the Act of Settlement, statute 12 and 15 William III. c. 2, whereby the crown was limited to his present Majesty's illustrious house; and some new provisions were added at the same fortunate æra, for better securing our religion, laws, and liberties, which the statute declares to be "the birthright of the people of England;" according to the ancient doctrine of the common law.

Thus much for the declaration of our rights and liberties. The rights themselves thus defined by these several statutes, consist in a number of private immunities, which will appear, from what has been premised, to be indeed no other than, either that residuum of natural liberty, which is not required by the laws of society to be sacrificed to public convenience; or else those civil privileges which society hath engaged to provide in lieu of the natural liberties so given up by individuals. These, therefore, were formerly, either by inheritance or purchase, the rights of all mankind; but in most other countries of the world, being now more or less debased or destroyed, they at present may be said to remain, in a peculiar and emphatical manner, the rights of the people of England.

These rights may be reduced to three principal or primary articles :

The right of personal security. The right of personal liberty. The right of private property.

The right of personal security consists in a person's legal and uninterrupted enjoyment of his life, his limbs, his body, his health, and his reputation. The enjoyment of this right is secured to every subject by the various laws made for the punishment of those injuries, by which it is any way violated; for a particular detail of which, see ASSAULT, HOMICIDE, MAIHEM, LIBEL, NUISANCE, &c.

The words of the Great Charter, c. 29, are, "Nullus liber homo capiatur, imprisonetur, vel aliquo modo destruatur, nisi per legale judicium parium suorum aut per legem terræ." No freeman shall be taken, imprisoned, or any way destroyed, unless by the lawful judgment of his peers, or by the law of the land; which words, "aliquo modo destruatur," according to Coke, include a prohibition, not only of killing or maiming, but also of torturing, (to which our laws are strangers), and of every oppression by colour of an illegal authority. And it is enacted by stat. 5 Edward III. c. 9, that no man shall be attached by any accusation, nor

forejudged of life or limb, nor shall his lands or goods be seized into the King's hands contrary to the Great Charter, and the law of the land. And again, by statute 28 Edward III. c. 3, that no man shall be put to death without being brought to answer by due process of law.

The right of personal liberty consists in the power of loco-motion, of changing situation, or moving one's person to whatsoever place one's own inclination may direct, without imprisonment or restraint, unless by due course of law. This right there is at present no occasion to enlarge upon. For the provisions made by the laws of England to secure it. See HABEAS corpus, FALSE imprisonment, BAIL, Arrest, &c.

The absolute right of property, inherent in every Englishman, consists in the free use, enjoyment, and disposal of all his acquisitions, without any controul or diminution, save only by the laws of the land.

Another effect of this right of private property is, that no subject of England can be constrained to pay any aids or taxes, even for the defence of the realm, or the support of the government, but such as are imposed by his own consent, or that of his representatives in parliament. By statute 25 Edward I. c. 5, 6, it is provided, that the King shall not take any aids or tasks, but by the common assent of the realm. And what that common assent is, is more fully explained by statute 34 Edward I. statute 4, c. 1; which enacts, that no talliage or aid shall be taken, without the assent of the Archbishops, Bishops, Earls, Barons, Knights, Burgesses, and other freemen of the land: and again, by statute 14 Edw. III. statute 2. c. 1. the Prelates, Earls, Barons, and Commons, Citizens, Burgesses, and Merchants, shall not be charged to make any aid, if it be not by the common assent of the great men and commons in parlia ment. And as this fundamental law had been shamefully evaded, under many preceding princes, by compulsive loans and benevolences, extorted without a real and voluntary consent, it was made an article in the petition of rights, 3 Charles I. that no man shall be compelled to yield any gift, loan, or benevolence, tax, or such like charge, without common consent by act of parliament. And, lastly, by the Bill of Rights, statute 1 William and Mary, statute 2, c. 2, it is declared, that levying money for or to the use of the crown, by pretence of prerogative, without grant of parlia ment, or for longer time, or in other man

ner than the same is or shall be granted, is illegal.

