An Essay On The Trial By Jury by Lysander Spooner (free ebook reader for android TXT) 📕

Inhabitants,  They Were,  Indeed,  Transplanted into A New

Territory,  But Preserved unaltered all Their Civil And Military

Insfitutions. The Language Was Pure Saxon; Even The Names Of

Places,  Which Often Remain While The Tongue Entirely  Changes,

Were Almost All Affixed by The Conquerors; The Manners And

Customs Were Wholly German; And The Same Picture Of A Fierce And

Bold Liberty,  Which Is Drawn By The Masterly Pen Of Tacitus,  Will

Suit Those Founders Of The English Government. The King,  So Far

From Being invested with Arbitrary Power,  Was Only Considered as

The First Among The Citizens; His Authority Depended more On His

Personal Qualities Than On His Station; He Was Even So Far On A

Level With The People,  That A Stated price Was Fixed for His

Head,  And A Legal Fine Was Levied upon His Murderer,  Which Though

Proportionate To His Station,  And Superior To That Paid For The

Life Of A Subject,  Was A Sensible Mark Of His Subordination To

The Community."   1 Hume,  Appendix,  L.

Stuart Says:

"The Saxons Brought Along With Them Into Britain Their Own

Customs,  Language,  And Civil Institutions. Free In germany,  They

Renounced not Their Independence,  When They Had Conquered.

Proud From Victory,  And With Their Swords In their Hands,  Would

They Surrender Their Liberties To A Private Man? Would Temporary

Laders,  Limited in their Powers,  And Unprovided in resources,

Ever Think To Usurp An Authority Over Warriors,  Who Considered

Themselves As Their Equals,  Were Impatient Of Control,  And

Attached with Devoted zeal To Their Privileges? Or,  Would They

Find Leisure To Form Resolutions,  Or Opportunities To Put Them In

Practice,  Amidst The Tumult And Confusion Of Those Fierce And

Bloody Wars,  Which Their Nations First Waged with The Britons,

And Then Engaged in among Themselves? Sufficiently Flattered in

Leading the Armies Of Their Countrymen,  The Ambition Of

Commanders Could As Little Suggest Such Designs,  As The Liberty

Of The People Could Submit To Them. The Conquerors Of Britain

Retained their Independence; And This Island Saw Itself Again In

That Free State In which The Roman Arms Had Discovered it.

"The Same Firmness Of Character,  And Generosity Of Manners,

Which,  In general,  Distinguished the Germans,  Were Possessed in

An Eminent Degree By The Saxons; And While We Endeavor To Unfold

Their Political Institutions,  We Must Perpetually Turn Our

Observation To That Masterly Picture In which The Roman Historian

Has Described these Nations. In the Woods Of Germany Shall We

Find The Principles Which Directed the State Of Land,  In the

Different Kingdoms Of Europe; And There Shall We Find The

Foundation Of Those Ranks Of Men,  And Of Those Civil

Arrangements,  Which The Barbarians Everywhere Established; And

Which The English Alone Have Had The Good Fortune,  Or The Spirit,

To Preserve."   Stuart On The Constitution Of England,  P. 59 - 61.

"Kings They (The Germans) Respected as The First Magistrates Of

The State; But The Authority Possessed by Them Was Narrow And

Limited."   Ditto,  P. 134.

"Did He,  (The King,) At Any Time,  Relax His Activity And Martial

Ardor,  Did He Employ His Abilities To The Prejudice Of His

Nation,  Or Fancy He Was Superior To The Laws; The Same Power

Which Raised him To Honor,  Humbled and Degraded him. The

Customs And Councils Of His Country Pointed out To Him His

Duty; And If He Infringed on The Former,  Or Disobeyed the Latter, 

A Fierce People Set Aside His Authority.

"His Long Hair Was The Only Ornament He Affected,  And To Be

Foremost To Attack An Enemy Was His Chief Distinction.

Engaged in every Hazardous Expedition,  He Was A Stranger To

Repose; And,  Rivalled by Half The Heroes Of His Tribe,  He Could

Obtain Little Power. Anxious And Watchful For The Public

Interest,  He Felt Every Moment His Dependence,  And Gave

Proofs Of His Suhmission.

"He Attended the General Assembly Of His Nation,  And Was Allowed

The Privilege To Harangue It First; But The Arts Of Persuasion,

Though Known And Respected by A Rude People,  Were Unequally

Opposed to The Prejudices And Passions Of Men."   Ditto,  P. 135 - 6.

"The Authority Of A Saxon Mnarch Was Not More Considerable. The

Saxons Submitted not To The Arbitrary Rule Of Princes. They

Administered an Oath To Their Sovereigns,  Which Bound Them To

Aeknowledge The Laws,  And To Defend The Rights Of The Church And

People; And If They Forgot This Obligation,  They Forfeited their

Office. In both Countries,  A Price Was Affixed on Kings,  A Fine

Expiated their Murder,  As Well As That Of The Meanest Citizen;

And The Smallest Violation Of Ancient Usage,Or The Least Step

Towards Tyranny,  Was Always Dangerous,  And Often Fatal To Them." 

Ditto,  P. 189-40.

"They Were Not Allowed to Impose Taxes On The Kingdom."   Ditto,

P. 146.

"Like The German Monarchs,  They Deliberated in the General

Assembly Of The Nation; But Their Legislative Authority Was Not

Much Respected; And Their Assent Was Considered in no Better

Light Than As A Form. This,  However,  Was Their Chief Prerogative;

And They Employed it To Acquire An Ascendant In the State. To Art

And Insinuation They Turned,  As Their Only Resource,  And

Flattered a People Whom They Could Not Awe; But Address,  And The

Abilities To Persuade,  Were A Weak Compensation For The Absence

Of Real Power.

