19 Apr 1803

Evidence

Superseded?

Connection

Plan[?]

Superseded by Ch.3. General [...?] or [...?] [...?]?

On a general survey of the subject, two /three/ very obvious but leading observation here present themselves: One is, on every occasion, that judicial decision, and consequently the chance in favour of rectitude of decision, depend altogether for evidence: no evidence, no decision; no decision, no justice (the bearing of the law upon the case being supposed out of doubt). The other is, that though truth itself exists but in one degree and in the instance of each assignable matter of fact there is no medium between its being true and not true, yet nothing can be more various than the degree of a[?] persuasion which one and the same piece of evidence is capable of producing - the degree of effective force with which it is capable of acting on the mind. A third is, that the /desirable/ result to be desired - to be desired for the sake of the interests of truth and justice, is - that in the instance /case/ of each species and individual lot of evidence, whatever be the probability it presents of being conformable /in exact conformity/ to the truth - an exact[?] picture of the fact [...?] in question in exact correspondence with that degree of probable truth /verity/ should be the effective force with which it acts /operates/ upon the mind of the Judge.

That the testimony of an individual, if such there were in existence concerning whom a man perfectly acquainted with his existing situation and character as exhibited by his conduct throughout life, should be warranted in pronouncing that his testimony, after every thing that could be done to secure its conformity to truth presented no chance at all of maintaining /exhibiting/ such conformity nor of assisting /nor so much as of affording assistance to/ the judgment of the Judge in another shape viz. by serving as evidence is capable of doing even by its mendacity to assist the mind in the /its/ investigation of the truth - that such a testimony I say should not meet with any credit whatsoever should not act with any effective force whatever in the mind of the Judge: and that in a