Selected quad for the lemma: city_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
city_n	pound_n	shilling_n	sum_n	29,780	5	12.5631	5	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A33531	English-law, or, A summary survey of the houshold of God on earth and that both before and under the law, and that both of Moses and the Lord Jesus : historically opening the purity and apostacy of believers in the successions of ages, to this present : together with an essay of Christian government under the regiment of our Lord and King, the one immortal, invisible, infinite, eternal, universal prince, the Prince of Peace, Emmanuel.	Cock, Charles George.	1651 (1651)	Wing C4789; ESTC R37185	322,702	228

inferior places But assuredly the foundation of this mischief was principally in the abused practise of the Courts of Justice of this kingdom which holding also a Jewish dependency as before was hinted there was no stint of strife for the Law admitted appeals and what was so called the Subjects due ought not be denied them so that if you had either a knavish or a powerfull adversary to deal withal which power is manifold as either a great rich man or greatly friended by the officers or els powerful in a joynt stock as a corporation whose united purses have ruled over all justice and righteousness whatsoever in many places you could not get right but with repentance that is loosing by the bargain the particulars I shall demonstrate after this ruined many discouraged more discontented all except the gainers which were and are such a rabble and bed-roul of names in both Laws as would amaze a wise man much more a Christian for whereas a Christian saith let all things among you be done in love and let the brethren judge your differences that is without litigious pleadings after the manner of the world but with that quietness gentleness meekness and botherlike affection as the Gospel of Christ holds forth and the prudent man saith let it be before wise men duly appointed in a time convenient and with certainty and what one Judge cannot determine either for difficulty or doubting let aid be joyned and right done and that whither according to the exact letter or the rule of conscience The Laws of England held forth all things in practice I say in practice for the general rules or foundations of Englands Laws are good wholsome and sanative absolutely contrary for it held forth in the letter you should have right for every wrong this general rule was good but discend to the particular The Quaere now is what remedy for the wrong an Action you must prosecute But first it is considerable by whom this Action shall be brought for long suites and expensive have bin had and then the party ought either to have one or more joyned with them or where the Action was ioynt it ought to have bin sole sometimes in the respect of the nature of the Action sometimes in respect of the way of assessing or recovery of damages next it is considerable in what Court for ofttimes 100. li. hath been spent in the Court and then the Court had no cognizance of the business yet the ablest Lawyers in England advised within the case or so accounted as most favored c. But grant you hit the Court then the Quaere is what Action for one hundred Actions have been prosecuted in the right Court and before right and due Judges and by the right person and then the Action mistaken it was deceit and should have been a Trespass or a Tespass where it should have bin deceit so almost in all matters of higher or lower nature next agreeing what Action where shall you begin your suite out of what Court have your process and for your process whither from above that is the Kings bench which now holds cognizance of all pleas or the Common pleas the proper Court of all Subjects differences betwixt themselves at least in the Common Pleas by original in the Common bench by Latitat or els in the Chequer by a Surmise that you are a Debtor to the King or below in the County or City if the sum be not above their Trial and for the Chancery and such other Courts a Subpaena and then the several Writs must be issued in due course or all is nought Next for the execution of the Writ there is for the Chancery c. either the party plaintife or some other shows the writ to the Defendant or leaves a part or the body of it so called as the case requires at his house and if he appears not process issues against his person but upon the other he must be arrested by a Serjeant of the Mace so called the officers of a City or a bayliffe whether common special or of a liberty there is not much difference they are much alike Now these mens livelyhood is under the Sheriffe to execute writs of all sorts to judgements and Executions they have a fee proper from the party but that was set so long since that it is not a sufficient maintenance now and rather then take paines to raise that well foreseeing the trouble it would bring to alter all Fees in the Nation they let them gripe the poor and abuse the rich and wrong all Yea assuredly they many of them take hire of the Debitor or Trespasser not to see him and of the Plaintiffe or Creditor to see him as the searchers or under-writers for customes formerly or now for excise may do either for prohibited or custome stoln goods So that ofttime the charge of arresting is as much as the Debt and it is generally known that these men are the worst sort of men the old Law was none to be arrested but to find sureties that his cause was just and that he would prosecute with effect but that just Law being too hard to many poor men to surmise the best was not remedied but by practise that is the unwarantable proceedings of Judges Totally abolished and now a bill of Middlesex may abuse any man unknown and the law is made a stale to the both foolery and knavery of Sycophants or worse there is much pleaded for this arresting by Bayliffs as first he is a known and sworn officer I say only if he be so let his Summons without a Writ or attaching the person be enough and if twice summoned let him be proceeded against as to his goods who will not appear provided he be at or in Town but this is beyond my taske intended here There is another way of making the offender appear which is by Utlagary used very unjustly and so confessed but as good as the rest The next thing is where I must lay my action that is in what County And many times the action is laid in London for a matter of so small moment that a journey to London of himself and witnesses eats out all the gain justice gives especially when small matters are removed outof the County justly as I will say in this case they being indeed above the now proper rate of County or City Trialls or else unjustly as when a man is arrested in a liberty for five pound or forty shillings only which is there triable he gets himself arrested also for a greater summ and so removes both to London now for these proceedings in abuse of the common subject of the Nation in Law-proceedings believe not I can or hope to open all the sleights tricks quillets fetches deceits knaveries and abuses with the irrelegious abominable prophane juggles thereof it being in the whole practise I say practise of it nothing else but vanity and wickedness I am loth to say robbery extortion

