To make inquiry concerning the commiffion of public offences, and to tranfmit an account of them to the criminal court, was one great purpofe of the appointment of coroners; a fet of officers who had place not only in England and Scotland, but in the greater part, if not in all, of the feudal king doms upon the continent. "The office of the coroners, in England, is of fo great antiquity, that the commencement of it is entirely loft in obfcurity. It feems to have been an immemorial custom of the Anglo-Saxons, that feveral perfons of distinction fhould be named by the freeholders in each county, with power to fecure and imprifon criminals of all forts, to the end that they might be brought to a trial. From this employment, thefe officers, as in after times the juftices of the peace, found the means of afuming a criminal jurifdiction, which, from finall beginnings, became gradually more and more extenfive. Another branch of bufinefs, devolved upon the coroner, and which may be regarded as an appendage or confequence of the former, was that of afcertaining and determining the value of the fines, amerciaments, and forfeitures, or of any other emoluments, which accrued to the fovereign, either from the condemnation of public offen. ders, or from the right of the crown to all the goods, of which no other proprietor could be found. When the corner had occafion to enquire into the truth of any Fact, either with a view to determine thofe natters which fell under his own jurifdiction, or in order to tranfmit an account of it to fome other criminal court, he proceeded, in the fame manner that was cuftomary in the courts of the hundred, and of the county, by the afliftance of an inqueft or jury; and the number of jurymen, who, in those cafes, were called from the neighbouring townflips, was not lefs than was employed in other judicial invertigations. "After the Norman conqueft, when the auli regis drew to iteif the cognizance of the greater part of crimes, it became the duty of the coroner to certify to that court his inquifition concerning thofe offences which fell under its jurifdiction; and upon this information, the most authentic that could well be procured, a trial before the grand juliciary was commenced. Upon the establishment of the king's bench, and of the commiffions of oyer and terminer and gaol delivery, the like certification, and for the fame purpofe, was made by the coroner of thefe tribunals. "But in proportion to the advancement of the prerogative, the anthority of the coroner, an officer elected by the county, was diminifhed; his jurifdiction was daily fubjected to greater limitations; and his reports became gradually more narrow and defective: whether it be that,, by having a fellowfeeling with the inhabitants, he endeavoured to screen them from juftice, or that, from the ruft and re laxation to which every old inftitution is liable, his operations became tardy and inaccurate; certain it is, that he came to overlook the greater part of the offences wich require the interpofition of the magiftrate, and his inquifition was at length con fined to a few of thofe enormous crimes, which excite univerfal indignation and resentment "To fupply the deficiency of the coroner's inqueft, the fheriff, who had come, in a great measure, un der the appointment of the crown, was directed, upon the meeting of judges judges in the circuits, or of the other criminal courts, to call a jury, in order to procure information concerning the crimes committed in particular districts. Hence the origin of what is called the grand jury, by whofe inquifition the judges were authorifed to proceed in the trial of public offenders. "It is probable, that when the grand jury were first called, they made an inquiry at large concerning every fact which ought to become the fubject of a criminal trial, and of their own proper motion delated the perfons whom they found to deferve an accufation, but, by degrees, when the agent for the crown had been led to fufpect any particular perfon, he was accustomed to lay before them the immediate quef tion, how far that fufpicion was well founded? Hence the two methods of finding the fact; by pre fentment, and by indictment. "It seems evident, from what has been bierved, that the original purpose of the inquifition by the coroner, and of a prefentment by the grand jury, was to prevent of fenders from being overlooked, and from escaping a trial. When the custom of preterring indictments to the grand jury was introduced, the intention of that meafure was, probably, to avoid the trouble and expence of a fruitles profecution. But, whatever was originally in tended by this practice, the neceffity of procuring the previous ap probation of a jury, by one or other of the forms above-mentioned, was productive of the higheft advantage to the people, that of securing them from groundlefs or frivolous accufa ions. If a perfon is known to have committed a crime, or lies under a strong fufpicion of guilt, the voice of the whole neighbour hood will probably call aloud for juffice, and demand an immediate