charge of the lighthouses and life-saving stations, the survey and in- Fairlie, Nat. spection of the coasts, the development of a supply of fish, and the Adminis publication of statistics, in the form of consular reports and statistical tration, abstracts. 230-247. and Manufactures. The Bureau of Labor gathers information from all parts of the Bureaus of country on the hours of labor, the wages paid in different lines of em- Labor, Corployment, and the general labor conditions in various sections. Corporations, porations which do interstate business are investigated by the Bureau of Corporations, which has the right to publish any information obtained (§ 264). The aim of the Bureau of Manufactures is to aid American manufacturing industries, especially through the developRevs., ment of foreign and domestic markets, by gathering and publishing 35 (1907), information, and "by such other methods and means as may be 420-427. prescribed by the Secretary, or provided by law." Rev. of Bureau. Merriam, W.R., in No Am. Rev., 170 (1900), The chief task of the Census Bureau consists in gathering, compiling, Census and publishing every ten years, and in some instances every five years, statistics upon population, agriculture, vital statistics, and manufactures. This work must be completed within two years. The remaining eight years are devoted to collecting information on special classes, taxation, transportation, and other subjects. The forces employed in the Census Bureau vary greatly. During June of the census year proper, nearly 50,000 enumerations are engaged under the direction of about 300 supervisors, who have charge of districts covering, on the average, the same area as a congressional district. Many expert accountants are occupied permanently with the publication of the reports at Washington. - 99-108. ture. 342. Other Departments or Commissions. The work of the Post office. Post Office Department was explained rather fully in §§ 280 - Department of Agricul283. The Department of Agriculture is carried on through the bureaus of soils (§ 285), plant industry, and experiment stations (§ 286), those of animal industry (§ 287), and chemistry (§ 288), through the weather bureau (§ 289), the forest service (§ 278), and public roads (§ 138). missions. In addition to these nine departments, there are commissions which Miscellaare not connected with any department. These are the Interstate neous comCommerce Commission (§ 262), the Civil Service Commission (§ 44), the Smithsonian Institution, and the International Bureau of Ameri can Republics. A very useful work is performed by the Congressional Library (§ 293), and by the Public Printing Office. In the latter, nearly 5000 persons are employed, making it perhaps the most extensive publishing plant in the world. Before 1860, the printing of government publications was done by Work of Whelpley, private parties or contracts. With the establishment of a printing office of its own, the government has increased very greatly the number of its publications. In 1902, 61,240,718 copies of separate documents were published. Among the notable publications of the past are the Official Records of the War of the Rebellion, in more than 100 volumes, undoubtedly the largest set of works ever published, explorations in the South Seas and the West, the various reports of the Geological Surveys, and the volumes on the censuses, that of the eleventh census covering 29 quarto volumes. Each year the office prints not only the records of Congress, but more than 100 separate reports of the executive departments and their bureaus. Of the Year Book of the Department of Agriculture alone, 500,000 copies are published. General References Harrison, This Country of Ours, pp. 104-107, 181–291. Official Congressional Directory under "Official Duties " of Depart ments. Scribner's Magazine. Series of articles in Vols. 33 and 34 (1903). Topics 1. THE ADVANTAGES OF CABINET GOVERNMENT: Fiske, Critical Period, pp. 289-300; Bryce, American Commonwealth, abridged ed., Chapter XXIV; Bagehot, English Constitution, Chapter II; Wilson, Congressional Government, Chapter V; Bradford, Lessons of Popular Government, II., pp. 320-415; also White, "Parliamentary Government in America," in Fortnightly Review, 32 (1870), 505–517. 2. THE ADVANTAGES OF PRESIDENTIAL GOVERNMENT: Snow, "Cabinet Government in the United States," in Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 3 (1892), 1–13, and in American Historical Association, 4 (1890); McConachie, Congressional Committees, pp. 211-258; Lowell, "Cabinet Responsibility,” in his Essays on Government; and Freeman, "Presidential Government," in National Review, 19 (1864), 1 et seq. 3. THE ACTUAL WORKING RELATIONS OF THE DEPARTMENTS OF OUR NATIONAL GOVERNMENT: Ashley, American Federal State, §§ 396– 406; Bryce, The American Commonwealth, abridged ed., pp. 155–166; Johnston, A., in Lalor's Cyclopedia, II, pp. 133-134. Studies 1. Taking of the Census. Merriam, W. R., in Century Magazine, 65 (1903), 831-842; 66 (1904), 712-723, 879-886. 2. The government's failure in building. Schuyler, M., in Forum, 17 (1894), 609-621. 3. Work and needs of the Bureau of Education. Draper, A. S., in Outlook, 87 (1907), 258–262. 4. Work of the Geological Survey. Branner, J. C., in Science, 24 (1906), 722-728. 5. Scientific work of the government. Langley, S. P., in Scribner's Magazine, 35 (1904), 81–92. 6. National department of health. Waters, T., in Independent, 61 (1906), 1184-1186. 7. Work of the fisheries bureau. American Review, 176 (1903), 593–601. Stevenson, C. H., in North 8. Problem of the printing office. Rossiter, W. S., in Atlantic Monthly, 96 (1905), 331–344. 9. Bureau of American republics. Rockhill, W. W., in Forum, 30 (1900), 21-27. Final inter Constitu tion. Cooley, (ed.), Const'l Hist. as seen in Const'l Law, 30-43. CHAPTER XXVII THE NATIONAL JUDICIARY 343. The Work of the Judicial Department. - Our napreter of the tional courts have jurisdiction of all cases arising under the Constitution, the national laws, or treaties. For this reason, the Supreme Court is the final interpreter of the Constitution of the United States; that is, it decides what the meaning of any particular clause or section may be. The significance of the statement may not be at once apparent. We must remember that our national government derives its authority from the people through the Constitution and the Constitution alone. The Constitution enumerates the general powers to be exercised by the national government, and, in doing this, separates the sphere of the States (§ 215) from that of the Nation (§ 195). The boundary line between these two spheres of activity is of necessity somewhat indefinite, but as final interpreter of the Constitution, the Supreme Court has the power to determine the exact location of this line in regard to any subject brought before it. Moreover, it may permit the national government to use "implied powers," which supplement those enumerated in the Constitution, but which do not infringe upon the rights of the State. Through the trial of The 344. How the Courts interpret the Constitution. courts do not decide the meaning of a section of the Consticases only. tution by offering opinions at any time, but interpret the Constitution solely in connection with their regular work as Hart, Actual Courts. When a person feels that he is injured in the exeGov't, § 145. cution of a law, his case is brought before a court for trial, |