JB/028/151/001

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9)

Common Law. How far consented to by the People.

at that time "of her freedom⊞ ⊞ in the time of Julianus more than she had at in the time of Ulpian, it would be hard, I believe
to say[a]† † Here insert by way of Note No 2, p.2 of the Inserenda. Under our own form government the finest
and most excellent⊞ ⊞ with all its imperfections of any the world we yet saw the world has yet seen, I should be
glad to see any thing like such a position doctrine avow'd
by the Legislature. I should be glad to see other any
good liking passage in any act of Parliament,
where the good liking of the people, I mean the
body of the people at large is mentioned openly alleged as a consideration
fit meeting to be attended to. No the productions
is of our popular Legislature are still tainted with the breath of ancient despotism.

To my apprehension ear, a sentiment⊞ ⊞ vouching the will of the people as the sole foundation of the authority of Laws made with without by a sole Legislator, without taking that will the least into consideration: A sentiment so popular in
the mouth of a prince so the minister of absolute as a was at that time the Roman
Emperor can be looked upon no otherwise than as [was sounds but as] a mockery, or a contrivance to
gold the sophistry that follows in the next sentence:
which sophistry however being written so long ago, and in
Latin, and coming out of the mouth of a Roman
Emperor, passes for sterling [reason] with our Author.

"Where", says this Emperor or his Chancellor Lawyer, "is the
"difference between whether the people give their assent
to a Law by suffrage, or by a uniform course of
acting accordingly? "Where", he might just as well
have said, "is the difference between a free and a
despotic government? Where is the difference between
acting by coercion and acting spontaneously?

The fallacy lies⊞ ⊞ in the abusive application of the term "assent": in the giving to the term a uniform
course of action according to a Law, after that Law is

Identifier: | JB/028/151/001 "JB/" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 28.
Date_1		Marginal Summary Numbering
Box	028	Main Headings	comment on the commentaries
Folio number	151	Info in main headings field	commons law how far consented to by the people
Image	001	Titles
Category	text sheet	Number of Pages	4
Recto/Verso	recto	Page Numbering	b9 / e10 / b11 / e12
Penner	jeremy bentham	Watermarks	[[watermarks::[monogram] [britannia emblem]]]
Marginals		Paper Producer
Corrections	jeremy bentham	Paper Produced in Year
Notes public		ID Number	9416
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