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Preface
governmental officials when they examine and apply the law in the light
of the Constitution.
Moreover, this book emphasizes the importance of knowing the origin
and development of these basic principles. The American Constitution is
original in many respects, but it is also a product of Western man’s endless quest for liberty, order, and justice. The founders of the American
republic did not suddenly invent the American Constitution overnight.
Learning from the mistakes of the past, they revised and applied constitutional concepts deeply rooted in America’s colonial past, the history of
Great Britain, and the chronicles of the ancient world. By understanding
the mistakes of the past, of course, we improve our chances of not repeating them in the future. There is no doubt that many of the changes
that have been proposed over the years to amend or ‘‘reform’’ the American political system would never have been seriously considered had
the reformers been aware that their ‘‘improvement’’ undermined the genius of the Constitution or had been tried before and had proved to be a
failure. The inclusion in this book of numerous legal and historical documents will, it is hoped, help the reader comprehend the evolution of the
American republic and the political experiences of our ancestors that ultimately produced the Constitution.
Above all, Liberty, Order, and Justice, as the subtitle suggests, stresses
the value and importance of constitutional government. It rests on the
age-old assumption that in order to achieve liberty, order, and justice, we
must first establish limited constitutional government. The Framers of
our Constitution understood well enough that political power can be a
destructive as well as a creative force, and that our safety and welfare depend upon our ability to check and balance power. Too much political
power can be as dangerous as too little, no matter how well intentioned
the claim to power may be. Good government is not feeble government,
but neither is it unlimited government. These distinctions are sometimes
lost or forgotten by those who put their favorite political programs and
policies ahead of the Constitution, and act as though the end justifies the
means. These lessons and more, it is hoped, greet the reader who ventures forth to read this primer.
James McClellan
Goshen Farm
Cumberland, Virginia