his
principle as follows:--'It was due to no accident and no oversight that
the framers of our Constitution put the command of our armed forces
under civilian authority. It is the duty of the Commander in Chief to
appoint the Secretaries of War and Navy and the Chiefs of Staff.' It is
also to be noted that the Secretary of War, who is the regularly
constituted organ of the President for the administration of the
military establishment of the Nation, has been held by the Supreme Court
of the United States to be merely a civilian officer, not in military
service. (United States _v._ Burns, 79 U.S. 246 (1871)). On the general
principle of civilian supremacy over the military, by virtue of the
Constitution, it has recently been said: 'The supremacy of the civil
over the military is one of our great heritages.' Duncan _v._
Kahanamoku, 324 U.S. 833 (1945), 14 L.W. 4205 at page 4210."[112]

Presidential Advisers

THE CABINET

The above provisions are the meager residue from a persistent effort in
the Federal Convention to impose a council on the President.[113] The
idea ultimately failed, partly because of the diversity of ideas
concerning the Council's make-up. One member wished it to consist of
"members of the two houses," another wished it to comprise two
representatives from each of three sections, "with a rotation and
duration of office similar to those of the Senate." The proposal which
had the strongest backing was that it should consist of the heads of
departments and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, who should
preside when the President was absent. Of this proposal the only part
to survive was the above cited provision. The consultative relation here
contemplated is an entirely one-sided affair, is to be conducted with
each principal officer separately and in writing, and to relate only to
the duties of their respective offices.[114] The _Cabinet_, as we know
it today, that is to say, the Cabinet _meeting_, was brought about
solely on the initiative of the first President, and may be dispensed
with on Presidential initiative at any time, being totally unknown to
the Constitution. Several Presidents have in fact reduced the Cabinet
meeting to little more than a ceremony with social trimmings.[115]

Pardons and Reprieves

THE LEGAL NATURE OF A PARDON

In the first case to be decided concerning the pardoning power, Chief
Justice Marshall, speaking for the Court, said: "As this power had been
exerci