Our Government: Local, State, and National: Idaho Edition — Reading Notes

A Practical, Not Theoretical, Civics

The preface insists that the authors have drawn on years of teaching “civil government” in high school, academy, and normal school. Their method is to bring “the actual working of the institutions under which the student lives into prominence.” This is not a dry recitation of constitutional clauses; it is a how-to manual for citizenship. The book is designed for students who may encounter civics earlier in their course, and the authors explicitly note that they have kept “the ability of the reader and the time to be devoted to the subject” in mind. The result is a text that prioritizes comprehension over coverage, with “supplementary questions and references” that can be tailored by the teacher.

The President as a Case Study in Power

Chapter XIV, “Powers and Duties of the President,” opens with a striking quotation about Lincoln exercising “more arbitrary power than any Englishman since Oliver Cromwell.” The authors then immediately qualify: Lincoln’s actions, if attempted “by a weaker man, or at another time, might have proved dangerous.” This framing—acknowledging extraordinary circumstances while grounding discussion in constitutional text—is typical of the book’s approach. The chapter proceeds to parse specific clauses: the President as commander-in-chief, the power to grant reprieves and pardons, and the treaty-making power requiring Senate consent. Each power is introduced with a clear, numbered clause from the Constitution, then explained in plain language.

Questions That Push Beyond the Textbook

The excerpts include a long list of discussion questions that reveal the book’s pedagogical strategy. Many ask students to compare historical examples: “Why was the election of John Quincy Adams of especial interest?” or “State the chief points connected with the ‘disputed election’ of 1876.” Others demand contemporary analysis: “Was the present President notable before his election? In what ways?” and “How many electoral votes were required for election? He received how many?” The questions also direct students to outside sources—North American Review, Review of Reviews, Bryce’s American Commonwealth—turning the textbook into a launchpad for research. Notably, several questions ask about the student’s own state: “How many electors were there from your State? For whom did they vote?” This local emphasis is reinforced by the Idaho Edition’s inclusion of a contributor from that state.

The Idaho Edition’s Local Lens

The title page credits James Timbrell Worlton as a contributor, and the catalog subjects include “Idaho – Politics and government.” While the excerpts do not show Idaho-specific content, the preface hints at the method: “In the work on local and State government it is not expected that the student will learn all of the different practices found in the various States, but that he will compare them with those of his own State.” This comparative framework means that a reader in Idaho is meant to use the national and state examples as a template for examining local institutions. The book thus functions as a customizable toolkit, not a one-size-fits-all manual.

For a first reading, start with the preface to understand the book’s flexible structure and practical aim. Then choose a chapter that matches your interest—local, state, or national. The discussion questions are not afterthoughts; they are the core of the learning design. Use them to connect the text to your own state’s government and to historical or contemporary events. The book rewards active, comparative reading over passive absorption.

Flipping through the Idaho edition’s preface, I kept thinking of that old 1860s guide, its pages just as earnest about constitutional duties. Both feel like quiet conversations with a slower age, when civics was less about tests and more about belonging. I lingered on the presidential powers chapter and recalled The government class book Designed for the instruction of youth in the principles of constitutional government and the rights and duties of citizens. — A Reader’s Guide, its questions still echoing home.