COURTS 
being a court -of record, and'as by the refolutions of the 
fuperior courts it is now confined to fo narrow and re¬ 
trained a jurifdiclfon, it has fallen into difufe. The 
marftialling of coat-armour, which was formerly tlie 
pride and (ludy of all the bed families in the kingdom, 
is now disregarded; and has fallen into the hands of cer¬ 
tain officers and attendants upon this court, called he¬ 
ralds, who confider it only as a matter of lucre, and not 
of juftice whereby fuch falfity and confufion have crept 
into their records, (which ought to be the (landing evi¬ 
dence of families, defeents, and coat-armour,) that, 
though formerly fame credit has been paid to their tefti- 
anony, now even their common feal will not be received 
as evidence in any court of juftice in the kingdom. 2 Rol. 
Abr. 686. 2 Jon. 224. But their original vifitation-bcoks, 
compiled when progrefles were lolemnly and regularly 
made into every part of the kingdom, to enquire into 
the (late of families, and to regifter fuch marriages and 
defeents as were verified to them upon oath, are allowed 
to be good evidence of pedigrees. And it is much to be 
■wiftied, that this practice of vifitation at certain periods 
were revived ; for the failure of inquifitions pojl mortem, 
by the abolition of military tenures, combined with the 
negligence of heralds in omitting their ufual progrefles, 
has rendered the proof of a modern defeent, for the reco¬ 
very of an eftate or fuccefiidn to a title of honour, more 
difficult than that of an ancient. This will be indeed 
.remedied for the future, with refpedl to claims of peer- 
age, by a (landing order (May 11, 1767) of the houfe of 
lords; diredting the heralds to take exact accounts, and 
preferve regular entries, of all peers and peereffes of Eng¬ 
land, and their refpedtive defendants ; and that an exact 
pedigree of each peer, and his family, (hall, on the day 
of his fil'd admilfion, be delivered to the houfe by garter, 
the principal king-at-arms in this court. But the gene¬ 
ral inconvenience, affecting mere private fuccefflons, ftill 
continues without a remedy. 
COURTS of CONSCIENCE. 
In the 9th year of Henry VIII. the court of confidence, 
or court of requefts, in London, was eredted ; there was 
then made an ait of common council, that the lord-mayor 
and aldermen lhould aflign monthly two aldermen and 
Tour difereet commoners, to he commiflioners to fit in 
this court twice a-week, to hear and determine all mat¬ 
ters brought before them between party and party, be¬ 
tween citizens and freemen of London, in all cafes where 
the debt or damage was under forty (hillings. And this 
act of common council was confirmed by 1 Jac. I. c. 14. 
■which impowered the commiflioners of this court to make 
fuch orders between the parties touching fuch debts, as 
they fliould find (land to equity and good confidence. 
The ftatute 3 Jac. I. c. 15. fully eftablifhes this court; 
the courfe and practice whereof is by fummons, to which 
if the party appear, the commiflioners proceed fumma- 
rily ; examining the witnefles of both parties, or the 
parties themfelves, on oath, and as they fee caufe give 
judgment. And if the party fummoned appear not, the 
commiflioners may commit him to the compter prifon till 
he does ; alfo the commiflioners have power to commit 
a perfon refufing to obey their orders, &c. By 14 Geo. II. 
c. xo. the proceedings of the court of confidence were 
regulated ; and in cafe any perfon affront or infult any 
of the commiflioners, on their certifying it to the lord- 
mayor, he (hall punifli the offender by fine, not exceeding 
twenty (hillings, or may imprifon him ten days. 
By 39 & 40 Geo. III. c. 104. the'powers of this court 
were extended to debts not exceeding five pounds, from 
and after the 30th of September, r8oo. By this new 
adl, which is intended to explain and amend the flats. 3 
Jac. 1 . and i4Geo. II. three commiflioners are to have 
jurifdidtion over debts of forty (hillings or under, but 
not lefs than (even are to take cognifance of all demands 
not exceeding five pounds. Debts due by perfons un¬ 
der age for neceflanes may be recovered; and l'ervants s 
OF LAW. 299 
though under age, may recover wages. Perfons com¬ 
mitted to prifon for debts awarded in this court are not 
to be detained more than twenty days, where the debt 
(exclufive of cods) does not exceed twenty (hillings ; 
where the debt does not exceed forty (hillings, not more 
than forty days ; where the debt does not exceed three 
pounds, not more than fixty days ; and in no cafe what¬ 
ever to exceed one hundred days. 
There have been courts of confidence eftablifhed of 
late years by feveral adts of parliament, at the following 
places: Alban’s, St. town of, by 25 Geo. II. c. 38. 
