059-212.xml

Title: [18 May 1805 Evidence Introd]

Description: 18 May 1805

Evidence

Introd.

It is evident that when the suit is thus ill-grounded, whether its groundlessness be or not present to the demandant's mind - in other words whether it be or not on his part a mala fide suit, makes, with reference to the vexation and expence inflicted by it on the defendant, little or no difference. The mischief of the first order is therefore not encreased, not affected, by the absence or presence of this mala fides - of this criminal consciousness, of mala fides. Nor to the mischief of the 2d order: the danger and the alarm liable to issue from that source. That suits accompanied with this circumstance should exist in multitudes is a state of things, which it will be seen can not take place without some flagrant and radical defect in the texture of the law to wit /more especially if not exclusively/ in the system of procedure. In the constitution /-----/ of this system there is a somewhat or other /exists by the supposition --- --------/ which affords to the wrongdoer an assurance of success, even to him who in his own mind is conscious of being so. This is as much as to say which affords to him who has an interest in so doing a means, in appearance at least sufficiently assured, of contravening for his own advantage - of contravening in an indefinite number of instances one or other of the ends /the principal ends/ of justice: the demandant, where the mala fides is on his side, the defendant, where it is /exists/ on the side and part of the defendant.

JB_096_296_001.xml

Title: [SUBSCRIPTION The opposition of a few]

Description: SUBSCRIPTION

The opposition of a few well intentioned but mistaken men has only

served had no other effect than to serve as a foil to others who

to intentions equally laudable join add superior wisdom

Secreted corrupters of Youth

extort a formal surrender of their judgments to be returned to them

debilitated by the foul taint of Servitude. It is presumption, to

decide peremptorily on points of that sublime and incomprehensible nature:

it is something more than presumption to force a decision upon others under

the alternative of being deprived of the common rights of subjects.

Citizens.

It is a weakness to believe that the welfare of mankind is connected more with

their unity in those points than with their dissention, when it

is peaceable: To cry out subversion of the national religion &c as

if a child were to cry at not being permitted to kill an Animal at which it

had taken disgust. is just as if the Inquisitors Inquest were to

cry out complain of the loss of their liberties if the liberty of

roasting alive their fellow subjects were taken from them. now the

way & the only certain way to have it peaceable is to have it free.

While the business of subscription is yet to do, then it means nothing but a bare acquiescence

under the doctrine without it's being necessary to

approve of assent to it.

this is

paper in the Ledger for April 8 th 1772

said then to be circulating in Oxford

no sooner is it done, but the note is changed, then to

enquire is presumption & to depart, apostacy.

— [like enticing narciatic Nuns into

convents.] while --- every thing is smooth & pleasant

There are a few considerations, [which are] nothing new in substance,

& which yet must be repeated,

so simple and inclusive,

their minds with the ideas of the making their heads giddy

by snuffing up the sounds Faith Church Religion. -

as the

Savages

of by snuffing up [an powder] as to furnish an

answer by anticipation to whatever has been written. & to

whatever shall be written for the benefit of the

trunk-makers of the next or any future generation, in

favor of the propriety of bringing in penal sanctions

temporal securities in aid of the belief of all mysteries, both of

such as are where they have been found, and as have been

found when there are none. The only method & universal

expedient that men have recourse to calm the loathings of Judgment

& deaden the pangs of conscience is by turning their thoughts

utterly from the subject, [by gasping for all arguments for it &

repelling all arguments against it] as men shut their eyes & stop

their noses when

swallowing an unsavory & disgusting potion.

1 st

and which for this purpose is with all the rest That it signifies

nothing whether improving of utility they are believed or no -

[The business on those points is not to have this or that

opinion, but to have none at all. — Never did the divine Author

of our Religion command us to have any opinion about the matter —

never did his Apostles recommend — Never did any good come from

having any — having has come as the Blood of Myriads can

[ bear witness. 2 d That there is no merit in believing them 3 dly That if they are true they will be believed of

themselves If they would prevail upon themselves to abstain from

indiction, not a prayer nor a voice not

would be lifted up by the Lusty without Doors — [these are no

Sacheverel times - nothing but a little political Sacheverelism upon

occasion which if not turned too far has it's use.]

They much mistake — The eagerness of the Lusty to bear their yoke

by no means corresponds to theirs to keep it on them. 4 thly If the believing them at all gave gives

fastning belief paying on them did at all give

merit, just so much as was

is bestowed on consequence of belief of human Sanctions

Laws

give gives none.

