bulations shall be begun directly the King's affairs at Rome should be concluded; and the Confirmation is then connected with the immediate object of the Statute, by a statement that the King having thought upon certain defects in the law, and many grievances and oppressions of the people, being willing to provide a remedy for those at present occurring, establishes it by the succeeding ordinances. It may, perhaps, be proper to notice that the Statute of Fines levied, was intended to provide that they should be a security, and an end, as the word implied, of all matters for which they were paid in the King's Court.

The Statute entitled, "Articuli super Chartas," or the Articles upon the Charters, was the next instrument by which they may be said to have been confirmed, though it can scarcely be denominated a Confirmation Charter. It has been already noticed in the preceding Essay, page 46, and it was issued from a Parliament which met at London, on March 16th, 1299-1300, the 28th year of Edward I. One cause of it being made is stated by Lord Coke to have been the provision of taking the ancient feudal aids, &c. in Chapter vi. of the Confirmationes Chartarum, already given and explained on pages 372, 389; under colour of which the King's officers and ministers evaded the true law when the Parliament was dismissed. Upon which several of the Barons petitioned the King again to confirm the Charters, but when he would have inserted a clause saving the right of the crown, the Lords protested against it, and desired an absolute renewal of the Charter of Henry III., which he at length granted in the Act variously entitled, "the Explanations upon the Charters:"-" the New Articles upon the Charters:" and, more commonly, "the Articles upon the Charters." The ordinances contained in it occupy twenty Chapters written in Norman French; and it opens by declaring that the Charters of Liberties were not observed, notwithstanding the several confirmations of them, which is attributed to there being no certain penalties attached to their violation; they are, therefore, re-established by this Act, and the following provisions made for their protection and support. Copies of them under the King's Seal were

to be sent to every Sheriff in England, to be read four times yearly to the people in full County-Court; at the first meetings after the feasts of St. Michael, Christmas, Easter, and St. John the Baptist. For the punishing of offenders, the Commonalty was to elect three able men in every CountyCourt; Knights, or other lawful, wise, and well disposed persons, who were to be sworn as Justices under the King's Great Seal; to hear and determine, without any other Writ than their Commission, such complaints as should be made of those who offended in any point against the Charters, within the County, as well within franchises as without, and as well of the King's officers out of their places as of others. They were to hear such complaints from day to day, without admitting any of those delays which were allowed by the Common Law; and to punish all those who were attainted of any trespass against the Charters, by imprisonment, ransom, or amerciament, according to the trespass. The Statute expressly declares, that this special proceeding shall be only in cases where there was no remedy by the Common Law; and that if the three Commissioners could not attend, two should be sufficient. Sir Edward Coke, observes, that out of the appointment of these persons, arose that of the Justices of Trail báton; so called from their rapid proceedings which "were as speedy and ready as one might draw a staff." The King's Sheriffs and Bailiffs were to be attendant on these Justices.

Like the Statutum de Finibus levatis, the present Act now turns from establishing the Charters of Liberties, aud states, that for the voluntary aids and service of his subjects, the King had granted in it other articles for their benefit and amendment of the law. Some of these were intended to remedy certain defects in the Great Charter, as Chapter II. for the regulation of Purveyance, vide Chapters XXVIII. &c. pages 78, 79, 211-213: Chapters IV. V. on holding of Courts of Common Pleas, &c. Chapter XVII. pages 74, 75, 197: Chapter XII. on distraining for debts of the Crown, Chapter IX. pages 70, 71, 174: Chapter XVIII. for the protection of the King's ward lands, Chapters IV. V. pages 66-69, 165-167. All the Chapters, however, of the

lished by Serjeant William Hawkins, in his edition of the English Statutes, Lond. 1735, fol. 6 vols. It was not, however, until the publication of the "Statutes of the Realm," by the Commissioners of the Records of England, that they were preceded by an entire series of the Charters of Liberties, printed from the ancient originals themselves: to effect which, searches were made through the kingdom in the summer of 1806, by two of the Sub-commissioners, for ancient Charters, &c. not found upon the Statute Rolls; wherever such instruments were supposed to be preserved, according to the Record Report of 1800. In treating of these originals, therefore, it is not possible to proceed with greater accuracy or more minute investigation, than are displayed in the accounts of these researches, and those of Sir William Blackstone; and the principal of the following notices have in consequence been compiled from those authentic sources: the intent of the present article being to give some

several Statutes when drawn up in form, for the purpose of being proclaimed and published. The earliest Statutes now inserted in collections, are those of Henry III., but no Parliamentary Record of them exists before those of the 6th of Edward I., 1278, the Statute of Gloucester, which commences the Rolls. They extend from this period to 1468, the 8th of Edward IV., inclusive; though there is an interval after 1429-30 to 1444-45, from the 8th to the 23rd year of Henry VI., inclusive. They consist of six separate Rolls arranged in regular series, each Roll consisting of several membranes, or skins of parchment tacked together, by the number of which, and the year of the Roll, the record is cited. Though the Roll of 1468 be the last now known to be extant, there is evidence that later ones did exist, and that this method of recording the Statutes ceased with the Parlia mentary Session of 1488-89, the 4th of Henry VII., no notice of any later one having been discovered. In the next Session, 1491-92, the 7th of Henry VII., public acts were printed from the several bills passed in Parliament, and not according to the ancient manuer, as part of one Statute drawn into a general form. The present custom is, after all the Public-general Acts of a Session have received the Royal Assent, a transcript of the whole, engrossed on parchment, and signed and certified by the Clerk of Parliament, is sent to the Rolls Chapel, where it is deposited and arranged with the other Records.