The Whole Proceedings on the Trial... Against John Stockdale...
A Case That Influenced the Passage of the Libel Act of 1792 [Trial]. Stockdale, John [1749?-1814], Defendant. Gurney, Joseph [1744-1815], Reporter. [Erskine, Thomas [1750-1823]. The Whole Proceedings on the Trial of an Information Exhibited Ex Officio, by the King's Attorney General, Against John Stockdale; For a Libel on the House of Commons, Tried in the Court of King's-Bench West-Minster, On Wednesday, The Ninth of December, 1789, Before the Right Hon. Lloyd Lord Kenyon, Chief Justice of England. Taken in Short Hand by Joseph Gurney. To Which is Subjoined, An Argument in Support of the Rights of Juries. London: Printed for John Stockdale, Opposite Burlington House, Piccadilly, 1790. xi, [1], 228 pp. [Bound with] A Briton Four Letters on the Subject of Mr. Stockdale's Trial, For a Supposed Libel on the House of Commons. London: Printed for John Stockdale, opposite Burlington House, Piccadilly, MDCCXC [1790]. 52 pp. Lacking the final 8 leaves of advertisments. Octavo (9" x 5-3/4"). Contemporary three-quarter calf over marbled boards, rebacked in period style, gilt title, fillets and ornaments to spine, speckled edges, hinges mended. Light rubbing to boards, heavier rubbing to board edges, corners bumped and somewhat worn, early bookseller ticket and armorial bookplate (of Charles Waburton) to front pastedown. Light toning to interior, light soiling to a few leaves. $850. * The Whole Proceedings: first edition. Four Letters: Only edition, one of two issues from 1790. Stockdale, a publisher and bookseller, was indicted for libel on the House of Commons after publishing an account of the impeachment of Warren Hastings by John Logan that accused the Commons of corrupt and unjust behavior. Stockdale was defended by Erskine, who argued that Stockdale should not be judged by isolated passages in Logan's book, but by the entire publication. Stockdale was acquitted and his case is believed to have influenced the passage of the Libel Act of 1792, which restored the verdict power of juries in libel cases. Taken in shorthand by Gurney, The Whole Proceedings is Stockdale's account of his trial. A Dublin reissue and a "New" London edition were also published in 1790. Four Letters, a work in favor of Stockdale and Erskine, claims to provide several Facts about the case and Hastings that had been ov.
Price: $850.00
Book number 73361