FEDERALIST, the name of an early political party in the United States. After the acknowledgment of the inde pendence of the 13 colonies by the mother country, the first task that confronted the successful revolutionists was the erection of a government and the formu lation of a constitution. When the delib erative body on whom devolved this duty met, it was discovered that there were various sentiments entertained by its members, these differences of opinion aligning themselves on opposite sides of the great question of organic union. One faction favored the erection of a nation with more or less absence of independ ence of its constituent members, while the other urged a federation of sovereign states, each one of which should retain its autonomy, and not be amenable to the general government any further than it by actual cession gave that government authority. Those favoring a strong or na tional organic union were called Federal ists, and numbered in their ranks such men as George Washington, Alexander Hamilton, and others, while those favor ing the sovereignty of the States were called Republicans, among them being Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and others equally distinguished. The Repub licans in this contest were victorious. Later in the history of the country the Federalists became known as Whigs, while the Republicans were called Demo crats.
FEE, a reward, compensation, or re turn for services rendered. It is espe cially applied to the money paid to pro fessional men for their services; as, a lawyer's fees, marriage fees, etc.
In feudal law, fee applied to all lands and tenements which were held by any acknowledgment of superiority to a high er lord; land held by the benefit of an other, and in name whereof the grantee owed services or paid rent, or both, to a superior lord.
In American and English law, a free hold estate of inheritance, descendable to heirs general, and liable to alienation at the pleasure of the proprietor. (1) A tenant in fee-simple (also called fee absolute) is one who has lands, tene ments, or hereditaments, to hold to him and his heirs forever; generally abso lutely and simply; without mentioning what heirs, but referring that to his own pleasure or to the disposition of the law. This is property in its highest degree. (2) Limited fees, or such estates of in heritance as are clogged with conditions, are of two sorts: qualified, or base fees; and fees conditional, so called at the com mon law; and afterward fees-tail, in con sequence of the statute de donis (con cerning gifts).
(a) A base, or qualified, fee is such a one as has a qualification subjoined thereto, and which must be determined whenever the qualification annexed to it is at an end.
(b) A conditional fee, at the common law, was a fee restrained to some par ticular heirs, exclusive of others; as to the heirs of a man's body, by which only his lineal descendants were admitted in exclusion of collateral heirs; or to the heirs male of his body, in exclusion both of collaterals, and lineal females also.