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<DATE>2010-01-03</DATE>
<RESPSTMT>
<NAME>Megan Marion</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
</RESPSTMT>
<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed as part of batch B090918.pdcc.</ITEM>
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<STC T="W">Q183</STC>
<STC T="T">E379_5</STC>
<BIBNO T="umi">99861915</BIBNO>
<VID>114061</VID>
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<TEXT LANG="eng">
<FRONT>
<DIV1 TYPE="title page">
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<P>Que&s;tions Propounded, OR Quaeres, Concerning Remedies, and taking away of the extreame and unnece&s;&s;ary charges, expences, troubles, and long delayes in ju&s;t cau&s;es and &s;uits in Courts of EQUITY and others called ENGLISH-COURTS, and abating tho&s;e that may be for con|tention and trouble only, and the pre&s;ervation of many hone&s;t men from great lo&s;&s;es, and others from undoing thereby, without hindrance or prejudice to any but unnece&s;&s;ary and up&s;tart Officers.</P>
<P>And how many hundred thou&s;and pounds may be &s;aved to the Common-wealth yearly, by reducing pro|ceedings in Law to the old and legall proceedings, and taking away tho&s;e that be unlawfull and contrived by exacting Officers for their own only gaine.</P>
<P><HI>Authorized to be printed and publi&s;hed for the good of the Common-wealth.</HI></P>
<P>London, Printed by <HI>F. Leach,</HI> 1647.</P>
</DIV1>
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<BODY>
<DIV1 TYPE="questions">
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<HEAD>Que&s;tions Propounded, OR Quaeres, concerning Remedies, &amp;c.</HEAD>
<HEAD TYPE="sub">Fir&s;t in particular, concerning Bils, An&s;wers, &amp;c. in Courts called Engli&s;h-Courts.</HEAD>
<P>_WHereas it is and hath been generally reported, that many contentious per&s;ons, &s;ome being of great ability in wealth, and others other|wi&s;e very potent; have, and for many years pa&s;t u&s;ually do put into divers Courts, called Engli&s;h Courts, and Courts of Equity, divers and &s;undry long bils of complaint, again&s;t divers and &s;undry poor hone&s;t men defendants in the &s;ame, and thereby have u&s;u|ally put &s;uch defendants to unnece&s;&s;ary charges and trouble in
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<PB N="4" REF="4"><!-- PDF PAGE 10 -->taking copies of the &s;ame, many times in putting and &s;tuffing into the &s;ame more matter then hath been true (though the &s;ame matter had been pertinent if the &s;ame had been true) whereby no remedy hath been in &s;uch Courts had for &s;uch De|fendants for or concerning &s;uch charge or trouble after hear|ing, but in &s;ome bils only wherein nothing materiall hath been true. And whereas al&s;o it is and hath been generally reported, that divers contentious and trouble&s;ome per&s;ons have, and u&s;u|ally do put into &s;uch Courts, to Bils, diver&s;e and &s;undry an&s;wers longer and more tedious then is or hath been pertinent or ma|teriall &s;tuffed with impertinent matter purpo&s;ely to put the plaintiffs in &s;uch Bils to unnece&s;&s;ary charges and trouble.</P>
<P N="1">1. Whether it be convenient and beneficiall for the Com|mon-wealth, that no Defendant may be compelled to appear or an&s;wer to any &s;uch Bill till (after &s;ome convenient time) after that a true paper Copy thereof gratis (that is to &s;ay) without charge, be delivered to &s;uch Defendant, or left for him in the office of the Court where &s;uch Bill is to be delivered in Parch|ment to be filed or kept, and there the Defendant to have the &s;ame Paper-copy without charge, upon &s;ome penalty again&s;t &s;uch as do or &s;hall exact or demand any thing for the &s;ame.</P>
