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IT was a legal proceeding, in this village, that
when any one was suspected of insanity, a commission
of lunacy issued, and an enquiry was held to ascertain
the fact. An inquisition was holden at this
time on the body of a man, and it was the right of
the defendant, when the evidence on the part of the
commonwealth was closed, to be heard in his defence.
On this occasion the accused person made use of his
privilege.

THE MADMAN'S DEFENCE.

Fellow-Citizens;

It is an aukward situation in which you see me
placed, to be obliged to maintain that I am in my
right mind, and not out of my senses. For even if I
speak sense, you may attribute it to a lucid interval.
It is not a difficult matter, to fix any imputation upon
a man. It is only to follow it well up “Line upon
line; precept upon precept; here a little and there a
little” There is nothing but a man's own life, and
a course of conduct, that can rebut the calumny. It
is therefore in vain, to answer in gazettes, or to go
out into the streets and call out falsehood. The more

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pains you take to defend yourself, the more it is fixed
upon you. For the bulk of mankind are on the side
of the calumniator, and would rather have a thing
true, than false. I believe there would be no better
way, than for a man to join in, and slander himself,
until the weight of obloquy, became so great, that
the public would revolt, and from believing all, believe
nothing. I have known this tried with success.
But how can one rebut the imputation of madness?
How disprove insanity? The highest excellence of
understanding, and madness, like the two ends of a
right line, turned to a circle, are said to come together.

Nullum magnum ingenium sine mensura dementiæ.

Great wits to madness sure are near allied;
And this partitions do the bounds divide.

Hence you will infer that I may appear rational,
and quick of perception, and even just in judgment
for a time, and yet be of a deranged intellect. What
can I tell you, but that it is the malice of my enemies,
that have devised this reproach, in order to hinder
my advancement in state affairs? It is true there
are some things in my habit, and manner that may
have given colour to the charge; singularities. But
a man of study, and abstract thought, will have singula
ities Henry Fielding's Parson Adams; and Doctor
Orkborn in Mrs. D' Arbray's Camilla, are examples
of this. A man of books will be abstract, or
absent in conversation, sometimes in business.

A man of books, said the Foreman of the Jury! a
scholar! Ah! You are a scholar, are you. Ah, ha;
that is enough; we want no more. If you are not a
madman, you must be a knave, and that comes to the
same thing. Say, gentlemen, shall we find him guilty?
What say you, is he mad?

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1. Juryman; he seems to be a little cracked.

2. He does not appear to be right in his head.

3. I cannot think him in his right mind.

4. He is beside himself.

5. Crazy.

6. Out of his reason.

7. Deranged.

8. Insane.

9. Mad.

10. Stark mad.

11. As mad as a March hare.

12. Fit for Bedlam.

Verdict—Lunacy.

The court to whom the inquisition was returned,
thought it a hard case, as there was no other evidence
than his own confession of being addicted to
books, and gave leave to move an arrest of judgment;
and ordered him before themselves for examination.

You are a man of books—

A little so.

What books have you read?

History, divinity.

What is the characteristic of history?

Fiction.

Of Novels?

Truth.

Of metaphysics?

Imagination.

Of natural philosophy?

Doubt.

What is the best lesson in moral philosophy?

To expect no gratitude.

What is the best qualification of a politician?

Honesty.

The next best?

Knowledge.

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The next best?

Fortitude.

Who serves the people best?

Not always him that pleases them most.

It seems to the Court, said the Chief Justice, that
the man is not altogether mad. He appears rational
in some of his answers. We shall advise upon it.

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As for the blind lawyer, humanity interposed on
his behalf. There is a generosity in the public mind
that leads them to pass by the unfortunate. The sovereign
people, like other sovereigns, do not make
war upon bats. His lectures were short, and did not
cost much. The loss of money, leaves a bite behind
it worse than the sting of the wasp. It is this that
excites a prejudice against lawyers; and yet people
are, themselves, to blame. It is their own self-love,
and unwillingness to think themselves in the wrong,
that leads to law. Covetousness, deceives.

O, si angulus ille, mihi foret—

I must have that nuke of woods, that rins out there.
It will mak a calf pasture.

I admit that bar oratory is carried to excess, and
there is too much of it occasionally; it is valued by
the quantity, more than the quality. But there is a
great deal of excellent oratory to be found at the bar.
There are stamina, though retrenchments might be
made.

—Cum luculentus flueret,
Erat quod tollere posses.

The great defect is, the making many points; the
that had but one way to escape, stood as good a
chance, as the fox that had a thousand. Seize the
turning point of the cause; if it can be done, and
canvass that. The stroke of the eye, or coup d' eil,
which characterizes the great general, is the being
able to see, at once, the commanding point of the
field: to abandon out posts, and concentrate his forces.
Why need a man be taking time to shew, in how
many ways, he can kill a squirrel? If he can take him
down with a rifle ball, at once, it is enough.

Oratory has no where a finer province, than at the
bar. In a deliberative assembly, there is no such

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Political studies ought to be the great object with
the generous youth of a republic; not for the sake of
place or profit; but for the sake of judging right,
and preserving the constitution inviolate. Plutarch's
lives is an admirable book for this purpose. I should
like to see an edition of 10,000 volumes bought up in
every state. Plutarch was a lover of virtue, and his
reflections are favourable to all that is great and good
amongst men.