Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A34206
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Concerning the priviledge of the vnder clark's in the Court of Chancery as now in clayme and practice
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1649
(1649)
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Wing C5698; ESTC R40861
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2,874
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7
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CONCERNING THE PRIVILEDGE OF THE VNDER CLARK'S In the Court of CHANCERY AS NOW IN CLAYME AND PRACTISE LONDON Printed Anno Dom. 1649. Tiranny and Popery discovered by a breife and narative discourse of the claimed priviledge of a six clarks clarke alias a subclarke in the Court of Chancery And humbly Dedicated to His Excellency the Lord Generall FAIRFAX IN time of open hostility for upholding the nationall rights and liberties of the free-borne people of England against all invasive attempts of prerogative or power by fortune or rather to my costly misfortune I have met with a limbe of tyranny and popery as yet lurking in high places of Iudicature and at this day practised under a notion of the jurisdiction and priviledges of the courts to their respective Clarks insomuch that a sub clarke in the court of Chancery in right of such his relation claims and enjoyes the following advantages If he be disposed to contention he may at his election under some equitable pretence trouble his proposed adversary by calling him into the said court by writ of Sub poena and there charging him by any tedious frivilous bill which personally to appeare to coppy out answere pleade or demurre to together with the expences of his travill attendance and a day of hearing besides motions orders and answers that commonly interpose the poore defendante is soone run out of 20. or 30. pound to the clarks nothing in respect of his priviledge and if then the bill be dismist with 20. shillings costs against this clark it may be thought a happy reparation notwithstanding the drawing up entring and coppy of this order of dismission with the Suppoena and other charges conducing to the recovery of these costs may possibly come to nineteene shillings of the money Or if otherwise this clarke pretends to a legall right which he enjoyes not he may take his writ of priviledge out of the Pettibagg Office and thereby compell the parsonall appearance of the deffendant with foure sabsedy men for spetiall bayle to his individuum vagum his action then after to bee made appeare albeit the defendant himselfe be responsable for tenfould the value of the clarke if wholy exposed to sale and the like for so many severall actions as he shall pretend to All which being performed there yet remains a remnant of further charge and servitude for this clarke may constraine the defendant to attend his pleasure a die in diem to receive his declaration and plead to it there being no imparlance against his priviledge but the clark at liberty not to declare before the third following terme and thereby put the deffendants to a further charge and attendance So that suppose this deffendants abode be 100. or 200 miles distant from London thither he and such his baile must goe with hazard of their healths neglect of their families losse in their severall occasions and certaine great expences in their travell and attendance as aforesaid to the clarks nothing nor the businesse when once understood appearing any other then like the fabulous issue of the Mountains which after a great and long expectation of some huge birth it proves but a ridiculous mouse some triviall 2 pence matter or rather a designe of vexation Now again admitting this Clerk to be never so injurious to others in their bodies goods or good names be their case proper for Law or Equity the Clerk claims it for part of his priviledge not to be impleaded but in one of the forenamed Courts where the Plaintiffe will assuredly find the Salve worse then the sore unlesse it be the greater for he shall certainly spend his Estate to nothing and have great fortune if he ever get halfe his costs allowed nor any Bayle to be put in for security of what he shall recover So that this clerk in right of such his place and priviledge carries about him Armatam Nequitiam such desperate destructive advantages that he may at pleasure exercise an insulting tyrannicall power over others of what incomparable worth soever and himselfe remaine as carelesse in doing right as fearlesse of suffering wrong ever making his priviledge Instrumentall to his malicious and mischeivous purposes in the one case or the other Now how dangerous is it to intrust the pravety of mans nature with a priviledge so inconsistent with the liberty of the Subject and so unwarranted by the Law of God and the lawes of the Nation both which Impartialy lookâ— on the Actions of man-kind without respect of persons whether in administration of reward or punishment being the two feet on which the Empires of the world march with honour and safety And what lesse could be expected from the late Lord Keeper Finch and others the then Judges of the Land then a compliancy by their utmost skill and cunning to serve their Prince in the designes of Ship-mony and all illegall Monopolies and miscariages to the begetting of intestine miserable Warres when as yet they continue such high and Papall indulgencies to their Clarks whereby they give them power to become Devills to honest men by destroying them in their livelyhoods and comforts of life as aforesaid And what hath beene here said of Chancery Clarks being above 70. in number doth in part extend to the Attorneys and Clarks in all the Courts of Record at Westminster for I find it affirmed by divers of them that Mutatis Mutandis they all lay claime to priviledges by their places to the cherishing of much vermine in the land when they incline to contention It remaines now to understand how these priviledges be gronnded whether on Grant from the Crown or the customary usage and practise of the Courts If it be answered by Grant it is replied nihil Dat quod non habet nor the Crown nor the King when in his Solstice of Majesty was ever admitted such a priviledge in his owne case For if any Subject had cause to capitulate his right with the King by contest in law or equity were he Plaintiffe or Defendant the King by his Counsell could only make a faire use of those prerogative advantages which divers Statutes of the Land and the practise of our municipall Lawes had intituled him to in speciall Cases for upholding the rights of the Crown against the cunning and craft of common persons and that without the least Arbitrary power or undue and destructive prosecution Or if it be answered to be a priviledge grounded on an ancient continued practise of the courts it is then replyed Malus usus est abolendus nay more a custome so repugnant to law reason and common right as this is in most of the species is in it selfe void For every Native in common right hath a like and equall portion of birthright in the Lawes of the Nation and be all alike levell to law And how preposterous is it to reason and how horrid to nature for a superiour to be exposed to mischeife and misery at the discression of his inferiour fellow subject by any hethenish grant or custome let any men judge But to draw to a conclusion brevity being the thing intended I beleive these priviledges to be of a mixt nature patched up partly by graunt and partly by the customary favours of the court as a boone intended to the clarks which write to the great Seale in respect of such their reference and subordination thereto I also find this graunt and these customary fovours to have been very auncient and to have had their original in time of greatest superstition and blindnesse when the six clarks themselves were preists but as now after so many years light of reformation and in the time of an intended thorough reformation to be countenanced in the highest courts of Judgment and Justice is a wonder to amasement Now out upon all relative worship as being a relique of popery and worst of Jdolatry Out upon such Jdolizing feeble mortal Majesty in ascribing such honour immunities to any scrub clarke that in way of livelyhood offers up a little Jnke and Paper to the effigies of its person and impress of ' its power For according to the latitude of Religion or reason in this relative worship the invocation of Saints who are constant attendants about the omnipotent Majesty of the immortall God may be fully justified And what honour or rather addoration may any peice of wood claime above the Ce