EXTRACTS FROM ACTS OF PARLIAMENT

Relating to the Jurisdiction of Courts Baron and Courts Leet.

STAT. MARLEBRIDGE (52 H. III. c. 9.)

"Who shall do Suit of Court: Suit of Court by Coparceners."

§. 1. "For doing suits unto courts of great lords, or of meaner persons, from henceforth this order shall be observed, that none that is infeoffed by deed, from henceforth shall be distrained to do such suit to the court of his lord, without he be specially bound thereto by the form of his deed :-these only except whose ancestors, or they themselves, have used to do such suit before the first voyage of the said King Henry into Britain, sithence which nine and thirty years and an half are passed, unto the time that these statutes were enacted. Likewise from henceforth none that is infeoffed without deed, from the time of the Conquest, or any other ancient feoffment, shall be distrained to do such suits, unless that he or his ancestors used to do it before the said voyage. And they that are infeoffed by deed to do a certain service, as, for service of so many shillings by year, to be acquitted of all service, from henceforth shall not be bounden to such suits, or other like, contrary unto the form of their feoffment. And any inheritance whereof but one suit is due, descend unto many heirs, as unto parceners, whoso hath the eldest part of the inheritance, shall do that one suit for himself and his fellows, and the other coheirs shall be contributaries, according to their portion, for doing such suit. And if many feoffees be seized of an inheritance, whereof but one suit is due, the lord of the fee shall have but that one suit; and shall not exact of the said inheritance but that one suit, as hath been used to be done before. And if those feoffees have no warrant or mean which ought to acquit them, then all the feoffees, according to their portion, shall be contributaries for doing the suit for them. And if it chance that the lords of the fee do distrain their tenants for such suits, contrary to this act, then at the complaint of the tenants, the lords shall be attached to appear in the King's Court at a short

if

day, to make answer thereto, and shall have but one essoin therein, if they be within the realm; and immediately the beasts, or other distresses taken by this occasion, shall be delivered to the plaintiff, and so shall remain, until the plea betwixt them be determined." [The lord's attendance compellable by further attachment, and in case of further default, then by distress of their goods and chattels.]

13 EDW. I. stat. 2. c. 6. [View of Arms, &c.]

“And that view of armor be made every year two times. And in every hundred and franchise two constables shall be chosen to make the view of armor. And the constables aforesaid shall present before justices assigned such defaults as they do see in the country about armor, and of the suits of towns, and of highways, and also shall present all such as do lodge strangers in uplandish towns, for whom they will not answer; and the justices assigned shall present at every parliament unto the king such defaults as they shall find, and the king shall provide remedy therein. And from henceforth let sheriffs take good heed, and bailiffs, within their franchises and without, be they higher or lower, that have any bailiwick or forestry in fee, or otherwise, that they shall follow the cry with the country, and after, as they are bounden, to keep horses and armor, or so to do; and if there be any that do not, the defaults shall be presented by the constables to the justices assigned, and after, by them to the king, and the king will provide a remedy as afore is said. And the king commandeth and forbiddeth, that from henceforth, neither fairs nor markets be kept in churchyards, for the honour of the church."

1 & 2 PH. & MARY, c. 12.

"An Act for the impounding of Distresses."

§. 1. "For the avoiding of grievous vexations, exactions, troubles and disorder in taking of distresses, and impounding of cattle: be it enacted by the authority of this present parliament, that from and after the first day of April next coming, no distress of cattle shall be driven out of the hundred, rape, wapentake, or lathe where such distress is or shall be taken, except that it be to a pound overt within the same shire, not above three miles distant from the place where the

said distress is taken: and that no cattle or other goods distrained or taken by way of distress for any manner of cause at one time, shall be impounded in several places, whereby the owner or owners of such distress shall be constrained to sue several replevies for the delivery of the said distress so taken at one time; upon pain every person offending contrary to this act, shall forfeit to the party grieved, for every such offence, an hundred shillings, and treble damages."

§. 2. "And be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, that after the said first day of April, no person or persons shall take for keeping in pound, impounding or poundage of any manner of distress, above the sum of four-pence for any one whole distress that shall be so impounded; and where less hath been used, there to take less; upon the pain of five pounds, to be paid to the party grieved over and beside such money as he shall take above the sum of four-pence; any usage or prescription to the contrary in anywise notwithstanding."

1 [2] JAC. I., c. 5.

"An Act to prevent the overcharge of the people by Stewards of Court Leets and Court Barons.”

