MAINE By virtue of and pursuant to the authority vested in me as President of the United States, and in order to effectuate further the purposes of the Migratory Bird Conservation Act (45 Stat. 1222), it is ordered that the lands and waters acquired or to be acquired by the United States within the following-described boundary, comprising approximately 11,949 acres in Washington County, Maine, be, and they are hereby, reserved and set apart, subject to existing valid rights, for the use of the Department of Agriculture as a refuge and breeding ground for migratory birds and other wildlife: Provided , That any private lands within the area described shall become a part of the refuge hereby established upon the acquisition of title thereto or lease thereof by the United States: Beginning at the corner common to the Towns of Baring, Calais, Charlotte, and Bobblnston; Thence from said initial point with the town line between Baring and Charlotte, S. 58°25' W., 40.11 chains; S. 58°38' W., 92.36 chains; S. 58°21' W., 67.35 chains, to the corner common to lots 5 and 6 in the town line between Baring and Charlotte; Thence passing within the Town of Charlotte, with lines between lots 5 and 6, through Rs. 10,9, and 8, S. 31°04' E., 41.39 chains; S. 31°05' E., 9.99 chains; S. 31°03' E., 70.15 chains, to the corner common to lots 5 and 6, ranges 7 and 8; Thence with line between lots 6, ranges 7 and 8, S. 58°20' W., 39.78 chains, to the corner common to lots 6 and 7, ranges 7 and 8; Thence with line between lots 6 and 7, ranges 8 and 9, N. 31°31' W., 80.01 chains, to the corner common to lots 6 and 7, ranges 9 and 10; Thence with line between lots 7, ranges 9 and 10, 8. 59°03' W., 14.31 chains, to the southwest corner of lot 7, range 10, in the town line between Charlotte and Meddybemps; Thence with the town line between Charlotte and Meddybemps, N. 31°19' W., 41.24 chains, to the corner common to the Towns of Baring, Charlotte, and Meddybemps; Thence passing within the Town of Meddybemps, S. 58°54' W., 100.40 chains; N. 31°01' W., 14.07 chains; N. 51°21' W., 62.36 chains, to the corner common to lots 8 and 10 in the east boundary of lot 6; Thence with line between lots 6 and 10, N. 31°11' W., 19.90 chains, to the east shore of Meddybemps Lake; Thence with the meanders of Meddybemps Lake, Northerly, 347.99 chains, to the northwest corner of lot 23 on the east shore of said lake; Thence with the northwest boundary of lot 23, N. 57°48' E., 50.82 chains, to the south comer of lot 24; Thence with the southwest and northwest boundaries of lot 24, N. 57°06' W., 51.84 chains; N. 33°02' E., 18.02 chains, to the north comer of lot 24 in the southwest boundary of lot 25; Thence with part of the southwest, northwest, and northeast boundaries of lot 25, N. 58°03' W., 0.67 chain; N. 32°37' E., 1958 chains; S. 57°30' E., 51.06 chains, to the comer of lots 25, 26, 28, and 27 in the center line of the Meddybemps road; Thence with the center line of the Meddybemps road, Northerly, 168.24 chains, to the intersection of the southeast boundary of the St. Croix River lot 4, with the center line of said road; Thence with the southeast boundary of St. Croix River lots 4,3, and 2, N. 58°83' E., 21.47 chains; N. 57°31' E., 25.85 chains, to a point in the southeast boundary of St. Croix River lot 2; Thence with the following lines, S. 32°47' E., 40.52 chains; N. 58°14' E., 30.64 chains; S. 31°39' E., 40.93 chains; N. 58°18' E., 38.27 chains; S. 31°16' E., 15.00 chains; N. 59°11' E., 16.67 chains, to a point in the town line between Baring and Calais; Thence with the town line between Baring and Calais, N. 30°43' W., 13.77 chains, to a point; Thence passing within lot 1, range 4, Town of Calais, N. 58°41' E., 16.85 chains; S. 8°04' E., 4.10 chains; S. 60°45' W., 0.61 chain; S. 29°28' E., 1.56 chains; S. 8°04' E., 10.22 chains; N. 62°36' E., 8.70 chains; S. 27°24' E., 1.61 chains; S. 58°47' W., 19.22 chains, to a point in the southwest boundary of lot 1, range 4, Town of Calais, in the town line between Baring and Calais; Thence with the town line between Baring and Calais, S. 82°87' E., 22.67 chains, to a point; Thence passing within lot 1, range 4, Town of Calais, N. 77°29' E., 4.66 chains, to a point in the center line of the Calais-Charlotte road; Thence with the center line of the Calais-Charlotte road, Southwesterly, 6.75 chains, to the town line between Baring and Calais; Thence with the town line between Baring and Calais, S. 31°11' E., 11.29 chains, to the corner common to lots 1, ranges 3 and 4, Town of Calais, in the town line between Baring and Calais; Thence passing within the Town of Calais with line between lots 1, ranges 3 and 4, N. 46°42' E., 