The above is a short view of the principal absolute rights which appertain to every Englishman; and the constitution has provided for the security of their actual enjoyment, by establishing certain other auxiliary, subordinate rights, which serve principally as out-works or barriers to protect and maintain those principal rights inviolate. These are,

The constitution, powers, and privileges of parliament. The limitation of the King's prerogative. The right of applying to courts of justice for redress of injuries. The right of petitioning the King or parliament. The right of having arms for defence.

This last auxiliary right of the subjects of having arms for their defence, suitable to their condition and degree, and such as are allowed by law, is declared by the Bill of Rights; and it is, indeed, a public allowance, under due restrictions of the natural right of resistance and self-preservation, when the sanctions of society and laws are found insufficient to restrain the violence of oppression.

As to the first and second of the subordinate rights above mentioned. See PARLIA MENT, KING.

With respect to the third and fourth, some short information is here subjoined.

Since the law is, in England, the supreme arbiter of every man's life, liberty, and property, courts of justice must at all times be open to the subject, and the law be duly administered therein. The emphatical words of Magna Charta, c. 29, spoken in the person of the King, who, in judgment of law (says Sir Edward Coke) is ever present, and repeating them in all his courts, are these, "Nulli vendemus, nulli negabimus, aut differemus rectum vel justitiam." To none will we sell, to none will we deny, or delay, right or justice.

It is also ordained by Magna Charta, c. 29, that no freeman shall be outlawed, that is, put out of the protection and benefit of the law, but according to the laws of the land. By statutes 2 Edward III. c. 8. 11 Richard II. e. 10, it is enacted, that no commands or letters shall be sent under the Great Seal, or the Little Seal, the Signet or Privy Seal, in disturbance of the law; or to disturb or delay common right, and though such commandments should come, the judges shall not cease to do right. This is also made a part of their path, by statute 11 Edward III. stat. 4.

And by the Bill of Rights it is declared, that the pretended power of suspending or dispensing with laws, or the execution of laws, by regal authority, without consent of parliament, is illegal. Not only the substantial part, or judicial decisions of the law, but also the formal part, or method of proceeding, cannot be altered but by parlament; for, if once those outworks were demolished, there would be an inlet to all manner of innovation in the body of the law itself. The King, it is true, may erect new courts of justice; but then they must proceed according to the old established forms of the common law. For which reason it is declared in the statute, 16 Charles I. c. 10, upon the dissolution of the court of starchamber, that neither his Majesty nor his Privy Council have any jurisdiction, power, or authority, by English bill, petition, articles, or libel, (which were the course of procceding in the Star-chamber borrowed from the civil law), or by any other arbitrary way whatsoever, to examine or draw into question, determine or dispose of the lands or goods of any subjects of this kingdom; but that the same ought to be tried and determined in the ordinary courts of justice, and by course of law.

The right of petitioning the King, or either house of parliament, for the redress of grievances, appertains to every individual in cases of any uncommon injury, or infringement of the rights already particularized, which the ordinary course of law is too defective to reach. The restrictions, for some there are, which are laid upon this right of petitioning in England, while they promote the spirit of peace, are no check upon that of liberty; care only must be taken, lest, under the pretence of petitioning, the subject be guilty of any riot or tumult; as happened in the opening of the memorable parliament in 1640. And to prevent this, it is provided by statute, 13 Charles II. stat. 1. c. 5, that no petition to the King, or either house of parliament, for any alteration in church or state, shall be signed by above twenty persons, unless the matter thereof be approved by three justices of the peace, or the major part of the grand jury in the county; and in London by the Lord Mayor, Aldermen, and Common Council; nor shall any petition be presented by more than ten persons at a time. But under these regulations, it is declared by the Bill of Rights, that the subject hath a right to petition; and that all commitments and prosecutions for such peti

tioning are illegal. The sanction of the grand jury may be given either at the assizes or quarter sessions; the punishment for offending against the stat. 13 Charles II. not to exceed a fine of 100l. and three month's imprisonment. Upon the trial of Lord George Gordon, the Court of King's Bench declared, that they were clearly of opinion, that this statute was not in any degree affected by the Bill of Rights.

men.

