(The Congress shall have power)-"To establish uniform laws on the subject of Bankruptcy, throughout the United States." The power to pass laws on the subject of bankruptcy was one of those powers which was granted to the United States without being prohibited to the individual States. Nowhere in the Constitution is the passage of bankruptcy laws prohibited to the governments of the several States; and the right to pass such laws (under certain restrictions) has been freely exercised, except in those brief periods, during our history, when a National Bankruptcy Act has been in force. Most of the cases on this subject have arisen on the constitutionality of State bankruptcy laws.5 The power of Congress over this subject is of the broadest possible extent; it is not limited to the passage of such laws as existed in England at the time of the adoption of our Constitution; Congress may pass acts relieving against debts contracted before the act was passed. SECTION 36. COINING MONEY-WEIGHTS AND MEASURES. (The Congress shall have power)-"To coin money, regulate the value thereof, and of foreign coin, and fix the standard of weights and measures." The power to coin money and regulate the value thereof is made exclusive by the provisions in the tenth section of the first article, which provides, that no State shali coin money or make anything but gold and silver coin a tender in payment of debts. Under the Articles of Confederation it was provided that, "The 56 For treatment of this point see Chapter I. 57 In re Klein, 1 Howard, 377. United States in Congress assembled, should also have the sole and exclusive right and power of regulating the alloy and value of coin struck by their authority or by that of the respective States." The States, however, retained the power of coining money under that instrument. This power was taken from the States by the Constitution. "That, by the Constitution, the currency, so far as it is composed of gold or silver, is placed under the exclusive control of Congress is clear; -A State cannot do that which the Federal Constitution declares it shall not do. It cannot coin money. Here is an Act prohibited in terms so precise that they cannot be mistaken. They are susceptible of but one construction and it is certain that a State cannot incorporate any number of individuals, and authorize them to coin money. 1958 Congress has in the past largely neglected the power given it to "fix the standard of weights and measures." It has never attempted to make a uniform system of weights and measures obligatory. The furthest it has ever gone was to legalize the Metric System by an Act of July 28, 1866.59 (The Congress shall have power)-"To provide for the punishment of counterfeiting the securities and current coins of the United States." This clause is probably unnecessary. The power to coin money carries with it the power to protect such coinage by punishing its counterfeiting. Especially would this be true under the liberal interpretation to the implied powers of Congress given in McCulloch vs. Maryland, and since followed. Under this clause Congress has power to punish persons who bring into the United 58 Briscoe et al. vs. Bank of Ken tucky, 11 Peters, 257. The power of Congress to declare what shall constitute legal tender is treated of in Section 32 of this book. States counterfeit money," and also those who counterfeit notes of a foreign bank.1 This clause does not prevent the States from passing laws for the punishment of the crime of circulating counterfeit coin of the United States within the State; the two offenses of counterfeiting coin, and passing counterfeit money, are essentially different in their character.62 SECTION 37. POST-OFFICES AND POST-ROADS. (Congress shall have power)-"To establish postoffices and post-roads." The words here used are very inadequate to express the true meaning of this clause, and have always been given a very liberal interpretation. It has been said in relation to this clause: "To create and regulate the entire postal system of the country is the evident intent." 63 "In carrying out this principal power the mail operations of the United States are regulated. Postmasters are appointed and their duties prescribed; mail contracts are made and carriers of mail regulated; provisions are made for the punishment of depredations on the mails. These powers are incident to the main power."64 These powers are not confined to the instrumentalities in use when the Constitution was adopted. Congress may establish telegraph lines.65 Congress may also under this power regulate what may and what may not be carried through the mails.66 It has been argued 60 United States vs. Marigold, 9 Howard, 560. 01 United States vs. Arjova, 120 U. S., 479. 62 Fox vs. Ohio. 5 Howard, 410. 63 Pomeroy, p. 264. 4 Sturtevents vs. City of Alton, 3 McLean, 393. 65 Pensecola Telegraph Co. V8. Western Union Telegraph Co., 96 U. S., 1. 68 66 Ex parte Jackson, 96 U. S., 727. that the power to establish post-roads only gave Congress the power to designate over what roads, already laid out, the mail should be carried; but it has been held that, under this clause, Congress has the power to provide for the construction of such roads as it may deem proper for the transportation of the mails and for keeping such roads in due repair. Carriages carrying United States Mail are exempt from the payment of tolls on any toll roads."8 67 The most extreme application of the power conferred by this section arose in 1894, when the protection of the mails was taken to justify sending troops into the State of Illinois to put down a riot, although such troops had not been requested either by the Legislative or Executive department of the State government." SECTION 38. PATENTS AND COPYRIGHTS. 69 (The Congress shall have power)-"To promote the progress of science and useful arts, by securing for limited times to authors and inventors the exclusive right to their respective writings and discoveries." The right of authors and inventors to protection for their writings and discoveries depends entirely upon the statutes of the United States passed under the authority of this clause. There was no common law rights in patents and copyrights in England, and there is not in the United States.70 71 The patents, and copyrights granted by the United States should be so construed as to do justice to the holders of such patents and copyrights, and to fairly carry out the contract entered into by the government when it issued such patents 67 Wheeling Bridge Case, 16 How ard, 421. Searight vs. Stakes, 3 Howard, 151. See in re Debs, 158 U. S., 564. 70 Wheaton et als. vs. Peter et als., 8 Peters, 591. "The United States, as such, has no common law. and copyrights." It is for Congress to say when, for what length of time, and under what circumstances patents and copyrights shall be issued. Congress has given a very wide scope to the copyright. All kinds of printed matter, together with maps, charts, pictures, prints, statutes, models, and photographs may be protected. For example, it has been that Congress may provide for copyrights on photographs as works of art or science as far as they are representatives of original intellectual conceptions of the author." The power of the United States to legislate on patents and copyrights is absolute." It may be exercised either by general or special acts." Such laws can have no extra-territorial effect. "The right of property which a patentee has in his invention and his right to its exclusive use, is derived altogether from the statutory provisions; and this Court has always held that an inventor has no right of property in his own invention, upon which he can maintain a suit, unless he obtains a patent for it, according to the Acts of Congress; and that his rights are to be regulated and measured by these laws, and cannot go beyond them. "But these Acts of Congress do not, and were not intended to operate beyond the limits of the United States; and as the patentees' right of property and exclusive use is derived from them, they cannot extend beyond the limits to which the law is confined.” ” The right secured to authors and inventors by patents and copyrights is that of protection against their unauthorized use by others, but this does not carry 12 Grant et al. vs. Raymond, 6 Peters, 216. 73 Blanchard vs. Sprague, 2 Story, 164. 14 Lithographic Company, vs. Sarony, 111 U. S., 53. 75 Bloomer vs. Stolley, 5 McLean, 158; Blanchard vs. Sprague, 2 Story, 164. 78 Brown vs. Duchesne, 19 Howard 183. |