: his Majesty's Attorney General, the same and all proceedings thereupon had, should be null and void; and the court or courts, or justice or justices of the peace, where or before whom such action, bill, plaint, information, or writ of appraisement, was or should be so commenced, prosecuted, entered, filed, or issued, should not permit or suffer any proceeding or proceedings to be had thereupon: And whereas offenders against the laws relating to his Majesty's revenues of Customs and Excise respectively, have escaped punishment, and difficulties have occurred in the condemnation of goods and chattels forfeited under the said laws, by reason of the necessity of giving or adducing legal evidence, in cases where proceedings had been or were about to be commenced against them, for offences against such laws, or the condemnation of goods and chattels forfeited under the same laws, by order of the commissioners of Customs or Excise, that such order had been actually made and issued by such commissioners respectively Be it therefore enacted by the King's most excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, that the statement allegation or averment of the fact in the information or complaint, or in any prosecution or proceeding or proceedings for the recovery of any fine penalty or forfeiture, fines penalties or forfeitures, incurred under or by virtue of any Act or Acts now in force, or which shall hereafter be made, relating to either of his Majesty's revenues of Customs or Excise, or for the condemnation of any ship or ships, boat or boats, or other vessel or vessels, or any horse or horses, cart or carts, or any other carriage or carriages, or any other goods, chattels, wares, or merchandize whatsoever, seized as forfeited, or forfeited under or by virtue of any such Actor Acts, that such information or complaint, or prosecution or other proceeding or proceedings, is or are commenced, prosecuted, entered or filed by order of the said commissioners of Cu-toms or Excise respectively, shall be and shall be deemed and taken to be sufficient evidence in and throughout the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, that such prosecution, information, complaint, or other proceeding or proceedings, was or were commenced, prosecuted, entered, or filed by order of the said commissioners of Customs or Excise respectively, without any other or further evidence of the fact that the said commissioners of Customs or Excise respectively had ordered such prosecution, information, or complaint, or other proceeding or proceedings to be commenced, prosecuted. entered, or filed, unless by other positive evidence the contrary shall be made to appear; any thing in the said recited Act to the contrary thereof notwithstanding. [No. XIV. ] 9 George IV. c. 15.-An Act to prevent a Failure of Justice by reason of Variances between Records and Writings produced in Evidence in support thereof.[9th May 1828.] WHEREAS great expence is often incurred, and delay or failure of justice takes place at trials, by reason of variances between writings produced in evidence and the recital or setting forth thereof upon the record on which the trial is had, in matters not material to the merits of the case, and such record cannot now in any case be amended at the trial, and in some cases cannot be amended at any time: For remedy thereof be it enacted by the King's most excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Loids Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, That it shall and may be lawful for every Court of Record holding plea in civil ac- In Cases tions, any judge sitting at Nisi Prius, and any court of oyer and terminer where a Vaappear between written or printed Evidence and the Record, the Court may order the Record to be amended on Payment of Costs. riance shall No XV. 9 Geo. IV. c. 32. and general gaol delivery in England, Wales, the town of Berwick-uponTweed, and Ireland, if such court or judge shall see fit so to do, to cause the record on which any trial may be pending before any such judge or court in any civil action, or in any indicunent or information for any misdemeanor, when any variance shall appear between any matter in writing or in print produced in evidence and the recital or setting forth thereof upon the record whereon the trial is pending, to be forthwith amended in such particular by some officer of the court, on payment of such costs (if any) to the other party as such judge or court shall think reasonable; and thereupon the trial shall proceed as if no such variance had appeared; and in case such trial shall be had at Nisi Prius, the order for the amendment shall be indorsed on the postea, and returned together with the record; and thereupon the papers rolls and other records of the court from which such record issued, shall be amended accordingly. [No. XV.] 9 Geo. IV. c. 32.—An Act for amending the Law of Evidence in certain Cases.-[27th June 1828.] W HEREAS it is expedient that Quakers and Moravians should be allowed to give evidence upon their solemn affirmation in all cases, criminal as well as civil; and that, in prosecutions for forgery, the party interested should be rendered a competent witness: Be it therefore enacted by the King's most excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, That every Quaker or Moravian who shall be required to give evidence in any case whatsoever, criminal or civil, shall, instead of taking an oath in the usual form, be permitted to make his or her solemn affirmation or declaration in the words following; that is to say, "I A. B. do solemnly, sincerely, and truly declare and affirm;" which said affirmation or declaration shall be of the same force and effect in all courts of justice, and other places where by law an oath is required, as if such Quaker or Moravian which shall be had taken an oath in the usual form; and if any person making such Quakers or Moravians required to give Evidence may, instead of an Oath, make their solemn affirmation, of the same Effect in all Cases, Civil or Criminal. The Party Witness in for Forgery. Every Punish ment for Felony, after it has been affirmation or declaration shall be convicted of having wilfully falsely and corruptly affirmed or declared any matter or thing, which if the same had been sworn in the usual form would have amounted to wilful and corrupt perjury, every such offender shall be subject to the same pains penalties and forfeitures to which persons convicted of wilful and corrupt perjury are or shall be subject. II. And be it enacted, That on any prosecution by indictment or information, either at common law, or by virtue of any statute, against any person, for forging any deed, writing, instrument, or other matter whatsoever; or