L A W. 
annexed to the crown inalienably, anil fatisfaclion made 
to the lawful creditors thereupon ; and the rents thereof 
applied for the better civilizing the highlands. 
By 35 Geo. Hi. c. 123, and afterwards more effectually 
by 39 & 40 Geo. III. c. 46, regulations are made for the 
more eafy and expeditious recovery of debts not exceed¬ 
ing 5I. iterling, and determining of caufes to that amount 
throughout Scotland, by the intervention of twojuftices 
of peace within their refpeCtive jurifdiCtions. 
By 39 Geo. III. c. 49, the magiftrates and judges in 
Scotland are empowered to extend the amount of bail to 
be given in criminal cafes to 1200I. (lerling fora noble¬ 
man; 600I. for a landed gentleman; 300I. for any other 
gentleman, burgefs, or houfeholder; and 60I. for any in¬ 
ferior perfon. ' And on charges of fedition any judge of 
the court of jufticiary, on application in the name of the 
king's advocate, may extend the bail beyond thofe fums. 
By 39 & 40 Geo. III. c. 55, the lalary of the judges 
was increafed ; and by 48 Geo. III. c. 145, his majefty is 
empowered to grant annuities to the judges on their re- 
fignation. 
By 43 Geo. III. c. 80, and other aCts, fums have been 
granted out of the Britilh exchequer, for the purpofe of 
building and repairing bridges, find making and repairing 
roads, in the highlands. Public grants have alfo been 
made for the Caledonian and other canals. See alfo 46 
Geo. III.c.155,6, applying produce of forfeited eftates in 
making canals and harbours, and in other public pur- 
poles, fuch as the tifheries, lunatic afylum, See. 
By-43 Geo. III. c. 54, provilion is made for the better 
fupport of parochial fchool-mafters, and for better go¬ 
verning the parilh-fchools, in Scotland. 
The chief of the tribunals now exifting in Scotland for 
the adminiftration of juftice are, the Court of Selfion and 
the Jufticiary Court. 
The Court of Selfion is the higheft civil court in Scot¬ 
land. It was firft ereCted in the year 1425, and confifted 
of certain perfons named by the king out of the three 
eftates of parliament. It was veiled with the jurifdic- 
rion formerly lodged in the council, and got the name of 
the Jeffion, becaufe it was ordained to hold annually a cer¬ 
tain number of felfions at the places to be fpecially ap¬ 
pointed by the-king. From the judgments of this court 
no appeal lay to the parliament. The judges ferved by 
rotation, and were changed from time to time, after hav¬ 
ing fat forty days. But they became fo negligent in the 
adminiftration of juftice, that it was at lalt thought ne- 
ceftary to transfer the jurifdiCtion of this court to a coun¬ 
cil to be named by the king, called the daily council. The 
prefent model of the Court of Selfion, or College of Juf¬ 
tice, was formed in the reign of James V. anno 1537. The 
judges, who were velted with an univerfal civil ju ril'd ic- 
tion, confifted originally of feven church-men, feven lay¬ 
men, and a prefident, whom it behoved to be a prelate ; 
but fpiritual judges were in 1584 partly, and in 1640 to¬ 
tally, prohibited. The judges of felfion have been al¬ 
ways received by warrants from the crown. Though 
judges may, in the general cafe, be named at the age of 
twenty-one years, the lords of felfion mutt be at lealt 
twenty-five. No perfon can be named lord of felfion, 
who has not ferved as an advocate or principal clerk of 
felfion for five years, or as a writer to the fignet for ten ;. 
and, in the cafe of a writer to the fignet, he mull undergo 
the ordinary trials upon the Roman law, and be found 
qualified two years before he can be named. Upon a va¬ 
cancy in the bench, the king prefents the fuccellbr by a 
letter addrefled to the lords, wherein he requires them to 
try and admit the perfon prefented. The powers given 
to them to reject the prefentee upon trial are taken away, 
and a bare liberty to remonftrate fubftituted in its place. 
Befules the fifteen ordinary judges, the king was allowed 
to name three or four lords of his great council, who 
might fit and vote with them. Thefe extraordinary lords 
were fupprefi'ed in the reign of George I. 