In the several articles above enumerated, consist the rights, or as they are more frequently termed, the liberties, of EnglishLiberties more generally talked of than thoroughly understood; and yet highly necessary to be perfectly known and considered by every man of rank or property, lest his ignorance of the points whereon they are founded, should hurry him into faction and licentiousness on the one hand, or a pusillanimous indifference, and criminal submission, on the other. And all these rights and liberties it is our birthright to enjoy entire, unless where the laws of our country have laid them under necessary restraints. So that this review of our situation may fully justify the observation of a learned French author, (of former times), who has professed that the English is the only nation in the world where political or civil liberty is the direct end of its constitution.

LIBRA, the balance, in astronomy, one of the twelve signs of the zodiac, the sixth in order; so called because when the sun enters it, the days and nights are equal, as if weighed in a balance. See ASTRONOMY.

LIBRA, in Roman antiquity, a pound weight; also a coin, equal in value to twenty denarii.

LIBRARY, an edifice or apartment des tined for holding a considerable number of books placed regularly on shelves; or, the books themselves lodged in it.

The first who erected a library at Athens was the tyrant Pisistratus, which was transported by Xerxes into Persia, and afterwards brought back by Seleucus Nicanor to Athens. Plutarch says, that under Eumenes there was a library at Pergamus that contained 200,000 books. That of Ptolemy Philadelphus, according to A. Gellius, contained 700,000, which were all burnt by Cæsar's soldiers. Constantine and his successors erected a magnificent one at Constantinople,which in the eighth century contained 300,000 volumes, and among the rest one in which the Iliad and Odyssey were written in letters of gold, on the guts of a

serpent; but this library was burnt by order of Leo Isaurus. The most celebrated li

braries of ancient Rome were the Ulpian and the Palatine, and in modern Rome, that of the Vatican; the foundation of the Vatican library was laid by Pope Nicholas, in the year 1450; it was afterwards destroyed in the sacking of Rome, by the constable of Bourbon, and restored by Pope Sixtus V. and has been considerably enriched with the ruins of that of Heidelberg, plundered by Count Tilly in 1682. One of the most complete libraries in Europe, is that erected by Cosmo de Medicis; though it is now exceeded by that of the French King, which was begun by Francis I. augmented by Cardinal Richelieu, and completed by M. Colbert. The Emperor's library at Vienna, according to Lambecins, consists of 80,000 volumes, and 15,940 curious medals. The Bodleian library at Oxford exceeds that of any university in Europe, and even those of any of the sovereigns of Europe, except those of the Emperors of France and Germany, which are each of them older by a hundred years. It was first opened in 1602, and has since been increased by a great number of benefactors: indeed the Medicean library, that of Bessarion at Venice, and those just mentioned, exceed it in Greek manuscripts, but it outdoes them all in oriental manuscripts; and as to printed books, the Ambrosian at Milan, and that of Wolfenbuttle, are two of the most famous, and yet both are inferior to the Bodleian. The Cotton library consists wholly of manuscripts, particularly of such as relate to the history and antiquities of England; which, as they are now bound, make about 1000 volumes.

In Edinburgh there is a good library belonging to the university, well furnished with books, which are kept in good order, and cloistered up with wire doors, that none but the keeper can open; a method much more commodious than the multitude of chains used in other libraries. There is also a noble library of books and manuscripts belonging to the gentlemen of the law.

LIBRATION, in astronomy, an apparent irregularity of the moon's motion, whereby she seems to librate about her axis, sometimes from the east to the west, and now and then from the west to the east; so that the parts in the western limb or margin of the moon sometimes recede from the centre of the disc, and sometimes move towards it, by which means they become alternately visible and invisible to the inhabitants of the earth. See Moon.

LIBRATION of the earth, is sometimes used to denote the parallelism of the earth's axis, in every part of its orbit round the sun.

