Eminent judges have been puzzled where to draw the line, or even
to state the principle on which it should be drawn, between the
two sets of cases. But the principle is believed to be similar to
that on which all other lines are drawn by the law. Public
policy, that is to say, legislative considerations, are at the
bottom of the matter; the considerations being, in this case, the
nearness of the danger, the greatness of the harm, and the degree
of apprehension felt. When a man buys matches to fire a haystack,
or starts on a journey meaning to murder at the end of it, there
is still a considerable chance that he will [69] change his mind
before he comes to the point. But when he has struck the match,
or cocked and aimed the pistol, there is very little chance that
he will not persist to the end, and the danger becomes so great
that the law steps in. With an object which could not be used
innocently, the point of intervention might be put further back,
as in the case of the purchase of a die for coining.
The degree of apprehension may affect the decision, as well as
the degree of probability that the crime will be accomplished. No
doubt the fears peculiar to a slaveowning community had their
share in the conviction which has just been mentioned.
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