Introduction and Purpose
The Riot Act was introduced during a time of civil disturbance in Great Britain, such as the Sacheverell riots. The preamble makes reference to "many rebellious riots and tumults have been in divers parts of this kingdom", adding that those involved "presum so to do, for that the punishments provided by the laws now in being are not adequate to such heinous offences".
Read more about this topic: Riot Act
Famous quotes containing the words introduction and/or purpose:
“The role of the stepmother is the most difficult of all, because you can’t ever just be. You’re constantly being tested—by the children, the neighbors, your husband, the relatives, old friends who knew the children’s parents in their first marriage, and by yourself.”
—Anonymous Stepparent. Making It as a Stepparent, by Claire Berman, introduction (1980, repr. 1986)
“Whoever considers morality the main objective of human existence, seems to me like a person who defines the purpose of a clock as not going wrong. The first objective for a clock, is, however, that it does run; not going wrong is an additional regulative function. If not a watch’s greatest accomplishment were not going wrong, unwound watches might be the best.”
—Franz Grillparzer (1791–1872)