which shall be as valid and effectual as if acknowledged in the county from which the process issued."

Section XV of this act provides:

"That no judge of any Court of Record mentioned in this act shall practice as an attorney or counsellor, in any court of justice in this commonwealth, or elsewhere."

Section XVI of this act provides:

"That whereas it is requisite that the good people of this commonwealth should enjoy the full benefit of a competent jurisdiction within this state, for the hearing, determining and judging, in the last resort, upon complaints of error at common law, and also that a competent Court of Appeals should be provided within the same, for reviewing, reconsidering and correcting the decrees and sentences of the several Register's Courts: Be it therefore enacted by the authority aforesaid, That when any final judgment shall be hereafter given in the Supreme Court in any suit or action, real, personal, or mixed, or when any final decree or sentence shall be pronounced by any Register's Court, the party or parties, his, her or their heirs, executors or administrators, against whom such judgment, decree or sentence shall be given, may sue forth, in the case of a complaint of error in the Supreme Court, a writ of error, according to the course of the common law, under the less seal of the commonwealth, directed to the Chief Justice, or other Justice or Justices of the said court, commanding him or them to cause the record, and all other things concerning the judgment complained of, to be brought before the court herein after mentioned and constituted; and in case of an appeal from the definitive sentence or decree of any Register's Court, the appellant or appellants shall be allowed and shall have his, her or their appeal to the High Court of Errors and Appeals herein after constituted."

Section XVII of this act provides:

"That the Judges of the Supreme Court, the Presidents of the several Courts of Common Pleas for the five districts, or circuits, aforesaid, together with three other persons of known legal abilities, to be appointed and commissioned during good behaviour, and removable from office in the same manner as the Judges of the Supreme Court now are, be, and they are hereby constituted a Court of Record, by the name, style and title of the

High Court of Errors and Appeals; which said High Court of Errors and Appeals, or any five or more of the Justices composing the same, shall have power and authority to examine all such errors, as shall be assigned or found in or upon any such judgments given in the Supreme Court, and thereupon to affirm or reverse the same judgment, as the court of the common law and justice shall require, other than for errors to be assigned for want of form in any writ, return, plaint, bill, declaration, or other pleading, process, verdict, or proceeding whatsoever; and that after the said judgment shall be affirmed, or reversed, the record and proceedings, and all things concerning the same, shall be remitted into the said Supreme Court, to the end that such further proceedings may be had thereon, as well for execution as otherwise, as to justice shall appertain; and the said High Court of Errors and Appeals shall receive, hear and decide all such appeals from the Register's Courts, as aforesaid. Provided always, That such of the Justices of the Supreme Court, and such of the Presidents of the Courts of Common Pleas, who shall have heard and determined, or given any judgment, in any of the causes removed or brought by writ of error, or by appeal, into the said High Court of Errors and Appeals, shall be excluded from sitting, judicially, on the hearing of the same cause or controversy in the said High Court of Errors and Appeals. Provided nevertheless, That no such writ of error shall be granted, nor any appeal allowed, as aforesaid, unless an affidavit be filed with the clerk of the said High Court of Errors and Appeals, made by the plaintiff or plaintiffs in error, or the appellant or appellants, or his, her or their agent or attorney in fact, attesting, that the matter in controversy exceeds the value of four hundred dollars: And the plaintiff in error, or appellant, or in case of his, her or their absence, then his, her or their agent or attorney in fact, shall enter into recognizance to the defendant in error, or appellee, with two sufficient sureties, in double sum, or double the value in dispute, conditioned to prosecute his, her or their writ of error, or appeal, with effect in the said High Court of Errors and Appeals, and that if the judgment or decree shall be affirmed, or if the plaintiff or plaintiffs in error, or appellant, shall fail to prosecute his, her or their suit with effect, then to satisfy the condemnation money, together with damages, or otherwise abide the judgment in error, or decree in appeal, with double costs; which

said recognizance shall be taken before one of the Justices of the Supreme Court, or before the Register for the probate of wills and granting letters of administration, as the case may be, and subscribed by such Judge or Register; but if the said judgment or decree shall be reversed, each party shall pay his, her or their own costs in the said High Court of Errors and Appeals; and until such security shall be given, the power, authority or proceedings of the said Supreme Court or Register's Court, respectively, shall not be suspended."

