Section I Whereas by Executive Order No. 978, dated November 24, 1908, a strip of land, 10 feet wide, from Round Top Military Reservation to Manoa Heights Road, extending 5 feet on each side of a line drawn from the Ualakaa triangulation station to said road, the true bearing of said line being S. 45° E., was reserved from sale and set apart as a right of way in connection with the defensive works of the island of Oahu, Territory of Hawaii; and Whereas the above-described strip of land is no longer required for the purpose for which it was reserved and set apart; Now, Therefore , pursuant to the authority vested in me by section 91 of the act of Congress approved April 30, 1900 (31 Stat. 141, 159), entitled "AN ACT To provide a government for the Territory of Hawaii," as amended by section 7 of the act of Congress approved May 27, 1910 (36 Stat. 443, 447), it is hereby ordered that the above-described strip of land extending from the Round Top Military Reservation to Ferdinand Street (formerly Manoa Heights Road) be, and the same is hereby, restored to its previous status for the use of the Territory of Hawaii. Section II Pursuant to the authority vested in me by section 91 of the act of Congress approved April 30, 1900 (31 Stat. 141, 159), entitled "AN ACT To provide a government for the Territory of Hawaii," as amended by section 7 of the act of Congress approved May 27, 1910 (36 Stat. 443, 447), it is hereby ordered that a strip of land, 10 feet wide, situate on the island of Oahu, Territory of Hawaii, extending from the boundary of Round Top Military Reservation to Awapuhi Street, Manoa, be, and the same is hereby, reserved and set apart as a right of way. This strip of land extends 5 feet on each side of the center line, which center line is described as follows: Beginning at a point, not monumentod, in the southeast boundary of Round Top Military Reservation between concrete monuments Nos. 7 and 8 of said Round Top Military Reservation, from which point the azimuth (measured clockwise from true south) and distance to said monument No. 8 is 224° 32' 00", 5.29 feet; Thence by true azimuth and distance 295° 11' 30", 1,429.80 feet to a point, not monumented, located in the center of north terminus of Awapuhi Street. The 10-foot right of way, the center line of which is described, contains an area of 0.328 acre. HERBERT HOOVER The White House, October 8, 1932.
Executive Order 5931 ⚖️✨ Zone 2: Zone of Twilight Constitutional Neutral (+0.02)
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
Executive Order 5931—Rights of Way, Round Top Military Reservation, Hawaii
Executive Brief • At a Glance
⏱️ 2 min read (431 words) •
● In Effect
🎯 Primary Mandate
The above-described strip of land extending from the Round Top Military Reservation to Ferdinand Street (formerly Manoa Heights Road) be, and the same is hereby, restored to its previous status for the use of the Territory of Hawaii.
⚖️ Constitutional Footing
⚖️✨ Zone 2: Zone of Twilight
Concurrent Authority / Congressional Silence
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
🏛️ Scope & Affected Sectors
Armed Forces & Military Establishments
Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis
Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.
Signed by President Herbert Hoover on October 8, 1932, this order concerns Rights of Way, Round Top Military Reservation, Hawaii. The above-described strip of land extending from the Round Top Military Reservation to Ferdinand Street (formerly Manoa Heights Road) be, and the same is hereby, restored to its previous status for the use of the Territory of Hawaii.
Constitutional Assessment: Scrutinized through Article II, Section 2, this action exercises the President's constitutional role as Commander in Chief. Early Framers recognized broad executive discretion in commanding military forces during conflict, provided it remains bounded by congressional declarations and respects civilian domestic courts.
Key Directives & Operative Actions
▪
The above-described strip of land extending from the Round Top Military Reservation to Ferdinand Street (formerly Manoa Heights Road) be, and the same is hereby, restored to its previous status for the use of the Territory of Hawaii.
▪
That a strip of land, 10 feet wide, situate on the island of Oahu, Territory of Hawaii, extending from the boundary of Round Top Military Reservation to Awapuhi Street, Manoa, be, and the same is hereby, reserved and set apart as a right of way.
▪
This strip of land extends 5 feet on each side of the center line, which center line is described as follows: Beginning at a point, not monumentod, in the southeast boundary of Round Top Military Reservation between concrete monuments Nos. 7 and 8 of said Round Top Military Reservation, from which point the azimuth (measured clockwise from true south) and distance to said monument No. 8 is 224° 32' 00", 5.29 feet; Thence by true azimuth and distance 295° 11' 30", 1,429.80 feet to a point, not monumented, located in the center of north terminus of Awapuhi Street.
Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted
🏛️ Armed Forces & Military Establishments
Policy Areas & Topics
🏛️
The Framers' Constitutional Council
1787 PrismEvaluating this order against the constitutional debates of 1787 and the limits of Article II executive power.
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight)
§
"When the President acts in absence of either a congressional grant or denial of authority, he can only rely upon his own independent powers, but there is a zone of twilight in which he and Congress may have concurrent authority."