trial of the offender. But if, on the contrary, an innocent man is at tacked, if he is threatened with a profecution, from apparently malicious motives, or for the purpofe of ferving a political job, it is most likely that his fellow citizens will view this proceeding with indignation; that they will confider his misto tune as, in fome measure, their own; and that, from a prin ciple of humanity and juftice, as as well as from a regard to their own intereft, they will be excited to ftand forth as the protectors of innocence. "This is a new inftance, perhaps more confpicuous than any that we have had occafion to obferve in the history of the English government, of a regulation whote confequences were not forefeen at the time when it was introduced. The great benefit arifing to fociety from the interpolition of the grand jury is not only totally different, but even diametrically oppofite to that which was originally intended by it. The original purpofe of that inftitution was to aflift the crown in the difcovery of crimes, and by that means to encrease the number of profecu tions. But when an accurate police had been established in the country, there was little danger that any crime of importance would be concealed from the public; and it became the cliet end of the grand jury to guard against the abates of the deferetionary power with which the officers of the crown are invested, that of profecuting public of commiffion of crimes; and either punished them by his own authority, or tranfmitted information concern. ing them to the competent court. The negligence of this officer feems, in that country, to have likewife produced the interpofition of the Theriff, or chief magistrate of particular districts, by calling a jury for the fame purpofe. By a ftatute in the reign of Alexander the Second, it is enacted, that no profecution, at the infance of the crown, fhall proceed against any perfon, unlefs by an accufation, upon the inquifition of a jury, confifting of the chief magiftrate of the place and three refpectable perfons in the neighbourhood. This rule continued till near the end of the fixteenth century; when, in confequence of the establishment of the court of feffion, and from other causes, the investigation of judicial matters, by a jury, came to be much more limited than it had formerly been. By an act of the Scottish parliament, in 1587, certain commiffioners, inftead of the inqueft formerly called, were appointed in the feveral counties, for enquiring into public offences; and indicments, framed upon the report of thefe commiffioners, were put into a lift, which got the name of the porteous roll. : "The fame ftatute empowered the king's advocate to profecute crimes of his own proper motion and, as he was the perfon employed to raise indictments, upon the information tranfmitted by the commiffioners, he naturally affumed the privilege of determining whether the acts laid before him ought to be the ground of a profecution or not. Thus in Scotland the ancient grand jury was abolished; and criminal actions, at the inftance of the public, came, in all cafes, to be directed at the difcretion of a crown officer. "The attorney-general, in England, and the master of the crown. office, have acquired, in like manner, a power of profecuting by information, without any previous authority of a grand jury; but this mode of profecution is confined to misdemeanours tending to disturb the government, or the peace and good order of fa ciety, and is never extended to crimes of a capital nature. "How far the nations upon the continent were possessed of a fimilar provition, to fecure the people from unjust and groundless profecutions, it is not eafy to determine. That in the greater part of them the coroner's inqueft was employed for bringing to light thofe diforders which required the interpofition of a criminal court, there is no room to doubt. But when, from the circumstances which have already been pointed out, the method of trial by the petty jury had fallen into difufe, it is not likely that a previous inqueft would still be employed to judge of the neceffity or expediency of commencing a crimi nal accufation. From the rapid advancement of the prerogative in thefe nations, the fovereign was freed from any restraint in this branch of adminiftration, and an unbounded liberty of trying public offences was committed to the officers of the crown. To whatever caufes it may be afcribed, the English grand jury is now the only inflitu tion of the kind that remains in Europe; and perhaps, as it is modelled at prefent, there cannot be found, in the annals of the world, a regulation fo well calculated for preventing abuses in that part of the executive power which relates to the profecution of crimes." SPE SPECIMENS of LOVE LETTERS in the Reign of EDWARD IV. [From the Second Volume of a Collection of Original Letters, Written during the Reigns of HENRY VI. EDWARD IV, and RICHARD III. By JOHN FENN, Efq. M. A. and F. R. S.] "R IGHT reverend and worfhipful, and my right well beloved Valentine, I recommend me unto