40.11 chains, to a point in the center line of the Howard Mill road; N. 56°21' E., 1.79 chains, to the center line of the Magurrewock Stream; Thence passing within lot 1, range 4, with the center line of Magurrewock Stream, downstream with the meanders thereof. Northwesterly, 44.03 chains, to a point; Thence leaving Magurrewock Stream with the following lines, S. 67°04' W., 2.00 chains; N. 28°57' W., 0.54 chain; N. 34°08' W., 0.96 chain; N. 51°49' W., 1.89 chains; N. 26°13' W., 2.47 chains; N. 47°43' W., 3.71 chains; N. 42°17' E., 2.00 chains, to a point in the center of Magurrewock Stream; Thence with the center line of Magurrewock Stream, downstream with the meanders thereof, Northwesterly, 14.59 chains, to a point; Thence leaving the Magurrewock Stream, N. 63°03' E., 10.05 chains; S. 31°14' E., 59.27 chains, to a point in line between lots 1, ranges 3 and 4; Thence with line between lots 1, ranges 3 and 4, N. 58°35' E., 25.20 chains, to the comer common to lots 1 and 2, ranges 3 and 4; Thence with line between lots 1 and 2, range 3, S. 31°43' E., 80.01 chains, to the corner common to lots 1 and 2, ranges 2 and 3; Thence with line between lots 1, ranges 2 and 8, S. 58°15' W., 79.62 chains, to the comer common to lots 1, ranges 2 and 3, in the town line between Baring and Calais; Thence with the town line between Baring and Calais, S. 31°12' E., 27.45 chains; S. 31°16' E., 118.75 chains; S. 31°12' E., 18.49 chains, to the place of beginning. This refuge shall be known as the Moosehom Migratory Bird Refuge. FRANKLIN D ROOSEVELT The White House, July 1, 1937.
Executive Order 7650 ⚖️✨ Zone 2: Zone of Twilight Constitutional Neutral (+0.02)
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
Executive Order 7650—Establishing Moosehorn Migratory Bird Refuge
Executive Brief • At a Glance
⏱️ 6 min read (1,146 words) •
● In Effect
🎯 Primary Mandate
The lands and waters acquired or to be acquired by the United States within the following-described boundary, comprising approximately 11,949 acres in Washington County, Maine, be, and they are hereby, reserved and set apart, subject to existing valid rights, for the use of the Department of Agriculture as a refuge and breeding ground for migratory birds and other wildlife: Provided , That any private lands within the area described shall become a part of the refuge hereby established upon the acquisition of title thereto or lease thereof by the United States: Beginning at the corner common to the Towns of Baring, Calais, Charlotte, and Bobblnston; Thence from said initial point with the town line between Baring and Charlotte, S. 58°25'…
⚖️ Constitutional Footing
⚖️✨ Zone 2: Zone of Twilight
Concurrent Authority / Congressional Silence
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
🏛️ Scope & Affected Sectors
Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants
Plain-English Translation & Framers' Constitutional Analysis
Early Statesman synthesis distilling legal jargon into practical meaning, statutory anchors, and structural constitutional impacts.
Signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on July 1, 1937, this order concerns Establishing Moosehorn Migratory Bird Refuge. The lands and waters acquired or to be acquired by the United States within the following-described boundary, comprising approximately 11,949 acres in Washington County, Maine, be, and they are hereby, reserved and set apart, subject to existing valid rights, for the use of the Department of Agriculture as a refuge and breeding ground for migratory birds and other wildlife: Provided , That any private lands within…
Constitutional Assessment: This action represents an orderly exercise of Article II administrative discretion, managing the internal machinery and personnel of the executive branch without abridging the ancient liberties of the people.
Key Directives & Operative Actions
▪
The lands and waters acquired or to be acquired by the United States within the following-described boundary, comprising approximately 11,949 acres in Washington County, Maine, be, and they are hereby, reserved and set apart, subject to existing valid rights, for the use of the Department of Agriculture as a refuge and breeding ground for migratory birds and other wildlife: Provided , That any private lands within the area described shall become a part of the refuge hereby established upon the acquisition of title thereto or lease thereof by the United States: Beginning at the corner common to the Towns of Baring, Calais, Charlotte, and Bobblnston; Thence from said initial point with the town line between Baring and Charlotte, S. 58°25'…
▪
This refuge shall be known as the Moosehom Migratory Bird Refuge.
