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<DATE>2014-06-16</DATE>
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<NAME>TCP Staff (Michigan)</NAME>
<RESP>MURP</RESP>
</RESPSTMT>
<ITEM>Proofed and reviewed as part of batch B140314.pdcc.</ITEM>
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<IDG S="marc" R="UM" ID="B23754">
<STC T="W">G1977a</STC>
<STC T="G">190.g.13[236]</STC>
<STC T="C">R232579</STC>
<BIBNO T="umi">99888962</BIBNO>
<VID>194039</VID>
</IDG><!-- alt.stc G190.g.13[236] --><!-- alt.stc Cr232579 -->
<TEXT LANG="eng">
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<DIV1 TYPE="text">
<PB REF="1" MS="y">
<HEAD>The GRIEVANCES Of His Maje&s;ties Subjects re&s;iding within the Principality of WALES in re&s;pect of the Court of the Council in the <HI>Marches</HI> of <HI>Wales.</HI></HEAD>
<P>_THe &s;aid Court was at fir&s;t erected to &s;uppre&s;s the violence of the <HI>Wel&s;h,</HI> and for pre&s;ervation of the peace in the Marches, and in the nature of the late Court of Star-Chamber; but in proce&s;s of time encroached on the Courts of Common Law, and held Pleas in Civil Actions by Engli&s;h Bill, and took incouragement thereto, by the Clau&s;e in 34 and 35 <HI>Hen.</HI> 8. <HI>cap.</HI> 26. that gives that Court power to hear and determine, by their directions, &s;uch matters as then-after &s;hould be a&s;&s;igned by the King, as then-to-fore u&s;ed. And the &s;ame Act con&s;titutes Courts of the great Se&s;&s;ions in every County, for determining of all Cau&s;es and Suits, where there is al&s;o a Court of Equity.</P>
<DIV2 TYPE="grievances">
<HEAD>The Grievances.</HEAD>
<P N="1">I. That neverthele&s;s, the Judges of the &s;aid Court of the Marches do take Cognizance, and take upon them to decree damages in Acti|ons of Tre&s;pa&s;s on the Ca&s;e, Slander, A&s;&s;ault and Battery, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> where the damages are uncertain, and ought by the Law of the Land to be a&s;&s;e&s;&s;ed by a Jury.</P>
<P N="2">II. That the Defendants in matters of A&s;&s;ault and Battery, are in the &s;aid Court compelled to appear to an Engli&s;h Bill, and to an&s;wer the &s;ame upon Oath, though the &s;ame contain matters Criminal.</P>
<P N="3">III. That the &s;aid Court do hold Plea, hear and make Decrees for &s;mall Debts, under forty &s;hillings; and in &s;uch Suits, do allow more Co&s;ts than the Debts and Damages do amount unto: and that in Actions and Suits for Tre&s;pa&s;s, A&s;&s;ault and Battery, and on the Ca&s;e, where the damages are not proved to be above 2 <HI>d.</HI> there are u&s;ually given by the &s;aid Court 4 or 5 <HI>lib.</HI> co&s;ts; and where the Plaintiffs Bill is di&s;mi&s;t, it is generally without any Co&s;ts to the Defendant; by rea&s;on whereof, many vexatious and trouble&s;ome Suits are incou|raged by the Clerks and Sollicitors belonging to the &s;aid Court.</P>
<P N="4">IV. That no Defendant &s;hall in the &s;aid Court have a <HI>Dedimus</HI> to an&s;wer, but he mu&s;t fir&s;t pay the Plaintiff, or his Attorney, 6 <HI>s.</HI> 8. <HI>d.</HI> which, with the Copy of the Bill, <HI>Dedimus,</HI> Drawing, An&s;wer, and expence of Commi&s;&s;ioners, <HI>&amp;c.</HI> will amount to 40 or 50 <HI>s.</HI> notwith|&s;tanding the Debt or Damages in demand is not really 6 <HI>d.</HI> To avoid which expence, and e&s;pecially when they are &s;ued and mole&s;ted by beggarly people, the Defendants in &s;uch Actions, though there be no Cau&s;e of Action again&s;t 'em, do chu&s;e rather to compound with the Plaintiff, than to an&s;wer the Action with &s;o great an expence; which gives great encouragement to Cur&s;itors and other litigious poor peo|ple to bring and multiply vexatious Actions in the &s;aid Court, whereby the mean and ignorant &s;ort of people within the &s;aid Juri&s;diction are very much impoveri&s;hed.</P>
<P N="5">V. That the Proce&s;&s;es for Contempt in the &s;aid Court, were generally directed (not to the Sheriffs) but to private per&s;ons, nominated by the Plaintiff, who are not &s;worn Officers, as well as to Pur&s;uivants, and Serjeant at Arms; by whom &s;everal poor people are u&s;ually forced from their own habitations, being 100 miles di&s;tance, to Pri&s;on, to the Lodge at <HI>Ludlow,</HI> for non-payment of the unrea&s;onable and great Fees demanded by &s;uch Officers.</P>
<P N="6">VI. That where any of his Maje&s;ties Courts of <HI>We&s;tmin&s;ter</HI> do grant Prohibitions, in Cau&s;es not properly determinable in the &s;aid Court, yet if me Party that procures &s;uch Prohibition, after he is put to a con&s;iderable Charge, hath no benefit thereof, unle&s;s he per|&s;onally &s;erves the other party therewith (who will generally ab&s;cond) the Judges of the &s;aid Court refu&s;ing to obey any &s;uch Prohibition, or el&s;e impri&s;oning &s;uch as &s;erve them therewith.</P>
