61 
CON 
5 n c'hls coiifieffiqn. Temple .—The a£l of difburthening the 
coTilcience to a prielt.—You will have little opportunity 
to pradtife'fuch a confejjion, and fliould therefore fupply 
tit; want of it by a due performance of it to God. Wake. 
_Profeflion; avowal.—Who, before Pontius Pilate, wit- 
nefled a good confieffion? i Tim. vi. 13.—A formulary in 
which the articles of faith are compriled. 
CONFES'SION, in law, is where a prifoner is indifted 
of treafon or felony, and brought to the bar to be ar¬ 
raigned ; and his indi&ment being read to him, the court 
demands what he can fay thereto ; then he either con¬ 
fefies the offence, and the indictment to be true, or pleads 
not guilty. Confeflion may be made in two kinds, and 
to two feveral ends: the one is, that the criminal may 
confefs the offence whereof he is indicted openly in the 
court, before the judge, and fubmit himfelf to the cen¬ 
time and judgment of the law; which confeflion is the 
mod certain anlwer, and belt fatisfa&ion that may be 
given to the judge to condemn the offender; lb that it 
proceeds freely of his own accord, without any threats 
or extremity ufed ; for if the confefiion arife from any of 
thefe caufes, it ought not to be recorded : as a woman 
indited for the felonious taking of a thing from another, 
bein°- thereof arraigned, confefled the felony, and faid 
that^fhe did it by commandment of her hulband ; the 
judges in pity would not record her confefiion, but 
cauled her to plead not guilty to the felony; whereupon 
the jury found that (lie did the fail by compulfion of 
her hulband, againff her will, for which cauie Ihe was 
difcharged. 27 Afffi- pi- S°* 
The other kind of confefiion is, when the prifoner 
confefies the indictment to be true, and that he hath 
committed the offence whereof he is indiCted, and then 
becomes an approver, or accufer of others, who are guilty 
of the lame offence whereof he is indiCted, or other of¬ 
fences with him; and then prays the judge to have a 
coroner afligned him, to whom he may make relation of 
thofe offences and the full circumftances thereof. There 
was alfo a third fort of co.nfeffion, formerly made by an 
offender in felony, not in court before the judge, but 
before the coroner in a church, or other privileged place, 
upon which the offender, by the ancient law of the land, 
was to abjure the realm. 3 Injl. .129. Confefiion is like- 
wife in civil cafes, where the defendant confefies the 
plaintiff’s aCtion to; be good : by which confeflion there 
may be a mitigation of a fine againff the penalty of a 
ffatute; though not after verdiCt. Finch. 387. 2 408. 
There is alio a confefiion indirectly implied, as well as 
direftly expreffed, in criminal cafes ; as if the defendant, 
in a cafe not capital, doth notdireClly own himfelf guilty 
of the crime, but by fubmitting to a fine owns his guilt; 
whereupon the judge may accept of his lubmiflion to the 
king’s mercy. By this indirect confefiion, the defendant 
fhall not be barred to plead not guilty to an aCtion for 
the fame faCt: the entry of it is, that the defendant puts 
himfelf on the king’s mercy. And of the direCt confefiion, 
that he acknowledges the indictment. .And this laft con¬ 
fefiion carries with it fo ftrong a prefumption of guilt, 
that being entered on record, on indictment of trefspafs, 
it effops the defendant to plead not guilty to an aCtion 
brought afterwards againrt him for the fame matter: but 
fuch entry of a confefiion of an indictment of a capital 
crime, it is faid, will not eftop a defendant to plead not 
guilty to an appeal, it being in cafe of life. And where 
a perfon upon his arraignment actually confefies himfelf 
guilty, or unadvifedly difclofes the fpecial manner of the 
aCt, luppoling that it doth not amount to felony, where 
it doth; tbe judges, upon probable circumftances, that 
fuch confefiion may proceed from fear, weaknefs, or ig¬ 
norance, may refufe fuch a confefiion, and fufter the party 
to plead not guilty. 2 Hawk. c. 31. 