<P N="2">2. Whether it be convenient and beneficiall for the Common-wealth, that if there be more Defendants then one in any &s;uch Bill, that then each Defendant that will not an&s;wer, together with &s;ome other of &s;uch Defendants in &s;uch Bils may be com|pelled after a convenient time, after he &s;hall receive a copy of &s;uch Bill to deliver or &s;end the &s;ame to, or leave the &s;ame for &s;uch other Defendant or Defendants, as &s;hall be named in &s;uch Bils according as &s;uch Defendants &s;hall be directed or required by &s;uch Plaintiffes, or on their behalf under &s;ome penalty.</P>
<P N="3">3. Whether it be convenient and beneficiall for the Com|mon-wealth, that &s;uch or the like cour&s;e may be taken concer|ning Replycations and Rejoynders, &amp;c. in &s;uch Courts to &s;uch Bils and An&s;wers; and that if &s;uch Replycations or Rejoynders
<PB N="5" REF="4"><!-- PDF PAGE 10 -->&s;hall be put in of cour&s;e, as mo&s;t have been (no new matter be|ing expre&s;&s;ed in &s;uch Replycation or Rejoynder, &amp;c. But only a confe&s;&s;ion, traver&s;e, or deniall of &s;uch matters, as were or &s;hall be in &s;uch Bils or An&s;wers) that then either party, Plaintiffe or Defendant therein, or their Clerks or Attornies for them, may under &s;ome penalty be compelled within &s;ome convenient time (after notice thereof to &s;ome of them) to reply and rejoyne without further trouble or charges; and whether it be not con|venient, and for the benefit of the Common-wealth, that &s;ome or one of the mo&s;t ancient Clerks of be&s;t experience, who hath u&s;ed to practi&s;e as a Clerk, and take care and charge of &s;uch &s;uits there, may have and take the care and charge of the keeping or filing &s;uch Bils, An&s;wers, Replycations, Rejoynders, &amp;c. and Books, Notes, and Memorandums, to be u&s;ed in &s;uch Courts in a good method; and have a competent gaines allowed him or them for &s;o doing: And &s;uch Drones as can &s;hew no legall ground for their beginning and continuance, who have taken and u&s;e to take and exact exce&s;&s;ive &s;ummes of money, and have u&s;ually done no good for what they have taken, may be remo|ved and aboli&s;hed as burthen&s;ome members of the Common-wealth: and whether tho&s;e practi&s;ing Clerkes experienced in &s;uch Courts who u&s;ually have taken upon them the charge and managing of pro&s;ecuting &s;uits in &s;uch Courts, do not de&s;erve to them&s;elves the u&s;uall tearm Fees, which u&s;ually have been paid to unde&s;erving per&s;ons formerly concerning the &s;ame.</P>
<P N="4">4. Whether that tho&s;e Officers that have of late taken and u&s;e to take great pretended Fees for copies of &s;uch Bils and An|&s;wers, Replycations, and Rejoynders, &amp;c. have any legall au|thority to exact the &s;ame if their beginning be well exami|ned.</P>
<P N="5">5. Whether the ancient Clerks in Chancery that formerly were very learned and expert drawers and penners of &s;peciall Writs, anciently called Ma&s;ter-writs, and &s;peciall Actions, Peti|tions, Bils, An&s;wers, &amp;c. did in their times u&s;e to take any more then was willingly given them by &s;uitors in &s;uch Courts, for &s;uch
<PB N="6" REF="5"><!-- PDF PAGE 11 -->Bils, An&s;wers, Replycations, and Rejoynders, &amp;c. And whe|ther proceedings in &s;uch &s;uits were not very &s;hort and &s;peedily ended at a &s;mall charge in tho&s;e times: and whether upon &s;earching Records they may not ea&s;ily be found &s;o to be?</P>
<P N="6">6. Whether that after tho&s;e ancient Clerks time expired, &s;ince about the time of the beginning of the reign of Queene <HI>Elizabeth</HI> of England, &amp;c. tho&s;e per&s;ons who took upon them to officiate part of that which tho&s;e ancient Clerks formerly u&s;ed to do, did not at their fir&s;t beginning u&s;e to wait on the Ma&s;ter of the Rols, in Blew-coats, and &s;o continue diver&s;e years after, and u&s;ed to take no more then what was given them, as afore&s;aid, without exacting any more: and whether any fee at all (more then &s;uitors will willingly give in &s;uch ca&s;es) be due at all to any; and how they doe or can lawfully challenge or claime the &s;ame, or &s;tay any mans proceedings for not paying &s;uch exactions.</P>
