29 July 1806

Scotch Reform

Facienda

Jury

5. No Jury at first

6. Jury on Appeal

5. No Jury in the first instance except in particular cases - and those chiefly criminal ones: capital and next to capital.

6. Appeal to Jury in all cases, except particular exceptions and except where the appeal being on matter of law goes to the Metropolitan Court sitting without a Jury.

These two provisions being /in/ intimately connected, are brought to view together.

The life of the constitution depends upon Juries: but it is not in the way of [...?], but only in the way of medicine that they are /so much as really/ of use. Duped by lawyers, Englishmen and through them Scotchmen have been led to consider the institution rather as an end itself /being itself and end/, than as a means to an end. Trial by Jury is Trial with Lawyers.

In[?] the passion for Juries the nature of the great majority of causes is compleatly overlooked and the interests of the great majority of people are /as/ compleatly sacrificed. In a Court of Conscience the parties once met in Court a cause occupies upon an average no more than a few minutes. Demand, denial defence investigation of the matters of fact are all gone through at the same time. But before the matter can be or at least ever has been brought before a Jury, a deal of unnecessary time and labour a deal of unnecessary expense has been consumed. Compleatly unable to bear the expense of Trial by Jury, the Great majority of the people have been as compleatly excluded from the benefit of Justice. But the object of judicature having /ever[?] hitherto/ been plunder not justice, those alone who possess plunderable matter in sufficient quantity, have ever been considered as having any claim to justice.