Walter Bagehot: “They put upon a fixed law a sanction so fearful that no one could…”

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They put upon a fixed law a sanction so fearful that no one could dream of not conforming to it.

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Walter Bagehot

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Bagehot highlights the severe consequences of not adhering to established laws in early societies.

More from Walter Bagehot

He could have found the truth as a statesman just as he found it when a judge; but he never did find it.

There is no ELASTIC element, everything is rigid, specified, dated.

One of the greatest pains to human nature is the pain of a new idea.

But as soon as the House met, Lord Thurlow became the greatest.

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Walter Bagehot: “They put upon a fixed law a sanction so fearful that no one could dream of not conforming to it.”