Philadelphia: William Cobbett, 1797. Prosecuted for Publishing Paine's Age of Reason Erskine, Thomas Erskine, Baron [1750-1823]. Kyd, Stewart [1759-1811]. Kenyon, Lloyd Kenyon, Baron [1732-1802]. The Speeches of the Hon. Thomas Erskine, In the Court of King's Bench, June 28, 1797, Before the Right Hon. Lloyd Lord Kenyon, And a Special Jury, On the Trial The King Versus Thomas Williams, For Publishing The Age of Reason, Written by Thomas Paine; Together with Mr. Stewart Kyd's Reply, And Lord Kenyon's Charge to the Jury. Philadelphia: Printed For, And Sold by William Cobbett, 1797. 23, [1] pp. Octavo (8" x 5"). Disbound stab-stitched pamphlet. Moderate toning, occasional light foxing, small faint stains to exterior and first leaf, lower outer corners of first several leaves worn, leaves separating at ends but secure. $950. * Only American edition. The French Revolution struck fear in the British government, which made the suppression of radical thought its top priority. Thomas Paine, who had been tried for seditious libel in 1794 after the publication of Rights of Man (1791-1792), was one of the government's top targets. The success of Parts I and II of The Age of Reason (1794-1795), an irreverent and accessible deist critique of institutionalized religion, led to another prosecution. This time, the government targeted the publisher, Thomas Williams. Ironically, the prosecution was led by Thomas Erskine, who had defended Paine in 1794. Williams was convicted of seditious and blasphemous libel and sentenced to a year's hard labor. This edition not in McCoy. Cohen, Bibliography of Early American Law (2003 Supplement) 13376.52. Seller Inventory # 79008

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Bibliographic Details

Title: The Speeches of the Hon Thomas Erskine, In ...

Publication Date: 1797

Illustrator: Philadelphia: William Cobbett, 1797.

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The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd. specializes in all aspects of law and legal history. Our publication program offers reprints of over 800 landmark works as well as original books. We invite offers of antiquarian, scholarly and current practice materials. Founded in 1983, we currently serve thousands of individuals and institutions worldwide. Law books - Out of print, Scholarly, Rare, and Reprints of Legal Classics. We also handle secondhand primary and secondary source material for practicing lawyers. Generally someone is available Monday-Friday 9:00 - 6:00PM(Eastern Time). Member of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America and the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers.

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