A political condemnation in the United States may, therefore, be looked upon as a preventive measure; and there is no reason for restricting the judges to the exact definitions of criminal law.

Nothing can be more alarming than the excessive latitude with which political offences are described in the laws of America.

Article II., Section 4, of the Constitution of the United States runs thus:--"The President, Vice-President, and all civil officers of the United States shall be removed from office on impeachment for, and conviction of, treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors." Many of the Constitutions of the States are even less explicit.

"Public officers," says the Constitution of Massachusetts, *b "shall be impeached for misconduct or maladministration;" the Constitution of Virginia declares that all the civil officers who shall have offended against the State, by maladministration, corruption, or other high crimes, may be impeached by the House of Delegates; in some constitutions no offences are specified, in order to subject the public functionaries to an unlimited responsibility.

*c But I will venture to affirm that it is precisely their mildness which renders the American laws most formidable in this respect.