CHURCH-.WARDENS. 579 
to be pun idled jn the ecclefiaftical courts for not repair¬ 
ing the church, r Vent. 367. A taxation by a pound-rate 
is the mod equitable way, which, if refuied to be paid, 
Should be proceeded for in the ecclefiaftical court; and 
quakers are fubjedt to fuch church rale, recoverable as 
their tithes. Wood's Injl. c. 7. Gibf 219. 
• Their duty is very extenfive and various; they are 
bound to provide for baltards, for whole fuftenance the 
pari Hi have made no provifion ; and this without an or¬ 
der of juftices. Hays v. Bryant, Trin. 29 Geo. ill. in C. P. 
Church-wardens are to keep the keys of the belfry, and 
take care the bells are not rung without proper caufe. 
Can. 88. Church-wardens are, by ftat. 4 An. c. 14. to 
collect the charity-money upon briefs; which are letters- 
patent iffuing out of chancery, to re-build churches, re- 
ftore lofs by lire, &c. which are to be read in churches; 
and the fums collected are to be indorfed on the briefs in 
words at length, and iigned by the minifter and church¬ 
wardens; after which they lhall be delivered, with the 
money collefted, to the perfons undertaking them, in a 
certain time, under the penalty of twenty pounds. A re¬ 
gifter is to be kept of all money collefted, &c. Alfo the 
undertakers, in two months after the receipts of the mo¬ 
ney, and notice to fufferers, are to account before a matter 
in chancery, appointed by the lord chancellor. 
The content of the church-wardens mult' be had for 
burying a perfon in a different parifli from that in which 
he dies. It is their duty not to fuffer filicides, or ex¬ 
communicated perfons, to be buried in the church or 
church-yard, without licence from the bitliop. By ftat. 
30 Car, II. c. 3. they are to apply to the magiftrates to 
convift offenders for not burying in woollen. The penal¬ 
ties under ftat. 13 and 14 Car. II. c. 26. for reforming 
abufes in butter and cheefe, are payable to the church¬ 
wardens of the parith where the offences is committed. 
Church-wardens or queft-men are to take care that the 
church be well aired, the windows glazed, the floors well 
paved, &c. If church-wardens erect or add a new gallery, 
they muft have the confent of the parithioners, and a li¬ 
cence of the ordinary, but not for occafional repairs. 
2 Injl. 489. They muft alfo take care to have in the 
church a large bible, a book of common prayer, a book 
of homilies, a font of ftone, a decent communion table; 
with bread and wine for the communion, -a table-cloth, 
carpet, and flagon, plate, and bowl of tilver, gold, or pew¬ 
ter. Can, 20. 8 H. V. p. 4. Church-wardens alfo are to 
tign certificates of perfons taking the facrament, to qua¬ 
lify for offices. They are to fee that the ten command¬ 
ments are let up at the eaft end of the church, and other 
chofen fentences upon the walls, with a reading-defk and 
a pulpit, and a cheft for alms, all at the charge of the pa- 
ri(h. It is alfo the duty of church-wardens to prevent 
any irreverence or indecency from being committed in 
the church; and therefore they may pull off a perfon’s 
hat in the church, or even turn him out if he attempts 
to difturb the congregation. The church being under 
the care of the church-wardens, they may refute to open 
it at the inftance of any perfon, except the parfon, or any 
one adting under him. 1 Sand. 13. 3 Salk. 37. They are 
not to fuller any ftranger to preach, unlefs he appears 
qualified, by producing a licence; and fuch preacher is 
to regifter his name, and the day when he preached, in a 
book. The pulpit is exclufively the right of the parfon 
of the parifli, and the church-wardens are punifliable if 
they (hut the dooragainft him; and his confent is necef- 
lary to a itranger's preaching. 3 Salk. 87. 
By the canons of the church it is ordained, that the 
cluirch-wardens, or queft-men, lhall take care that the 
church-yards be well and fufficiently repaired, found, and 
maintained with walls, rails, or pales, as have been in each 
place accuftomed, at their charges, unto whom the fame, 
by law, appertair.eth ; they are alfo to fee that the church 
be well kept and repaired ; and, by a conftitution of qrch- 
bifhop Wmchelfea, this.charge is to be at the expence of 
the parilhioners. 2 Injl. 489. (But one who has had land 
adjoining to the church-yard may, by cuftom, be bound 
to keep the fences in repair.) Church-wardens (hall fuf- 
fer no plays, feafts, banquets, flippers, church-ales, drink¬ 
ings, temporal courts or leets, lay-juries, mufters, or any 
profane ul'age, to be kept in the church or church-yard. 
