[92]. Hawaii and Alaska are both governed in the same way, and exactly like one of the old territories. Porto Rico has a slightly different form of government, in that certain high officials besides the governor are appointed by the President. The government of the Philippines differs still further in that the higher administrative officials are appointed by the governor who, in turn, is named by the President.
[93]. During 1921 a study of Philippine conditions was made, at President Harding’s request, by Major-General Leonard Wood and the Hon. W. Cameron Forbes, former governor-general of the islands. These two eminent investigators, after a careful survey, found much to say in praise of the Filipinos; but their general conclusion was that the islanders needed further training in self-government under American supervision before they could wisely be given complete independence. The entire text of the Wood-Forbes report is printed in The Times “Current History” (January, 1922), pp. 678-694.
[94]. An area which is neither a state nor a territory, a zone nor an insular possession remains to be mentioned. This is Washington, or the District of Columbia as it is officially called, the home of the nation’s government. It has neither mayor nor aldermen. The government of the District is in the hands of three commissioners appointed by the President, one of them being an officer of the army. These three commissioners carry on all the work of municipal administration.
[95]. In some states, in Ohio, for example, the question of calling a constitutional convention must be voted upon every twenty years.
[96]. In some states the legislature, in proposing an amendment, must pass it in two successive sessions, or by a two-thirds vote, or must conform to some other special requirement.
[97]. See especially Art. I, Sec. 9; and Amendments I-XV, XIX.
[98]. These four propositions may perhaps be made more understandable by the accompanying table, which does not purport to be a complete enumeration but only an illustration of the way in which the propositions work out.
| Exclusively National Powers | Concurrent Powers | Prohibitions upon the Nation | Prohibitions upon the States | Exclusively State Powers |
| To conduct | To tax. | To abridge | To keep troops | To make and |
| foreign af- | freedom of | or ships of | enforce the | |
| fairs. | To borrow | worship or | war in time | ordinary |
| money. | of the press | of peace. | civil and | |
| To raise and | or of assemb- | criminal | ||
| support ar- | To promote | ly or of pet- | To entry into | laws. |
| mies. | education. | ition. | any treaty. | |
| To establish | ||||
| To maintain a | To encourage | To deny any | To coin money | and control |
| Navy. | agriculture. | of the other | or issue | local govern- |
| privileges | bills of | ment. | ||
| To regulate | To charter | enumerated | credit. | |
| foreign and | banks and | in the Bill | To conduct | |
| interstate | other corpor- | of Rights | To pass any | elections. |
| commerce. | ations. | (see Amend- | law impair- | |
| ments I-X). | ing the law | To regulate | ||
| To coin | To enforce the | of contracts. | commerce | |
| money. | Eighteenth | To permit | and industry | |
| Amendment. | slavery in | To lay any | within the | |
| To establish | any territory | tax or duties | state. | |
| a postal | To establish | within the | on imports. | |
| service. | and maintain | national jur- | To protect the | |
| courts. | isdiction. | To abridge | life, health, | |
| To grant pat- | the privi- | and morals of | ||
| ents and | To abridge | leges or im- | the people | |
| copyrights. | the suffrage | munities of | (the “police | |
| of citizens | citizens of | power”). | ||
| To admit new | on account | the United | ||
| states. | of sex. | States, or | ||
| deprive them | ||||
| To give prefer- | of life, lib- | |||
| ence to one | erty, or pro- | |||
| state over | perty without | |||
| another in | due process | |||
| matters of | of law or de- | |||
| commerce. | ny to persons | |||
| within their | ||||
| jurisdiction | ||||
| the equal | ||||
| protection of | ||||
| the laws. | ||||
| To abridge the | ||||
| voting rights | ||||
| of citizens on | ||||
| account of | ||||
| race, color, | ||||
| previous | ||||
| condition of | ||||
| servitude, or | ||||
| sex. | ||||
| To pass any bill of attainder or ex post facto law. To grant letters of nobility. To levy duties on exports. | ||||
[99]. A wide range of authority is included, for example, within the term “police power”, which is the power of the state to take measures for protecting the safety, health, and morals of the people.
[100]. Any member of the legislature may introduce a bill, but not many of them know how to draft one properly. That is not surprising, for state legislatures are not made up of lawyers alone but of farmers, shop-keepers, and other plain citizens who have had no previous experience in lawmaking. In order to help the members of the legislature some states have established legislative reference bureaus in charge of expert bill-drafters. These bureaus keep on file all the latest information concerning what is being done in other states, including copies of laws which have been passed there. At the request of any member the bureau officials will prepare a bill embodying the member’s ideas.