ATT 
Canaan he now attains ; I fee his tents 
Pitch’d about Sichem. Milton. 
To reach; to equal.—So the firfl precedent, if it be good, 
is feldoin attained by imitation. Bacon. 
To Attain, v.n. To come to a certain (late: with to. 
•—Milk will foon feparate itfelf into a cream, and a more 
ferous liquor, which, after twelve days, attains to the high- 
eft degree of acidity. Arbuthnot. —To arrive at.—Such 
knowledge is too wonderful for me ; it is high ; I cannot 
attain unto it. Pfalm cxxxix. 6. — To have knowledge in 
molt objects of contemplation, is what the mind of one man 
can hardly attain unto. Locke. 
Attain, f. The thing attained; attainment: a word 
not in uje. —Crowns and diadems, the tnoft fp lend id terrene 
attains, are akin to that which to-day is in the field, and 
to-morrow is cut down. Glanville. 
ATTAINABLE, adj. That which may be attained ; 
procurable.—He wilfully negleCls the obtaining unfpeak- 
able good, which he is perfuaded is certain and attainable.- 
Tillotfon. 
ATTA'INABLENESS,/ The quality of being at¬ 
tainable.—Perfons becoming often enamoured of outward 
beauty, without any particular knowledge of its poffelfor, 
or its attainablencfs bv them. Cheyne. 
ATTAIN'DER, f. [from to attain.'] The aCt of at¬ 
tainting in law ; conviction of a crime.—The ends in call¬ 
ing a parliament were chiefly to have the attainders of all 
his party reverfed ; and, on the other fide, to attaint by par¬ 
liament his enemies. Bacon. —Taint; fully of character : 
So fmooth lie daub’d his vice with (hew of virtue, 
He liv’d from all attainder of fufpect. Skakcfpeare. 
Attainder, in law, the (tain or corruption of the 
blood of a criminal capitally condemned ; the immediate 
infeparable confequence, by the common law, on the pro¬ 
nouncing the fentence of death. He is then calied attaint, 
attinElus , (tained or blackened. He is no longer of any cre¬ 
dit or reputation; he cannot be a witnefs in any court ; 
neither is he capable of performing the functions of ano¬ 
ther man; for, by an anticipation of his punifhment, he is 
already dead in law. 3 Injl. 213. This is after judgment: 
for there is great difference between a man convicted and 
attainted ; though they are frequently through inaccuracy 
confounded together ; when judgment is once pronounced, 
both law and faCt confpire to prove him completely guil¬ 
ty; and there is not the remoteft poflibilitv left of any 
thing to be faid in his favour. Upon judgment therefore 
of death, and not before, the attainder of a criminal com¬ 
mences : or upon fuch circumflances as are equivalent to 
judgment of deatli ; as judgment of outlawry on a capital 
crime, pronounced for abfeonding or fleeing from juftice, 
which tacitly confeffes the guilt. And therefore either 
upon judgment of outlawry, or of death, for treafon or 
felony, a man (hall be laid to be attainted. \Comm. 380, 1. 
A man is attainted by appearance, or by procefs : at¬ 
tainder on appearance is by confeffion, or verdiCt, &c. 
Confeflion, when the prifoner upon his indictment being 
alked whether guilty or not guilty, anfwers guilty, with¬ 
out putting himfelf upon his country; (and formerly con¬ 
feflion was allowed before the coroner in fanCtuary; where¬ 
upon the offender was to abjure the realm, and this was 
called attainder by abjuration.) Attainder by verdiCt is 
when the prifoner at the bar pleadeth not guilty, and is 
found guilty by the verdiCt of the jury of life and death. 
And attainder by procefs, (otherwife termed attainder by 
default or outlawry,) is when the party flieth, and is not 
found, until he hath been five times publicly called or 
proclaimed in the county, on the lad whereof he is out¬ 
lawed upon his default. Slaundf. Pl.Co. 44, 122, 182. Alfo 
perfons may be attainted by aCt of parliament. 
ACts of attainder of criminals have been pafled in feve- 
ral reigns, on the difeovery of plots and rebellions, from 
the reign of king Charles II. when an aCt was made for 
the attainder of leveral perfons guilty of the murder of 
king Charles I. to this time ; among which, that for at- 
ATT 49I 
tainting Sir John Fenwick, for confpiring againft king 
William, is the mod remarkable; it being made to attaint 
and convict him of high treafon on the oath of one wit¬ 
nefs, jud after a law had been enaCted, That no p'erfon 
fhould be tried or attainted of high treafon where corrup¬ 
tion of blood is incurred, but by the oath of two lawful 
witnefles, unlefs the party confefs, dand mute, See. Stat. 
