The Massachusetts spy. [volume] (Boston [Mass.]) 1770-1772, 1772-02-20
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practice has been IN lone cafes 10 oePa''
from it, and this practice has even been eta"
blilhed by (ome acts of parliament. MIS-
however proves nothing, but that iuch pISc'
tice is difgrace to our laws, and that iucn
acts ought to be repealed. he high com
miAicned and ar-chanber courts were eta
bhlhed by acts Of parliament were they the
le(s unconstitutional as the Iult OF unbound
ed power has begun to teiter in the hearts OF
our former kogs, or as the love OF liberty has
abated in the hearts of the people, bad Prac-
tees have prevailed, land even bad laws have
been enacted but when cur kings have
been better inRruaed, and our anceitoTs
have routed themleIves from their lethargy,
the(e PRACTICES and thele laws have been torn
Nd by the :oots, and have often with the re-
peal brought ruin on the adviers and dcIen-
ders of them And when the time HAL
come. that laws of this fort ihal be thought
more (acred than the contribution, and that
we fhall patiently ly down bound with tet'
tiers of our own forging or that Tome future
king, whole heart may not, like that OF his
preient MajeRy, be animated by the love of
his people, but burning with the deilTe OF ar
bitrary power, infead of attending to the
complaints of mis- iubjecs, when ;hey lutfer
prehaps from legal oppreHion, fhall hFaln
she cords tight, and triangle the contribution
BY means of the laws, there will be an end OF
all contribution and all law, but the will OF the
monarch and the facred fame of liberty
WILDE fmoihered by the heaping on OF its own
fuel. All informations ex s6fci0, all iummay
proceedings before jultces of the peace, tend
TO this. They ihould be expressly forbidden,
inRead of being eRablilhed, as fome them
are, by law. Attachments to anfwer inter
rogateries on oath, by any perion or on any
account, are unconstitutional They are the
abufe of power incident to all courts and all
maeilfrates. That courts and magiitfates
fhould have the power TO attach or commit
any man whatever, who infults or interrupts
them, is highly reafonab'e, it is neceilary
but when the offended is attached, there is
an end of the neceHity, and there fhould be
an end of the extraordinary method of pro-
ceedinp againh him. The ref of the pro-
ce(s againff him fhould be conducted BY the
fame rule of law as for any other offence,
ard by jury, ajury judges of the law, as
well as of the fact, he ihould be acquitted
or condemned, according to the ordlonary
and Reasonable method of proceeding eta
blilhed by our laws, and not by the uncon-
ititutional mode of aniwerng interrogatorles
upon oath, and thereby OF being reduced to the
unnatural neceiity of accuhng himielf. No
thing can be more contrary, not ONLY to the
foirit of our laws, but to the dictates of ma
tural iufice And fhall we fufer the ipirit of
our laws to be offended, and the common
rules of natural iuaice to be violated, for the
pretended fuppor of the dignity of courts
In all proceedings between the king and the
tubieG, even IN the cafe of trealon, the par
~ accufed has right to require the mott ex-
act adherence TO the general laws in con-
duStiug the proiecuton againf him. This
country could never be brought to fubmit to
the ablolute will of the foverrign, and ihall
we (uffer courts TO be ablolute? to invert the
fri principles of law and right ,ealon, where
they themieves are parties Nay, let them
20 ifill higher for nftru6tion, if their pride
look even beyond kings for cafe in ponttO
their dignity and let them recolleet with
reverence be it fpoken) that the almighty
himfeIf has been ple4fed TO modify his inf
mite power in this iefpea with his juaice,
and has permitted his creatures to fay unto
him. &c SEAL net The judge IF all tie earth
do right ?"
The corruption of the bet juices, produ-
ces the f,uieR ulcers. The laws are the
meafure of right and wrong We refer to
them in ali cafes as citizens, and on that re-
ference is founded the fecuriiy of our proper