1. an oath is an appeal to god, by him who makes it, that what he has said, or what he shall say, is the truth. it is the most solemn form under which one can assert or pronounce anything. to utter a falsehood while under oath is perjury, a crime of the darkest hue. one which god has declared he will punish, and one which is made infamous, and punishable by fine and imprisonment by the laws of the land.
2. the constitution (art. 6, sec. 3) requires that senators and representatives, and members of the several state legislatures, and all executive and judicial officers, both of the united states, and of the several states, shall be bound by oath or affirmation to support the constitution. then in the second article, section eight, the form of the oath required of the president before he enters upon his duties, is given in these words:
“i do solemnly swear (or affirm) that i will faithfully execute the office of president of the united states, and will to the best of my ability preserve, protect and defend the constitution of the united states.”
3. this is all the constitution says about oaths; but it is enough to show that no man (unless he commit perjury,) can accept office, either under the united states or any state government, unless he in good faith will support the constitution.
but in the laws enacted by congress, we find that not only official oaths are required; but in a great variety of other cases, men who transact business with the government are required to verify their accounts and statements with an oath. this is particularly the case with those who do business with the custom house; such as merchants, shipowners, and masters of vessels. many oaths must be put in the form of affidavits; that is, the oath must be written and signed by the deponent, that the statements made may be preserved.
4. the form of official oaths varies according to the nature[575] of the duties to be performed by the deponent. the oath must be taken before the officer enters upon his duties. should he neglect or refuse to do this, his acts will be illegal, and he would make himself liable to punishment.
after the late civil war broke out, congress for the purpose of preventing those who had voluntarily taken part in the rebellion, from holding thereafter any office under the government, passed an act requiring every one before he could accept any office, either in the civil, military, or naval departments, to take an oath in the following form:
5. “i, a. b., do solemnly swear (or affirm) that i have never voluntarily borne arms against the united states, since i have been a citizen thereof; that i have voluntarily given no aid, countenance, counsel or encouragement to persons engaged in armed hostility thereto; that i have neither sought, nor accepted, nor attempted to exercise the functions of any office whatever, under any authority or pretended authority in hostility to the united states; that i have not yielded a voluntary support to any pretended government, authority, power or constitution, within the united states, hostile or inimical thereto. and i do further swear (or affirm) that to the best of my knowledge and ability, i will support and defend the constitution of the united states, against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that i will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that i take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion, and that i will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which i am about to enter. so help me god.”
so strong and comprehensive an oath as this was never before required from any officer of the government. it answers the requirements of the constitution, and substantially comprehends all contained in any other forms heretofore used. it is at once an oath of allegiance, an oath of support of the constitution, and an oath to discharge faithfully the duties of the office taken. this goes by the name of the test oath, and frequently “the iron-clad oath.”
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6. the object of the test oath was, during the civil war, to prevent the entrance into any office of a person who might be secretly unfriendly to the government, and use his position to the advantage of its enemies. so comprehensive and minute an oath would allow no chance of mental evasion to a conscientious person, and would lay the offender under the liability of severe punishment. it is evidently proper to bind all officers of the general and state governments under the strongest and most solemn obligation to a faithful and honest discharge of their duties.
7. whoever receives an office in the united states, which is connected with the revenue in any way, so that public money passes through his hands, is required to give a bond as security for such money. these bonds give the government a claim on their property if the money is not accounted for according to the directions of the law. they are signed by one or more persons who must show that they have the means to pay the amount for which they become security. the amount of security required depends on the sums of money that are to pass through the hands of the official, or which is likely at any time to accumulate in his possession. the government takes all the care it can that there shall be no risk of loss of the public property, and the bond is designed to afford adequate security for all that any officer may have charge of.
8. by this means two important ends are gained. no person can get an office who has no friends and no reputation for uprightness sufficient to induce those that know him to risk their own property on his honesty and faithfulness. it was designed to be a sure means for the government of finding out who were to be trusted. if he has not property himself, so that he can secure his bondsmen to their satisfaction, he must have so high a character for integrity that they are willing to risk their money in his hands, or he cannot obtain an office. security for public funds, and a high degree of personal worth are both expected to be gained by this requirement.
on the whole, this works very well indeed, in both respects,[577] but there seems no security, that is quite infallible, against roguery, unless it be in the extreme care of the people, and their constant watchfulness over all the affairs of the country and all the men who represent them. it is difficult to make a house so strong that a thief cannot get into it by force or stratagem, and rogues who wish to steal from the public funds may band together and help one another to get into office and then divide what spoil they can secure; or unforeseen events may bring more money than was properly secured into an officer’s hands, or those whose duty it is to see that he disburses the funds at the right times may be careless or dishonest.
9. the only sure way is to take care that none but men of proved integrity get into office, and to take all pains to cultivate honesty in the community at large. the money lost by the government is probably much less in proportion than in the private business of the country. great watchfulness is really exercised, and when such a case occurs it is immediately known through the whole country. not many men are willing to run so much risk of punishment and public reprobation. too much care, however, cannot be taken to prevent corruption in public life. it destroys the purity and soundness of character on which our institutions are founded. a republic cannot exist without a high standard of virtue.
10. every official is required to take an oath, or make a solemn affirmation to discharge the duties of his office faithfully. though we cannot expect to be quite secure against the trickery and insincerity of false and corrupt men, yet we have reason, on the whole, to congratulate ourselves on the general security of public property, and the watchfulness of the people over their servants in places of trust.
