Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol I).djvu/25

§. 1. contempt from his inferiors, and of cenure from thoe to whom he is accountable for his conduct.

farther; mot gentlemen of coniderable property, at ome period or other in their lives, are ambitious of repreenting their country in parliament: and thoe, who are ambitious of receiving o high a trut, would alo do well to remember it’s nature and importance. They are not thus honourably ditinguihed from the ret of their fellow-ubjects, merely that they may privilege their perons, their etates, or their dometics; that they may lit under party banners; may grant or with-hold upplies; may vote with or vote againt a popular or unpopular adminitration; but upon coniderations far more intereting and important. They are the guardians of the Englih contitution; the makers, repealers, and interpreters of the Englih laws; delegated to watch, to check, and to avert every dangerous innovation, to propoe, to adopt, and to cherih any olid and well-weighed improvement; bound by every tie of nature, of honour, and of religion, to tranmit that contitution and thoe laws to their poterity, amended if poible, at leat without any derogation. And how unbecoming mut it appear in a member of the legilature to vote for a new law, who is utterly ignorant of the old! what kind of interpretation can he be enabled to give, who is a tranger to the text upon which he comments!

it is perfectly amazing, that there hould be no other tate of life, no other occupation, art, or cience, in which ome method of intruction is not looked upon as requiite, except only the cience of legilation, the noblet and mot difficult of any. Apprenticehips are held neceary to almot every art, commercial or mechanical: a long coure of reading and tudy mut form the divine, the phyician, and the practical profeor of the laws: but every man of uperior fortune thinks himelf born a legilator. Yet Tully was of a different opinion: “it is nece- Rh