what extent the contracting party shall respond to his undertaking. Exempting all a debtor's property would confessedly destroy the obligation, for it would remove the only fund from which a compensation can be obtained; exempting a part of a debtor's property, in that it would diminish this fund and would render the security more precarious, would as plainly impair the obligation of all existing contracts.

A very late judgment of the Supreme Court of the United States seems to support these views, and to be entirely irreconcilable with the reasoning and conclusions adopted by the New York court. A statute of the State of Maine had incorporated a certain railway company; the shares of the stockholders were made liable for the debts of the corporation; in case of a deficiency of corporate property liable to be seized on execution, the individual property of a shareholder, to the amount of his stock, was made liable to be seized on execution issued upon a judgment recovered against the corporation. This statute was afterwards repealed. It will be noticed that the original charter designated the property liable to be seized on execution against the company; the repealing statute withdrew a portion of this property, or, in other words, exempted a portion of this property from execution, although all the property owned by the corporation was still left liable to seizure and sale. In Hawthorne v. Calef1 (1864), the validity of this repealing statute was denied. Mr. Justice Nelson said, while delivering the opinion of the court: 2 "There is another view of the case which we think equally conclusive. This view rests upon a principle decided in Bronson v. Kinzie, and the several subsequent cases of this class. Applying the principle of this class of cases to the present one, by the clause in the charter subjecting the property of the stockholder, he becomes liable to the creditor to the extent of his stock. The creditor had this security when the debt was contracted with the company, over and above its responsibility. This remedy the repealing act has not merely modified to the prejudice of the creditor, but has altogether abolished, and thereby impaired the obligation of his contract with the company." This

1 2 Wallace's R. 10.

2 Ibid. 23.

decision, and this reasoning of the court cover the general case under discussion. If all the property of a debtor was liable to execution when the contract was entered into, then the creditor had this security of the entire property. Removing a portion of this property from its liability to execution, does not merely modify the remedy of the creditor in respect to the property thus removed, but absolutely destroys it, and therefore impairs the whole obligation of the contract.

CHAPTER V.

THE EXECUTIVE POWERS OF THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT.

§ 628. In considering the amount and nature of the authority committed by the people of the United States to the national government, we are now brought to an examination of the powers and functions of the Executive department. The provisions of the Constitution which specially concern this department are grouped in Article II., as follows: Section I. declares that "The executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America," and proceeds to describe the manner of choosing the President and VicePresident; the eligibility of persons to those offices; the terms of office; and the proceedings in case of the death, removal, or other disability of the President. Section II. provides that, "The President shall be commander-in-chief of the army and navy of the United States, and of the militia of the several states, when called into the actual service of the United States; he may require the opinion in writing of the principal officer in each of the executive departments, upon any subject relating to the duties of their respective offices; and he shall have power to grant reprieves and pardons for offences against the United States, except in cases of impeachment. He shall have power, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, to make treaties, provided two thirds of the senators present concur; and he shall nominate, and by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, judges of the Supreme Court, and all other officers of the United States, whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and which shall be established by law: But the Congress may by law vest the appointment

of such inferior officers as they think proper, in the President alone, in the courts of law, or in the heads of departments. The President shall have power to fill up all vacancies that may happen during the recess of the Senate, by granting commissions which shall expire at the end of their next session."

Section III. is as follows: "He shall from time to time give to the Congress information of the state of the Union, and recommend to their consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient; he may, on extraordinary occasions, convene both houses, or either of them, and, in case of disagreement between them with respect to the time of adjournment, he may adjourn them to such time as he shall think proper; he shall receive ambassadors and other public. ministers; he shall take care that the laws be faithfully executed, and shall commission all the officers of the United States."

Section IV. provides, "The President, Vice-President, and all civil officers of the United States, shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors."

Section I., § 8, is in these words: "Before he enter on the execution of his office, he shall take the following oath or affirmation: I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will, to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States."

§ 629. It is evident that these several grants of power to the President are not arranged in the Constitution according to any plan or scheme of order. Some of them are so entirely ministerial or formal, that no time or space need be taken up with their consideration. In this class are the power to require an opinion in writing from the heads of departments, the power to call extraordinary sessions of Congress, or of either house thereof, the power to adjourn Congress in one emergency, and the power to issue commissions to all officers of the United States. Disregarding, therefore, the order in which the powers of the President are arranged in the second article of the Constitution, I shall treat of the more important in the following manner :

First. The general nature of the Executive department and of the Executive functions.

Secondly. The power by which the instruments and means for discharging almost all other executive functions are created, or the power to appoint officers.

Thirdly. The general, sweeping, and inclusive executive power to take care that the laws shall be faithfully executed.

Then, taking up the special functions, which are to a greater or less degree independent of the legislature, I shall consider,

Fourthly. The power to control and manage the external relations of the country, and many of the internal relations, through the means of treaties, and of diplomatic communications with foreign governments.

Fifthly. The pardoning power.

Sixthly. The power to give information to Congress, and to recommend measures to their consideration.

Seventhly. The powers of commander-in-chief, or the military and war powers; and

Lastly. The responsibility of the President, and his liability to an impeachment.

SECTION I.

THE GENERAL NATURE OF THE EXECUTIVE DEPARTMENT AND OF THE EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONS.

§ 630. The Constitution declares that the Executive power shall be vested in a President of the United States. The meaning of this clause is that he is the head of that department; that all its powers and functions immediately or mediately centre in him, and that he and he alone is ultimately responsible for their due execution. Certainly it was never contemplated by the Constitution that he alone was to perform unaided all the enormous detail of executive duties which fall to this department. These must of necessity be carried on by a vast retinue of subordinate officers, of various grades and functions; but all these officers represent the Chief Magistrate.