<P N="7">VII. That after Actions brought, or Trials had in his Maje&s;ties Court of great Se&s;&s;ions, or in his Maje&s;ties Courts at <HI>We&s;tmin&s;ter,</HI> the Judges of the &s;aid Courts of Marches, upon a Bill filed in that Court by the Defendant at Law, &s;ugge&s;ted matter of Equity, do u&s;ually take upon them to grant Injunctions to &s;tay proceedings in the &s;aid Courts of <HI>We&s;tmin&s;ter,</HI> and great Se&s;&s;ions; and in ca&s;e the Plaintiff at Law go on in any &s;uch Actions, will &s;everely proceed again&s;t, and impri&s;on &s;uch Plaintiffs at Law, if to be found within their Juri&s;diction.</P>
<P N="8">VIII. That in ca&s;e of a Writ of Error, of a Judgment in a per&s;onal Action in the Grand Se&s;&s;ions in <HI>Wales,</HI> brought in the &s;aid Court of the Marches, if after Errors a&s;&s;igned, the Defendant in the Writ of Error pleads a Relea&s;e, or other matter of fact thereto, the &s;aid Court cannot proceed to determine &s;uch Error for want of a Jury; whereby &s;uch Writs of Error will for ever remain undetermined, and the Plaintiff in the great Se&s;&s;ions &s;hall never have any fruits of his Judgment; which is a failer of Ju&s;tice, which has &s;everal times fallen out in the &s;aid Court, upon Writs of Error there brought; be&s;ides that the &s;aid Court of Marches, which is no Court of Record, take upon them to correct and determine Errors in the great Se&s;&s;ions, which is a Court of Record.</P>
<P N="9">IX. If a Sheriff, Bayliff, or other Officer execute any proce&s;s from that Court for the King or Subject, and the Defendant bringeth an Action of fal&s;e Impri&s;onment, &s;uch Officer cannot plead Not Guilty, and giveth Proce&s;s in Evidence, but mu&s;t be inforced to plead the Statute at large, together with their In&s;tructions, which never yet could be drawn by the be&s;t Clerk; be&s;ides that it will co&s;t upwards of ten pounds; whereas perhaps, the damage in the Original Action did not exceed 12 <HI>d.</HI></P>
<P N="10">X. They u&s;ually alter, and frequently quiet po&s;&s;e&s;&s;ion upon the filing of a Bill there, without any Proce&s;s &s;erved upon the Defendant; and often-times upon the Oaths of the Pro&s;ecutor; whereby men often lo&s;e their right, at lea&s;t, with much charge and difficulty regain the &s;ame.</P>
<P N="11">XI. Many lewd and di&s;&s;olute Per&s;ons live by &s;erving the Proce&s;s of the Court, and making <HI>Affidavit</HI> thereof; and though they can nei|ther write nor read, yet will &s;wear the &s;erving of forty or fifty Proce&s;&s;es at one time; wherein they cannot but oftentimes for&s;wear them|&s;elves, and much prejudice the Defendant.</P>
<P N="12">XII. That they u&s;ually grant Injunctions to &s;tay proceedings in inferiour Courts, which hold Plea only of Tre&s;pa&s;&s;es, and Debts under &s;orry &s;hillings; whereas it was never intended, the &s;aid Court of the Council of the Marches &s;hould hold Plea of any Debt under forty &s;hillings.</P>
<P N="13">XIII. That the Inhabitants of <HI>Wales</HI> are &s;ubject not only to the Court and the Great Se&s;&s;ions, but al&s;o to the Court of <HI>We&s;tmin&s;ter,</HI> and often-times &s;erved to appear both at <HI>London</HI> and <HI>Ludlow</HI> in one and the &s;ame day; and that the vexatious Suits and Proceedings in the &s;aid Court of Marches, and the great oppre&s;&s;ions of the Practi&s;ers, Clerks, and Officers of the &s;aid Court, have been of late, by &s;everal Grand Juries of &s;everal Counties in <HI>Wales,</HI> pre&s;ented as a great Grievance, and fit to be redre&s;&s;ed.</P>
<P N="14">XIV. That the &s;aid Court is an expence to his Maje&s;ty of many thou&s;and Pounds <HI>per Annum;</HI> and as the Officers, Clerks, and Mini|&s;ters of the &s;aid Court do manage their bu&s;ine&s;s there, do only make u&s;e of the Power and Authority thereof, to oppre&s;s his Maje&s;ties Sub|jects; and there <GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="KEYERS" EXTENT="1 letter">eing now no Court of Star-Chamber there, the &s;aid Court is now u&s;ele&s;s, there being Courts of Law and Equity held twice a year of the Grand Se&s;&s;ions, where Cau&s;es may be determined, at le&s;s charge and trouble to the Parties, within the proper County where they li<GAP DESC="illegible" RESP="MURP" EXTENT="1 letter">e&punc;</P>
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