Bath, by 6 Geo. III. c. 16. Beverly in Yorkfhire, by 
21 Geo. III. c. 38. Birmingham, by 25 Geo. II. c. 34. 
Blackheath, Bromley, Beckenham, Rokefley, orRuxley 
Little, and Lefl'nefs, in Kent, by 6 Geo. Ilf. c. 6. and 
10 Geo. III. c. 29. Bolingbroke, and Candlelhoe in Lin- 
fey, in Lincolnfhire, by 18 Geo. III. c. 34. Bofton, by 
26 Geo. If. c. 7. Bradford, Melklham, and Worlefdawn, 
in Wiltfhire, by 3 Geo.,III. c. 19. Buxton hundred, by 
31 Geo. IT. c. 23. Brofely, by 22 Geo. III. c. 37. Can¬ 
terbury, by 25 Geo. II. c. 45. Chippenham, Caine, Da. 
merham, North, and Corfham, in Wilts, by 5 Geo. III. 
c. 9. Deal, See. by 26 Geo. III. c. 18. Derby borough, 
and liberties of, by 6 Geo. III. c. 20. Dover, within 
the town and port of, the parifh of Charlton, and other 
places in Kent, by 24Geo. III. c, 8. Elloe hundred, in 
Lincolnlhire, by 15 Geo. III. c. 64. Ely, by 18 Geo. III. 
c. 36. Exeter, by 13 Geo. III. c. 27. I'olkftone, &c. 
in Kent, by 26 Geo. III. c. 118. Faverfham, and Bough- 
ton and Ofpringe, in Kent, by 25Geo. III.-c. 7. Halifax, 
in Yorkfhire, by 17 Geo. III. c. 15. 20 Geo. III. c. 65. 
Horncaftle, Soke, in Lincolnfhire, by 19 Geo. III. c. 43. 
Kidderminfter, by 12 Geo. III. c. 66. King’s Lynn, by 
10 Geo. III. c. 20. Kingfton-upon-Hull, by 2 Geo. III. 
c. 38. Kirkby, in Weftniorland, by 4 Geo. III. c. 4r. 
Lincoln, by 24Geo. II. c. 16. Liverpool, by 25 Geo. II. 
c. 24. Pontefract, in Yorkfhire. Portfmouth and Port, 
f'ea. Poulton, Kirkham, Leitham and Bifpham, Prufall 
and Stalmine, in Lancafhire, by 10 Geo. III. c. 21. Ro- 
chefterand Stroud, in Kent, by 22 Geo. III. c. 37. Sand¬ 
wich, in Kent, by 26 Geo. III. c. 22. Shrewfbury, by 
23 Geo. III. c. 73. Soke, Yorkfhire, by 4 Geo. III. 
c. 40. Old Swinford, Worcefterfliire, and Staffordfliire, 
by 17 Geo. III. c. 19. Watford, Herts. Yarmouth, by 
31 Geo. II. c. 24. 
COUNTY-COURT, 
Called by Lambert conventus ,' in his explication of 
Saxon words, and is divided into two forts ; one l'etaining 
the general name, as the county-court held every month, 
by the fheriif or his deputy : the other called the turn, 
held twice in every year, viz. within a month after Eafter 
and Michaelmas. Cromp. Jurifd. 241. All adminiftration 
of juftice was at fil'd in the king’s hands; but afterwards, 
when by the increafe of the people the burden grew too 
great for him, as the kingdom was divided into counties, 
hundreds, &c. fo the adminiftration of juftice was diftri- 
buted amongfl divers courts, of which the (heritr had the 
county court for government of the county, and lords of 
liberties had their leets and law-days, for the fpeedier 
and eafier adminiftring juftice therein. Before the courts 
at Weffminfter were eredted, the county-courts were the 
chief courts of the kingdom. And among the laws of 
king Edgar it is ordained, that there be two county-courts 
kept in the year, in which there (hall be a bifhop and an 
alderman, or earl, as judges; one to judge according to 
the common law, and the other according to the eccle- 
fiaftical law : but thefe united powers of a bifhop and 
earl to try caufes, were feparated by William the Firft, 
called the Conqueror; and foon after the bufinefs of ec~ 
clefiaftical cognifance was brought into its proper courts, 
and the common law bufinefs into the king’s-bench, Blount. 
That the county-court in ancient times, had the cog. 
nifance of pleas of the crown, indidlments of felony, See. 
appears by Glanv. lib. 1. c, z. by Braclon } Briton, and 
Flcta » 