<P N="7">7. Whether tho&s;e Officers who now have and do take and exact &s;uch great pretended fees, and &s;uffer no per&s;on to pro|ceed in their ju&s;t and lawfull cau&s;es, without payment of &s;uch pretended fees, but hinder proceedings in the &s;ame till pay|ment thereof; doe, or have de&s;erved any thing at all for tho&s;e divers thou&s;and pounds, which they yearly have taken and u&s;ual|ly exacted and do exact yearly. And whether they know or take knowledge of any thing concerning &s;uch &s;uits, but only &s;o exacting &s;uch pretended fees. And whether divers of them bee not &s;uch men who be not capable of under&s;tanding the &s;uits for which they have exacted, and u&s;ually do exact &s;uch great &s;ummes of money: and whether they be not burthen&s;ome members of the Common-wealth? And whether if &s;uch members be &s;uffe|red to continue, it will not be an occa&s;ion of more &s;uch like to increa&s;e; and make men have a de&s;ire to bring in a confu&s;ion, and be weary, and de&s;pi&s;e the lawes of the Land which have for|merly been accounted the be&s;t in Europe?</P>
<P N="8">8. Whether both Plaintiffe and defendant may not have
<PB N="7" REF="5"><!-- PDF PAGE 11 -->copies of &s;uch Bils, An&s;wers, Replycations, and Rejoynders, co|pied by tho&s;e Clerks of tho&s;e Courts, who manage and under|&s;tand the proceedings in &s;uch &s;uits and matter thereof, and take care and charge thereof: or by the Clerks of their Councelours, or by their Solicitours at a cheape rate, and their &s;uits better and more &s;peedily di&s;patched and done, and yet divers thou|&s;and pounds yearly &s;aved, if &s;uch exactions before mentioned be taken away? And whether it were not better to have &s;uch Courts reformed or reduced to their old proceedings onely, then to have them cryed downe by diver&s;e people, being &s;uch Courts anciently have been accounted beneficiall to the Com|mon-wealth; and a means of pre&s;ervation of ju&s;t and hone&s;t dealings in the Common-wealth.</P>
<P N="9">9. Whether &s;uch Clerks and Solicitors be not fitte&s;t to doe &s;uch things (that is to &s;ay) to make &s;uch copies, being &s;uch Clerks and Solicitors be&s;t under&s;tand &s;uch proceedings? And whether by giving copies (without charge) as afore&s;aid, by ei|ther party to the other, will not be an occa&s;ion of many &s;horter Bils and An&s;wers, then have beene and u&s;ually be; and a cau&s;e of abating and taking away many which have perplexed &s;uch Courts, and vexed the &s;uitors and Coun&s;el in &s;uch &s;uits?</P>
<P N="10">10. Whether it be not better that de&s;erving Clerks who have gained experience by their &s;tudy, labour, and practi&s;e in &s;uch Courts, be cho&s;en for their hone&s;ty, judgement, and experi|ence only, to be Clerks in &s;uch Courts (to take a competent gaine onely, without exacting any exce&s;&s;ive charges for what they &s;hall doe) then that &s;uch places &s;hould be &s;old for money to &s;uch that under&s;tand nothing concerning the &s;ame, but only to exact money thereby, to the hurt and prejudice of &s;uitors there, by &s;elling Under-clerks places for money to diver&s;e &s;uch Clerks as be experienced Clerks; and &s;uffering none to come into &s;uch places without money, or &s;ome other reward though they be never &s;o well experienced and able in &s;uch Courts? And yet, Quaere, whether &s;uch who under&s;tand &s;o little do not exact above four times &s;o much of every one of his
<PB N="8" REF="6"><!-- PDF PAGE 12 -->Under-clerks (though they be many) as &s;uch Under-clerk ta|keth for him&s;elf.</P>
<P>Other Quaeres writ above four years &s;ince, &s;hortly after con|cerning the multitude of Orders, and chargeablene&s;&s;e thereof, and other proceedings in the &s;aid Courts, are intended to be publi&s;hed. And afterwards, other Quaeres concerning exactions of Sheriffes, Bayliffes, Gaolers, and other &s;uch like Officers; with divers others after tho&s;e if need be.</P>
<TRAILER>FINIS.</TRAILER>
</DIV1>
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