JB/072/044/001

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C 3

Press Printer's &c. Law

Prevent a paper from being printed, and you
prevent commonly the greater part of the good
or harm that may be derived from it.

General object to which such regulations ought to be directed. In regulating the press, the great object should
be not to prevent a man's printing any
thing before it be juridically known what it is, but
in the event of it's turning out to be what it
ought not to be, to render ensure his being
amenable.(a) The use is much more valuable than the abuse is dangerous.

NOTE

Even this in a country state which
has any thing to fear or to hope for in it's
constitution, may be too much: nor in a land country
of freedom will a true lover of his country in which the press is as yet free will a true patriot
venture to do any thing in pursuit of it apply any thing in the way of restraint to it
but with a trembling hand. To put it in the
power of a licenser to suppress it work without appeal before it's
be merits are decided upon by any body who
has any thing to fear from an unjust improper decision
is to express at the same time a boundless self-confidence in one single man, and a boundless diffidence distrust in the great body of the people. It is to suppose without proof or probability
that in one single man there will constantly
more wisdom and probity than in all the
other men in the nation put together. If the
sentiments of the people were governed by
consistent considerations of utility, that would be
the man to be marked with infamy whose function
is sure to be pernicious: not the hangman whose

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Identifier: | JB/072/044/001 "JB/" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 72.
Date_1		Marginal Summary Numbering	4-6
Box	072	Main Headings	penal code
Folio number	044	Info in main headings field	press
Image	001	Titles
Category	text sheet	Number of Pages	2
Recto/Verso	recto	Page Numbering	d3 / f3 / d4/ f4
Penner	jeremy bentham	Watermarks	[[watermarks::[lion & crown motif]]]
Marginals	jeremy bentham	Paper Producer
Corrections	jeremy bentham	Paper Produced in Year
Notes public		ID Number	23661
Box Contents