GOVERNMENT, LAWS, 



never could have taken place ; for, the wasters of that money 

 would have been so exposed as to be unable to live under the 

 odium which the exposure would have occasioned ; and, if the 

 parliament had not checked the waste and punished the wasters, 

 the public indignation would have destroyed the parliament. 

 But, with a muzzled press, the wasters proceeded with the 

 consciousness of impunity. Say to any individual man when he 

 is 20 years of age : &quot; You shall do just what you please with all 

 &quot; the money of other people that you can, by any means, all your 

 &quot; life long, get into your hands, and no one shall ever be permitted 

 &quot; to make you accountable, or even to write or speak a word 

 &quot; against you for any act of fraud, oppression, or waste.&quot; Should 

 you expect such an individual to act honestly and wisely ? Yet, 

 this, in fact, is what a Boroughmonger Parliament and the new 

 Law of Libel say to every set of Ministers. 



420. Before I quit this subject of Libel, let me observe, however, 

 that no juryman, even as the law now stands in England, is in 

 conscience bound to find any man guilty on a charge of criminal 

 libel, unless the evidence prove that the pretended libeller has been 

 actuated by an evil motive, and unless it be also proved by evidence, 

 that his words, spoken or written, were scandalous and malicious. 

 Unless these things be clearly proved by evidence, the juryman, 

 who finds a man guilty, is a base, perjured villain : and ought to be 

 punished as such. 



421. The State of Connecticut, in her new Constitution, before 

 mentioned, has put this matter of libel on the true footing ; 

 namely ; &quot; In all prosecutions and indictments for libel the 

 &quot; TRUTH may be given in evidence, and the Jury shall have the 

 &quot; right to determine the law and the facts.&quot; Thus, then, common 

 sense has, at last, got the better ; and TRUTH can, in this State, 

 at least, in no case, be a legal crime. But, indeed, the press has 

 NOW no restraint in America, other than that imposed by 

 TRUTH. . Men publish what they please, so long as they do 

 not publish falsehood s : and, even in such cases, they are generally 

 punished by the public contempt. The press is, therefore, taken 

 altogether, what the magistrate always ought to be : &quot; # terror to 

 evil doers, and a reward to those who do zvell.&quot; But, it is not the 

 name of REPUBLIC that secures these, or any other of the 

 blessings of freedom. As gross acts of tyranny may be committed, 

 and as base corruption practised, under that name as under the 

 name of absolute monarchy. And, it becomes the people of 

 America to guard their minds against ever being, in any case, 

 amused with names. It is the fair representation of the people that 

 is the cause of all the good ; and, if this be obtained, I, for my 

 part, will never quarrel with any body about names. 



422. Taxes and Priests : for these always lay on heavily together. 

 On the subject of taxes, I have, perhaps, spoken sufficiently clear 

 before ; but, it is a great subject. I will, on these subjects, address 

 myself more immediately to my old neighbours of Botley, and 



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