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A26142 An enquiry into the power of dispensing with penal statutes together with some animadversions upon a book writ by Sir Edw. Herbert ... entituled, A short account of the authorities in law, upon which judgment was given in Sir Edward Hales's case / by Sir Robert Atkyns ... Atkyns, Robert, Sir, 1621-1709. 1689 (1689) Wing A4138; ESTC R22814 69,137 66

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which is that such service is perfect freedom Hence our English Laws in Magna Charta are called Liberties Concessimus omnibus hominibus regni nostri has libertates subscriptas says King Henry the Third in the first Chapter of Magna Charta which Sir Edward Cook expounds to be meant of the Laws of England quia liberos faciunt says he And tho' this Statute of Magna Charta run in the stile of a Grant from the King in the word concessimus for the honour of the King yet as he says they were the Common Laws and Rights of the People before and it was made by the King Lords and Commons as is recited by the Statute of 15 Ed. 3. c. 1. Thus it appears what the true Nature and Properties of a Just Law are of how great Force and Authority a Law ought to be how dear and precious Laws have been heretofore to Prince and People and whence they have their Birth and Original Thirdly I come now to that Notion or Invention of a Dispensation the Power of relaxing or dispensing with a Law and enquire into the Original and Nature of it and the great Mischief that hath arisen from it The Pretence for the Use or Need of a Power of Dispensing is this viz. There is no Providence or Wisdom of Man nor of any Council of Men that can foresee and provide for all Events and variety of Cases that will or may arise upon the making of a new Law. But a new Law may sit heavy upon some particular persons or in some extraordinary Case that may happen let what care can be taken in the penning of it It is enough to commend a Law if it be beneficial to the greater number and be for the publick good Laws are fitted Ad ea quae frequentius Accidunt and not for rare and extraordinary Events and Accidents as the Romans had no Law against Parricide And the Law says better is a Mischief than an Inconvenience By a Mischief is meant when one Man or some few Men suffer by the hardship of a Law which Law is yet useful for the Publick But an Inconvenience is to have a Publick Law disobey'd or broken or an Offence to go unpunished Now from this suppos'd and imaginary defect of Law or some particular mischief or hardship sometimes tho' very rarely happening to some Men which hardship was not foreseen by the Makers of the Law altho' this is oftner pretended and feigned then hapning in truth occasion hath been taken to assert a Power in the Prince or chief Ruler to dispence with the Law in extraordinary Cases and to give ease or relaxation to the person that was too hard bound or tied to a Law for as I observ'd before the Law is of a binding and restraining nature and quality It hath the same specious pretence as a Law made 31 H. 8. c. 8. had which was of most desperate and dangerous consequence had it not speedily been repealed by the Statute of 1 E. 6. c. 12. The Title of that mischievous Act of 31 H. 8. is this An Act that Proclamations made by the King's Highness with the Advice of the Honourable Council meant of the Privy Council shall be obey'd and kept as tho' they were made by Act of Parliament The Preamble recites the King by Advice of his Council had thentofore set forth sundry Proclamations concerning Articles of Religion and for an Unity and Concord to be had among his Subjects which nevertheless many froward wilful and obstinate persons have wilfully contemned and broken not considering what a King by his Royal Power may do and for lack of a direct Statute and Law to coherce Offenders to obey those Proclamations which being still suffered should encourage Offenders to the disobedience of the Laws of God and sound too much to the great dishonour of the King 's most Royal Majesty who may full ill bear it Considering also that sudden Occasions fortune many times which do require speedy Remedies and that by abiding for a Parliament in the mean time might happen great prejudice to ensue to the Realm and weighing that his Majesty which by the Regal Power given him by God may do many things in such Cases should not be driven to extend the Supremacy of his Regal Power by wilfulness of froward Subjects It is therefore thought necessary that the King's Highness of this Realm for the time being with the Advice of his Council should make Proclamations for the good Order and Governance of this Realm of England Wales and other his Dominions from time to time for the Defence of his Regal Dignity as the Cases of Necessity shall require Therefore it is enacted that always the King for the time being with the Advice of his Council whose Names thereafter follow and all the great Officers of State are mentioned by the Titles of their Offices only for the time being or the greater number of them may set forth at all times by Authority of this Act his Proclamations under such Penalties and of such sort as to his Highness and his Council or the more part of them shall seem requisite And that the same shall be obey'd as tho' they were made by Act of Parliament unless the King's Highness dispence with them under his Great Seal Here at one blow is the whole Legislative Power put into the King's hands and there was like to be no further use of Parliaments had this continued Then there follows a Clause that would seem to qualifie and moderate this excess of Power but it is altogether repugnant and contradictory in it self And the Conviction for any Offence against any such Proclamation is directed not to be by a Jury but by Confession or lawful Witness and Proofs And if any Offender against any such Proclamation after the Offence committed to avoid the Penalty wilfully depart the Realm he is adjudged a Traytor And the Justices of Peace are to put these Proclamations into execution in every County And by another Act of 34 and 35 H. 8. c. 23. Nine of the Great Offices are made a Quorum c. for they could not get half the number to act under it The Act of 1 E. 6. c. 12. which repeals the terrible Law begins with a mild and merciful Preamble and mentions that Act of King H. 8. which as this Act of E. 6. does prudently observe might seem to Men of Foreign Realms and to many of the King's Subjects very strict sore extream and terrible this Act of King E. 6. does therefore by express mention of that Terrible Act wholly repeal it And so that Law to use the Lord Bacon's phrase was honourably laid in its Grave And God grant it may never rise again It is very probable that this Terrible Law was drawn by King Henry the Eighth's own hand by that expression in it that the King may full ill bear the Disobeying of his Proclamations and the dishonour done to him by it and by several