and Subject Superior and Inferior in all degrees Political and Oeconomical yea to the superadvising the estates of constant vain idle Spend-thrifts if such should grow in a decayed State of a Common-wealth which in a well setled estate cannot as of persons under age of management of their estates or Ideots or Lunaticks for that vitiousness in full sence is worse then in a depraved one Yea To look to apparel and diet especially drinking and also recreations especially so called Gameing for each mans time growing famously irregular ought to be limited by the publike Magistrate and so in barganing and selling yea where a medium may be to set it or the Rule for it Let not this onely be laid upon the preciseness of Religion No the Greekes and Romanes did by Nature such things and they without the Law becoming a Law to themselves condemn us who have the Law and yet break it is not deficiency of Judgement worse then that of age and the Law of property is not by this broken Again It is the priviledge of the Subject that they have fit Judges Officers and Ministers of the Commonwealth qualified according to the Rules of the Law and can there be better then men of wisdom fearing God and hating covetousness Next That their Salaries be such as may be fitting for their places and not burthensome to the Commonwealth nor their numbers and yet enough and those fitly distributed for the ease of the poor as justice to both them and the rich That all prosecutions in the Law whether criminal or other trespasses injuries wrongs or debts be duly punished lest the Land in general bear the burthen of particular offences well knowing that there are abominations that bring desolation That the necessities of the Nation for War and Peace be levied equally and justly and the expences in a setled way audited and allowed and that not onely for or upon man compared with man but Township with Township Hundred with Hundred and County with County The great reason of many Counties not going about or so long delaying the equalizing rates as to Towns and Persons was lest the injust interest of Parliament men appointed for particular Counties should upon the true value of one County appearing hoyst that up and never regard the due ballance with others and therefore that the Law of righteousness ought to be above the Law of interest must as may be be assured As for example If a Town were a poor small Fishing Town as great Yarmouth in Norfolk was and not able to maintain a Minister as it seems it was not and that it had forty pounds per annum allowed for one out of the Bishops lands after it is able to maintain ten Ministers and have but one or two that it should yet have the forty pounds per annum and other places starve to take this forty pound away and make it pay duly an equal portion with others is general and just priviledge and no dispriviledge So Dunwich Riseing and forty places in the West to send Burgesses to Parliament is a dispriviledge though originally a due and rightly constituted for the reason ceasing the Laws ought to cease and such rechanges are our Settlements So ill Customes to be continued for Interest and publike Grievances tolerated for private commodity whether of men or Townships as the unjust illegal and destructive keeping the so called Assizes at Thetford at the Brink of the County of Norfolk in Confinio Comitatus which is against Law is a great dispriviledge for it ought to be in the body of the County or Head-Town but if that were seated inconveniently yet this is unjust and destructive for so incommodious is the place that the very issues lost there the place not being able to receive the necessary attendants are worth or I am misinformed by knowing men as much as the revenue of the Town is worth yet in driving on this corrupt interest against publike good I hear good men and great pretenders are engaged And it carries little of weight except for honorary interest sake which alwayes hitherto hath been an usual inlet to corruption That the Judge a stranger to the County should appoint the place or indeed that the place should be but fixed except in cases of evident danger to the publike as plague famine publike inundations besiegings devastations or the like so that of two accidental evils not things absolutely evil in themselves the least might be chosen It is likely it will after appear better to take away the so called Assises as to Trials of general actions and such controversies altogether hereafter as being now become a burthen rather then ease to the Subject for it is evident the corruptions of those meetings continue if they do not increase now such things which were good originally when depraved are dispriviledges if after complaint continued And I wish therefore onely I could tell where the priviledge of Englishmen were I know where it should be and it may be found thus by parcels but there is so much rubbish and lumber amidst the multitude of Officers Courts c. It is hard but we will attempt as briefly as we may to offer at least which will discover somewhat though we cannot come through all particulars In a word Shortly then Justice and that both for Law and Equity ought to be in the proper County the Officers known Fees certain and not exceeding so much upon the pound clear dammage and equity ought not to be sought till Common Law determines the thing fit onely for that Court. Lastly As to this that no man be out-ballanced in Law by power favor or riches as Townships Cities and Corporations against a mean man yea if he had never a penny nor awed from seeking just things for fear of forfeitures of his lands as Coppy-holders all of which I shall in their particulars further inlarge as occasion offers So that it is plain here That having and executing just Laws justly whereby publike peace and safety against the Superiors and between equals and well ordering Mannors and Estates for publike peace quiet and benefit be observed and renewed Laws is the proper priviledge of the Subject But as to this point of safety we must proceed a little further and that is to look to the power of the Supream Magistrate in due providing for the peace and wellfare of the people both among themselves and also against others not by way of Monopolizing Trade for benefit or gain but security of the State therefore it s no dispriviledge of the Subject that none should sell Ammunition or Weapons of any sort except Swords and Knives but such as are authorized by the State So also that no one keep an Inn Tavern Victualing or Alehouse for that these houses are and ought to have the Magistrate their Superadvisors and an account from them of the nature and number of their guests least any danger thereby arise to the State And in case of error