The Judicial History of Individual Liberty.
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THE JUDICIAL HISTORY OF INDIVIDUAL LIBERTY. VII. FROM 1789.
BY VAN VECHTEN VEEDER, Of the New York Bar. tors like Home Tooke assumed direction ot THE outbreak of the French Revolution their activities. New organizations of which was contemporaneous with the rise in England of another and more powerful the "London Corresponding Society" may means than the press for influencing and be taken as a type, arose out of the excite directing public opinion—public meetings ment caused by events in France. This so and organized societies or associations. This ciety, composed chiefly of working men, new method of agitation is to be clearly dis sought to redress all the evils of society. To tinguished from the earlier riotous and tu promote their visionary schemes they car multuous agitations of which the proceedings ried on a system of correspondence, not of the Spitalfields silk-weavers in 1765 is an only with affiliated societies in England, but with the National Convention of France illustration. One of its earliest appear ances was the general demonstration over and the Jacobins of Paris. Their arguments the violation of the rights of the electors of for universal suffrage were combined with all the abstract speculations and conventional Middlesex in the case of John Wilkes. Once established this form of agitation rapidly phrases then current in France,. Their pro developed in influence through systematic ceedings alarmed the timid and provoked the severe measures of repression which organization. As these political societies multiplied in numbers, the principle of as ensued. sociation was brought into active operation. In May, 1794, in the preamble to the act Committees of correspondence were ap suspending the writ of habeas corpus, Parlia pointed, and delegates were sent to London ment declared that "a traitorous and detesta to give concentration and force to their peti ble conspiracy had been formed for sub tions for reform, and to keep alive the public verting the existing brtvs^nd ^constitution, agitation of grievances. In this way the and for introducing the1 system of anarchy people hoped to overcome the disadvantage and confusion which has so lately prevailed of a very limited representation in Parlia in France." The government at once pro ment. One of the earliest of these organ ceeded to demonstrate the assertion. In izations was the "Revolutionary Society,'1 October indictments for high treason were formed to commemorate annually the Rev found against Thomas Hardy, John Home olution of 1688. Another, "The Society for Tooke and ten other leading members of the Constitutional Information/' had been London Corresponding Society and the So formed in 1780 to instruct the people in their ciety for Constitutional Information. The political rights and to forward the cause of indictments charged the prisoners with con parliamentary reform. Pitt, Fox, Sheridan spiracy to break the public peace, to excite and many of the leading statesmen of the rebellion, to alter the government of the day were among the members of these or country, to depose the king, and put him ganizations and participated in their pro to death. In pursuance of these traitorous ceedings. Upon the outbreak of the French designs, the prisoners were charged with Revolution, however, these associations having written and issued letters and ad were directed into new channels, and agita dresses with the object of summoning a
