The Freeman 1972 - The Ludwig von Mises Institute

1972 PRINCIPLES OF THE CONSTITUTION 743government ought to be grantedthe authority to construct canals.The idea was rejected on theground that this would involve thegeneral government in projectswhich would be mainly beneficialto the people of particular states.The point, however, is that theywere operating on the assumptionthere that if the power were notlisted it was not granted.But it is not necessary to concludeonly from the enumeratedpowers that the general governmentis limited by the Constitution.There are specific limitationscontained in it. The Constitutionrequired that all direct taxes beapportioned on the basis of population.(This prohibition was laterremoved by the 16th Amendment.)Other taxes must be levied uniformlythroughout the UnitedStates. All taxation must be forthe common defense and generalwelfare of the United States,which should be conceived as amajor limitation. Specific restrictionson the general governmentare listed in Section 9 of Article I,of which the following is a partiallist:The Privilege of the Writ of HabeasCorpus shall not be suspended,unless when in Cases of Rebellion orInvasion the public Safety may requireit.NoBill of Attainder or ex postfacto Law shall be passed....No Tax or Duty shall be laid onArticles exported from any State....No Money shall be drawn from theTreasury, but in Consequence of Appropriationsmade by Law....No Title of Nobility shall begranted by the United States.State governments were alsolimited in the Constitution in severalways (Section 10, Article I).The following is an example:No State shall enter into anyTreaty, Alliance, or Confederation,grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal;coin Money, emit Bills ofCredit; make any thing but gold andsilver Coin a Tender in Payment ofDebts; pass any Bill of Attainder orex post facto Law, or Law impairingthe Obligation of Contracts, or grantany Title of Nobility.Some delegates to the conventionwere heartily in favor of aspecific prohibition being placedin the Constitution against theUnited States government emittingbills of credit (Le., issuingpaper money). Others said thatoccasions might arise, such asduring the late war, when the issuanceof paper money might benecessary. The upshot was a silentcompromise. Congress is not authorizedto emit bills of credit, butneither is it specifically prohibitedto do so. (The going assumption,however, was that if it was notgranted it was prohibited.)