POLITICAL ECONOMY. 121 



to compensate for some injury sustained. An action or suit, is the 

 whole course of legal proceedings, to obtain redress for a private 

 wrong. The party who commences it, or sues, is called the plain- 

 tiff; the other, the defendant. An action of debt, is one for the 

 recovery of a debt ; an action of covenant, is for breach of a sealed 

 contract ; and one of assumpsit, is for breach of a contract not sealed ; 

 these being all termed actions of contract. Among actions of tort, 

 are those of trespass, for violent or forcible injury to person or pro- 

 perty ; of trover, for the recovery of goods stolen or wrongfully 

 taken ; of detinue, or of replevin, for obtaining goods wrongfully 

 withheld ; and of ejectment, for recovering possession of real property. 

 An action on the case, or of trespass on the case, is for any injury 

 to the person, property, health, reputation, or comfort of the com- 

 plaining party, inflicted without actual or constructive force. 



The term process, includes all writs and orders, issued by courts 

 to their executive officers, in the course of judicial proceedings. A 

 summons, is a writ, commanding the sheriff or constable to summon 

 the defendant ; and a capias, requires him to take the defendant, and 

 bring him into court. In some cases, the defendant is permitted to 

 give bail, or security, in a certain sum of money, for his appearance. 

 A writ of attachment, is one for the seizure of property. The 

 declaration or count, is the plaintiff's statement of the cause of ac- 

 tion ; to which the defendant may either demur ; maintaining that 

 there is no sufficient cause of action, or that it is not brought in legal 

 form ; or he may plead in abatement, against the jurisdiction of the 

 court, the identity of the parties, or the like ; or finally, he may plead 

 in bar, that is in traverse, denying the allegations of the plaintiff 

 entirely. After this may come the evidence of witnesses ; the argu- 

 ments of counsel ; the charge of the judge to the jury ; the verdict 

 of the jury ; and the judgment of the court ; enforced by a writ of 

 execution, unless the cause be removed to a higher court. 



CHAPTER V. 



POLITICAL ECONOMY. 



POLITICAL Economy, is that branch of knowledge which investi- 

 gates the nature, sources, and proper uses of national wealth. The 

 name is from the Greek, rto?a$, a state ; and oixovopia, housekeeping: 

 this latter term being derived from the words 01x0$, a house ; and vopos, 

 law-. In many respects. Political Economy may be said to bear the 

 same relation to a state, which Domestic Economy does to a single 

 family : for, although professedly relating to the wealth of nations, it 

 indirectly examines many points of comfort and well-being, which are 

 connected with the acquisition, and expenditure of wealth. Its' 

 connection with legislation and government, and its subserviency 

 thereto, will at once be perceived from its definition ; while the 

 merchant, and even the moralist may derive important lessons from 

 a knowledge of its facts and principles. 

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