In the foregoing pages the sovereignty of the United States as opposed to, and inconsistent with, the continued sovereignty of its individual commonwealth members has been sufficiently declared, Whatever doubt there may have been upon this point before the Civil War, the result of that gigantic struggle has left no room for disagreement since, and the subsequent unequivocal assertiona of the federal courts have simply registered conclusions that no one could rationally question. Starting, then, from this fundamental fact that, looking at the matter from a purely legal viewpoint, the individual Commonwealths constitute self-governing but politically subordinate portions of the United States, we shall now proceed to consider the degree of autonomy secured them under the federal Constitution. This subject we may conveniently divide into two parts. First, we may examine the degree of control that the Federal Government may constitutionally exercise over the form of government that the several States may establish for themselves; and, secondly, the extent to which the General Government may supervise or control the exercise by the States of those powers that are reserved to them. First, then, as to the control that may be constitutionally exercised by the United States over the forms of government of its constituent units.

Speaking generally it may be said that, providing its government be republican in form, each State of the Union may establish such governmental organs as it sees fit, and apportion among them its executive, legislative and judicial powers according to its own judgment as to what is expedient and proper.