2. The right of petition was insured all subjects.

3. The maintenance of a standing army in time of peace, unless with the consent of Parliament, was said to be contrary to law.

4. It was stated that the election of members to Parliament ought to be free.

5. Freedom of speech, debates, or proceedings in Parliament ought not to be impeached or questioned except by Parliament.

6. Excessive bail, fines, or cruel and unusual punishments ought not to be imposed.

7. Frequent meetings of Parliament ought to be held for the redress of grievances and the amending, strengthening, and preserving of laws.

The Bill of Rights ranks with the Great Charter and the Petition of Rights, the three forming the most important documents which define English constitutional liberties and protect the people from the despotism of kings. The principles set forth were the heritage of the Anglo-Saxon race, and they found their way into the American colonies, predominantly settled by Englishmen. Later the colonists followed the example of their English forefathers and refused to tolerate what they regarded as royal despotism and an infringement of their rights as Englishmen.

THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE, 1776

These among a variety of causes induced them to rebel against the mother country. The Declaration of Independence, in addition to setting forth the abuses from which the colonies suffered, stated certain "self-evident" truths:

1. All men are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, among them, the rights to "Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness."

2. Governments are instituted to secure these rights to the people, and the power of government is derived from the consent of the governed.

3. "Whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness." 4. Prudence demands that governments are not changed for light or transient causes but if preceded by a long train of abuses and usurpations, such a course is not only the people's right but their duty as well.

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THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES, 1787 After the colonists had won their independence, unity and a stable government were necessary if it was to be retained. This was secured by the adoption of the Constitution, 1787. The body of the Constitution defines the powers conferred on each branch of the government. It provides for the representation of the people in the government. It insures to every individual the right of habeas corpus (immediate hearing before a judge) and this right cannot be suspended except in cases of rebellion or invasion when the public safety may demand it. In this way the individual is protected from long imprisonment without a hearing. Also the formation of an aristocracy based on birth is guarded against by the provision which forbids the granting of titles of nobility by the United States and prohibits public officials from accepting such titles except with the consent of Congress.

The first ten amendments incorporate the various civil liberties of the people. They embody the important principles of the Great Charter, the Petition of Rights, and the Bill of Rights, and aim to protect the liberties of the individual against too great encroachment by the central government.

Article I. Congress shall make no law abridging freedom of religion, freedom of speech, or of the press; or "the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."

Article II. The right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.

Article III. Troops shall not be billeted in private houses in time of peace without the consent of the owner or in time of war except as prescribed by law.

Article IV. "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrant shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized."

Article V. "No persons shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a grand jury," except in cases arising in the military or naval forces engaged in actual warfare; nor shall any person be tried twice for the same offense nor in any criminal case be compelled to bear witness against himself; "nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use without just compensation."

Article VI. In all criminal cases, the accused shall have a speedy

and public trial by an impartial jury with counsel and witnesses, shall be informed of the charge, and shall be confronted by the witnesses against him.

Article VII. In common law suits where the disputed value exceeds twenty dollars, the right to jury trial shall be preserved and no fact so tried shall be reëxamined in any court in the United States except according to the rules of common law.

Article VIII. "Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted."

Article IX. "The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people."

Article X. "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."

A similar body of rights was incorporated into the constitutions adopted by the separate states, and liberty was further assured by the gradual extension of the suffrage to practically all white male citizens. But two large classes of persons were deprived of rights and liberties in a manner incompatible with democracy, women and Negroes.

THE DECLARATION OF SENTIMENTS, 1848

The document which demanded equality for American women was the Declaration of Sentiments. This declaration, like the other great instruments of liberty, grew out of injustice and oppression. It was patterned on the Declaration of Independence and declared that all men and women are created equal and endowed with certain unalienable rights, the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Government exists for the purpose of securing such rights to its citizens and when this purpose remains unfulfilled, those who suffer may refuse allegiance to the existing government and institute a new one in its place. The declaration goes on to say that the time has come when women can no longer endure their present status under the government and demand the equal station with men to which they are entitled. A list of grievances is then propounded which enumerates some of the inequalities between women and men and the wrongs suffered by the former at the hands of the latter.

