4 Co. 76.

Hob. 227.

to judge of the whole matter, they do at their peril take upon themfelves the understanding of the law: And if the petit jury have judged without being apprised of the general law of the kingdom, as they ought to be; yet that may nevertheless be offered to the grand jury, who may be made fenfible of fuch general laws on which their judgment must be founded.

Now the diftinction between a general and a particular law is this; whatever concerns the kingdom in general is a general law; whatever concerns a particular fpecies of men, or fome individuals, is a particular law.

From this definition it is plain that the fame law may be both general and particular in different parts; Ex. gr.3 Jac.1. against recufants in general in difabling them to present; yet the clause giving their prefentations to the universities is particular, and must be pleaded or found. ⚫

A law which concerns the king is a general law, because he is the head and union of the commonwealth. A law that concerns all lords is a general law, because it concerns the whole property of the kingdom, it being all holden under lords mediate or immediate. But a law that concerns only the nobility, or lords fpiritual, is a particular law, because it relates to no more than one fet of perfons; as if a law make them liable to fuch and fuch procefs. Yet perhaps, if a law related to the body of the peerage, it would be deemed a general law, for as fuch they are part of the legislature, and what relates to the conftitution is a general law.

What relates to all officers in general is a general law, because it concerns the universal administration of justice; as that no fheriff or other officer fhould take a reward for his office. But if it relate only to particular officers, and not to the administration of juftice, it is a particular law.

What relates to all fpiritual perfons is a general law, inaf much as the religion of the kingdom is the general concernment of the whole kingdom, as 21 H. 8. 13 Eliz. 10. 18 Eliz. 11. But what relates to one set of spiritual perfons is particular; as the act of 11 Eliz. of bishops' leases.

An act that comprehends all trades is general, because it relates to traffic in general: But an act that relates to grocers or butchers is particular.

We must next confider where rązures and interlineations, and where breaking off the feal avoids a deed.

Formerly, if there were any razure or interlineation, the 10 Co. 92. judges determined upon the profert or view of the deed, whether the deed were good or not: But when conveyances grew fo voluminous, fuch vaft room was left for the mifprifion of the clerk, that the courts thought it neceflary not to discharge a deed razed or interlined as void, upon demurrer, but referred it to the jury, whether the deed thus razed or interlined were the individual contract delivered by the party.

If a deed be altered by a ftranger in a point not material, this 11 Co. 27. does not avoid the deed, but otherwise, if it be altered by a ftranger in a point material; for the witneffes cannot prove it to be the act of the party where there is any material difference, but an immaterial alteration does not change the deed, and confequently the witneffes may atteft it without danger of perjury. But if the deed be altered by the party himself, though in a point not material, yet it avoids the deed; for the law takes every man's own act moft ftrongly against himself.

If there be feveral covenants in a deed, and one of them be 11 Co. 28, b. altered, this deftroys the whole deed; for the deed cannot be the fame, unless every covenant of which it confifts be the fame alfo.

If there be blanks left in an obligation in places material, 2 R. Ab. 29. and filled up afterwards by affent of parties, yet is the obligation void, for it is not the fame contract that was fealed and delivered. As if a bond were made to C. with a blank left for his Chriftian name, and for his addition, which is afterwards filled up. But if A. with a blank left after his name, be bound 1 Vent. 185. to B. and after C. is added as a joint obligor, yet this does not avoid the bond, for it does not alter the contract of A. who was bound to pay the whole money before any fuch addition.

8 Mod. 278.

Mod. 11.

It has been faid that where a thing lies in livery, a deed for- Paim. 403.405. merly fealed may be given in evidence, though the feal be afterward broken off, for the intereft paffed by the act of livery: So, they say, if the conveyance were made by leafe and release, and the uses were once executed by the ftatute, they do not return back again by cancelling the deed: But it is faid, if a man fhew a title to a thing lying in grant, there he fails if the feal be torn off, for a man cannot fhew a title to the thing lying in folemn agreement but by folemn agreement, and there can be no folemn agreement without feal. However, it may well be doubted, whether this diftinction will hold. In Palm 403, it was holden,

3

Balf. 79.

Godb. 145.

Jones 320. 2 R. A. 68.

Godb. 144.

12 Mod. 216.

If an action or information be brought upon a penal fa tute, and there be another ftatute that exempts or difcharges. the defendant from the penalty, this ought to be pleaded; and cannot be given in evidence on the general iffue; for the general iflue is but a denial of the plaintiff's declaration, and the plaintiff has proyed him guilty, when he has proved him within the law upon which he has founded his declaration; fo that the plaintiff has performed what he has undertaken : but if the defendant would exempt himself from the charge, he should not have denied the declaration, but have fhewed the law that difcharges him.

