29 Dec r 1806

Scotch Reform

To L d Grenville

Omissa

3. Pleadings

Besides action reported criminal, the defence of not guilty applies in common to those actions or demands each of very wide extent. Trespass, Trove and Ejectment. Trespass (transgression), is [...?...?] giving no information at all (for are we not all transgressers?). Troves giving information which is almost always false - Ejectment, giving information which is commonly false, and amounts to nothing when it happens to be true: trespass for all its sorts of purposes not included in the other denominations: Troves for the purpose of trying title to things moveable: Ejectment for the purpose of trying title to things immoveable.

Add to these [...?] facit[?] vextum[?] he committed no such waste[?] - made /[...?]/ a distinct sort of General Issue from not guilty - as if there were no guilt in committing waste: and[?] not[?] [...?] - and not[?] [...?] - he committed no such wrong - he committed no such [...?]: as if there were no guilt in committing wrong of any sort or at least of that sort; and as if the guilt which there was in turning a man out of an estate which should have been his for a limited number of years, and[?] as soon as the number of such years swelled to such a degree /beyond all limits/ as to be [...?]: for such is the difference between ejectment and [...?], in so far as confusion so thick can be [...?] in /receive clearness from/ so few words.

These are all the General Issues in Gilbert (on evidence) and even[?] there are more than are in use.