Section XVIII of this act provides:

"That upon the hearing of any cause litigated before the said Register's court, the depositions of the several witnesses examined therein shall be taken in writing, and made part of the proceedings in the cause, upon which the said High Court of Errors and Appeals may reverse the decree of the said Register's courts, for any error arising either in law or fact, or affirm the same, according to the merits and justice of the case: Provided always, That if the Register's court, upon a dispute upon facts arising before them, shall send an issue into the court of Common Pleas of the county to try the said facts, which they shall do at the request of either party, and a verdict establishing the said facts be returned, the said facts shall not be reëxamined on appeal; and that no appeal from the decree of the said Register's courts, concerning the validity of a will, or the right to administer, shall stay the proceedings or prejudice the acts of any executor or administrator pending the same, provided the executor shall give sufficient security for the faithful execution of the will and testament to the register; but in case of refusal the said register is hereby directed to grant letters of administration during the dispute, which shall suspend the power of such executor during that time."

Section XIX of this act provides:

"That the said High Court of Errors and Appeals shall sit in the city of Philadelphia, at least once in every year; that is to say, on the second Monday in the month of July; and if there be any causes depending, the said court shall have power to adjourn from time to time, and to require and compel the attendance of sheriffs, coroners, constables, and other ministerial officers, as fully as any court in this commonwealth can or may do."

Section XXI of this act provides:

"That each of three persons to be appointed, and associated with the judges of the Supreme Court, and the presidents of the Courts of Common Pleas as judges of the said High Court of Errors and Appeals, shall be entitled to the sum of six dollars for each day they shall attend upon the business of the said court, for which the governor shall draw warrants upon the state treasurer, countersigned by the Comptroller-General and RegisterGeneral."

Section XXII of this act provides:

"That the act of assembly, entitled 'An Act for erecting an High Court of Errors and Appeals,' passed the twenty-eighth day of February, in the year one thousand seven hundred and eighty, and so much of any former act or acts of Assembly, as is hereby altered or supplied, shall be, and the same is hereby repealed, and made void: Provided nevertheless, That all such writs of error and appeals, which have been heretofore brought, and were depending and undetermined in the said High Court of Errors and Appeals, at the time of making and declaring the amendments and alterations of the constitution of this commonwealth, shall be held to be depending in the same state, and shall be determined by the justices of the said High Court of Errors and Appeals, established by this act, in the same manner as writs of error and appeals hereafter to be brought and returned into the said court."

By the act approved April 13, 1791, entitled “An act to establish the judicial system of courts of this commonwealth in conformity with the alterations and amendments ci the Constitution, 3d Smith's Laws, Vol. 3, page 29. A statute passed on the 28th day of February in the year 1780 is amended. This Act of 1780 created a court called a High Court of Errors and Appeals. It was composed of the judges of the Supreme Court, the presidents of the several Courts of Common Pleas for the five districts or circuits, and three other persons of known legal abilities. They were to hold their offices during good behavior and be removed in the same manner as the judges of the Supreme Court are. The amendment of 1791 gave them jurisdiction to examine and determine appeals from the Supreme Court. They also had jurisdiction to decide all appeals from the Registrars' Courts. This amended act also repealed the Act of 1780 establishing the High Court of Errors and Appeals. The law was in existence until

February 24, 1806, when it was repealed. There are only a few cases reported in Dallas Reports decided in this court. They all referred to decedents' estates and it seems they had jurisdiction also in admiralty. I find no decisions of the High Court of Errors and Appeals except those reported in Dallas and they related solely to decedents' estates and admiralty cases.

AN ACT SUPPLEMENTARY

"To the several acts of assembly for establishing the Judicial Courts of this Commonwealth in conformity to the alterations and amendments to the Constitution."

Passed April 18, 1795, 3d Vol. Smith's Laws, page 245.

"Sect. I. That from and after the end of the present term of April, the three terms of the Supreme Court of this commonwealth shall be holden on the first Monday in September, and the second Monday in December, and the third Monday in March; and that the said December term shall continue three weeks, and no longer; and the said terms in September and March shall continue two weeks, and no longer; and that the act to which this is a supplement, so far as it regulates the times of holding the court aforesaid, or the time of continuance thereof, shall be and is hereby repealed.

"Sect. II. And whereas delays and inconvenience, as well in the commencement as in the prosecution of suits and proceedings in the Supreme Court of this state, arise from the want of a second return day in each term of the said court; therefore be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the last day as well as the first day of every term of the said court, hereafter to be holden, shall be a common day of return in the same court, at either of which periods any writs, original, mesne, or judicial process, or other proceeding issuing or to be had out of the said court, may be made returnable, at the election of the party suing out the same, and the same writs, process and other proceedings, thus made returnable on the last day of the term shall be as valid and effectual in all cases, and to all intents and purposes, as if the same had been made returnable on the first day of the term; provided that the same be sued out at like periods of time previous to the second return day, and like directions be observed and performed, as are made necessary by law in writs, process or other proceedings, returnable on the first day of the term: And it is further provided, That nothing herein