The public will perceive ...
The Times, 1824-01-09T00:00:00

IThe public willperceive by our-rep9it of the late trj, at Hertford, that- the presiding Judge ',ijn rejo- e, n those who had published the antecedent proceedinA 0f the cas, as impediing :he course of justice, filling.j&,4il-u6, lic,. iodl withb prejudict.,.and irjuring the deiXenefe tepri- sbaersm We are sorry torevert to the.topc, an iI do i. hriely;. His Lord,ljjii sid. " Mueh,-o.. r much, as been " pUbWshed.oitbihsjsubjeo nd I t "statementis of evidenoe as' I am informed hive appeared " zarding ti5is c .are. calculated to. corrupt justice in its verysource. -If- tw ar'e not checked irnmediaitel by' *":authority,- J, for coe, shill trcmble.k the7 constjtu- tw of ik8 con7idry:' Indeed, -my Lord, "you, for 'one, should tremble~ for the constitution of the country," if statements' of 'evidence giveti in open coirts are suffered to bejuited7 andl made . known to ihose who happen. not tobe .present in tiose couris ! We, in truths are of so differeni an opition, that we should tremble muhe Inore for the ronstitation of'the country,-which con- stitution recptires and enjoins publicity in all its aets,-if it. were to become the law. and practice of the country to carry on any judicial proceedings or legal inves- tigations occuldy; and the fact upon this point is, that the cheeking. by authority the printing an'd circulating of that which is already pjihished in our courts, is a thing abso- lutely impossible without the total destruction of the con- stitution. We beg learned persons to consider maturely thepopinions which they promulgate, and to avoid sending forth hasty andm crude notions upon points of the highest im- portance,andnotntrictly within theprovince of theirjurisdic- tion. How can such practices as those so frequently stigma- tized of late be checkedby authority-at least by rational au- thority? We sbouldbe gla(lif the thingcouldlbedone, merely toallayunfodnided coniplaintson.the slabject. Shall the Judge or presiding officer be allowed to dedare what part of those proceedings of wbich' he has the. direction shall be made known, beyond the court in which he sits? Or shall a public censor be appointed in every court,' with the power of prescribinghowi much of the proccedings shall be made known and how much concealed? Or shall the entrance into courts be entirely prohibited, except to tne officers employed? We confess we see no other method but one of these for graduating or regulating publication accord- ing to the taste and wiLl of those wbo are dissatisfied with the present practice: And yet all these measuresivould be alike derogatory to the proud andl self-confident character of our courts of justice, and, repugnant to the institutions of a free peoile. Men forget, surely, that the. public prints are already ammnable to law for wilfu31 misrepresefitations, or even unintentional mistakes. What more would they have ? Now, the r'al truth of the matter, with respect to.: the proceedings just terminated at liertford, notwithstanding the declamations on the subject, is_tlhat there ne.ver was an occasion wherein the previous publications were more in- noxious; and we would assume the statement of the learned and amiable Judge -himself as a' proof of the truth of this assertion: 'for his Lordship said, that he was as fully satisfied of the guilt of ThurteU "as if be had seen him commit-the crime withhis mortal eyes." And there is no iloubt,.-but that every other man who has attended to the rvidence:hasthesame conviction. What harm, then, could be done. tosuigh,a man, by the gradual publication of the investigation, asitudok place before other persons? And had his guilt been less certain,the favourable circumstances would.nodouln have- comQ tdligbt, along with those of a criiina4ingriature. Ho,EV&4itrs most e*ar that in the legal sense of the word, the 60iblication is not by the jour- nals, but by the official autiwtljiies of 'the' contry-the Coroner sad Magistratqs,I it rr courtsor:offices. Can a man or ajournal be said to.#iilish that which-- has been cried by,the.hellman> anul ,the proclamations of this worthy- herald usally. ma :igkown. their subject to fewer listeners. than are to be foqIsdPattending to the first exa- minationof prisoners eharoel ith atrocious offences.