The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1851-10-02
BENTHAMS BOOB OF PALACES.


that by those who in some former period
exercised the same power regulation was
made. having for its object to preclude forever,
or to the end of an unexpired period, all sue
ceedng Legislators from enacting law to any
such effect as that now proposed.
Now it appears quite evident that, at every
period of time, every Legislature must be
endowed with all those powers which the
exigency of the times may require and any
attempt to infringe on this power is nadmiss-
bic and absurd The sovereign power, at any
one period, can only form a blind guess at the
measures which may be necessary for any fu-
ture period But by this principle Of immutable
laws. the government is transferred from those
who are necessarily the best judges OF what
thew want to others who can know little or
nothing about the matter. The thirteenth
century decides for the fourteenth. The four
tenth makes laws for the fifteenth. The
fifteenth Theoretically seals up the sixteenth,
which tyrannzes over the seventeenth, which
again tells the eighteenth how it is to act I'M
der circumstances which cannot be foreseen.
and how it is to conduct itself In eXgencles
which no human wit can anticipate.
Men who have a century more of experience to
ground their judgments on, surrender their intellect
TO men who had century less experience, and who,
unless that deficiency constitutes claim, have no
claim to preference, IL the prior generation were in
respect of intellectual qualification ever much su-
perior to the subsequent generatonif it understood
so much better than the subsequent generation itself
the interest Of that subsequent generationcouid it
have been in equal degree anxious to promote that
interest and consequently equally attentive to those
facts with ch-though in order to form judgment
il ought have been it is impossible 1t should have
been acquainted In word will its love for that
subsequent generation DO quite so great as that same
| generation love for itself!
Not even here, after moments deliberate rcfec-
/ ton will the assertion be in the Affirmative, And yet
| it is their prodQious anxiety for the welfare OF their
pQsterity that produces the propensity OF he
10 tie Pn the hands of this same posterity forever
moretO act guardians 10 its 1ci pctual nno u
rable weakness and take its conduct forever out OF
! its own hands.
e" II il be right that the conduct Of the nineteenth
century should bo determined not by its own Judg-
ment but by that of the eighteenth, it will be equal
" right that the conduct of the twentieth century
| should be determined not by its own judgment but
by that of the nineteenth. And if the same principle
| were still pursued, what at length would be the con-
| sequence That in process OF time the practice Of
legislation would be at an end The conduct and fate
of all men would be determined by those who neither
knew nor cared anything about the matter and the
aggregate body of tho Living would remain forever in
subsection to memorable tyranny, exercised RS 1t
were by the aggregate body of the Dead '-fp $3.50
The despotsm, rs Mr. Bentham well observes,
of Nero or Caligula, would be more tolera-
BILE than an irIerOcdbie lar. The despot,
through fear or favor, or in lucid interval,
might relcnt: but how are the Parliament, who
made the Scotch Union, for example, to be
awakened from that dust in which they repOse-
the jobber and the patriot the speaker and
the doorkeeper, the silent voters, and the men
of rich misunderstanding and cutivators,
Earrings and beggars-making irrevocable laws
e. H., -. bnut x.-ttl
spades, and use the relics of these legislators to
give breath to broccoli, and to aid the yernal
eruption of asparagus!
If the law is good, it will support itself; if
bad it should not be supported by the irrerOca-
BILE Meoru which is never resortcd to but as the
veil of abuses All living men must possess the
supreme power over their own happiness at
every particular period TO suppose that there
is anything which n whole nation cannot do,
which they deem to he essential to their happ- |
ness, and that they cannot do it. because
another generation, long ago dead and gone,
said it must not be done, is mere nonsense.
While you are captain of the vessel, do what
you please; but the moment you quit the
ship, | become as omnipotent as you. You
may leave me as much advice as you please,
but you cannot leave me commands; though,
in fact, this is the only meaning which can be
applied to what are called rroyOcable laws.
1t appeared to the legislature for the time be-
ing to be of immense importance to make such
and such q law. Great good was gained, or
great evil avoided, by enactng it. Pause before
you alter an institution which has been deemed
to be Of so much Importance This is prudence
and common sense; the rest is the exaggera-
ton of FOOLS OF the artifice of knaves, who eat
up fools What endless nonsense has been
talked of our navigation laws What wealth
has been sacrificed to either before they were
repealed How impossible it appeared to Moo
dledom to repeal them. They were considered
of the irrevocable class--a kind oflaw over which
the dead only were omnipotent, and the living
had no power. Frost, il is true, cannot be put
off by act of Parliament, nor can Spring be
accelerated by any majority Of both Houses,
1t il, however, quite mistake to suppose that
any alteration of any of the Articles Of Union
is AZ much out of the jurisdiction Of Parliament,
as these meteorological changes. In every
year, and every day of that year, living men
have right 10 make their own laws and
manage their own affairs to break through
the tyranny of the ante-spirants-th people
who breathed before them, and to do what
they please for themselves. Such supreme
power cannot indeed be well exercised by the
people at large; it must be exercised therefore
by the delegates or Parliament whom the
people choose and such Parliament disregard
ing the superstitious reverence for irrerOcabte
lars, can have no other criterion of wrong and
right than that Of public utility,
When law is considered as immutablc and
the immutable law happens at the same time
to I've too foolish and mischeyous to be endured,
instead of being repealed, it is clandestinely
evaded or openly violated, and thus the author.
ty of all law is weakened
Where nation has been anoestoraly bound
| by foolish and improvident treaties ample
notice must be given of their termination.
Where the State has made ill.advised grants,
or rash bargains with individuals it is necessa-
ry to grant proper compensation The most
difficult case, certainly, is that of the union of
nations where a smaller number of the weaker
nation is admitted into the larger senate of the
greater nation, and will be overpowered if the
question comes 10 II vote; but the lesser ma
ton must run this risk Ii il not probable
that any violation of articles will take place,
till they are absolutely called for by extreme
necessity. But let the danger be what il may.
no danger Is 80 great no supposition so foolish,
as to cnsider any human law as irrevocabie.
The shifting attitude of human affairs would
often render such a condition an intolerable
evil To all parties The absurd jealousy of our
oountrymen ut the Union, secured heritable
jurisdiction to the owners nine-and-thirty
years afterwards they were abolished, in the
very teeth Of the Act of Union, and to the
evident promotion of the public good
MECHANISM XVII