A confeflion may be received, and tbe plea of not 
guilty be withdrawn, though recorded. Kel. 11. The 
confefiion of the defendant, whether taken upon an ex¬ 
amination before juftices of peace, in purfuance of the 
Vol. V. No. 254. - , 
CON 
1 and 7.P. and M. c. 13, upon an offender’s being bailed or 
committed for felony ; or taken by tne common law, 
upon an examination before a fecretary of ffate, or other 
magiftrate, for treafon or other crimes, is allowed to be 
given in evidence againft the party confefiing; but nor. 
againft others. Alfo two witneffes of a confefiion of 
high treafon, upon an examination before a juffice of 
peace, were lufticient to conviCl the perfon fo confeifing, 
within the meaning of 1 Ed. VI. c. 12, and 5 & 6. Ed. VI. 
c. 11, which required two witneffes in high treafon ; unleis 
the offender fnould willingly confefs, See. But the 7 
Will. III. c. 3, requires two witneffes, except the party 
fhall willingly without violence confefs, &c. in open court. 
2 Hawk. c. 46. It has been held, that wherever a man’s con¬ 
fefiion is made ufe of againff him, it mull all be taken to¬ 
gether, and not by parcels. And no confefiion (hall, be¬ 
fore final judgment, deprive the defendant of the pri¬ 
vilege of taking exceptions in arreft of judgment, to faults 
apparent in the record. A demurrer amounts to a con¬ 
fefiion of the indictment as laid, fo far, that if the indiCl- 
ment be good, judgment and execution fhall go againlfc 
the prifoner. Bro. 86. H. P. C. 246. And in criminal 
cafes, not capital, if the defendant demur to an indict¬ 
ment, whether in an abatement, or otherwife, the court 
will not give judgment againff him to anfwer over, but 
final judgment. 2 Hawk. c. 32. Where a prifoner con,- 
feffes the fait, the court has nothing more to do than to 
proceed to judgment againft him. Confeffus in juchcio pro 
judicato habetur. \Infi. 66. See the article Evidence. 
CONFES'SIONAL, f. [French.] The feat or box in 
which the confeffor fits to hear the declarations of his 
penitents.—In one of the churches I law a pulpit and 
confeffional, very finely inlaid with lapis-lazuli. Addifon. 
CONFES'SION ARY,/". [ conjejjionaire, Fr.] The confef- 
fion-chair orgeat, where the prielt fits to hear confeflions. 
CONFES'SOR,/ [confeffeur, Fr.] One who makes pro¬ 
feflion of his faith in the face of danger. He who dies for 
religion, is dittinguifhed by the name of a martyr ; he 
who merely fuft'ers for it, is a confeffor.—The patience 
and fortitude of g. martyr or confeffor lie concealed in the 
flourifliing times of Chriftianity. Addifon. —It was the af- 
lurance of a refurreCtion that gave patience to the confeffor „ 
and courage to the martyr. Rogers. —One who confefies 
his fins. A prieft in the Romifh church, who hears con¬ 
feflions, and prelcribes rules and mealures of penitence.—• 
If you find any fin that lies heavy upon you, difluirthen, 
yourfelf of it into the bofom of your confeffor, who Hands 
between God and you to pray for you. Taylor. 
See that Claudio 
Be executed by nine to-morrow morning : 
Bring him his confeffor, let him he prepar’d; 
For that’s the utmolt of his pilgrimage. Shakefpeare. 
The prieft who receives the auricular confefiion, feems 
to have had the title of confeffor improperly ; for he is 
rather the confeffer, being the perfon to whom the con¬ 
fefiion is made. The receiving the confefiion of a peni¬ 
tent, was in old Englifh to jhreaje or Jhrive-, whence comes 
the word befijrie-ved , or looking like a conieifed 01 fhrieved 
perfon, on whom was impofed fome unenfy penance. The 
moft lolemn time of confefiing was the day before Lent, 
which from thence is ftill called Shrove-Tuelday. C.owel. 
CONFE'ST, adj. [a poetical word for confeffed .] Open; 
known; acknowledged; not concealed; not difputed j 
apparent: 
But wherefore fliould I feek, 
Since the perfidious author flands confejl? 
This villain has traduc'd me. Rowec 
CONFEST'LY, ad=v. Undifputably; evidently; with¬ 
out doubt or concealment.—They addreis to that prin¬ 
ciple which is confejily predominant in our nature. Decay 
of Piety. , 
CONFI'CIENT, adj. [confident, Lat.] That caufes or 
procures; effective., t 
R CONFIDA'NT 
