Previously to the discussion of the general authority of the steward of the court leet, it may be expedient to take a brief view of the relative powers and duties of the steward and bailiff, more particularly as regards the mode of impanelling the leet jury, for this, with reference to the highly important functions connected with the elective franchise of some few ancient boroughs (a), may be thought to involve a great constitutional question, and is a subject which in abler hands, and unrestrained by the limits necessarily prescribed to a work like the present, could not fail to excite very considerable interest.

As a general proposition it must, I think, be allowed, from considerations founded equally on principle and practice, that the steward of a court leet presides there wholly in a judicial character, and that every ministerial act is to be executed by the bedell or bailiff of the court (a), sworn to a due performance of his duty (b). This opinion cannot appear as a mere hypothesis to those who have contemplated the organic structure of the leet jurisdiction, and are familiar with the language of our ancient statutes, and text writers, and the general system of court keeping.

We have seen that the tourn of the sheriff is a branch of the ancient shire-gemot court, over which the alderman (ealdorman or earl) presided, and that the shiregerieve (or sheriff), the next officer in rank in the shire, supplied his place when absent, and acted as his assessor when present; and that the decision on questions between party and party, was by the votes of the whole assembly, collected by the lawmen, and regulated, as to any legal points that might arise, by a reference to the domeboc, or law book (c).

These lawmen (lahmen) were the first students or professors of law, some of whom, after the accustomed previous examination, were appointed assessors to the aldermen, shiregerieves, &c., and others acted as pleaders. Three appear to have been the number at first appointed to assist the alderman, &c. in judgment, but the number was afterwards increased to seven, and then to twelve. These assessors, or assistant judges, were sworn to a faithful discharge of their duties, and not to suffer any innocent man to be condemned, nor any guilty person to be acquitted. The institution of assessors would seem to have been even earlier than the reign of Alfred the Great (d).

(a) Co. Lit. 234 b. But a custom for the steward of a court leet to nominate the persons to be summoned by the bailiff as jurors, is good. The King v. Joliffe, 2 Barn. & Cress. 54. And see Crane v. Holland, Cro. Car. 138. Post p. 844.

(b) Kitch. 91. Scroggs 99,

(c) Ante, p. 808.

(d) Some are of opinion that the lahmen (and ræd-boran) of the Anglo Saxons, were the same with the jurors of more modern times. But this opinion is open to very strong objections. See 3 vol. Henry's Hist. of G. B. 346–7. Sed vide Turner's

It is, I submit, but a natural inference that the sheriff, in his tourn, acted in the same judicial character as he was wont to fill in the parent court, the shiregemot, in the absence of the ealdorman;—and equally so that on the introduction of the trial by jury (a), the judicial and ministerial characters in the sheriff's tourn were not blended, but that the office of impanelling the jury devolved on a subordinate officer of the court, corresponding with the bedell or bailiff of the court leet, and in exact accordance with the ministerial duty of the sheriff at the present day (b). That this was the practice in the tourn, and that this was originally, and as a constitutional principle, the practice also in the leet, may be thought to appear by the few references I propose to make to our statute law, and to the combined theoretical and practical works of several very eminent lawyers.

In the Appendix to the first part of this treatise will be found an extract from an act of parliament passed in the reign

Hist. of the Anglo-Sax. 1. 11. c. 9. Conqueror: indeed it is supposed by p. 270. et seq.

See the article in the Edinb. Review, referred to ante, p. 804. n. (a) where it is stated that the leet jury of the Anglo-Saxon Hundred was constituted of the twelve eldest Thanes, who were to go out with the Reeve, and to swear on the halidome, that they would neither say forth respecting the innocent, nor conceal the guilty, and that these corresponded to the twelve men of the Raffstnæmpd of the Swedish Hærad, but that in this assembly the tithingmen were absent, and all criminal proceedings must have been appeals at the suit of individuals, except where the Næmpdamen could make presentment of their own personal knowledge.

