160 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 



amerciam 18 fynes & penalties for defaults to be made for non-apparaunces, 

 deptures from the Court withoute licence or other defaults." Their judgments 

 were to have the like validity with those of the Star Chamber of England. 1 



The law officers of the Court were the Attorney-General, the Solieitor- 

 G-eneral, and Serjeant-at-Law, who received £10 apiece every year for their 

 services in the Court ; but it is probable that there were emoluments derived 

 from fees. The officials were the Clerk and Marshal, who each received 

 £13 6s. 8d. per annum. The former also was Clerk of the Writs, Processes, 

 and Commissions, and both of them received fees for the duties performed by 

 them. There would appear also to have been an Usher, as in 1597 this 

 officer was considered needless. 



The procedure in the Court was as follows:— In a prosecution by the 

 Crown, the Attorney-General would proceed by written information, as in the 

 King's Bench, unless the defendant confessed the offences laid against him, 

 when the Attorney -General proceeded " ore tenus " without a written informa- 

 tion, and, in this case, counsel was not allowed to the defendant. 3 But if the 

 case was one of an action between private individuals, the procedure followed 

 closely the lines of equity suits, that is, the action was commenced by a bill 

 of complaint in which the plaintiff set out the cause of action ; to this, in 

 ordinary course, the defendant filed his answer, which was followed by 

 plaintiffs replication and defendant's rejoinder. When this had been done, 

 the case was heard by the Court and judgment delivered. But if the defendant 

 failed to file his answer, then a writ of attachment was issued against him 

 to be followed by a writ of attachment with proclamation, and after that by 

 a commission of rebellion, if he still remained obdurate. The various steps in 

 this procedure, as also the different forms of writs, were all copied from that 

 of the English Court, and all affidavits, commissions, orders, and decrees were 

 to be registered and entered " in a faire booke called the book of Acts." 3 



Let us now turn to some of the most important eases which came before 

 the Court. Of these the case of the recusants, in the reign of James I, may 

 be said to have held the same position in the Court of Castle Chamber as did 

 Ship Money in the Star Chamber of England. By the Statute of 2 Elizabeth, 

 it was required that every one should attend the Protestant service in his 

 parish church every Sunday and holy-day under pain of a fine of twelve pence 

 for every breach of the Act. But during the reign of Elizabeth, as far as Ireland 

 was concerned, it was nearly a dead letter. Only two or three prosecutions 

 before the Ecclesiastical Commissioners under this Act are on record, 



1 Pat. Rolls (Ireland), 1 Jas. I, pt. 2, No. 2, m. 6. 



2 Cal. State Papers (Ireland) 1611-14. p, 374. 



3 Pat. Roll (Ireland), 1 Jas. I, part 2, No. 2, m. 6. 