Another difference is taken between where the provifo in a ftatute is matter of fact, and where it is matter of law,

For where it is a mere matter of fact it may be given in evidence; as if an action of debt be brought against a fpiritual perfon for taking a farm, and the defendant plead quod non kabuit nec tenuit ad firmam contra formam ftatuti: The defendant may give in evidence that it was for the maintenance of his houfe, according to the provifo in the ftatute. But on an information on 5 Ed. 6. c. 14. for ingroffing, the defendant cannot upon the general iffue give in evidence a licence of three juftices according to the provifo, because whether there be a fufficient authority given is matter of law, and therefore cannot be given in evidence, but must be pleaded.

A faving provifo may be given in evidence on the general iflue, because if the party be within the provifo, he is not guilty on the body of the act on which the action is founded.

Of general acts of parliament the printed ftatute book is evidence: Not that the printed ftatutes are perfect and authentic copies of the records themselves; but every person is fuppofed to know the law, and therefore the printed ftatutes are allowed to be evidence, because they are the hints of that which is fuppofed to be lodged in every man's mind already.

But in private acts of parliament the printed ftatute book is not evidence, though reduced into the fame volume with the general ftatutes: But the party ought to have a copy compared with the parliament roll; for they are not confidered as already lodged in the minds of the people.

However, a private act of parliament in print that concerns a whole country, as the act of Bedford levels, for rebuilding

Tivertons

Tiverton, &c. may be given in evidence without comparing it with the record. And these things are the rather admitted, because they gain fome authority from being printed by the king's printer; and befides, from the notoriety of the subject of them they are fuppofed not to be wholly unknown. And for this reafon printed copies of other things of as public a nature have been admitted in evidence without being compared with the original: as the printed proclamation for a peace was admitted to be read without being examined by the record in chancery.

The next thing is the copies of all other records; for they, being things to which every man has a right to have recourse, cannot be transferred from place to place to serve a private purpose, and therefore the copies of them must be allowed in evidence; a true copy being the best evidence you can have. But a copy of a copy is no evidence, for the rule demands the best evidence the nature of the thing admits, and the further off any thing lies from the first original truth, the weaker must be the evidence; befides, there must be a chafm in the proof; for it cannot appear that the first was a true copy.

Now thefe copies are two-fold; under feal, and not under feal.

Firft under feal, and they are called exemplications, and are of better credit than any fworn copy; for the courts of juftice, that put their feals to the copy, are fuppofed more capable to examine, and more exact and critical in their examination, than another perfon is or can be.

Exemplifications are two-fold; under the broad feal, and under the feal of the court.

Firft, under the broad feal; and fuch exemplifications are of themselves records of the greatest validity, and to which the jury ought to give credit under the penalty of an attaint.

When a record is exemplified under the broad feal, it must either be a record of the court of chancery, or be fent for into the court of chancery by certiorari, which is the center of all the courts, and from thence the fubject receives a copy under the attestation of the great feal.

Goodright and

Skinner M. 7

G. 2.C. B.

Ca. K. B. 216.

If letters patent be given in evidence, in which it is recited 2 R. A. 678. that a certain office was before granted to 7. S. and that J. S. furrendered it to the king, who accepted the fame, and granted it to J. D. this is not enough to avoid the title of 7. S. but the

2 R. A. 681.

2 Vent. 1700

a Lev. 108.

3 Inst. 173.

record of the furrender must be fhewn, or a true copy of it,
for the recital of such surrender is not the beft evidence the
nature of the thing will admit; and it would be of dangerous
confequence, if by fuch fort of fuggeftion, a man's title might
be avoided. But if letters patent were given in evidence
whereby, in confideration of the furrender of former letters
patent, the king grants a particular eftate to the party; this
would be good proof of a furrender, for the taking of an ef
tate by the fecond letters patent is itfelf a furrender of the firft;
now the fecond letters patent are the best proof of taking fuch
eftate;
and then the surrender is by operation and construction
of law. And in the cafe firft put, if the defendant will take
advantage of the recital of a former grant as proof of such
former grant, he will be bound by the recital of the furrender;
for if he will take any advantage of the recital he must admit
the whole; but if he produce the former patent, that will put
the plaintiff to produce the furrender. So if letters patent re-
cite a former grant to another, and grant the office to com-
mence from the determination thereof; the party claiming un-
der the second muft produce a copy of the firfl grant, that the
Court may fee that it is determined; for there can be no other
proof of the determination of the grant but the grant itself;
though perhaps in such case, if the recital were, that it was
determined, the whole recital would be taken together.

Nothing but records exemplified under the broad feal may be admitted in evidence, for these being preserved by the properofficer of every court from all razure and corruption, are fuppofed to be fo fair and unblotted, that there can be no danger in the exemplification. But the exemplification of deeds under the broad feal cannot be admitted in evidence; for they being in the cuftody of the party, and not of the law, are subject to razures and interlineations, and therefore ought to be pro duced themselves, as the beft evidence of the contract.

When any record is exemplified, the whole muft be exemplified, for the construction must be taken from a view of the whole taken together. However, this rule is to be taken with some restriction, as will appear by what is after faid concerning the giving fworn copies of fuch records in evi, 'dence.

Secondly, The fecond fort of copies under feal are exemplifications under the feal of the court, and they are of higher credit

than