(a) It is not disputed that this institution existed in the time of the

some to have been introduced into this country in his reign. The principle of the trial by jury may be traced to the Anglo-Saxon custom of allowing a party to clear himself of an accusation by compurgators, generally twelve in number, who were to swear that they believed him innocent of the charge. But these juratores appear to have been originally named by the party accused, though afterwards, perhaps, by the court, [Sulliv. 275,] and their functions seem to accord more with the principle of our wager of law, than with that of the trial by jury.

(b) It may be right to mention, that the sheriff is in some cases constituted judge by act of parliament, as in re-disseisin by the stat. of Merton, c. 3. All his proceeding by 'force of that act is of record, and a

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of Richard the Third (a), which is, I submit, conclusive evidence that the sheriff acted judicially only in the leet of the tourn, and that the jury were impanelled by the bailiff or other ministerial officer. The preamble of the above act is in these words: "Forasmuch as divers great inconveniencies and per"juries do daily happen in divers shires of England by untrue "verdicts given in inquisitions and inquiries before sheriffs in "their tourns, by persons of no substance nor behaviour, nor dreading God, nor the world's shame, by reason whereof divers and many of the King's lieges of divers parts of England, by exciting and procuring of their evil willers be wrongfully indicted, and other that ought of right to be indicted, by such excitation and procuring oftentimes be spared, con"trary to common right and to good conscience." And it. then enacts, that no bailiff nor other officer should from thenceforth return or impanel any such person, in any shire of England, to be taken or put in or upon any such inquiry in any of the said tourns, but such as were of good name and fame, and had lands and tenements of freehold, within the same shires, to the clear yearly value of 20s. at the least, or of copyhold, to the clear yearly value of 26s. 8d. at the least: and that if any bailiff or other officer within the said counties should thereafter return or impanel any person contrary thereunto, he should lose for every person that he so impanelled and returned, not being of the sufficiency aforesaid, as often as he so offended, 40s. : and the sheriff other 40s. the one half to the King and the other half to the person suing; and that every such indictment before any sheriff in his tourn otherwise taken should be void.

By 1 Eliz. c. 17. for the preservation of spawn and fry of fish,' it is enacted, [s. 8, 9, & 10,] that the lord of every leet should have full power and authority to inquire of all the offences contrary to the purport, tenor, and form of that statute

'writ of error lies on a judgement 'given against him.' 6 Co. 12 a. citing 44 E. 3. 10. And see 1 Eliz. c. 17.

s. 10. infrà. 2 Barn. & Cress. 58. (a) 1 R. 3. c. 4.

within the precinct of their said leet: such inquiry to be had in manner and form, and after such sort as common amerciaments, or other things inquirable in their court leet, were lawfully used and accustomed to be had and made: and that upon every such presentment had in any court or leet, by the oath of twelve men or more, as aforesaid, of any offence or offences made contrary to the tenor of that statute; then all such forfeiture above in that statute limited and appointed for such offence, should be unto the lord of the said leet for the time being, to his own use for ever, and should be levied in such manner and form, as amerciaments for affrays committed within the precinct of such leet were used and accustomed to be levied : and that if any leet after the first day of June then next should be kept, and the steward of the said leet for the time being, or other for him, did not charge the jury sworn in such leet, to inquire of all the offences done within the precinct of the said leet, contrary to the tenor and form of that statute; then the steward of the said leet to lose and forfeit forty shillings; the one moiety to the Queen, and the other moiety to the person suing for the same; and that if any jury sworn in any leet, and being charged to inquire of the offences committed within the precinct of that leet, did wilfully and willingly conceal and make default in presentment, or did not present the offence and offenders; that then it should be lawful to the steward or bailiff of the leet, or his or their deputy for the time being, to impanel one other jury within the said leet, and to inquire of such concealment, default, or non-presentment (a); and that upon such concealment, &c. found and presented, every of the said jurors which so did conceal, make default or not present, should lose and forfeit for every such offence twenty shillings to the lord of the said leet, the same to be levied in manner and form aforesaid, for the other offences therein expressed.

(a) See reference to this stat. per Best, J. in The King v. Joliffe, 2 Barn. & Cress. 64. Scroggs, [p. 16,] "In some cases the steward may

says

"impanel a second jury, to inquire "into the concealments of the first, "and fine them," cites this stat. & 33 H. 8. c. 6. And see Kitch. p. 31.