26 Jan y 1808

Codification Jury Trial

Jury Trial

Cutting

For further illustration, and to take /find/ a case belonging to statute law, from civil judicature pass on to criminal and instead of sale and selling , let the words be cut and cutting. A law is made /created/, requiring of the Judge to put to death whosoever /every man that/ with certain evil intentions therein described, shall have been found guilty of cutting one[?] body of another: a law proposed and enacted doubtless in this view, that a man /men/ by whom but for this mischief of that description might have been perpetrated, may by the fear of the law be deterred from it. The men in whom this wicked habit[?] had been observed, which wicked habit it were the object /design/ of the law to put an end to, were habitual thieves /depredators/, a class composed of the most illiterate and ignorant among the people. What always has been and so long as the rule[?] of action in respect of cognisibility continues in its present state, always will be not only possible but altogether probable in that without having known of its existence, men may in any number come to be put to death for having offended against the law. What neither has been nor ever will be possible is, that by this or by any her law "men's conduct should be influenced any further than on the existence of a law to that effect as well as the import of that law has been brought within his knowledge.

/it had in any misconduct[?] any/