date

30 March 1805 Evidence Ch.
30 March 1805

Evidence

Ch. English Summary

''.3. Courts Martial

III Summary Procedure - N o 3. Procedure as in Courts Martial.

Land Military and Naval -

In the mode of enquiry pursued in these Courts there is not much to distinguish from the work pursued in the two preceding instances: but what there is is to its advantage.

In the Courts of Conscience or Requests, the evidence is not committed to writing: by accident, yes: but to do so, is not to any particular matter of express duty. In Courts Martial the evidence is constantly committed to writing: to execute this important task, is the duty /business/ of the presiding Judge, whose title - (importing a strange cause[?] of incompatible functions /duties/ as) Judge Advocate.

In the Courts constituted by Justices of Peace acting singly or in number out of Sessions, the mode of enquiry is, liable to be more or less obstructed by the technical rules of evidence. Why? because in one way or another in the way of non-penal revision, or on the occasion of a penal charge, the conduct of these subordinate magistrates is liable to be called in question by their learned superiors in the Kings Bench, by whom it will be judged of by those pernicious rules. The proceedings of Courts Martial not being in either way subject to be called in question in the King's Bench, justice in those Courts is not blasted by the baneful influence of those rules.
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     Ordo. Summary not like[?][...?] Regular? its excellence consisting in exception from its defects of the Regular.

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    The composition of these Courts - the number and quality of the Judges - are nothing /points altogether foreign/ to the present purpose. They will be considered in their place By defects in relation to these points, the institutions instead of being beneficial in the degree [...?] by experience, might be bad upon the whole, and the superior excellence of the System /mode/ of procedure pursued in them remain not the less [...?].

    The [...?] so conspicuous in the constitution of these courts in respect of the non-creation of that mass of factitious delay vexation and expence which is no more conducive to justice in one sort of court than in another is another feature, which important as it is belongs not to the present purpose.

    Of the arrangements observed /pursued/ in these Courts such alone belong to the present purpose /head/ as concern the reception and extraction of testimony.

    On this ground all that prodigious /monstrous/ mass of injustice which has been produced /had its origin /existence// by the sinister interests and prejudices of lawyers /men of law/ being excluded along with its authors /creators/ - all factitious /fictitious justice and/ injustice having been shut out, pure and natural justice, the offspring of common sense, takes place /its seat/ /chair/ of course. without effort, and as a matter of course.
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    When perfection is /no name is/ spoken of, at least as being the result of human agency, then the mind[?] prepares itself of course for a journey to the region of non-entities: it looks to /for/ /figures to itself/ a state of things which either never existed at all, or has long ceased to exist, and at any rate neither will nor can exist in time future: [...?] the golden age, the age where Man received life, from the work of Prometheus, from the song of [...?] as from the chisel of [...?]/

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    ( ) viz: Rules 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17