THE

ANTI-JACOBIN

Review and Magazine;

&c. &c. &c.

FOR JANUARY, 1799.

MAGNA EST VERITAS ET PRÆVALEBIT.

ORIGINAL CRITICISM.

ART. I. An Abridgement of Cafes argued and determined in the Courts of Law, during the Reign of his prefent Majefty King George III. By Thomas Walter Williams, Efq. of the Inner Temple, Barrifter at Law. Vol. I. 8vo. Pp. 930. Price 15s. Boards. Robinfons.

THER

HERE is no occupation where index-reading, and the ufe of Abridgements, are more needed than in the Law. This is not occafioned by the numerous volumes that make our ftock of jurifprudence, for thofe in Divinity exceed them beyond comparifon; but because the contents of thefe volumes are wanted for daily practice, and there is no accefs and key to them fo commodious as abridgements like the present.

The work now before us is not like Comyns, or Bacon, or Viner, each of which comprehends the whole body of the law, but is confined to a period that is most interesting to practifers, because it furnishes the latest determinations-the rule and fashion of the time by which they must form their opinions, and calculate their advice for their clients, before they can recommend to them to commence or defend a fuit in the Courts at Weftminster. The defign of the Compiler will

NO. VII. VOL. II.

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best be seen in the advertisement prefixed to the work, and addreffed To the Gentlemen of the Law:"

"The following Abridgement of the Judicial Decifions of the Courts of Law in Westminster Hall was undertaken at the instance of fome profeffional friends, and under an idea that a work of this nature is much wanted in the law-library to facilitate research.

"It commences with, and includes, the adjudications of the prefent reign; and forms a concife, but at the fame time clear and intelligi. ble, Digeft of the principle matters contained in Sir James Burrows, and other fubfequent reporters, arranged under proper titles. By this difpofition, every determination is exhibited at one view, under the head to which it belongs, in orderly fucceflion; and the uniformity of the authorities is traced and preferved, or their distinctions marked.

"In this compilation, the Editor has only confulted books of unexceptionable repute; and among thefe he particularly acknowledges the Team Reports of B. R. and C. P. and the feries of Cafes published by Wilfon, Burrows, Blackstone, Cowper, Douglas, and Caldecot. To mention any one reporter whom he has been under the neceffity of rejecting, on account of inaccuracy and want of precifion, would be invidious.

"To render the work as convenient as poffible, there are fubjoined to each volume an Index to the names of the cafes, and a copious Table of Contents.

"This is the general plan of the undertaking: and the final end of the Editor's defign has been to relieve gentlemen from the irkfome talk of referring to a variety of books; by concentrating, in one work, the fubftance of the Decifions in the Courts of Law during the prefent reign, with correct references to the reporters in which they are to be found.

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If this has been done with any degree of accuracy, it is fumed that the utility of the book will be acknowledged; and whether he has fucceeded or not, he fubmits to the candid judgement of a liberal profeflion."

The prefent volume goes as far as the title Bail, which is but a fmall way in the alphabetical digeft of law articles, and it muft, therefore, be followed by feveral others. The cafes feem to be abridged with fidelity, and quite full enough for a work of this fort; indeed none of the abridgements appear to detail the cafes fo much at length as this does, although the fpeeches of counsel are left out, and only the decifion of tlfe Court is given; this is preceded by a clear ftatement of the matter, which food for the opinion of the Court.

The author, very properly, introduces most of the cafes with a short fummary of the point of law thereby established, fuch as it is now the fashion of our reporters to place in the margin, at the head of cach cafe: as this gives the clue to

what

what follows, and contains briefly the pith of it, we fubmit whether it would not improve the work, as a manual, if fuch introductory paffages were printed in Italics, fo as to catch the eye at the firft opening of the book.

Thefe fummaries are a great improvement in the modern ftyle of reporting. They were firft, we believe, brought to the prefent perfection of precifion and brevity by Mr. Douglas. in his Reports, and this character has been conftantly supported by Mr. Durnford and Mr. Eaft, in their Term Reports. We have heard it whifpered, that this Abridgement is confidered as a fort of trefpafs, and, perhaps, piracy, upon the "Term Reports," but this imputation does not feem to be at all warranted; nor does this new attempt to facilitate the labours of the practiser feem at all to forebode any diminution of fale to the other valuable publication. It is quite of a different character, and by no means a fubftitute for it. There are purchafers, as well as readers, enough for the Abridger and the Reporters too; and we moft heartily with them to proceed in their respective labours; thofe with the credit they have long fo defervedly enjoyed, and this with fuch as we think he is well intitled to obtain,

ART. II. Robinfon's View of the Caufes and Confequences of English Wars.

(Continued from P. 620, VOL. I.)

