accident of human frailty, depraved, or in a particular instance
misunderstood, where you neither mean to rescind the acts, nor to
censure the persons, in such cases you have taken the explanatory
mode, and, without condemning what is done, you direct the future
judgment of the court.

All bills for the reformation of the law must be according to the
subject-matter, the circumstances, and the occasion, and are of four
kinds:- 1. Either the law is totally wanting, and then a new
enacting statute must be made to supply that want; or, 2. It is
defective, then a new law must be made to enforce it. 3. Or it is
opposed by power or fraud, and then an act must be made to declare
it. 4 Or it is rendered doubtful and controverted, and then a law
must be made to explain it. These must be applied according to the
exigence of the case; one is just as good as another of them.
Miserable, indeed, would be the resources, poor and unfurnished the
stores and magazines of legislation, if we were bound up to a little
narrow form, and not able to frame our acts of parliament according
to every disposition of our own minds, and to every possible
emergency of the commonwealth; to make them declaratory, enforcing,
explanatory, repealing, just in what mode, or in what degree we
please.

Those who think that the judges, living and dead, are to be
condemned, that your tribunals of justice are to be dishonoured,
that their acts and judgments on this business are to be rescinded,
they will undoubtedly vote against this bill, and for another sort.

I am not of the opinion of those gentlemen who are against
disturbing the public repose; I like a clamour whenever there is an