1820 Octr. 13. Spanish liberticide measures *5 §. 2 Press violation Reasons

against libel law

(a)? Consider on this occasion the two famous tragedies /massacres/ of these

times: the Manchester massacre, and the Cadiz massacre.

In England, not by law but against law the press possesses and has habitually

possessed an imperfect and ever precarious liberty. In Spain, whatsoever liberty

the press may be in possession of, the habit of making use of it and turning it

to account has not been yet formed.

In the case of the Manchester massacre committed by public functionaries on a

peaceable and unarmed multitude composed of men women and children the

particulars and thence the amount of the mischief has been pretty well brought

to light: killed, | |; wounded or otherwise hurt, | | But for such liberty as

the press has not yet been bereft of, not one of these facts nor thence of the

salutary and urgent arguments grounded on them, would have been brought to

light: for by the authors, approvers and rewarders of the butchery, every thing

was done that could be done for suppressing the particulars of it.

In the case of the Cadiz massacre, no facts brought to light but what it suited

the designs of one man to bring to light: perhaps no individual or specific

facts whatsoever. How this matter stands can not on my part in any instance be

at this time be any thing more than matter of inference. If the procedure has

been secret, as in general it is under Rome-bred and thence under Spanish law,

{I regard it as matter of course that} relevant /appropriate/ facts in

multitudes can not but have been buried in darkness, some by fear of evil, some

by hope of good, some in consideration of good received, either in the shape of

bribes, or in the way of corruption in some less palpable shape. Under the veil

of secresy injustice in all these shapes may and should be regarded as matter of

course: on the part of the Judge, no vehemence of asseveration, no excellence of

character can suffice to render the opposite state of the case probable.