F the following paffage be not a contradiction in terms, we

penetration," It is a queftion for the moralift to fettle, whether refiftance, or paffive obedience and fubmiffion, be beft for mankind; for, it has been afferted, and not without much plaufibility, that univerfal refiftance would produce univerfal peace." Now, in our apprehenfion, a ftate of univerfal refiftance, if fuch an idea were not almost too horrid, even in fuppofition, very clearly implies a ftate of univerfal war: the oppreffed, as well as the oppreffors, muft, in fuch a cafe, become aggreffors; and fo, like Ifhmael, every man's hand would be raised againft every man ; and the world be rendered an Aceldema, or field of blood. That, in the opinion of our author, infurrection, if not a facred right, is fynonimous with bravery, is to be inferred from the following pleonaftic fentence; conveying an inuendo that is particularly improper to be brought forward in times like the prefent. Speaking of the Britons under Agricola, he fays, these brave iflanders were B 2

ever

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ever rifing in infurrection." (p. 3.) An equally unfeasonable and mifchievous inference is deduced from the fable of the als and his panniers, in P. 33. In P. 72 & feq. we meet with another no lefs ill-timed and ill-founded vindication of Wat Tyler; or, as our more indulgent author, after fome congenial authorities, rather choofes to call him, "Walter, a Tyler of Deptford." It matters not, that the whole current of impartial history is against him; he will have this hero and patriot of Deptford recorded as a brave man, for no reason that we can furiife, but that he rafe in infurrection; and his rebellion is celebrated as "the first attempt that was made in England in favour of the people." His followers too, are, with equal reafon, celebrated as " the commons of England, rifing in their own defence." Be it fo, it will then indubitably follow, that, on the fame principle, the daring and desperate rebel chieftain in Ireland, Holt, is alfo an hero, and a patriot and his murderous adherents, the commons of Ireland, rifing in their own defence. How far this ftudied, yet feeble, and futile, vindication of the Kentifh infurrection was, or was not, intended to fuggeft a fimilar apology for the dreadful rebellion now raifing in Ireland, is best known to the author; all that we are concerned to fupport on the occafion is, that if the one was defenfible, fo is the other.-The following re-. flection, if it be not directly feditious, is yet so loosely expreffed, and fo very liable to be perverted to the most pernicious practical purposes, that we cannot but reprobate it as alike deteftable and dangerous." He who is acquainted with the annals of mankind, will pay little refpect to the laws of nations, which have ever been dictated by tyrants, varied according to their pleasure; but will refpect, and will only refpect, the laws, and dictates of humanity." (P. 79.) To be a rebel seems to be a fufficient recommendation to the favour of our author; thus, in P. 93, we find him, very confiftently stepping forth as the apologift and champion of another noted infurgent, Jack Cade: he too is faid to have "aimed at the benefit of the commons of England." A ftill more mifchievous infinuation, calculated to miflead, if not to encourage mutiny among our feamen and our foldiers, occurs in P. 148. Speaking of Admiral Blake, he is acknowledged to have been, indeed

"The first ornament of his age and country; but we cannot forbear to lament, that, before he fought the battles of his country, he did not think it neceffary to enquire, whether its wars were juft: that he fought in this Spanish war, we think a ftain upon his charafter; for never will governors be juft, or men moral, till the foldier and the failor examine the justice of their engagements. It is honourable to the age of which we are treating, that many officers really

did refign their commissions rather than ferve in this deteftable war, Surely the time will come, when men will no longer cut throats for bread, nor murder for hire."

His good opinion of, and refpect for, religion, feem not, if we may judge from the following paffage, (P. 102,) to rife much higher than his attachment to Kings,

"That the blood which was fhed in England, in this century, (viz. the fifteenth,) fhould be shed by Chriftian Princes and Nobles, muft ever be regarded with astonishment, and goes far to warrant one of these conclufions; either that Chriftianity is a religion which cannot influence, and, confequently, which is not calculated for man, kind; or that men, at this time, were ignorant of its most obvious and fimple principles and of what benefit can that religion be to mankind, of the moft fimple principles of which, they may, with the book in their hand, be for ages ignorant?"

Stripped of its flourish and parade, this doughty objection against Christianity dwindles into a cavil; or, at moft, it is an objection that may, with just as much propriety, be urged against all that is called natural religion, as against that which has been revealed. It is thus that dafhing reafoners, affuming principles, haftily deduce conclufions from them, without waiting to confider whether the premises can, or cannot, be proved. Before any stress can be laid on the conclufion here drawn, it is incumbent on our author to prove two points; though, we conceive, it will be difficult for him to prove either of them. The first point he has to prove is, that the blood fhed in England during the fifteenth century was shed, folely, through the means of Princes and Nobles: and, 2dly, if it was, that thofe Princes and Nobles were really Chriftians; that is to fay, Chriftians in deed, as well as in name. He might, had he been fo difpofed, here have adverted to the recent example of two Chriftian Princes; we mean our own first Charles, and the late Louis the Sixteenth of France, who fuffered their own blood to be barbaroufly fhed, rather than fhed the blood of their fubjects! doing fo, beyond all doubt, because they really were Chriftians. If, however, contrary to our expectation, he should be able to prove the firft of these points, it will, of itself, clearly difprove the fecond: becaufe, if fuch blood was fhed wantonly, or cruelly, as our author would infinuate it was, it is impoflible it could be fhed by real Chriftians. Add to this, it might, as has already been intimated, juft as well be objected to Christianity, that it has been of no benefit to mankind, becaufe, with the book in their hands, Chriftians in general, alas! are far from being governed by its pure principles, and the world ftill abounds with wickedness.