SOME NOTES ON QUIBBLING. By George H. Westley. THE quibble is as ancient as Eden. Our bling which occur to me at this moment, are first parents quibbled, and we have of such a commonplace character that I will been quibbling ever since. When God said, not describe them, but will pass on to older "Hast thou eaten of the tree? " did he receive and more interesting cases. Before leaving an unequivocal reply? Nay, Adam shuffled the present, however, let me say that the over the matter, saying, "The woman whom plea of " Not Guilty," so often heard in our thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of courts, would seem to possess something of the tree." Mother Eve likewise avoided the the nature of a quibble. An old law-book affirmative monosyllable, pleading, " The says, " A man who has committed an serpent beguiled me." This is rather a weak offense may plead 'not guilty,' and yet tell specimen of the quibble, perhaps — most no lie; for by the law no man is bound to things are weak at birth — but in view of accuse himself— so when I say I am not the inherent tendency of our nature to guilty, the meaning is as if I should say, ' I evade, to shuffle, to equivocate, when we am not as guilty as to tell you. If you bring me to trial, and have me punished for find ourselves in a tight place, it may reason what you lay to my charge, prove it against ably be looked upon as the genesis of quib me.' " Here we have a sort of legalized lie; bling. an untruth as far as the hearer is concerned, Quibbling then dates back to man's first but no falsehood to the speaker because of disobedience, and does not owe its origin, a mental reservation. Let casuists decide. as someone has hinted, to the codification of An amusing instance of quibbling is to be laws and the advent of the lawyer. The found in the following story related by a equivoke is a weapon of common possession, verdant son of Ireland
- " Sure, and I'm
but the skill to use it to the best advantage heir to a splendid estate under my father's must be acquired, even as the master of will," said he
" when he died he ordered fence acquires his marvelous dexterity. my brother to divide the house with me, and The old poet realized this: — by St. Patrick, he did it — for he tuck the "0 many are the lawyers that are sown inside himself and give mc the outside." By nature; men endowed with nicest quirks, The quibble and the fallacy refined; In " State Trials," by Nicholas Moile, we But wanting the accomplishment of slang, find the following " Action on the case for Which in the docile season of their youth words. Sir Thomas Holt struck his cook It was denied them to acquire, through lack on the head with a cleaver, and cleaved his Of lectures, or the inspiring food of inns; head; the one part lay on the one shoulder, Nor having e'er, as life advanced, been led By circumstance to take unto the height and another part on the other. The defend The measure of themselves for wig and gown, ant pleaded not guilty, and it was found They go to the grave unheard of." against him. It was now moved, in arrest of In ancient times the quibble was actively judgment, that these words were not action employed, and many a man fell a victim to able, for it is not averred that the cook was the clever word-twisting of his tricky oppo killed, but argumentative. The court was nent. In these matter-of-fact days we have of that opinion, Fleming C. J. and Williams grown more wary, and are seldom caught. absentibus; for slander ought to be direct, The few recent examples of successful quib against which there may not be any intend