This court formerly met upon the 12th day of Tune and 
VOL. XII. No. 838. 
389 
rofe upon the nth of Auguft for the fummer felfion; but 
now, in confequence of an ail palled in the felfion of par¬ 
liament 1790, it meets on the 12th of May and riles on 
the nth ol July for the fummer felfion; the winter fef- 
fion dill remaining as formerly, viz. from the 12th of No¬ 
vember to the nth of March inclufive. 
By flat. 48 Geo. III. c. 151, it was enafled, that the 
judges or lords of felfion lhall ul'ually lit in two divifions ; 
the lord prefident of the whole court and feven of the 
ordinary lords forming the firft divilion ; and the lord juf¬ 
tice clerk and the fix other ordinary lords making the 
fecond divilion ; four judges in each divilion to be a 
quorum; the judges in each divilion to exercife the 
fame powers as before. The judges of each divilion may 
ftate queftions of law to the judges of the other. Regu¬ 
lations for tranfafling the bulinels to be made by aCts of 
federunt by the whole court of felfion. Regulations are 
alfo introduced with refpeCt to appeals to the houfe of 
lords. His majefty is empowered to appoint a commifiion 
to inquire into the forms of procefs in the court of fef- 
fion, and to report in what cafes trial by jury may be ufe- 
fully eltablilhed. The recent changes which have been 
made in the court of felfion, by dividing it into two 
houfes, are well calculated to favour the difpatch of bu'li- 
nefs, and to prevent that notorious delay which had be¬ 
come the difgrace of the Scottilh court of judicature. 
The Jufticiary Court, which is the criminal court of 
Scotland, confilts of five judges, who are likewife lords 
of felfion ; but with a prefident, ltyled the lord juftice 
clerk, as he is underftood to reprefent the formerly great 
office of jujliciar, or juftice-general, an office which ilill 
continues, though it may be conlidered rather as a poll of 
honour than profit. This is the fupreme court in criminal 
caufes, which are determined by the majority of a jury, 
and not by their unanimity as in England. 
There is alfo a court of exchequer, confifting of a lord 
chief baron and four barons, who have the chief jurifdic- 
tion over the public revenue of Scotland ; and a high 
court of admiralty, in which there is only one judge, who 
is the king’s lieutenant and juftice-general, on the high' 
feas, and in all ports and harbours. From this court there 
is no appeal in maritime cafes. 
Befides the above national judges, there is in every 
county a fheriff, who aCts as chief magillrate, and whole 
jurifdiCtion extends to Come criminal cafes, and to all ci¬ 
vil matters which are not by fpecial law or cullom appro¬ 
priated to other courts. 
The trial of crimes in Scotland differs materially from the 
mode adopted in this country. The trial proceeds either 
on indictment, which is fometjmes ufed when the perfon 
to be tried is in prifon ; or by criminal letters ilfuing from 
the fignet of the jufticiary. In either cafe, the defender 
mult be ferved with a full copy of the indictment or let¬ 
ters, and with a lift of the witnefies to be brought againlt 
him, and of the perfons who are to paf 3 on the inqueft; 
and fifteen days exclufive mull intervene between his 
being fo ferved, and the day of his appearance. In Eng¬ 
land, a prifoner is entitled to this indulgence only in the 
cafe of high treafon ; and even there fir Michael Fofter 
cenfures the meafure, as productive of many bad confe- 
quences. When the trial proceeds on criminal letters;, 
the private profecutor mult give fecurity, at raifing the 
letters, that he will report them duly executed to the juf¬ 
ticiary, in terms of the flat. 1535, cap. 35. and the de¬ 
fender, who is called the pannel, after he has made his ap¬ 
pearance in court, if he be not already in prifon, is, by 
the letters, required to give caution, (bail, or fecurity,) 
within a certain number of days after his citation, for his 
appearance on the day fixed for his trial ; and, if he give 
none within the days of the charge, he may be denounced 
rebel , by which a forfeiture of his moveables is incurred. 
That part of the indictment, or of the criminal letters, 
which contains the ground of the charge againlt the de¬ 
fender, and the nature or degree of the puniffiment that 
he ought to fuller, is called the libels all libels mull be 
5 G fpecial, - 
