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Part III
The Conception of Sovereignty
in France
and in England and in the United States[1]
Section i
The Constitutions of England and of the United States, which are the subject of the two preceding essays, do not appear to lend themselves to comparison, unless the object of the comparison be to bring out the contrasts in the two political organizations. They do indeed differ considerably. The English Constitution is in great part unwritten, that of the United States rests upon a written document. The first is the law of a monarchy, the second the law of a republic; the first is
- ↑ [This heading is rather an account of the contents of Part III. than a translation of the title affixed to it by Monsr. Bontmy. He entitles this Part “La Nature de l’Acte Constituant en France, en Angleterre et aux États-Unis.” The expression “l’acte constituant” is a term for which there is no exact English equivalent; it may be described as “the act whereby the sovereign power in a State “creates a constitution.” The want of any proper English terminology for expressing this idea is itself a marked illustration of the soundness and importance of the contrast drawn by our author between French and English constitutionalism. (D.)]