"They Declared war,  It Is Said,  And Made Peace. In both Cases,

However,  They Acted as The Instruments Of The State,  And Put In

Execution The Resolutions Which Its Councils Had Decreed. If,

Indeed,  An Enemy Had Invaded the Kingdoms,  And Its Glory And Its

Safety Were Concerned,  The Great Lords Took The Field At The Call

Of Their Sovereign. But Had A Sovereign Declared war Against A

Neighboring state,  Without Requiring their Advice,  Or If He Meant

To Revenge By Arms An Insult Offered to Him By A Subject,  A

Haughty And Independent Nobility Refused their Assistance. These

They Considered as The Quarrels Of The King,  And Not Of The

Nation; And In all Such Emergencies He Could Only Be Assisted by

His Retainers And Dependents."   Ditto,  P. 147   8.

"Nor Must We Imagine That The Saxon,  Any More Than The German

Monarchs,  Succeeded each Other In a Lineal Descent,  [2] Or That

They Disposed of The Crown At Their Pleasure. In both Countries,

The Free Election Of The People Filled the Throne; And Their

Choice Was The Only Rule By Which Princes Reigned. The

Succession,  Accordingly,  Of Their Kings Was Often Broken And

Interrupted,  And Their Depositions Were Frequent And Groundless.

The Will Of A Prince Whom They Had Long Respected,  And The Favor

They Naturally Transferred to His Descendant,  Made Them Often

Advance Him To The Royal Dignity; But The Crown Of His Ancestor

He Cnsidered as The Gift Of The People,  And Neither Expected nor

Claimed it As A Right."   Ditto,  P. 151   3.

In Germany "It Was The Business Of The Great To Command In war,

And In peace They Distributed justice.

"The Princes In germany Were Earls In england. The Great

Contended in both Countries In the Number Of Their Retainers,  And

In That Splendor And Magnificence Which Are So Alluring to A Rude

People; And Though They Joined to Set Bounds To Regal Power,  They

Were Often Animated against Each Other With The Fiercest Hatred.

To A Proud And Impatient Nobility It Seemed little And Unsuiting

To Give Or Accept Compositions For The Injuries They Committed or

Received; And Their Vassals Adopting their Resentment And

Passions,  War And Bloodshed alone Could Terminate Their Quarrels.

What Necessarily Resulted from Their Situation In society,  Was

Continued as A Privilege; And The Great,  In both Countries,  Made

War,  Of Their Private Authority,  On Their Enemies. The Saxon

Earls Even Carried their Arms Against Their Sovereigns; And,

Surrounded with Retainers,  Or Secure In fortresses And Castles,

They Despised their Resentment,  And Defied their Power.

"The Judges Of The People,  They Presided in both Countries In

Courts Of Law. [3] The Particular Districts Over Which They

Exerted their Authority Were Marked out In germany By The Council

Of The State; And In england Their Jurisdiction Extended over The

Fiefs And Other Territories They Possessed. All Causes,  Both

Civil And Criminal,  Were Tried before Them; And They Judged,

Except In cases Of The Utmost Importance,  Without Appeal. They

Were Even Allowed to Grant Pardon To Criminals,  And To Correct By

Their Clemency The Rigors Of Justice.  Nor Did The Sovereign

Exercise Any Authority In their Lands. In these His Officers

Formed no Courts,  And His Writ Was Disregarded.

"They Had Officers,  As Well As The King,  Who Collected their

Revenues,  And Added to Their Greatness; And The Inhabitants Of

Their Lands They Distinguished by The Name Of Subjects.

"But To Attend The General Assembly Of Their Nation Was The Chief

Prerogative Of The German And Saxon Princes; And As They

Consulted the Interest Of Their Country,  And Eliberated

Concerning matters Of State,  So In the King'S Court,  Of Which

Also They Were Members,  They Assisted to Pronounce Judgment In

The Complaints And Appeals Which Were Lodged in it."   Ditto,  P.

158 To 165.

Henry Says:

"Nothing can Be More Evident Than This Important Truth; That Our

Anglo-Saxon Kings Were Not Absolute Monarchs; But That Their

Powers And Prerogatives Were Limited by The Laws And Customs Of

The Country. Our Saxon Ancestors Had Been Governed by Limited

Monarchs In their Native Seats On The Continent; And There Is Not

The Least Appearance Or Probability That They Relinquished their

Liberties,  And Submitted to Absolute Government In their New

Settlements In this Island. It Is Not To Be Imagined that Men,

Whose Reigning passion Was The Love Of Liberty,  Would Willingly

Resign It; And Their New Sovereigns,  Who Had Been Their

Fellow-Soldiers,  Had Certainly No Power To Compel Them To Such A

Resignation."   3 Henry'S History Of Great Britain,  358.

Mackintosh Says:"The Saxon Chiefs,  Who Were Called. Kings,

Originally Acquired power By The Same Natural Causes Which Have

Gradually,  And Everywhere,  Raised a Few Men Above Their Fellows.

They Were,  Doubtless,  More Experienced,  More Skillful,  More

Brave,  Or More Beautiful,  Than Those Who Followed them. * * A

King was Powerful In war By The Lustre Of His Arms,  And The

Obvious Necessity Of Obedience. His Influence In peace Fluctuated

With His Personal Character. In the Progress Of Usage His Power

Became More Fixed and More Limited. * * It Would Be Very

Unreasonable To