Nor lhall they fuffer any idle perlons to abide either in the 
church-yard or the church-porch during the time of di¬ 
vine fervice or preaching, but lhall caufe them to come 
in or to depart. So alfo, by the common law, church¬ 
wardens may juftify the removal of tumultuous perfons 
from the church-yard, to prevent them from difturbing 
the congregation whilft the minifter is performing the 
rites of burial. 1 Mod. 168. and by the canon law may 
prevent an excommunicated perfon from even entering 
into the church-yard at any time, or on any pretence. 
Church-wardens are to levy the penalties by warrant of 
a juftice, under ftat. 22 Car. II. c. 1. for drunkennefs ; 
for profaning the Lord’s day; on hawkers and pedlars 
who travel without a licence; and one Hulling on per¬ 
fons not coming to church each Sunday, under ftatute 
1 Eliz. c. 2. Church-wardens are to obferve that the par¬ 
fon reads the thirty-nine articles twice a-year, and the 
cailons once in the year, preaches every Sunday good 
dodhine, reads the common prayer, celebrates the facra- 
ments, preaches in his gown, vifits the flek, catecbifes 
the children, marries according to law, &c. They are 
likewife to fee that the parilhioners come to church, and 
duly attend the worlhip of God; alfo whether baptilin 
be negledled; women not churched; perfons marrying, 
in prohibited degrees, or without banns or licence ; aims- 
lioufes or fchools abufed; legacies given to pious ufes; &c. 
Cro. Car. 291. 1 Vent. 114. Church-wardens are to aft in 
conjunftion with the overfeers concerning the poor; every 
church-warden being an overfeer, but not e contra. See 
the article Overseer. 
Church-wardens, by their oath, are to prefent, or cer¬ 
tify to the bilhop or his officers, all things prefentable by 
the ecclefiaftical law, which relate to the church, to the 
minifter, and to the parilhioners. The articles which are 
delivered to church-wardens for their guidance in this 
refpeft, are, for the moft part, founded on the book of 
canons, and on rubrics of the common prayer. They are 
alfo bound by ftat. 4 Jac. I. c. 5. to prefent tippling or 
drunkennefs ; and, by 3 Jac. I. c.4. recufants. They need 
not take a frelh oath upon each prefentment they make, 
nor are they obliged to make prefentments oftener than 
once a-year; but they may do it as often as they pleafe, 
except there is a cuftom in the parilh to the contrary ; 
and, upon default or negleft in the church-wardens, the 
minifter may prefent; but fuch prefentment ought to be 
upon oath. Can. 117. 1 Saund, 13. 1 Sid. 463. 
Church-wardens lhall alfo provide a box wherein to 
keep the parifli regifter, with three locks and three keys ; 
two of the keys to be kept by them, and one "by the mi¬ 
nifter: and every Sunday they lhall fee that the minifter 
enter therein all the ciiriftenings, weddings, and burials, 
that have happened the week before ; and at the bottom 
of every page, they lhall, with the minifter, fubl'cribe 
their names ; and they lhall, within a month after the 
twenty-fifth day of March, yearly, tranfmit to the bilhop 
a copy thereof for the year before, fubferibed as above. 
By ftat. 23 Geo. III. c. 67. upon the eUtry of any burial, 
marriage, birth, or cliriftening, in the regifter of any pa¬ 
rifli, precinft, or place, a ftamp duty of three-pence lhall 
be paid ; and therefore the church-wardens and overfeers, 
or one of them, are direfted to provide a book for this 
purpofe, with proper ftamps for each entry, and to pay 
for the lame, and for the ftamps contained therein, out of 
the rates under their management; and to receive back 
the monies which lhall be fo paid from the perfons autho- 
rifed to demand and receive the faid duties. 
At the end of the year, the church-wardens are to yield 
juft accounts to the minifter and pariftiioners, and deliver 
what remains in their hands to the parilhioners, or to new 
church-wardens j in cafe they refufe, they may be pre- 
fented 
