[clx. 352]

1822 July 14

Constitut. Code Rationale

Securities

5 Moral Responsibility

Public Opinion Tribunal

Evidence etc its necessity

Of the channels through which, if at all information in both its shapes as above, must find its way to the public ear /eye/ and the public eye /ear/ beyond all comparison the most ample and efficient are those in the designation of which the collective term the press is commonly employed: and of these again the most ample and efficient are those for the designation of which the collective term the periodical press is employed. Every act by which the net mass of benefit derivable through these channels is lessened or endeavoured to be lessened is of the number of those by which the agent /actor/ is rendered as above the /an/ enemy to all mankind to all happiness to all virtue to all mankind.

There are two modes by which this enmity has the capacity and is in the habit of exerting /exercising/ /exerting/ itself: the one is by corrupting /poisoning/ these same channels; the other is by lessening the aggregate calibre of them by blocking them up.

The poisoning plan is carried on by keeping the information on one side suppressed, while passage to information on the other side is left free. In this mode it is by the setting of licensers over the press that the mischief is affected Under this mode again are comprized two specific modes: one consists in preventing as it were by physical means the issuing forth of the /such[?]/ obnoxious /apprehended/ information, the other consists in the punishing those by whom any such information has already been issued forth, and thereby /thus/ by intimidation preventing the issuing the like in future. The former mode is pursued by the establishment of a Censorial or Licensing Office; the other establishment of a system of judicial prosecution for the acts on which the denomination and to the agent the effects of criminality /crime/ are thus attached.