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law and in accordance with the provisions contained therein, will be regarded as guilty of an illegal act, and shall be liable to be dealt with according to the Criminal Code (Criminal Code, Articles 171 and 172).

26. The secrecy of letters is one of the benefits conferred by modern civilization. In the present article it is accordingly guaranteed that violation of the secrecy of letters, either by opening or by destroying them, will not be tolerated, except in matters of criminal investigation, or in times of war or of emergency, or in cases specified by express provisions of law.

27. In this article assurance is given of the security of the right of property. The right of property is under the powers of the State. It ought, therefore, to be subordinated to the restrictions of the law. It is indeed inviolable, but it is not unrestricted. For instance, certain kinds of buildings are prohibited within a certain distance of the boundary-line encircling a castle or a fortification, and no indemnity is due for such prohibition; minerals in the earth are under the control of the mining laws; forests are managed by regulations framed in accordance with the requirements of dendrological economy; the planting of trees within a certain distance from a railway-line is prohibited; and wells are not to be dug within a certain distance from a cemetery. These are illustrations of the restrictions that are put upon the right of property; and they will be sufficient to show that the property of individuals, like their persons, is under an obligation of obedience to the State. The right of property is one that falls within the domain of private law, and is not in conflict with the supreme right of governing the country, which belongs to the sphere of public law…. When it is necessitated by public benefit, private individuals may be compelled molens volens to part with their property, in order that the requirements of a given case may be met. This provision is based upon the right of sovereignty—the right of reigning over and of governing the country, though the determination of the regulations concerning the matter in question is delegated to the sphere of law. With regard to a measure by which private property is sacrificed for public benefit, the condition is that a reasonable indemnity shall be paid for the property taken. As to restriction upon the right of property, the Constitution abundantly testifies that they must always be fixed by law, and that they are beyond the control of ordinances.

28. Belief and conviction are operations of the mind. As to forms of worship, to religious discourses, to the mode of propagating a religion, and to the formation of religious associations and meetings, some general legal or police restrictions must be observed for the maintenance of public peace and