you, full heartily defiring to hear of your welfare, which I befeech Almighty God long for to And this letter was endited at Topcroft, with full heavy heart, &c. By your own, preferve unto his pleasure, and your "RIGHT worshipful and well heart's defire. "And if it pleafe you to hear of my welfare, I am not in good heele [bealth] of body, nor of heart, nor hall be till I hear from you. For there wottes [knows] no creature that pain I endure, And for to be dead [for my life], I dare it not dyfcur' [difover]. "And my lady my mother hath laboured the matter to my father full diligently, but the can no more get than ye know of, for the which God knoweth I am full forry. But if that ye love me, as I trust verily that ye do, ye will not leave me therefore; for if that ye had not half the livelihood that ye have, for to do the greatest labour that any woman alive might, I would not forsake you. And if ye command me to keep me true wherever I go, I wis I will do all my might you to love, atid never no mo. And if my friends fay, that I do amifs. I truft it shall be better in time coming. "No more to you at this time, but the holy Trinity have you in keeping; and I befeech you that this bill be not feen of none earthly creature fave only yourself, &c. beloved Valentine, in my moft humble wife, I recommend me unto you, &c. And heartily I thank you for the letter, which that ye fend me by John Beckerton, whereby I understand and know, that ye be purpofed to come to Topcroft in hort time, and without any errand or matter, but only to have a conclufion of the matter betwixt my father and you; I would be moft glad of any creature alive, fo that the matter might grow to effect. And thereas and find the matter no more to [whereas] ye fay, and [if] ye come wards you than ye did afore time, ye would no more put my father and my lady my mother to no coft nor bufinefs, for that cause a good while after, which caufeth my heart to be full heavy; and if that ye come, and the matter take to none effect, then should I be much more forry, and full of heaviness. And as for myself I have done, and understand in the matter that I can or may, as God knoweth ; and I let you plainly understand, that my father will no more money part withal in that behalf, but an 1001. and 50 marks (331. 6s. 8 d.) which is right far from the accc. plifhment of your defire. "Wherefore, if that ye could be content with that good, and my poor poor perfon, I would be the merrieit maiden on ground; and if ye think not yourself fo fatisfied, or that ye might have much more good, as I have underflood by you fore; good, true, and loving vafentine, that ye take no fuch labour upon you, as to come more for that matter, but let (what) is, pafs and never more be spoken of, as I may be your true lover and Leadwoman during my life. "No more unto you at this time, but Almighty Jelu preferve you both body and foul, &c. by your valenti e, MARGERY BREWS." Topcroft, 1476-7. KING RICHARD the Third's. Addrefs against HENRY TUDOR, [From the fame Work.]1 be copy of a letter of king Richard III. perfuading his fubjects to reFA Henry Tydder [Tudor] after swards king of England, and dearing from whom the faid Henry was defcended. RICHARD R. "FOR Richard, &c. wifheth health, we command you, &c. DORASMUCH as the king, our fovereign lord, hath certain knowlege that Piers, bifhop of Exeter, Jafper Tydder [Tudor], fon of Owen Tydder, calling him felt earl of Pembroke, John late er of Oxford, and fir Edward Wodevile, with others diverfe, his rebels and traitors, difabled and at ainted by the authority of the high court of parliament, of whom many may be known for open murderers, advowterers [adulterers], and extortioners, contrary to the pleafure of God, and against all truth, honour and nature, have forfaken their natural country, taking them first to be under the obey fance of the duke of Bretagne and so him promife certain things, which by him and his council, were thought things too greatly unnatural and abominable, for them to grant, obferve, keep, and per form, and therefore the fame ut terly refused. The fad traitors fe-ing the faid duke and his council would not aid nor fuccour them nor fol. low their ways, privily departed out of his country into France, and there taking them to be under theobeyfance of the king's ancient enemy, Charles calling himfelf king of France, and to abuse and blind the commons of this fid realm, the faid rebels and traitors have chofen to be their captain one Henry Tydder [Tudor], fon of Edmund Tydder, fon of Owen Tydder, which of his ambitious and infitiable covetife [coretoujarfs encroached and ufurpeth upon him, the name and title of Royal Estate of this realm of England; whereunto he hath no manner of interest, right, title or colour, as every man well knoweth; for he is defcended of baftard blood, both of father's fide, and of mother's fide; for the faid Owen the grandfather, was baftard born; and his mother was daughter unto John, duke of Somerfet, fon unto John, earl of Somerfet, fon unto dame Kathe rine Swynford, and of their indo ble |