGING NEEDS OF THE PEOPLE g Humanity ever has progressed. History is the record of its changes. Its needs were not the same at the time of Adam as at the time of the French Revolution or the Amer- ican Civil War. Altho the Romans may have been concerned with trade laws, woman' suf- frage bothered them not a bit. We may have the traffic problem to deal with, but the band of motley beggars that filled the streets of Rome never dreamed of mobbing the streets of New York. Today's requisites are not yesterday's, nor will they be the requisites of the future. -Each age has its needs and problems peculiar' to itself. ' But however different the requirements of one generation may be from another, there are always certain elastic principles which forever will Ht the needs of man. Such arc the Ten Commandments of Moses, and the divine teachings of Christ, because they conf tain fundamental laws of humanity. On ac- count of the simplicity of their general truths they have been adaptable to all peoples and times. A The Constitution of the United States may be compared with these deathless laws which have survived the test of ages. One may argue that if a principle is too universal it can not be practical. But the Constituf tion takes the universal and applies it to the specific. The first ten Amendments concern the right of man to enjoy personal liberty. They specifically apply this right in the asf surance of freedom of religion, .speech and press, right of assembly, limiting the right of search, wherein the old English maxim' a man's home is his castle is involved, guaranty of trial by jury, and delegating the powers reserved to the State and People. When our inspired forefathers presented to the eager people the majestic fruit of their patriotic labors, the Constitution, imbued with all that is noble, all of divine freedom that may thrill the spirit of ambitious man, they gave to them not an instrument stiff and rigid with the musty saws of melancholy dogma, but rather, a kindly guide, that might direct and enforce, but not chafeg that might allow freedom, but not license. For every new problem that confronts it, the nation does not have to formulate new laws and new principles. Its vigorous roots, which reach deep into the hearts of the American people, are elastic enough to let its healing flower bend its golden light to any need. As the Constitution grows spiritually, so it may grow materially. From the bud that was fashioned with it, the amendatory clause, has sprung its nineteen moly-leaves, upon each of which is inscribed the will of the people. They are the amendments for the abolition of slavery, for Prohibition, Wo' man Suffrage, and the others that were found necessary to public administration. And again, the first ten Amendments, or thc American Billxof Rights, were inserted im' mediately after the ratification of the Consti' tution because our forefathers deemed it wise to include in their document the right of per' Sonal liberty for which they had so gloriously fought and bled. , The chief virtue of this diamond of many facets lies in its implied powers. The seen' may look within the polished surface of thc gem and divine a deeper and richer meaning than is read on its brilliant face. The Conf stitution definitely states the right of the government to make treaties with foreign nations but not a mite is mentioned of its right to acquire new territory. However, be' neath the resplendent radiance of its lucid crystal emerges the softer light of a greater power, the power of implication. Thru this elasticity of design, much territory has been added to the United States, as Louisiana, Alaska and the Virgin Islands. It is upon this mighty warp, the warp of the Constitution of the United States, that the American home, the American indus' tries, and the American ideals are founded. The warp is democarcy, freedom, and equal- ity. Woven intricately among its golden threads is the woof, expressive of the needs of- the American people tofday. And stead' ily,' surely, Destiny weaves thread upon thread into the shining material as each one is needed, and plucks from it any that may be unsoundg and the design broadens and be' Page Twentyffi ve

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but now firmlyattaching them as part of the government. Afterahis death followed the 14th and 15th'Amendments as indirect ref sults of his struggles, giving the now free negroes, citizenship, representation, and the ballot- , , V Everything Lincoln said and did helped, to enforce and preserve the Union of States which he declared indissoluble and which formed a permanent -bond under the Consti- tution. His very spirit marked him as the ideal of what he called .that Government of the people, by the people, for the people. I Throughout his 'whole term of office, Lin' coln Stood by the Constitution never falter' ing in his noble purpose-to save the Union. Glory was not to ,be his.: Of encouragement he found little outside his own family circle. Criticism was hurled from every direction but Lincoln heeded not. Practically alone he struggled onward doing what he- knew to be right until .he finally reached the altar of freedom where he laid down his own life in sacrifice for his nation. V ' How beautifully Lowell's simple lines com' memorate h-im, as- - - A The kindly, earnestjbrave, foreseeing man, Sagacious, patient, dreading praise not blame, New birth of our new soil, the first Amerif can. ' -f ' First? Yes. -For in Lincoln were combined all the elements of the true American-g in him were embodied all the ideals of Libf erty, Equality, Fraternity for all mankind, and from hisxlife sprang a-new and finer tendency to uphold Union and Liberty, -prov' ing him -in a true sense -to be the Standard Bearer of the Constitution. . Herbert R. Houghton, jr. THE EVOLUTION OF THE BILL OF RIGHTS No power has ever been able to touch m'an's irrestible sense of justice. This nat' ural ideal which from the very start was crippled and beaten, slowly rose to its feet in the course of the ages. It is to this long process that we owe the 'liberty which to us is so natural but was to those who fought for it but a vague and untried' thing. A govf ernment of the people, for the people, by the people is the fruit of an old tree which was to grow in a dry and sandy soil irrigated now and then by a wandering brook. Let us see for ourselves what brooks came to irrlf gate this soil which has borne us our mcst prized treasure, liberty. Centuries of events have shown us that each dispute had its compromiser, each ref bellion its pacifier, and each complaint its reformist. Athens complained and reformists such' as Solon and Cleisthenes 'rose to thc occasion. -Soon they had created an assem- bly giving a share in government to the com' mon people, extended citizenship, established Ostracism, a just means of expelling oppress' ing and dangerous political leaders. A spirit of democracy began to lift itself from its dusty vault. The early development of the Roman Ref public is orfe.of a democraticrtendency, which was advocated by its statesmen. We feel that Brutus' famous speech at Caesar's fu' neral was a warning against tyranny and ex' cess of power. He meant to free the people from this even at the cost of his best friend's life! This democratic tendency continued in an' answer to the revolting Plebes of Rome. The paciiers were the Tribunes, who came as protectors of their 'rights and' admitted, them to high offices. But the bold and --profitable example .set by the Greeks and the Romans was thrust aside during the years of gloom and obscurf ity-Which mark the beginning of the Middle Ages. ' It was a period of decay. Accordingly, that- which was feeble as were the rights of man, suffered and fell more rapidly. Barbarism crushed it, the su- preme rule of emperors forbade it,- till the faint light of Christianity came to light it afnew. Its doctrines' were fair and simple So simple were they, in fact, that they did not attract the eyes of its dainful contempof raries. We today can hardly conceive the persecutions which its followers withstood. This was not a time of peaceful freedom of worship but one of narrow principles. Yet as all worthy elements do, Christianity grew and with it the doctrine that men are cre- ated equal in the sight of God. There developed- at about this' time, a sense of justice and respect for the rights of others. The guilds, which came into exist' Page Twentyfsevcn