The Online Library of Liberty

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• Book I.
• Preface.
• Introduction.
• Chapter I.: General Division of the Aggregate Body of the Law.
• Chapter II.: Constitutional Law.
• Chapter III.: Civil Or Distributive Law. *
• Chapter IV.: Penal Law.
• Chapter V.: Procedure Law. †
• Chapter VI.: Financial Law.
• Chapter VII.: Prescriptions Or Bearings of the Other Codes Or Branches of Law, to the Constitutional Code.
• Chapter VIII.: Public-opinion Tribunal.
• Chapter IX.: Good Rule and Bad Rule.
• Chapter X.: Corruption.
• Chapter XI.: Delusion.
• Chapter XII.: Fiction.
• Chapter XIII.: Factitious Honour.
• Chapter XIV.: Established Religion—none.
• Chapter XV.: Supreme Constitutive.
• Chapter XVI.: Supreme Legislative.
• Chapter XVII.: Supreme Operative.
• Book II.
• Preface to the Original Edition of Book II.
• Chapter I.: Territory of This State, Name, Situation, Boundaries, Divisions.
• Chapter II.: Ends and Means.
• Chapter III.: Sovereignty, In Whom. *
• Chapter IV.: Authorities.
• Chapter V.: Constitutive Authority. *
• Chapter VI.: Legislature.
• Chapter VII.: Legislator’s Inaugural Declaration. *
• Chapter VIII.: Prime Minister.
• Chapter IX.: Ministers Collectively.
• Chapter X.: Defensive Force.
• Chapter XI.: Ministers Severally.
• Chapter XII.
• Chapter XIII.
• Chapter XV.
• Chapter XVI.: Quasi-jury.
• Chapter XVII.
• Chapter XVIII.
• Chapter XIX.: Government Advocate General.
• Chapter XX.: Eleemosynary Advocates.
• Chapter XXI.
• Chapter XXII.
• Chapter XXIII.
• Chapter XXIV.
• Chapter XXV.
• Chapter XXVI. *
• Chapter XXVII.
• Chapter XXVIII.
• Chapter XXIX.
• Chapter XXX.
• Chapter XXXI.
• Appendix.
• No. I.
• No. II.
• No. III.
• No. IV.
• No. V.
• No. VI.
• No. VII.
• No. VIII.

No. V.

Collectanea, relating to Ch. xxii. Appellate Judicatories, Section 8, Seats, where.

“Reasons by C. Cameron, Esq., Commissioner for inquiring into the State of the Law in Ceylon, why the Appeal Judge in Ceylon should go Circuits to hear Appeals. 1830.

“In a good system of Judicature, much must be left to the discretion of the Judge.

“2. In order that the Judge may not abuse his discretion, he must feel that he is observed by somebody, whose good opinion is of importance to him.

“3. In England, the observation of the public answers this purpose better than any other.

“4. In Ceylon, the opinion of that public which constitutes the audience of a Provincial Judge, has little more effect upon the Judge than the opinion of a flock of sheep has upon the shepherd.

“5. It must be observed, also, that there is for the purpose now in view, no printing-press in Ceylon, and no probability that one will exist for a long period.

“6. These things being so, I can devise no better scheme for laying the Provincial Judges under a real responsibility, and for giving something like the requisite weight to the opinion of the public, which constitute his audience, than sending the Appeal Judge periodically into his district, not only to rectify any mistakes that may have been committed in point of law, but also to rehear any cases in which, through mistakes or misconduct, a rehearing may be desirable.

“7. In the Provincial Courts of Ceylon there are no advocates. The native Proctors are ignorant and knavish; and the pleadings and evidence upon which the judge decides, are translations made by native interpreters of the statements made by the parties and their witnesses. The Proctors and interpreters have a strong interest in conciliating the favour of the Provincial Judge.

“8. Under these disadvantages, (and none of them seem to admit of immediate remedy,) there is little chance that an appeal from a Provincial Judge, or an application for a rehearing, should be carried by the post to the Appeal Judge in Colombo, in a shape calculated to procure a decision disagreeable to the Provincial Judge.

“9. But if the Appeal Judge comes to the place where the Provincial Judge holds his Court, the parties and their witnesses may have the same access to him that they have to the Provincial Judge, and the latter will always act under the knowledge that his proceedings will be really subject to the revision of a Judge of superior learning, habitually controlled himself when in the exercise of his original jurisdiction at Colombo, by as much of public opinion as is to be found in the island, and in the exercise of his appellate jurisdiction on circuit, by the presence of the officers of his court, of the Advocate Fiscal, and of the Proctor for prisoners and paupers, who, being all Europeans, may be considered as the representatives of the public of Colombo.

“I use these designations, because officers now exist who bear them, and who now accompany the Supreme Court on its criminal circuits.”