4 1 .
Constitution secures freedom
By Warm E. Barger
Editor's Note: Warren E.
Burger is Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court of the United
States.
When the Constitutional Con
vention of 1787 had finished its
work, a Philadelphia woman is
said to have asked Benjamin
Franklin what kind of government
the Convention had created. The
eider statesman is said to have
replied: "Madam, a Republic, if
you can keep it." Even as avid a
lover of liberty and independence
as Franklin seemed to have doubts
whether our great experiment in
self-government would succeed.
But after nearly 200 years Henry
Steele Commager, reviewing cen
turies of struggle for freedom,
said, "nothing ever succeeded like
America."
The success of America's great
experiment with a new form of
government under a written Con
stitution was surely aided by
Divine Providence, as so many of
its authors said, and by three tem
poral factors: our geographic
isolation on a continent with vast
resources far from the quarrels of
Europe, the uniqueness of the in
stitutions we created, the personal
qualities of the remarkable leaders
and a people who had known op
pression. Indeed, history offers no
parallel of 3-4 million people pro
ducing a galaxy of leaders such as
those who brought about the
Declaration of Independence and
drafted the Constitution of the
United States-and then made it
work.
The Constitution secured a
system of ordered liberty that has
permitted individuals to enjoy
freedom unsurpassed in the course
of human history. As we look for
ward to celebrating our Constitu
tion's Bicentennial, we must all
reexamine and rededicate ourselves
to the principles of freedom consis
tent with constitutionally limited
government and ordered liberty.
Six spheres of freedom lie at the
heart of the Constitution and the
American way of life.
First: Each of the three branches
of our national government must
remain strong, independent and
coequal. But that does not
preclude coordination, chiefly be
tween the Executive and
Legislative branches. The principle
of separation of powers clearly im
plies that the distinct and indepen
dent powers of government must
/Ukc) New
, Federalist
Papers
Ml; By Warren E. Burger
be harmonized into a workable
whole.
Second: Our system of free
government embodies a dual con
stitutional system in providing for
a national government while
preserving certain powers of the
states. In our system of federalism,
the 50 states, of course, cannot ex
ercise leadership in a national
sense, but they are entitled to exer
cise their independence and
freedom over their own affairs. By
the end of the 20th century our
population will have grown to
nearly 100 times the figure of 1776.
Changes in the world and at home
demand that the interrelationships
of federal and state governments
be given fresh examination from
time to time.
Third: The great non
governmental institutions of
America-the churches, colleges
and universities, the press,
museums and hospitals have
developed because they were free
from governmental control. Taken
all together, where is there a
parallel elsewhere in the world?
They must remain free, for their
contributions to research, inven
tion, culture, public enlightenment
and health are beyond measure.
These independent institutions
have opened floodgates of
knowledge and awareness of our
world, and have stimulated inven
tion and technology, because a
new kind of freedom of the mind
and the spirit was released.
Our system of ordered institu
tional liberty is always in peril. In
this century, world events,
economic changes, and tremen
dous growth have made some of
our great institutions increasingly
dependent on nationally financed
and administered programs. These
diverse, pluralistic organizations
cannot retain their independence,
individuality, and creativity if cen
tral power is allowed to dominate
and devour them; there must be a
prudent balance.
Fourth: Freedom of speech,
press, association, and religion
contributed immeasurably to our
development. In the years of
America's formation, from at least
1770 onward, free speech from
pulpits, platforms, and open-air
meetings flourished. Freedom of
the press was vigorously enjoyed
by newspapers and pamphlets,
many of whose authors signed the
Declaration and later the Constitu
tion.
Without these freedoms, it is
doubtful whether the people would
have banded together to win the
revolution? a struggle we barely
won~or whether, later, the Con
stitution would have been rattified.
Fifth: In these two centuries an
independent legal profession has
played a pivotal role in preserving
freedom. American history is
replete with examples of lawyers'
courage in the struggle to vindicate
rights. History records the so
called "Boston Massacre of
1770," in which Americans were
killed by British soldiers.
The soldiers, charged with
murder, asked John Adams to de
fend them. He did so, knowing
well that in the heated atmosphere
of that day it might spell the end of
his career as lawyer and political
leader. A Boston jury acquitted the
soldiers; yet the people so valued
Adams's courage and in
dependence that they sought his
leadership as one of the authors of
The Declaration and as our second
President.
Finally, we commemorate and
celebrate the independence of
those in whose hands ultimately
rests the protection of all our in
dependence: the state and federal
judges who construe the Constitu
tion and interpret the laws in the
pursuit of justice.
The freedoms secured and main
tained by our Constitution have
served to unleash the latent
creative energies of a free people
for two centuries. We are all
trustees of those freedoms and as
such, it is a solemn duty to pass
them on, unimpaired, to those who
follow' us., Qnly . then can our
dtictndents apply to their own
new and complex problems that
same kind of creativity, ingenuity
and responsibility that the Declara
tion of Independence promised in
1776 and the Constitution secured
in 1787.
On this path, we will continue
the legacy of ordered liberty.
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UNITED
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107 0, MAM *T. lUfFORO^C.
"Let'* have a race, claaa... I'll bet I can find your druga and guna faater than
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Letters T o The Editor
Hoke band's job was
outstanding
Editor's Note: This letter was
given to us by Hoke County
School Superintendent Robert
Nelson to run as a letter to the
editor.
Dear Dr. Nelson:
Since marrying Sarah Cole, a
native of your school district, I
have been exposed to many facts
about the quality and size of things
from Hoke County. The perfor
mance and appearance by the
Hoke Band was excellent and in
deed confirms the many Fine things
I have learned about your out
standing community.
The expression of the band
member's faces, the unison march
ing and the crispness of the music
showed the pride of Hoke County.
The comments of those in the
reviewing stand were all of praise
for a job well-done.
Thank you and your staff for
taking your day off to participate
in the Inaugural Parade. Please ex
press my deep gratitude to each of
the members of the band for their
many efforts in my behalf.
This was a very important day
for the Jordan family and the
dedication of the outstanding
young people of Hoke County
made it even more special.
Again, much thanks from the
Jordan family.
Sincerely,
Bob Jordan
Lieutenant Governor
Long live memory
of Dr. M.L. King
To the Editor:
As a member of the poor white
working class, and a Christian, I
write this in salutation and to
honor this past Jan. IS, the birth
date of the great Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr.
Dr. King's life was somewhat a
similarity of Jesus' life. Both were
killed while in service of fighting
oppression, mental and immoral
cruel slavery, as they both sought
to relieve the suffering of the poor
and oppressed.
Remember, Dr. King's father,
the Rev. Martin Luther King Sr.,
passed away in the latter portion of
November. He too, was indeed a
patriarch, or "king", as his name
implied, because it was his dedica
tion to Christ that made Dr. King
Jr. what he was, whom in turn,
helped establish John Kennedy's
dream of "A New Frontier," a
dream of America in the practical,
as it was in theory. Thus, Dr. King
Jr. gave his life for our cause to
dwell in freedom.
Bom Jan. IS, 1929, ordained a
minister in 1947, and died in 1968,
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., a
black civil rights leader, sharply
defended the rights of us poor
whites as well.
We owe it to him to hold him in
our memory: long live the name of
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., truly a
visionary of liberty for all
Americans.
Thank you sincerely,
Daniel Edwards
Pine Ridge, Box 301
Bladenboro, N.C.
28320
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