4830. LOUISIANA, Government for.—[continued].
I thought I perceived in
you the other day a dread of the job of preparing
a constitution for the new acquisition.
With more boldness than wisdom I, therefore,
determined to prepare a canvas, give it a few
daubs of outline, and send it to you to fill
up. * * * In communicating it to you I
must do it in confidence that you will never
let any person know that I have put pen to
paper on the subject. * * * My time does
not permit me to go into explanation of the
enclosed by letter. I will only observe as to a
single feature of the Legislature, that the idea
of an Assembly of Notables came into my
head while writing, as a thing more familiar
and pleasing to the French, than a legislation
of judges. True it removes their dependence
from the judges to the Executive; but this
is what they are used to and would prefer.
Should Congress reject the nomination of
judges for four years, and make them during
good behavior, as is probable, then, should
the judges take a kink in their heads in favor
of leaving the present laws of Louisiana unaltered,
that evil will continue for their lives,
unamended by us, and become so inveterate
that we may never be able to introduce the
uniformity of law so desirable. The making
the same persons so directly judges and legislators
is more against principle, than to
make the same persons executive, and the
elector of the legislative members. The
former, too, are placed above all responsibility;
the latter is under a perpetual control
if he goes wrong. The judges have to act on
nine out of ten of the laws which are made;
the governor not on one in ten. But strike
it out, and insert the judges if you think it
better, as it was a sudden conceit to which I
am not attached.—
To John Breckenridge.
Ford ed., viii, 279.
(W.
Nov. 1803)