— Justice Robert H. Jackson, Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952) Concurrent Authority / Congressional Silence
JM
James Madison
Separation of Powers & Legislative Primacy
"Power is of an encroaching nature, and it ought to be effectually restrained from passing the limits assigned to it." — Federalist No. 48 (1788)
Madison would view this order with watchful scrutiny. Operating in the 'Zone of Twilight' where Congress is silent, each such directive establishes an administrative precedent that steadily expands the executive perimeter at the expense of legislative primacy.
Madisonian Stance: Vigilant / Cautionary
AH
Alexander Hamilton
The Energetic Executive & Unified Command
"The direction of war implies the direction of the common strength; and the power of directing and employing the common strength must be under the direction of the single hand of the Executive." — Federalist No. 74 (1788)
Hamilton would forcefully champion executive discretion here. For foreign entanglements, commerce defense, and national security, deliberative assemblies are too slow and faction-ridden. A unified, energetic Executive exercising swift command is precisely what the Philadelphia Convention intended for national preservation.
Hamiltonian Stance: Strong Prerogative Support
GM
George Mason
Bill of Rights, Due Process & 10th Amendment
"The president will be surrounded by flatterers and sycophants... and the great powers of the executive will gradually absorb the liberties of the people." — Cato IV (Anti-Federalist, 1787)
The Anti-Federalist prism advises continuous democratic vigilance. Even routine administrative directives aggregate centralized federal power away from town halls and state assemblies toward a distant executive apparatus.
Anti-Federalist Stance: Eternal Vigilance Required
📐
Five Measurable "Constitutional Friction" Dimensions
An objective audit measuring potential separation-of-powers tension against the United States Constitution and established Supreme Court doctrine.
⚖️ Discretionary Twilight Zone
26 / 100 friction index
Dimension 1 • Art. I, §1 & §8
Low Friction
Legislative Encroachment & Purse
Operates within delegated statutory execution without modifying legislative appropriations or taxing powers.
Benchmark: Power of the purse, taxes/tariffs, and rule of law reserved to Congress.
Dimension 2 • Art. II, §1 & §3
Low Friction
Executive Scope & Faithfulness
Exercises standard supervisory executive authority to faithfully execute existing statutes.
Benchmark: Faithfully execute laws enacted by Congress vs. unilateral decree.
Dimension 3 • 10th Amendment
Low Friction
Federalism & State Sovereignty
Confined strictly to internal federal jurisdiction, federal property, or direct military command.
Benchmark: Police powers and un-delegated responsibilities reserved to the States.
Dimension 4 • 5th & 14th Amendments
Low Friction
Due Process & Individual Rights
Focuses on internal governmental operations with no direct impairment of private rights or property.
Benchmark: Protection of private property, contracts, liberty, and procedural justice.
Dimension 5 • Separation of Powers
Moderate Friction
Youngstown Jacksonian Tier
The order relies on inherent Article II executive discretion, civil service management, or foreign diplomacy where Congress has neither expressly approved nor prohibited action.
Benchmark: Concurrent Authority / Congressional Silence
⚖️
Audit Synthesis
This order operates within Justice Jackson’s Zone of Twilight, resting upon concurrent presidential authority or congressional silence.
Weighted composite: Art. I (25%), Art. II (25%), Federalism (15%), Due Process (15%), Youngstown (20%).
ℹ️
How to read these dimensions: Executive power expands whenever an administration acts without explicit statutory authorization from Congress (Article I), touches upon police powers historically reserved to the states (Tenth Amendment), or limits private rights and property without judicial process. A low friction score indicates strict concordance with enacted law; a high friction score highlights orders testing the limits of presidential discretion.
Total Words
431
2,403 characters
Estimated Read Time
2 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
13
College Level
Text size:
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EO 5933 Oct 10, 1932
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
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EO 5930 Oct 6, 1932
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
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📜 Art. II §3: Administrative Management & Civil Service
Schedule A of the civil-service rules, Subdivision VII, Post Office Department, positions excepted from examination under the civil-service rules, is hereby amended by the addition of the following paragraph, to be numbered 6: 6.
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⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
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📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
Executive Order No. 3866, dated June 14, 1923, which withdrew, with other lands, the public lands in T. 39 N., R. 4 E., New Mexico principal meridian, Colorado, pending resurvey, be, and the same is hereby, revoked as to said township.
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EO 5935 Oct 14, 1932
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 5935—Revocation of Withdrawal of Public Lands Pending Resurvey, Wyoming
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
Executive Order No. 5098, dated April 23, 1929, which withdrew, with other lands, the public lands in T. 42 N., R. 88 W., sixth principal meridian, Wyoming, pending resurvey, be, and the same is hereby, revoked as to said township.
Herbert Hoover College Level • 1m
EO 5929 Oct 1, 1932
🏛️✅ Zone 1 (Maximum Authority) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 5929—Withdrawal of Public Lands for Classification, Wisconsin
📜 10th Amend: Intergovernmental Federalism Cooperation
The following-described lands in the State of Wisconsin be, and they are hereby, temporarily withdrawn from settlement, location, sale, or entry, for classification and pending determination as to the advisability of including such lands in a national forest: Fourth Principal…
Herbert Hoover High School • 2m
📜
Scholarly & Legal Citations
Exec. Order No. 5931 (Oct. 8, 1932), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-5931-rights-way-round-top-military-reservation-hawaii.
