31 May 1803

Evidence

Instructions

Best.

The inquiry /examination/ to be compleat and compleatly satisfactory the examination will of course be required to be carried through every species of evidence: that is, for specific distinction is properly the work not so much of nature as /but/ of art through every two sorts /masses/ of evidence, which are capable of being distinguished from one another for this purpose; and at any rate through the several sorts of evidence which as the commencement of the work were for this purpose indicated /enumerated//actually denominated/ and distinguished at the commencement of this work.

The several modifications of evidence which being /having/ been distinguished from one another in forms[?], according to a series of divisions made from so many sources, come now to be confronted may be thus enumerated

1. Real evidence with personal. 2. Preappointed evidence with casual.

3. Direct evidence with circumstantial.

4. The evidence of a more credible sort of person with the evidence of a less credible sort of person.

5. Evidence scrutinized with evidence unscrutinized: evidence more perfectly with evidence less perfectly scrutinized.

6. Evidence expressed by permanent signs with evidence expressed by impermanent and evanescent signs.

7. Evidence consisting in the declaration of a man's own perceptions with hearsay evidence /Immediate evidence with hearsay evidence/ - i:e: evidence consisting in the declaration /relation/ of supposed facts as having been related by another witness.

8. Original written evidence with transcriptions.