CONSTITUTIONAL/POLITICAL DOCUMENTS OF EARLY UNITED STATES
 RULE OF THE UNITED STATES VIRGIN ISLANDS


 The constitutional/political documents discussed here comprise the following:

 Treaty of Acquisition (1917)
 Congressional Act of March 3, 1917
 Act Conferring United States Citizenship (1927)
 Executive Order Conferring Civilian Rule (1931)

The general historical context of these early documents is briefly examined, followed
by specific commentary about each document.1

Historical Context

 Negotiations between the United States and Denmark concerning purchase of
the Danish West Indies commenced during the United States Civil War (1860-1865)
and continued intermittently over half a century.2 The United States sought a coaling
station and naval base and did not want a hostile European power to take possession
of the Islands. Denmark meanwhile considered the Islands were declining in
productivity and becoming increasingly an economic liability. Islanders themselves,
mired in increasing poverty, looked toward transfer to the United States with hope,
aspiration, and enthusiasm.

 The Treaty of 1867, however, failed ratification by the United States Senate,
whereas the Treaty of 1902 failed ratification by Denmarks' upper house.3 After the
Panama Canal was opened and the United States was about to enter World War I, the
fear of a possible takeover of the Islands by Germany propelled both the United States
and Denmark toward another round of negotiations. The United States, moreover,
threatened to occupy the Islands by force, should Denmark balk on selling them.4
Though no plebiscite was held, Islanders appeared to support transfer because they
fully expected by the Treaty provisions to be accorded the Constitutional rights of
United States citizens.

The Treaty of Acquisition (1917)
 The Treaty of 1867 would have given the Islands' inhabitants a choice of
 retaining their allegiance to Denmark or becoming "citizens of the United States," and
 the 1902 Treaty gave them a choice of "allegiance to the United States." The Treaty of
 1917, on the other hand, gave them a choice of becoming "citizens in the United
 States" the different between the 1867 and 1917 wording being the change from of
 to in.