LICHEN, in botany, a genus of the Cryptogamia Alga class and order. Natural order of Algæ. Generic character: male flowers; vesicles conglomerated, extremely small, crowded or scattered on the disk, margin, or tips of the fronds : female flowers on the same, or on a distinct plant; receptacle roundish, flattish, convex, concave, subrevolute affixed to the margin, often differing from the frond in colour, within containing the seeds disposed in rows. This is a very numerous genus; many of the species are of considerable use, particularly in the art of dying. L. rocella, or orchall, as an article of commerce, is of great importance, being extremely valuable for dying wool or silk any shade of purple or crimson. L. onphalodes will dye wool of a brown reddish colour, or a dull but durable crimson, paler and more lasting than that of orchall. L. islandicus is used by the Icelanders in their broth; they also dry it, and make it into bread, &c.

LICHEN, in medicine, a tetter or ringworm, a cutaneous disease, defined by Dr. Willan, "an extensive eruption of papillæ affecting adults, connected with internal disorder usually terminating in scurf, recurrent, not contagious." The Doctor has mentioned five varieties.

LICULA, in botany, a genus of the Appendix Palmæ. Natural order of Palms. Essential character: flowers all hermaphrodite; calyx and corolla three-parted; nectary sertiform; drupe. There is but one species, viz. L. spinosa, a native of Macassar and Celebes, where the inhabitants make much use of the narrow leaves for tobacco pipes, and the broad ones for wrapping up fruit, &c.; the wood is of little use, not being durable.

LIE, in morals, denotes a criminal breach of veracity. Dr. Paley, in treating of this subject, observes, that there are falsehoods which are not lies; that is, which are not criminal: and there are lies which are not literally and directly false.

I. Cases of the first class are those: 1. Where no one is deceived; as, for instance, in parables, fables, novels, jests, tales to create mirth, or ludicrous embellishments of a story, in which the declared design of the speaker is not to inform, but to divert; compliments in the subscription of a letter; a prisoner's pleading not guilty; an advocate asserting the justice, or his belief of the justice of his client's cause. In

such instance no confidence is destroyed, because none was reposed; no promise to speak the truth is violated, because none was given, or understood to be given. 2. Where the person you speak to has no right to know the truth, or more properly where little or no inconveniency results from the want of confidence in such cases; as where you tell a falsehood to a madman for his own advantage; to a robber, to conceal your property; to an assassin, to defeat or to divert him from his purpose. It is upon this principle, that, by the laws of war, it is allowed to deceive an enemy by feints, false colours, spies, false intelligence, and the like; but, by no means, in treaties, truces, signals of capitulation, or surrender: and the difference is, that the former suppose hostilities to continue, the latter are calculated to terminate or suspend them. Many people indulge in serious discourse a habit of fiction and exaggeration, in the accounts they give of themselves, of their acquaintance, or of the extraordinary things which they have seen or heard; and so long as the facts they relate are indifferent, and their narratives, though false, are inoffensive, it may seem a superstitious regard to truth to censure them merely for truth's sake. Yet the practice ought to be checked: for, in the first place, it is almost impossible to pronounce beforehand with certainty concerning any lie, that it is inoffensive, or to say what ill consequences may result from a lie apparently inoffensive: and, in the next place, the habit, when once formed, is easily extended to serve the designs of malice or interest; like all habits, it spreads indeed of itself. Pious frauds, as they are improperly enough called, pretended inspirations, forged books, counterfeit miracles, are impositions of a more serious nature. It is possible that they may sometimes, though seldom, have been set up and encouraged with a design to do good; but the good they aim at requires that the belief of them should be perpetual, which is hardly possible; and the detection of the fraud is sure to disparage the credit of all pretensions of the same nature. Christianity has suffered more injury from this cause than from all other causes put together.