for uttering or disposing of any deed, writing, instrument, or other matter whatsoever, knowing the same to be forged; or for being accessary before or after the fact to any such offence, if the same be a felony; or for aiding abetting or counselling the commission of any such offence, if the same be a misdemeanor; no person shall be deemed to be an incompetent witness in support of any such prosecution, by reason of any interest which such person may have or be supposed to have in respect of such deed, writing, instrument, or other matter. III. And whereas it is expedient to prevent all doubts respecting the civil rights of persons convicted of felonies not capital, who have undergone the punishment to which they were adjudged; be it therefore enacted, That where any offender hath been or shall be convicted of any felony not punishable with death, and hath endured or shall endure the punishment to which such offender hath been or shall be adjudged for the same, the punishment so endured hath and shall have the like effects and of a Pardon under the Great Seal. endured, shall have the Effect consequences as a pardon under the Great Seal as to the felony whereof the offender was so convicted: Provided always, that nothing herein contained, nor the enduring of such punishment, shall prevent or mitigate any punishment to which the offender might otherwise be lawfully sentenced on a subsequent conviction for any other felony. No. XV. 9 Geo. IV. c. 32. No Misdemeanor (ex cept Perjury) shall render a Party an in IV. And whereas there are certain misdemeanors which render the parties convicted thereof incompetent witnesses, and it is expedient to restore the competency of such parties after they have undergone their punishment; be it therefore enacted, That where any offender hath been or shall be convicted of any such misdemeanor (except perjury or subornation of perjury), and hath endured or shall endure the punishment to competent which such offender hath been or shall be adjudged for the same, such Witness after offender shall not, after the punishment so endured, be deemed to be by rea- he has underson of such misdemeanor an incompetent witness in any court or proceed- gone the Punishment. ing, civil or criminal. PART IV. CLASS XI. Costs.* [No. I.] 6 Edward I. (statute of Gloucester) c. 1.-Several Actions wherein Damages shall be recovered. 6 ་ WHEREAS heretofore damages were not awarded in assizes of 6 Edward I. novel disseisin, but only against the disseisors:" it is provided, c. 1. That if the disseisors do aliene the lands, and have not whereof there The alienee of a may be damages levied, that they to whose hand such tenements shall disseisor shall come, shall be charged with the damages, so that every one shall be charged with answer for his time. It is provided also, That the disseisee shall recover damages. damages in a writ of entry, upon novel disseisin against him that is found tenant after the disseisor. It is provided also, That where Damages in ⚫ before this time damages were not awarded in a plea of mortdauncestor mortdauncestor. (but in case where the land was recovered against the chief lord) that ⚫ from henceforth damages shall be awarded in all cases where a man • recovereth by assize of mortdauncestor, as before is said in assize of Damages in ' novel disseisin. And likewise damages shall be recovered in writs of cosinage, aiel, cosinage, aiel, and besaiel.' besaiel. "II. And whereas before time damages were not taxed, but to the Where dama"value of the issues of the land;" it is provided, That the demandant ges shall be remay recover against the tenant the costs of his writ purchased, covered, there together with the damages abovesaid. And this Act shall hold place costs also. in all cases where the party is to recover damages. (1) And every The notes upon this subject are extracted from the accurate and judicious treatise of Mr. Serjeant Hullock. For costs in replevin, error, actions against justices of peace, and other officers, see those respective titles. For costs in cases where a defendant pleads several matters, statute 4 Anne, c. 16. st. 5. ante, II. 23. For costs in slander, 21 Jac. I. c. 16. ante, Class 8. No. 4. For costs in actions on judgments, statute 43 George III. c. 46. ante, Class 3. No. 36. For costs in prosecutions for felony, and proceedings before justices of peace, stat. 18 Geo. III. c. 19. post VI. IX. 1. For costs in cases of information and certiorari, post P. V. Title Criminal Proceedings. (1) See Hullock, c. i. sec. 1. In Pilfold's case, 10 Co. 116. it was laid down, that in actions where a man, either before or by the statute of Gloucester, should not recover damages, if afterwards another statute in a new case give damages, then the plaintiff (unless costs are expressly given by such later statute) should not recover costs. And this rule was assented to by three of the judges of the Common Pleas, (Willes J. contra) Witham v. Hill, 2 Wels. 91. Barnes, 151. According to Lord Kenyon's note of this case, cited in Creswell v. Houghton, 6 T. R. 355. Willes said "I agree that when a statute subsequent to the statute of Gloucester gives an action where no damages were sustained before, the plaintiff is not entitled to costs; but in all cases where a party sustains a damage, and a subsequent statute gives the remedy, the party is entitled to costs.' In the case of Witham v. Hill, it was ruled, that the plaintiff was entitled to costs in an action against the hundred on the Riot Act, 1 Geo. I. st. 2. c. 5. (the judges who admitted the authority of Pilfold's case thinking, that the particular case fell within the rule, as damages might have been before recovered against the particular trespassers). In Gunthorn v. The hundred of Theale, 3 Bur. 1723. it was incidentally held, that the plaintiff was entitled to costs in an action against the hundred for maliciously setting fire to a barn, (which being previously a felony, does not admit of the distinction last mentioned). Some doubts were thrown upon the authority of that case, in Wilkinson v. Abbot, Cowp. 367; but the doctrine was established in Wilkinson v. The hundred of Calesworth, 1 T. R. 71. Costs are allowed on the statute of Hue and Cry; Penkney v. Inhabitants of East Hundred, 2 Saund. 379. In Creswell v. Houghton, 6 T. R. 355. it was ruled that the plaintiff was entitled to costs in an action on 23 Henry VI. c. 9. against the sheriff, for refusing to take bail, on the ground that the plaintiff might have recovered damages before the statute of Gloucester, provided he took the proper means to compel the sheriff to accept bail; namely, by suing out a writ of mainprize. Lord Kenyon, in referring to the cases of quare impedit, and actions for tithes, |