Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol I).djvu/261

Ch. 7. feels itelf incapable of furnihing any adequate remedy. For which reaon all oppreions, which may happen to pring from any branch of the overeign power, mut necearily be out of the reach of any tated rule, or expres legal proviion: but, if ever they unfortunately happen, the prudence of the times mut provide new remedies upon new emergencies.

, it is found by experience, that whenever the uncontitutional oppreions, even of the overeign power, advance with gigantic trides and threaten deolation to a tate, mankind will not be reaoned out of the feelings of humanity; nor will acrifice their liberty by a crupulous adherence to thoe political maxims, which were originally etablihed to preerve it. And therefore, though the poitive laws are ilent, experience will furnih us with a very remarkable cae, wherein nature and reaon prevailed. When king James the econd invaded the fundamental contitution of the realm, the convention declared an abdication, whereby the throne was rendered vacant, which induced a new ettlement of the crown. And o far as this precedent leads, and no farther, we may now be allowed to lay down the law of redres againt public oppreion. If therefore any future prince hould endeavour to ubvert the contitution by breaking the original contract between king and people, hould violate the fundamental laws, and hould withdraw himelf out of the kingdom; we are now authorized to declare that this conjunction of circumtances would amount to an abdication, and the throne would be thereby vacant. But it is not for us to ay, that any one, or two, of thee ingredients would amount to uch a ituation, for there our precedent would fail us. In thee therefore, or other circumtances, which a fertile imagination may furnih, ince both law and hitory are ilent, it becomes us to be ilent too; leaving to future generations, whenever neceity and the afety of the whole hall require it, the exertion of thoe inherent (though latent) powers of ociety, which no climate, no time, no contitution, no contract, can ever detroy or diminih. II.