Mr. John Adams, in his pleadings, produces from the best authorities, those rules of law which must govern all cases of homicide, and particularly that which is before the court; and then considers the evidence, to see whether any thing has occurred that may be compared to the rules of law. He enters into a minute consideration of every witness produced on the crown side; and endeavours to show from the evidence on that side, that the assault upon the party was sufficiently dangerous to justify the prisoners; at least that it was sufficiently provoking to reduce to manslaughter the crime even of the two, who are supposed to be proved guilty of having killed. He then proceeds to consider the testimonies of the witnesses for the prisoners; and concludes with—“I will enlarge no more on the evidence, but submit to you, gentlemen.—Facts are stubborn things; and whatever may be our wishes, our inclinations, or the dictates of our passions, they cannot alter the state of facts and evidence: nor is the law less stable than the fact. If an assault was made to endanger their lives the law is clear, they had a right to kill in their own defence. If it was not so severe as to endanger their lives, yet if they were assaulted at all, struck and abused by blows of any sort, by snow-balls, oyster-shells, cinders, clubs, or sticks of any kind, this was a provocation for which the law reduces the offence of killing down to manslaughter, in consideration to those passions in our nature which cannot be eradicated.—To your candor and justice I submit the prisoners and their cause.” “The law, in all vicissitudes of government, fluctuations of the passions, or flights of enthusiasm, will preserve a steady undeviating course; it will not bend to the uncertain wishes, imaginations, and wanton tempers of men. To use the words of a great and worthy man, a patriot, and an hero, an enlightened friend of mankind, and martyr to liberty, I mean ALGERNON SIDNEY, who from his earliest infancy sought a tranquil retirement under the shadow of the tree of liberty, with his tongue, his pen, and his sword. “The law (says he) no passion can disturb. ’Tis void of desire and fear, lust and anger. ’Tis mens _sine affectu_; written reason; retaining some measure of the divine perfection. It does not enjoin that which pleases a weak, frail man, but without any regard to persons, commands that which is good, and punishes evil in all, whether rich or poor, high or low. ’Tis deaf, inexorable, inflexible.” On the one hand it is inexorable to the cries and lamentations of the prisoners; on the other it is deaf, deaf as an adder to the clamors of the populace.”