222 WRIGHT— POSITION OF FOREIGN RELATIONS 



affairs has been very largely vested in the national government. 

 Its organs are given power to send and receive diplomatic officers, 

 to make treaties, to grant letters of marque and reprisal, to declare 

 and conduct war, to assume jurisdiction in cases involving for- 

 eign diplomatic officers, foreign states or the interpretation of 

 treaties, to pass laws relating to foreign commerce, naturalization, 

 piracies and offences against the law of nations and any other laws 

 that may be necessary and proper for carrying any of these powers 

 into execution. 



On the other hand, the states are expressly forbidden to enter 

 into any treaty, alliance, or confederation or, unless Congress 

 consent, into any agreement or compact with a foreign power; to 

 grant letters of marque and reprisal or without the consent of 

 Congress to engage in war unless invaded or in imminent danger 

 thereof ; to lay tonnage, import or export duties, except for execut- 

 ing their inspection laws. The only powers connected with foreign 

 relations which the states seem competent to exercise without con- 

 gressional consent relate to the meeting of international responsi- 

 bilities. The states have power to provide aliens within their 

 borders the protection and to assure them the other rights, guaran- 

 teed by international law and treaty, and state judges are ex- 

 pressly enjoined to observe treaties as the supreme law of the land, 

 anything in the state constitution or laws to the contrary notwith- 

 standing. Full power to enforce treaties and international law 

 within the state could doubtless be conferred upon national officers 

 and courts by act of Congress under the necessary and proper 

 clause, but the legislation at present in force is not complete and 

 state authorities alone must be relied on to meet certain international 

 responsibilities. 



71. Theory of Sovereign Powers in National Government. 



In view of the almost complete prohibition of the states from 

 the control of foreign relations, it has been argued that the national 

 government must necessarily have all powers in this field enjoyed 

 by sovereign nations. Thus said Justice Field in the Chinese Ex- 

 clusion Cases : ^ 



1 Chinese Exclusion Cases, 130 U. S. 581. 



