JB/078/196/001

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3d Decr 1826

Review of Sugden

This is not the worst the worst effect is that
which shows itself takes place when a decision or supposed decision
which has lain buried for perhaps more than
half a century (a sleep of seventy years I remember once
witnessing) unexpectedly burst its coffin and rises into
empire in the instance of a person from whom I had it
whose talents had he persevered would have raised him
to the first eminence an incident of this sort
contributed in no small degree in driving him at
an early age from the bar and even had he stood
alone might have sufficed to produce the effect
The case was laid before him for his opinion his opinion
was given and upon the face of all the cases in
print was correct when the case came for argument
up
stood the leading Counsel with a notebook in his
hand containing a Report of an unpublished
case in which a contrary decision was pronounced
Judge of my feelings said my informant under my
feet to an extent altogether unmeasurable I felt a
mine of authorities to me altogether inscrutable by
which on any occasion whatever any opinion of I could
take upon of mine howsoever elaborately, formed and
correctly deduced with my client's fortune hanging to it might be blown into air, my client
ruined myself disgraced. true

True it is that in these days such accidents are
not so likely to happen as in those in those days
whatsoever was the importance of the case whether it
found a Reporter or no was matter of accident now for
a long course of years professional industry having
being in the regular and all comprehensive habit of supplying
the matter which ought to have been supplied by official duty no
such surprize can be
produced by any decision
that has taken place
within the space of perhaps
the last fifty years yet
between the matter of this
last period and the matter
of all former periods no
determinate or express view
has ever been the
consequence is that unpublished if a Report
of some 50, 75 or 100 years standing
were brought down from the
shelf and this of a nature to
give determination to the
Judgment the Judge would be
at full liberty to pay whatever
regard to it or give
whatever to it best accorded
with his pleasures
Nor is this all the Report
might be spurious or
genuine supposing the importance
of the case to warrant
the adventure what
should stand in the way of it
what assurance could then
be of detection and supposing
detection to take place how
easy the operation of shifting it
off from the shoulders of the
more powerful to throw of the
less powerful and when
fixed what punishment
could it draw on her
for which the importance
of the cause might not
afford an indemnification
call it a forgery still it
is not so within any Statute

Identifier: | JB/078/196/001 "JB/" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 78.
Date_1	1826-12-03	Marginal Summary Numbering
Box	078	Main Headings	Review of Humphreys
Folio number	196	Info in main headings field	Review of Sugden
Image	001	Titles
Category	Copy/fair copy sheet	Number of Pages	1
Recto/Verso	recto	Page Numbering
Penner		Watermarks
Marginals		Paper Producer
Corrections		Paper Produced in Year
Notes public		ID Number	25287
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