Legislative, Judicial, and Executive Functions. — The
general purpose of the state is to provide some supreme
authority, which shall exercise an oversight and control
over all matters that pertain to the general welfare,
which shall restrain, when necessary, particular acts of
the individual, and which shall be able to provide a suf-
ficient armed force to prevent interference and invasion
by outside nations. In order to perform these duties,
a state has first of all to declare certain general rules
of conduct called laws, which all are required to obey.
This is called the legislative authority. Next, it is
absolutely necessary in all states that there should be
created organs for the interpretation of laws and for
their specific application to individual cases whenever
there arises any controversy as to their applicability.
This is the function performed by the courts, and is

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termed the judicial function. When the laws explicitly
forbid certain acts, and attach penalties to their per-
formance, such acts are termed crimes or misdemeanors,
the laws forbidding them are termed criminal laws, and
the persons violating them are tried in the criminal
courts. When the laws have reference to other mat-
ters, such as property, contract, commerce, etc., they
are termed civil laws, and are interpreted and applied
in civil courts.
Finally, there is required in every state a variety of
organs through which the laws which have been de-
clared by the legislative bodies, and interpreted and
applied, when necessary, by the courts or judicial
bodies, are actually carried into execution. This func-
tion is termed the executive function, and the organs
and officers through which the great variety of the
duties of the state are finally enforced and performed,
are termed executive organs of the government.
