The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1820-07-15 00:00:00

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(pseuds, taktn the? very sot
and try the 120111 Geo. 11. the pronpuons of it were
itrictly.entifitied to the object*. expreised in it.
' Here :MO; was shelves the utmost limits to which
tinter' provisions wnold.go in care* lake the present.
Couneel midst be *flowed the occulted. to aonsi
she exeminutinteebewit as to law aod fact ; hut when
the statute or William passed, was it a general
priogiplet of the criminal law, to furnish a iipt of wit.
nesirs or not ? The high treinson law throw** sit
eZrzePtion fiOnt the getters' rule of law. He had
acknowledged the seem experience of the ;Noble
'and .I,errited 1..0i5l to criminal lap.. Ile would,
put
suite qusitiou to : lon, upon his answer to
olkielt •lie wou)de trust. the dectsioti of the Ergo.,
instet,li %V bet would become of tlueadministrstion
of lusiiie iin civil end criminal law if the prow color
*ere coniprllerl before hand to loutish a but or wit!
Atesses to, the ((Irrigation ? Nu one knew better
that the Noble arid Learned Lord ~ what
snorer' tits_ give to suele a .question ; yet if
'an pr.ilicii,te write applicable, why uut extend
jib all accusatiops whatever ? Why, simply,
betrause it was felt not to be of .safe application.
tsesides, their Loid.f.iits had the opportunity of
, eying time, if the defence should be found to re-
quire it, and in the mean time preserve the general
interests of justice with respect to general ac-
Orsatilsits.' It had been raid that there .were
particular circumstances in the case which re-
..
quired 'manipulate indulgence. But what were
'they ? How could they make an exception
here with sefety to the general interests of justice ?
Tlie Milan Cammissiusi had been 'Wrested to,
but lie did not 'weep to say any thing about it:
his Noble and Learned Friend would not deity that
an ex pUrte examination might be useful in parti-
Cuter cases. Theo as to constitutional principles,
did it not belong to them to adhere as closely
as possible to their finictions, and abide by the usual
proctice of Parli.unent ? But the case was said
to contain allegations with respect to one iiiili-
tricloal. without distinguithing time or place. Now
the 13tH set out a series of acts committed at such
and such particular time., and one of its 'id-
Hoaxes, in point of clearness was, that it had
reference to acts committed by that one individual,
*hose name and description were specifically given.
Thee question theta fur their Lordships would be,
would they sacrifice that principle which pervaded
the general ademitistration of justice, sod introduce
on anomalous practice into the proceedings of Par-
liament ? or would they maintain those great coven.
foil principles of law which had directed the coun-
try from remote time ? Ile was compelled by duty
and conscience, and by the teeth% interests of jus-
tice, to negative the motion.
The Marquis of Lastsoostete wished to Motion
the House to be more scrupulous as to the preserva-
tion of the substantial part of justice than its mere
form and colouring. Ile complimented the elo-
quent and able speech of his Noble and Learned
Friend in bringing forward the motion ; he felt
pride in considering that the motion itself had been
brought forward from an inducement furnished
by him in a discussion on a previous night.
Ile felt and hoped. that the giving the
list of witnesses would be considered as an
met of justice to both the illustrious parties.
He believed there was no party in the State which
could feel a desire to encumber the defence of the
Queen by any difficulties which could he avoided.
Ile was sorry that any attempt should have been
made at so late a period to settle the merits of the
question by precedent, especially after Minister, had
required them to abstain from searching for them.
But after putting to sea without any such reference,
it was more than he could have expected, tow these
saute Nliiiisters preparing to guide them by those
very landmarks they had before taught the House
to consider as wholly insignificant and unworthy of
notice. Their Lordships should recollect the great
importance of the functions they were now about to
be called noon to exercise. It' there were, indeed, a
course of precedents to Klink them—if there was
any fountain or stream of precedent working itself
clear in its course. enriching Itself as it flowed on.
then, undoubtedly, he should recommend it to
their Lordships to proceed as they had hitherto
proceeded, and fortify themselves with the low of
precedent* they had set. But when they looked
back upon past times, and could find no such
clear stream of justice—when their retrospect ouly
led them to die contemplation of mingled acts, some
of which were unjust, and others only justifiable un-
der their peculiar and extraordinary situation at the
time, how could it be said they had the fight of
Kecedeut to guide them, when in fact they had Ito
such ilium as precedent in the cart ? Were they to
be told to adhere to rule where no rule could be
collected ? Writ they to hr told so, too, where their
proceeding was an except to all rule, and odor-
tified by any precedent ? The way in which all the
writers on legislation treated the subject uf Bills of
Patios and Penalties, was certainly very different
from that in which it had been treated by the No.
ble and Learned Lord MI the Woolsack. They slid
nut justify them upon aity precedent of law, but,
on the con ~ as extreme cases, in which no law
existed its applicable to remelt the point. Mr. Jus-
tice 1111.1CkliOJW, that eminent expounder 01 law
and reducer of it to rule, wherever it w.s capable
of being Ms reduced, when speaking of Bills of
Pains and Pentritiee, truly observes, that they are
referable to no law whatever, that they are subject
to no taw, that they are pro re thaw flow therm, was
any principle of law applicable to them ? Where
in all the ponderous voidance under which the
shelves of their law students groaned, was the vo-
lume of a siticle commentator to be found who laid
clown a consista;it role fur the guidance of Bill* of
Prins and Penalties ? Was there an attempt to re-
duce that system to rule. even iii this age of book-
mokiii. ? And for int obvious reason—because it
was felt that no rule could be laid down fur cases
so rare and peculiar in their 'Wargo. It would Ire
Ijust as reagoneble to expect the astronomer to des
scribe by siontipation the path in their system which
a comet Would elite year tress, es to expect from