Constitutional & Societal Entities Impacted
🏛️ Executive Departments & Federal Civil Servants
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
"A feeble Executive implies a feeble execution of the government; and a government ill executed, whatever it may be in theory, must be, in practice, a bad government." — Federalist No. 70 (1788)
Hamilton would view this directive as the natural and indispensable functioning of administrative leadership. Without the power to coordinate agencies, manage personnel, and resolve operational ambiguities, the modern presidency would be reduced to an impotent figurehead.
Hamiltonian Stance: Defends Vigor & Dispatch
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
30 / 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
Moderate Friction
Federalism & State Sovereignty
Engages state and local partners in cooperative federalism programs.
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
1,146
6,292 characters
Estimated Read Time
6 min
@ 200 words / min
Flesch-Kincaid
6.4
Grade 6
Text size:
🔗
Referenced By Later Executive Orders (1)
Subsequent presidents who cited, amended, continued, or revoked this directive in later orders.
Franklin D. Roosevelt • 1938-08-30
Related Executive Orders
Other executive actions signed by Franklin D. Roosevelt around this period.
EO 7651 Jul 1, 1937
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 7651—Modifying Executive Order of June 8, 1926, Creating Reservoir Site Reserve No. 17, Pacific Slope Basins, California
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
The Executive Order of June 8, 1926, creating Reservoir Site Reserve No. 17, be, and it is hereby, modified to the extent necessary to enable the Federal Power Commission to issue licenses and amendments thereto for power projects consisting of transmission lines on the…
Franklin D. Roosevelt Grade 5 • 2m
EO 7652 Jul 2, 1937
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 7652—Partial Revocation of Executive Order No. 6361 of October 25, 1933, Withdrawing Public Lands
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
CALIFORNIA By virtue of and pursuant to the authority vested in me by the act of June 25, 1910, ch. 421, 36 Stat. 847, as amended by the act of August 24, 1912, ch. 369, 37 Stat. 497, Executive Order No. 6361 of October 25, 1933, temporarily withdrawing certain lands in…
Franklin D. Roosevelt Grade 9 • 1m
EO 7649 Jun 29, 1937
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 7649—Making Applicable to the Emergency Relief Appropriations Act of 1937 Certain Executive Orders, Rules, and Regulations Issued Under Authority of the Emergency Relief Appropriation Acts of 1935 and 1936
📜 Art. II §1: Executive Discretion & Internal Operations
The expenditure of funds appropriated and made available by said Act, and the administration thereof, shall be in accordance with the orders, rules, and regulations heretofore issued by the President relating to the expenditure of funds appropriated by the Emergency Relief…
Franklin D. Roosevelt Post-Graduate Legal • 1m
EO 7648 Jun 28, 1937
🏛️✅ Zone 1 (Maximum Authority) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 7648—Waiving Provisions of Executive Order of January 17, 1873, as to Douglas Armstrong
📜 10th Amend: Intergovernmental Federalism Cooperation
The provisions of the Executive Order of January 17, 1873, as amended, prohibiting, with certain exceptions, officers and employees of the United States from holding any office under any state, territorial, or municipal government, are hereby waived as to Douglas Armstrong…
Franklin D. Roosevelt High School • 1m
EO 7647 Jun 28, 1937
⚖️✨ Zone 2 (Zone of Twilight) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 7647—Withdrawal of Public Land for Use as a Rifle Range Under the Supervision of the War Department
📜 Art. II §2: Commander-in-Chief Supervisory Authority
Executive Order No. 6910 of November 26, 1934, as amended, temporarily withdrawing all public lands in certain states for classification and other purposes, is hereby revoked in so far as it affects the following-described tracts of land in Idaho: BOISE MERIDIAN T. 2 N., R. 2…
Franklin D. Roosevelt High School • 1m
EO 7646 Jun 28, 1937
🏛️✅ Zone 1 (Maximum Authority) Constitutional Neutral
Executive Order 7646—Exemption of Hoffman Philip From Compulsory Retirement for Age
📜 10th Amend: Intergovernmental Federalism Cooperation
Exempt Hoffman Philip from the provisions thereof and continue him in the service for such time as may be deemed necessary not beyond the close of business October 31, 1937.
Franklin D. Roosevelt Post-Graduate Legal • 1m
📜
Scholarly & Legal Citations
Exec. Order No. 7650 (July 1, 1937), https://executiveordersarchive.org/orders/app-executive-order-7650-establishing-moosehorn-migratory-bird-refuge.
