JB/159/134/002

Click Here To Edit

14

Of the Lex Talionis.

The Author of the Commentaries is also of opinion
that "the Lex talionis or or law of retaliation can never be in all cases as
"adequate or permanent rule of punishment". In
some cases however he seems to approve of it: and
the reason he gives is that "it seems to be dictated
"by natural reason: these are "the case of conspiracies
"to do an injury or false accusations of the
"innocent". Whether the cases he was thinking of had in view
are those where the conspiracies or accusations have
been succeeded successful, or that where they have not succeeded been
successful he has not told us, [which however would
have been worth the while]. If [they have been] unsuccessful,
the rule according to taking it upon his own account of
it[a] is impracticable; which for a rule "dictated by
"natural reason" is unfortunate. If successful then the some
injury has been done: and this injury may either be
to the person, the property or the reputation, or
to any two of them together; and consequently⊞ ⊞ as we have shown already the
rule may be impracticable with respect to it or not
as it may happen.

In other cases instances he is frighten'd at the thoughts of employing,
by the notion of I know not what "wickedness"
as well as "absurdity" he finds in it. He imagines
that because it would be wicket for an individual

NOTE

[a] He explains it by as prescribing the "doing to the criminal
"the same hurt he has done to his neighbour, and
"no more". 4 Comm. p.13.

Identifier: | JB/159/134/002 "JB/" can not be assigned to a declared number type with value 159.
Date_1		Marginal Summary Numbering	not numbered
Box	159	Main Headings	punishment
Folio number	134	Info in main headings field	of the lex talionis
Image	002	Titles	note
Category	text sheet	Number of Pages	4
Recto/Verso	recto	Page Numbering	f13 / f14 / f15 / f16
Penner	jeremy bentham	Watermarks	[[watermarks::l v g propatria [britannia motif]]]
Marginals	jeremy bentham	Paper Producer	caroline vernon
Corrections		Paper Produced in Year
Notes public		ID Number	53957
Box Contents