1912] OF THE UNITED STATES. 395 



existing laws, the only redress we have for such violations as have 

 occurred and may recur, is through the action of the local authori- 

 ties, often irreconcilably prejudiced against us, and with whom we 

 cannot directly deal. We ask therefore that the Federal government 

 shall protect our citizens when violations of treaty rights occur as 

 fully as it does its own when violations of Federal law^ occur. We 

 propose the addition of the following clause to Article Three of the 

 treaty between us : The high contracting parties agree that the pro- 

 visions of this treaty securing protection for the persons and prop- 

 erty of Italian citizens who may be within the United States, shall 

 be and are hereby made supreme law within the United States ; 

 and that Sections 5336, 5508, 5509, 5519 of the Revised Statutes of 

 the United States shall be and are hereby made applicable to viola- 

 tions of the provisions of this treaty in all cases where they are now 

 applicable to violations of the laws of the United States. 



To such a request, the government of the United States could 

 hardly find reasons on which to base a refusal. If a treaty be 

 intended to operate as " legislative act," to again use Marshall's 

 phrase, it should obviously in its draftmanship fulfill the essentials 

 of a legislative act. If rights of action are to be given, those rights 

 should be precisely set forth, if violation of treaty provisions by 

 mobs or otherwise is not to be encouraged, provisions for the 

 punishment of violators should be added and stated with the meticu- 

 lous phraseology of a criminal statute. The constitutionality of 

 such a procedure has been seen to be demonstrated by the cases 

 analyzed; its wisdom would seem to be obvious. If the government 

 of the United States does not desire to grant a certain privilege, its 

 dignity requires that such desire should be stated through its diplo- 

 matic agencies ; it cannot in honor use general language purporting 

 to convey a privilege, unless it be prepared simultaneously to pro- 

 vide for its recognition and enforcement. 



VI. 



The conclusion of the survey of the treaty-making power of the 

 United States attempted in this essay is now reached. The deci- 

 sions of the Supreme Court of the United States have been assumed 



