Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1824-01-08
FOR THE ENQUIRER
THE WISDOM OF OUR LAWS.


They said that, =" Atalan,e. the nagran more
pnhe ard notorious the crime, the chance 10
cape from punishment"
when the Ath@''aDs planted colony in
The island "f AIalante, a commission of The
MOT learned Legislators Of Athens was sent I,
frame code OF laws for the Atalantpans Ii
was established as II fundamental principl..
that in all civil broils and contentious wherein
force was used by either party, every citizen
should take an active part on one side or the
other, according TO his best judgment of the
lawinlness and justice Of the cause 1t wa.
also made principle, that every citizen accus
ed of crime touching life or liberty, should
be entitled To a fair trial, by impartial Judges,
who had not formed and expressed any opin-
ION upon the case previous to the trial
In the administration of the Tvs, the Alta
lanieans adopted ibose niceties and rel nemenIs
which are supposed to be most common in
free governments. Chrysis their treasurer,
emhezzed The public money, but in such
manner that it could not be clearly proved
upon him. But being removed from his Of
nee, he went over 10 Locris, put himself at
the head of aeet Of Locriap pirates, plum
dtred The coasts of Atalante, and besieged the
city. The infant colony was in the most i'm
InInent danger. Every citizen capable of
hearing arms Joined in the defence Chrysis
landed with a body of his Locrans, penefral-
I'd into the city, and got possession of the
temple of Hercules, from whence, in the sight
and IN the heating, of all the citizens Of Alta
laDte, he proposed To them TO surrender 10
hum IN conditions. They indignantly refused.
He made desperate sally, and was taken pri-
soner.
When Chrysis was brought TO trial for re-
belllon and treason against his country, it was
proved that, when he assaulted the CITY, and
took possession of the temple he was assisted
10y three AtalanteHns who had been expelle d
from public offices, and fined and banished for
mal-admlnlstratIon, and that, in The offer Of
peace which he had made, he had proposed,
as conditions, that he should be made Chief
Archon ofthe city, and that his companions
who had been banshed should be recalled.
and restored TO their Offices Chrvsis then
lnade il y question, Tor what orr lawyers call
+" point'') with The Judges, whether the az
fair Ia which he had been engaged was not A" !,
civil broil and contention" The Judges de-
| cided that IL was. He then cuuuircd, wIlpth-
or the Judges themselves had DOT been ergag-
I'd. on one side or The other, according to the
/ duty prescribed by the constitution to every
citizen. 1t was admitted, that all the Judge
| he'd fought against him in the battle in which
he had been defeated. lie then plead. tina,
the Judges must have formedn substantial opi-
Mon vi his guilt before they took their SIDE IN
the contest and that they could not have
expressed their opinions more clearly and
strongly thau by Sighting against him auC
therefore the judges were not impartial. anC
we're not competent to st ON his triad Thi
point was also decided iD lis favor. An an
peal might have been taken to the ASSEMBLE,
of the people hut il was manifest that = smfn
cieni nuniber Of citizens tn compose an a.
senbly could not be- found who had not. b'
word or deed, disqualified themselves fron
acting as bis Judges. lie was therefore dis