> “The Constitution does not apply to foreign countries,” Justice Brown wrote. “If these possessions are inhabited by alien races, differing from us in religion, customs, laws, methods of taxation and modes of thought, the administration of government and justice according to Anglo-Saxon principles may for a time be impossible. . . . A false step at this time might be fatal to the development of what Chief Justice Marshall called the ‘American Empire.’”

Kind of a weird statement to be given by a person charged with adjudicating lands whose inhabitants had no concept of "Anglo-Saxon principles."

In fact, I seriously struggle with the logical contradiction that this opinion creates. How can this man claim the privilege to make such a ruling over a land, when his opinion so clearly implies that the USA, and it's Constitution have no no place ruling over the "foreign countries" that the USA now claims as territory.

Obviously, if I could ask him this today, he would hand-wave the argument with that being different for whatever bunk-ass reason.