Book 5
10.39
Hence arise such questions as the following. You have stolen private money, but since you stole it from a temple, it is not theft but sacrilege. You have killed adulterers, an act permitted by law, but since the act was done in a brothel, it is murder. "You have committed an assault, but since the object of your assault was a magistrate, the crime is lèse-majesté.
10.40
Similarly it may be urged in defence, The act was lawful, because I was a father, a magistrate. But such points afford matter for argument when there is a controversy as to the facts, and matter for enquiry when the dispute turns on a point of law. Place also frequently affects the quality of an action, for the same action is not always lawful or seemly under all circumstances, while it makes considerable difference in what state the enquiry is taking place, for they differ both in custom and law.