7 and 8 Will. III. c. 3. But in the cafe of Sir John Fen¬ 
wick, there was fomething extraordinary; for lie was in¬ 
dicted of treafon on the oaths of two witnefles, though 
but one only was produced againd him on his trial. It 
was alleged Sir John had tampered with, and prevailed 
on one of the witnefles to withdraw. 
The confequences of attainder are forfeiture and cor¬ 
ruption of blood ; which latter cannot regularly be taken, 
oft" but by aCt of parliament. Co. Lit. 391. b. As to cor¬ 
ruption of blood, this operates upwards and downwards, 
lo that an attainted perfon can neither inherit lands or 
other hereditaments from his anceftors, nor retain thofe he 
is already in poft'eflion of, nor tranfmit them by defeent to 
any heir ; but the fame (hall efeheat to the lord of the fee, 
fubjeCt to the king’s ftiperior right of forfeiture: and the- 
perlon attainted lhall alfo obftruCt all defeents to his pof- 
terity, wherever they are obliged to derive a title through 
him to a remoter anceftor. This is one of thofe notions 
which our laws have adopted from the feodal conftitutions, 
at the time of the Norman conqueft, as appears from its 
being unknown in thofe tenures which are indifputably 
Saxon, or Gavelkind: wherein, though by treafon, accord¬ 
ing to the ancient Saxon laws, the land is forfeited to the 
king, yet no corruption of blood, no impediment of de- 
icent, enfues; and, on judgment of mere felony, no efeheat 
accrues to the lord. And therefore, as every other op- 
preffive mark of feodal tenures is now happily worn away 
in thefe kingdoms, it is to be hoped that the corruption of 
blood, with all its connected confequences not only of pre- 
fent efeheat, but of future incapacities of inheritance even 
to the twentieth generation, may in procefs of time be 
aboliflied by aCt of parliament: as it Hands upon a very 
different footing from the forfeiture of lands for high trea¬ 
fon, afteCting the king’s perfon or government. And in¬ 
deed the legillature has, from time to time, appeared very 
inclinable to give way to fo equitable a provilion; by en¬ 
acting that, in certain treafons refpeCting the papal fiipre- 
macy, ftatute 5 Eliz. c. 1; and the public coin, (latutes- 
5 Eliz. c.n. 18 Eliz. c. 1. 8 and 9 Will. III. c. 26. 15 
and 16 Geo. II. c. 28 ; and in many of the new-made fe¬ 
lonies created fince the reign of Henry VIII. by aCt of 
parliament, corruption of blood (hall be faved. But as, in 
fome of the aCts for creating felonies, (and thofe not of the 
mod atrocious kind,) this favingwas neglected, or forgotten- 
to be made, it 1'eems to be highly reafonable and expedient 
to antiquate the whole of this doClrine by one undifringuifh- 
ing law: efpecially as by the ftat. of 7 Anne, c. 21. (the 
operation of which is poftponed by ftat. 17 Geo. II. c. 39,) 
after the death of the fens of the late pretender, no attain¬ 
der for treafon will extend to the disinheriting any heir, 
nor the prejudice of any perfon, other than the offender 
himfelf; which, virtually aboliflies all corruption of blood 
for treafon, though (unlefs the legiflature fhould inter- 
pofe) it will (till continue for many forts of felony. 4 Comm* 
388, 9. In treafon for counterfeiting the coin, although 
by the (latutes corruption of blood is faved, yet the lands- 
of the offender are forfeited immediately to the king on 
attainder, it being a difiinct penalty from corruption of 
blood: for the corruption may be faved, and the forfeiture 
remain, &e. And accordingly fo it i3 provided by fome 
(latutes. r Salk. 83. 
Attainders may be reverfed or falfifted, by writ of error, 
or by plea. If by writ of error, it muff be by the king’s 
leave, See. and, when by plea, it may be by denying the 
treafon, pleading a pardon by aCt of parliament, &c. 3 Injl.. 
232. By a king’s taking the crown upon him, all attain¬ 
ders of his perfon are ipj’o faElo purged, without any re-- 
verfal. 1 Injl. 26. Finch. L. 82. Wood j 17. This was the- 
declaration 