Unlike the other great documents of liberty, this declaration was preceded by no armed uprising, nor did it secure any immediate results. But it helped to awaken men to the fact that think

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ing women were restless and dissatisfied with their position, understood the meaning of liberty and equality, and were ready to struggle to secure these essentials to a broad and satisfactory existence.

THE EMANCIPATION PROCLAMATION AND THE THIRTEENTH, FOURTEENTH, FIFTEENTH AND NINETEENTH AMENDMENTS

The measures taken to free the slaves brought concrete results. The Emancipation Proclamation of 1862 freed the slaves in the seceding southern states. It was followed by the Thirteenth Amendment in 1865 prohibiting slavery throughout the United States and by the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, 1868 and 1870, intended to secure citizenship, protection, and the right to vote to Negroes. Not until 1920 did the women obtain the franchise by the Nineteenth Amendment. Both women and Negroes still do not enjoy the same political liberty assured to white males, and both suffer from social and legal inequalities.

PUBLIC INTEREST

The Declaration of Sentiments and portions of the measures taken to free the Negroes projected the ideal of liberty into the new ideal of public interest. Public interest means greater liberty for the many at the expense of the few. It replaces the older ideal of individualism. It does not bow to strength but rather protects weakness. All races enjoy an equal measure of freedom; women are given equal rights with men, for true liberty has neither sex nor color.

This ideal liberty is a long way from realization. But tentative steps have been made toward its accomplishment. They are visible in the gradual progress of the Negro race, in the woman movement, and in certain of the restrictions governing immigration. They are seen in the extension of the police power of the state. This power permits the government to abridge the rights of individuals and corporations if such abridgement is necessary for the protection, comfort, and health of the many. It is under this power that the state has in certain cases prohibited lotteries as public nuisances. It is partly for this reason that laws have been enacted limiting the working day of women and children. When it is realized that such protection is equally necessary for men, a way will be found to regulate their hours of work. At the

present time there is some regulation of hours for male employees in occupations considered dangerous to their health. The state is free to prescribe certain conditions under which professions affecting the physical and mental well-being of the people must be conducted. The Federal Prohibition Amendment is an example of the exercise of federal control over the health and morals of United States citizens. Federal pure food laws and state inspection of the milk and water supplies are measures taken to protect citizens from disease. The public health departments strive to guard against the dangers incident to overcrowding and bad sanitation. The federal maternity bill is designed to care for prospective mothers, to give them medical instruction and treatment before, during, and after childbirth so that child life and mother life may be preserved as far as humanly possible.

The state and city governments try to guard their citizens from accident by traffic laws, by fire regulations, by condemnation of unsafe buildings, by requiring walls, elevators, ventilating shafts, etc., to be protected, and by the installation of certain safety devices in industry. Public hospitals, public education, art museums, public libraries, public gymnasiums, baths, parks, and playgrounds are other ways in which public funds are employed for the benefit of all the people. The regulation of public utilities and the agitation for government ownership show the trend which the development of the new ideal of public interest is taking. Dangers as well as benefits lie in the extension of this ideal. The state can become a great despot which rigidly controls the life of the individual. It is essential to safeguard the public interest, but it is also essential to guard against a too great infringement on the liberty of the individual. Public interest means liberty for the many, but the many will not be free if they have no rights as individuals.

ECONOMIC LIBERTY

In addition to these reform measures which bring to the people greater enjoyment and greater freedom from accident and disease is the growing realization that political and social liberty is essentially lacking without economic liberty. A man must have the time and the energy to enjoy his liberties and opportunities if they are to be really worth while. He must be free of anxiety, must be able to live with some degree of comfort, to have a margin for emergencies, and a voice in questions affecting his industrial life. An individual trying to support a family on a bare