It owns that Rev'd Divine [Remains] with all his high opinion of the

self-sufficiency Grace of God, does not think it [strong

enough] to be trusted without a good stout Penal Statue or two to back

it. The only way sure method for people to keep themselves

from disbelieving, is to think nothing about the matter: to fill their

heads with tremendous Ideas of the ------------- & this is the

method by 99 out of 100 of those who pass for believers: but those who

have the same kind of opinion of the aftermath, as that

which on the negative side is called disbelief are not to those who

disbelieve as one to 100

When Elizabeth came to the Throne, & Catholics were no longer to make

fires of that sort of Fuel they were most fond of, that very

circumstance, exclusive of the restraints to which they were subjected in

their Turn, caused them a very sensible workpractise: It was doubtless an

encroachment on their liberty & their rights & yet I

believe this will not now be thought a [conclusion] reason why that

amusement should not have been put a stop to. against a stop's being put to

that amusement To a wolf, who should have a Lamb snatched out of

his mouth, no doubt it would be a cruel disappointment: and yet, this I

believe, has never been thought of, at least in a Society of Lambs, as

conclusive against the not taking every measure that can be thought of for

that purpose — The reason

are, (in the former case) (for I have no other) That

The Patient felt more anguish, than the agent did satisfaction by the action,

even at the time: & therefore came 1 st at the time there was a clear quantity of happiness lost in

the affair: 2 nd that the Agent must in

the as well as the party of the patient, must in the course of

things at the long run be exposed find himself to fire - a superior

unhappiness by the consequences of

giving one indulgence to such a passion.

JB_096_343_001.xml

Title: [p. 58 of the Translation The learned]

Description: p. 58 of the Translation

The learned whom I have consulted upon

this passage, are in doubt whether to consider

it as a prophecy of the anticipative

kind, or as an allusion to a point phenomenon

then known of knowledge then . in vogue familiar The first of these two sense certainty convenience has it's (for as to truth in matters of the mankind as all know that is neither here nor there) a ray thus brilliant can not fail of throwing fresh additional lustre on the prophetic mouth which characterises adorns that work. For all this I am

totibus manibus I am inclined

to the latter opinion; especially as it will

be afford a valuable addition and confirmation

to the notions of an ingenious modern

divine, who seeing how stubborn and

unruly human reason grows

from the new and substantial acquisitions aliment it is every day

making acquiring in the treasury storehouse of things

has hit upon a new scheme for sending

it an end-gathering for wool-gathering after words.

a believer in favour of the latter: for the

same sort of reason for which so many

charitable and enlighten'd persons are certain

that all good men that ever were till

within these 1800 years are to God eternally.

In plain english [if unless people are

not incorrigibly stupid and perverse], if the world takes

it in this sense, I shall get money by it: To substitute what is called Scholarship for Knowledge.

[if a certain reverend Donegyrist of antiquity

has written to any purpose, every one

who means to improve himself in Electricity

will] buy my book and get it by heart.

it will be inexcusible in a person who means to know any thing of Electricity, not to

read him all of them through from beginning to end,

(though you find nothing but confusion as

you go on,) read all of them and then you'll know.

I wait impatiently am all impatience to see this invaluable

passage make its triumphant entry into

the next edition of that work.

Every body knows the ingenious divine

who has shewn how much better a way

it is of improving one's self in the sciences

that have been created or within

these two or three hundred years to read Greek

and Latin than to consult our senses or those

who have consulted theirs

Accordingly as Electricity is spoken of in

more positive much more clearer terms than any useful invention

forms of knowledge (which all the world did not acknowledge

as well as this author to have been handed down from them) is

spoken of in any of the ancients whom

he has been at the pains to cite my humble

advice to gentlemen is, not to lose time in grinding drudging

with at a machine, but to buy this book

of mine and get it by heart; a thing that I am certainly no more interested in in all which I have no

more greater interest than a man who has thrown

away his life time in reading nonsense gibberish

in Greek and Latin has in persuading others

to drudge behind him in the same line.

who after having poked out from many waggon loads of rubbish a few grains of

somthing glistering [like gold] points to the

rubbish he has ransacked and cries; there

Gentlemen is where you must dig if you

would grow rich.+ + Dutens Recherches II p. 255 313. who after a life thrown away in study, spent in study if nonsense in Greek and Latin be nothing is nobody: who has just discernment enough to see this, tho' he had not enough to lead him into that course of real knowledge.

I honour him for the idea

Tis whether it was designed or no one of the best imagined most effective and subtlest attacks

that has been are made upon reason: which might have render'd this artifice unnecessary. who accordingly after it is too

late of in the day, to think of preaching

downright ignorance; there is no means left of

keeping mankind from knowing, but by

somthing which carries the face wears the guise of knowledge.

If Locke for example has traced out on a luculent & well-compacted

system the original of our ideas

do not study it in that system, but in a

few scraps of a few ancient authors, which

nobody could find either use or meaning for

till Locke published his book, but which

have since been found to be capable of

having a meaning given them somwhat

approaching to somthing said by him.

moreover as you cannot say how many

more such scraps there may be contained in

any given ancient author that you have not read

Dutens.