II. As there may be falsehoods which are not lies, so there may be lies without literal or direct falsehood. An opening is always left for this species of prevarication, when the literal and grammatical signification of a sentence is different from the popular and customary meaning. It is the wilful deceit that makes the lie; and we wilfully deceive

when our expressions are not true in the sense in which we believe the hearer apprehends them. Besides, it is absurd to contend for any sense of words in opposition to usage; for all senses of all words are founded upon usage, and upon nothing else. Or a man may act a lie; as by pointing his finger in a wrong direction when a traveller inquires of him his road, or when a tradesman shuts up his windows to induce his creditors to believe that he is abroad; for to all moral purposes, and therefore as to veracity, speech and action are the same; speech being only a mode of action. See Paley's Moral Philosophy.

LIEUTENANT, an officer who supplies the place, and discharges the office of a superior in his absence. Of these, some are civil, as the lords-lieutenants of kingdoms, and the lords lieutenants of counties; and others are military, as the lieutenant-general, lieutenant-general of the artillery, lieutenantcolonel, lieutenant of artillery of the Tower, lieutenants of horse, foot, ships of war, &c.

LIEUTENANT, lord, of Ireland, is proper ly a viceroy, and has all the state and grandeur of a king of England, except being served upon the knee. He has the power of making war and peace, of bestowing all the offices under the government, of dubbing knight, and of pardoning all crimes except high treason; he also calls and prorogues the parliament, but no bill can pass without the royal assent. He is assisted in his government by a privy-council; and, on his leaving the kingdom, he appoints the lords of the regency, who govern in his absence.

LIEUTENANTS, lords, of counties, are of ficers, who, upon any invasion or rebellion, have power to raise the militia, and to give commissions to colonels and other officers, to arm and form them into regiments, troops, and companies. Under the lords-lieutenants, are deputy-lieutenants, who have the same power; these are chosen by the lords-lieutenants out of the principal gentlemen of each county, and presented to the King for his approbation.

LIEUTENANT generul, is an officer next in rank to the general; in battle, he commands one of the wings; in a march, a detachment, or a flying-camp; also a quarter, at a siege, or one of the attacks, when it is his day of duty.

LIEUTENANT of a ship of war, the officer next in rank and power to the captain; of these there are several in a large ship, who take precedence according to the dates of their first commissions. The oldest lieute

nant, during the absence of the captain, is charged with the command of the ship, as also the execution of whatever orders he may have received from the commander, relating to the King's service. The lieutenant who commands the watch at sea, keeps a list of all the officers and men thereto belonging, in order to muster them when he judges it expedient, and report to the captain the naines of those who are absent from their duty. During the night-watch he occasionally visits the lower decks, or sends thither a careful officer to see that the proper centinels are at their duty, and that there is no disorder amongst the men; no tobacco smoked between decks, nor any fire or candles burning there, except the lights which are in lanterns, under the care of a proper watch, for particular purposes. He is expected to be always on deck in his watch, as well to give the necessary orders with regard to trimming the sails, and superintending the navigation, as to prevent any noise and confusion; but he is never to change the ship's course without the captain's directions, unless to avoid an immediate danger. In time of battle, the lieutenant is particularly to see that all the men are present at their quarters, where they have been previously stationed, according to the regulations made by the captain. He orders and exhorts them every where to perform their duty, and acquaints the captain at all other times of the misbehaviour of any persons in the ship, and of whatever else concerns the service or discipline.

LIFE, duration of. The uncertainty of the continuance of human life, has been a fruitful source of serious reflections not only to divines and moralists of all ages, but occasionally to every individual of the human race. Independent of the host of fatal diseases which are continually augmenting the list of their victims, the frequently occurring instances of persons apparently in full possession of all the requisites to the continuance of life, being unexpectedly consigned to the grave, would cause men to think life more uncertain than they generally appear to consider it, did not the experience of living from one day to another, confirmed by the whole of their past lives, impress them with the expectation of continuing so to do, while they do not feel any known impediment to it; and it is necessa ry to the well being of society that this idea should in general preponderate. But as the property or income from which many persons derive their subsistence depends on the continuance of their life, or that of