Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol I).djvu/285

 Ch. 7. hence alo aries another branch of the prerogative, that of pardoning offences; for it is reaonable that he only who is injured hould have the power of forgiving. Of proecutions and pardons I hall treat more at large hereafter; and only mention them here, in this curory manner, to hew the contitutional grounds of this power of the crown, and how regularly connected all the links are in this vat chain of prerogative.

this ditinct and eparate exitence of the judicial power, in a peculiar body of men, nominated indeed, but not removeable at pleaure, by the crown, conits one main preervative of the public liberty; which cannot ubit long in any tate, unles the adminitration of common jutice be in ome degree eparated both from the legilative and alo from the executive power. Were it joined with the legilative, the life, liberty, and property, of the ubject would be in the hands of arbitrary judges, whoe deciions would be then regulated only by their own opinions, and not by any fundamental principles of law; which, though legilators may depart from, yet judges are bound to oberve. Were it joined with the executive, this union might oon be an overballance for the legilative. For which reaon, by the tatute of 16 Car. I. c. 10. which abolihed the court of tar chamber, effectual care is taken to remove all judicial power out of the hands of the king's privy council; who, as then was evident from recent intances, might oon be inclined to pronounce that for law, which was mot agreeable to the prince or his officers. Nothing therefore is more to be avoided, in a free contitution, than uniting the provinces of a judge and a miniter of tate. And indeed, that the abolute power, claimed and exercied in a neighbouring nation, is more tolerable than that of the eatern empires, is in great meaure owing to their having veted the judicial power in their parliaments, a body eparate and ditinct from both the legilative and executive: and, if ever that nation recovers it's former liberty, it will owe it to the efforts of thoe aemblies. In Turkey, where every thing is centered in the ultan or his Rh