"Whereas the King's most excellent Majesty, the Lords spiritual and temporal, and other his Highness's subjects of this realm of England and Wales, have in divers places of the same many franchises, jurisdictions, privileges and liberties to keep court leets, or court barons, for the true administration of justice, and to the punishing and suppressing of offences; the profits and perquisites of which courts have heretofore been used to be levied and collected by the bailiff or other minister of such court, and by him accounted for to his Highness's progenitors, or other lords or ladies of such courts and manors, and as of right it ought so to be: But now by reason of the great increase of people, the said profits and perquisites of courts are grown to be of a better yearly value, than in ancient time it hath been, divers that are now stewards of such courts have heretofore in their own names, or in the names of some other to their use, obtained and gotten divers grants of all the profits and perquisites of such courts whereof they are stewards, whereby many of his Majesty's subjects are unjustly vexed, and by grievous fines and amerciaments unduly punished, greatly to the wronging and impoverishing of the

tenants and inhabitants where such stewards are, proceeding out of a greedy desire to make and obtain an undue and extraordinary gain to themselves: It is therefore, by the authority of this present parliament established and enacted, that no steward, deputy steward, or other under steward of any of the courts aforesaid, shall directly or indirectly, in his own name or in the name of any other, from and after the expiration of one year next after the end of this session of this present parliament, take, receive, or make benefit to his own use, in money, goods, or any other thing, to the value of twelve pence or more, by virtue or colour of any demise or grant hereafter to be made of any of the profits or perquisites, or amerciaments of any such courts whereof they are steward, which rightfully shall belong to the lords of the same, upon pain that every steward offending contrary to the tenor of this present act of parliament, shall for every such his offence forfeit the sum of forty pounds, and to be disabled ever after to be steward of such court, or of any other; the one half of the forfeiture to be to our Sovereign Lord the King's Majesty, his heirs and successors; the other half to any of his Majesty's subjects that shall complain in any one of his Highness's courts of record, by action of debt, bill, plaint, or information, in which suit no essoin, protection, wager of law, or other dilatory plea shall be allowed."

[VIDE stat. Westm. 1, c. 33, against Maintenance].

4 ED. IV., c. 1. ().

[The Length and Breadth of Cloths made to be sold. No Cloths wrought beyond Sea shall be brought into England.

§. 6. That every justice of peace [&c. &c.], and every steward keeping or holding wapentake or leet of any person out of city, borough, or town, where no mayor, master, bailiff or bailiffs, or portreves is or be, shall have power or authority, by this ordinance, to hear and determine the complaints of every such clothmaker and labourer, as well for nonpayment of the said labourer's wages as of the said forfeiture and damages, by due examination of the parties in this behalf; and thereupon for nonpayment of the said duties and forfeitures, and for the said damages, to commit the said offenders in

(a) See the reference to this stat. or or ordinances, ante, pt. 3. p. 830. n. ordinance and the 13 following statutes

this behalf to the next gaol within the same county, there to remain till the said duties, forfeitures, and damages be fully paid to the said labourer or clothmaker; and also that every [of the said justices of peace, &c.] steward of wapentake and leet, upon information or complaint of any other person which is not grieved in this behalf, shall have power by the said authority within his jurisdiction, to cause the party to come before him, against whom such information or complaint shall be made, for offending this ordinance, and to examine him in and upon the matter contained in the same information or complaint; and if the party by examination or other due proofs, be found guilty or defective, that then the same party, as often and for every time that he is so found guilty or defective, shall forfeit to the king, or to such person or persons who is or be entitled to have fines or amerciaments for offences done within their jurisdiction, three shillings and fourpence. And that every of the said justices of peace and other officers aforesaid, within his jurisdiction, upon every of the said informations or complaints, shall have full power to make like process against the party, upon whom any such information or complaint, as before is rehearsed, shall be made, to make him personally to appear before him, thereupon to be examined, as justices of peace have upon information or complaint made to them for surety of peace, without any fee or reward to be taken or had by any of the said justices, or any other officer, for the execution of their offices in this behalf.]

14 & 15 HEN. VIII., c. 10.

[The Penalty for unlawful hunting the Hare.

Be it enacted, &c., that no person from henceforth race, destroy, and kill any hare in the snow with any dog, bitch, bow, nor otherwise. And that the justices of peace within every shire, of every sessions of the peace, and stewards of leets, shall have full authority and power to enquire of such offenders; and after such inquisitions found, the said justices of peace and stewards of leets, for every hare so killed, shall cess upon every such offender six shillings and eightpence, to be forfeited to the King, when found by such justices of peace, and the forfeiture found in every leet, to be to the lord of the leet.]

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