INTRODUCTION.

CHAPTER I.

UNIV. OF

1. Law in its broadest sense is a rule of action. Every law which is capable of being violated has a penalty attached; that is, if rightfully administered, its violation brings a painful consequence.

2. Kinds. There are four general kinds of law, namely: (1) Moral, (2) Natural, (3) International, and (4) Municipal.

3. Moral Law is prescribed by God for man's conduct-as for instance, the ten commandments.

4. Natural Law includes all that body of laws which apply to matter, and which, when collected and classified, form the basis of all sciences.

EXAMPLES.-The laws of falling bodies, the laws of sound, the law of selfpreservation, etc.

To follow out this branch of law would lead us into almost every branch of science and field of human inquiry.

5. International Law is a code of rules recognized by all civilized nations as governing their intercourse with each other. It is founded on justice.

6. Municipal Law is a rule of civil conduct prescribed by the supreme power in a state, commanding what is right and prohibiting what is wrong. It is of human origin, and in its attempts to command what is right and prohibit what is wrong, it will be found to closely follow or coincide with the moral law. Yet these laws are not always identical.

The moral law does not prohibit smuggling, yet the municipal law does; on the other hand, the moral law will not excuse the non-payment of a just account, no matter how long it may have run, but the municipal law does do so after the lapse of a certain time. 7

7. Necessity of Laws. It would be hard to imagine a state without a code of municipal laws, in fact, none could exist, because its very existence depends upon the cohesive force of such laws to bring and keep the people together as a state. Without it there would be no organization, nothing but a mass of individuals. If man were perfect and always inclined to do right to his fellow man, no such system of laws would be necessary. But such is not the case, and the enactment of laws is simply an effort on the part of society to protect itself.

8 Extent of Laws.As each state or nation must have its own laws governing the civil conduct and property of its citizens, it follows that these laws have full force and effect only within its boundaries. All persons within its boundaries must obey them, whether citizen or stranger, and all property within its borders is likewise subject to its provisions, regardless of the residence of the

owner.

9. Kinds of Municipal Law.-Municipal law as applied to our own country is divided into three parts, namely: (1) Constitutional, (2) Statute and (3) Common. They are here arranged in the order in which they take precedence. Before entering upon a discussion of these different branches of municipal law it will be well for us to study the general plan of our government and its methods of framing and passing laws.

10. Origin of Our National Government.-The thirteen original states were thirteen entirely distinct and separate colonies all belonging to Great Britain and subject to her laws. The revolutionary war freed them from the rule of the mother country and left. them thirteen distinct governments, if indeed they can be said to have had a government at all. Each was a sovereign state or nation. Having united their efforts in a common cause in throwing off the parental yoke and being exposed to a common danger of attack by the Indians, it is not surprising that they decided to form a more perfect union and to establish a new and general government, of which they would each be a component part. In the formation of this general government each sovereign state gave up a portion of its rights. and powers, still reserving and retaining, however, the larger part of these rights and powers for itself. Each state gave up the same rights and powers, and this body of rights and powers so relinquished in favor of the general government, was incorporated into

that now famous instrument called the Constitution of the United States.

11. The Constitution.-This constitution is therefore an enumeration of all the rights, powers, and privileges of the national government. When we bear in mind the history of its formation we can readily see that the national government can have only those rights and powers which are specifically enumerated in its constitution or are to be clearly inferred therefrom. It is therefore said to be "a government of limited powers." In accordance with this constitution a president is elected and a legislature or congress consisting of two bodies, the senate and house of representatives. A system of courts is also established for the interpretation of the laws made by the national government.

CHAPTER II.

INTRODUCTION-CONTINUED.

12. State Governments.-There is a government in each state organized in substantially the same manner as the national government, the basis or fundamental law of which is a constitution. Unlike the national government, however, a state government possesses all powers of sovereignty possessed by any nation, with the exception of those powers and rights heretofore mentioned as having been given up to the national government, and also with the exception of the restrictions which the people themselves have placed on their government in their constitution.

13. Difference between State and National Constitutions. From the brief history of both state and national constitutions given above, it will be readily seen that they must differ widely in their scope. The national constitution is an enumeration of certain rights and powers, and the state constitution an enumeration of restrictions placed upon the state government by the people themselves. We here see two governments, distinct yet supplemental, in operation over the same territory, but not in any sense conflicting. Each has its functions, each has its own laws, and each is limited and controlled by its constitution.

14. Statute Law.-A bill in order to become a national law must receive a majority of the votes of each house of congress and be signed by the president, or if vetoed by him it can still become a law by a two-thirds majority vote of each house. A law passed in this manner is called "a national statute." It is, of course, formally expressed and exact in its terms. The statutes in force are collected and published by the authority of the government.

In a similar manner laws are passed by the state legislature and signed by the governor. These are called "state statutes."

15. Common Law.-The common law originated in England so long ago that its exact origin is a matter of some doubt. The general opinion is that it arose from the customs of the times and long usages which finally came to have the full force and effect of laws.

The rule of giving to makers of promissory notes three days (called days of grace) more than stated in the note itself, arose originally out of a custom which, gradually becoming more general and certain, finally was recognized by the courts as a right belonging to the maker. In other words, what was first a custom finally came to have the significance of a law.

The common law is sometimes called the "unwritten law," because it is not formally expressed as is statute law, but is found in the reported decisions of courts. The common law was in force in England at the time of our separation from her. It had, of course, up to that time been in force in the colonies and the people were familiar with it. Therefore they naturally chose to adopt it and declared it to be still in full force and effect, so far as it was applicable to themselves.

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.That the common law of England so far as the same is applicable and of a general nature, and all statutes or acts of the British parliament made in aid of, and to supply the defects of the common law, prior to the fourth year of James the First, and which are of a general nature and not local to that kingdom, shall be the rule of decision, and shall be considered as of full force until repealed by legislative authority."-Act of the General Convention of Delegates of the Colony of Virginia, held at Williamsburg, Monday, May 6, 1776.

Similar statutes have been passed by most if not all of the states except Louisiana, which adopted the civil law instead.

16. Order of Precedence.-The national constitution consists of certain rights and powers relinquished by the states to the general government; it is, therefore, the supreme law of the land in regard to all matters contained in it. The national statutes, being made in strict accordance with the constitution, must necessarily come next in order. The states, as we have seen, reserve to themselves supreme authority on many questions; they have also placed numerous restric