1821 July 12 Codification Offer '.9. Draughtsman gratuitous

In and by all this, no such position is meant to be asserted or insinuated, as

that, - all-comprehensive or not, furnished or not with a rationale as above - a

Code whereby, in proportion to its extent, real law were substituted to the

imaginary and sham law called Common or Unwritten Law - a rule of action more or

less approaching to certainty to one completely and everlastingly uncertain -

would not be a beneficial work: nor yet that if no workman of good promise,

content with the natural and inseparable reward, and thence serving

gratuously[?], could be obtained for the work, factitious reward might not in

any case be employed for the production of it: all that is meant is - that

supposing all factitious reward excluded, a much better chance for the maximum

of appropriate aptitude in every shape - on the part of the original workman and

thence ultimately on the part of the work - will be obtained, than would have

place if factitious reward in any shape were superadded: a greater number of apt

candidates with their respective productions would be likely to offer

themselves, and the best chance of acceptance would be possessed by the best

work.

How should it be otherwise? - In the case of paid service, the eye of the

workman would be fixt upon those from whom the payment would be looked for: in

the case of gratuitous service it would be fixt upon the public at large - upon

the whole body of the citizens in their quality of Electors: upon those on whose

good opinion the Judges of the contest would be in a state of dependence: in the

one case the exertions of the workman would to a greater or less extent, be

unavoidably directed, to the advancement of this or that particular and thence

sinister interest at the expence of the universal interest: in the other case

they would in an undivided manner be directed to the advancement of the

universal interest. They would have it is true, for their object the rendering

the work ultimately conformable to the public will: but at the same time by the

influence of the rationale on the public understanding, to the endeavour they

would add the hope of bringing the will of the public as near as possible to a

conformity with the interest of the public.