G12 
PA RLIAM.ENT. 
lie grievances and delinquents to the king and lords, to 
be punifhed by them : and any member of the houfe of 
commons has the privilege of impeaching the higheft 
lord in the kingdom. Wood's Lift. 445. 
The High Court of Parliament is the fupreme court in 
the kingdom, not only for the making, but alfo for the 
execution, of laws; by the trial of great and enor¬ 
mous offenders, whether lords or commoners, in the me¬ 
thod of parliamentary impeachment. Afts of parlia¬ 
ment to attaint particular perfons of treafon or felony, 
or to inflift pains and penalties, are new laws made pro 
re note, and by no means an execution of fuch as are al¬ 
ready in being ; but an impeachment before the lords, by 
the commons of Great Britain, in parliament, • is a pro- 
fecution of the already known and eftabliflied law, and 
has been frequently put in praftice ; being a prefentment 
to the moft high and fupreme court of criminal jurifdic- 
tion by the moft folemn grand inqueft of the whole king¬ 
dom. 1 Hal. P. C. 150. A commoner, it is faid by 
Blackftone, who quotes authorities to prove his poiition, 
cannot be impeached before the lords for any capital of¬ 
fence, but only for high mifdemeanours: a peer may be 
impeached forany crime ; but it appears that the right of 
impeaching a commoner even in capital cafes, has been 
claimed and afferted by the lords. See 4 Comm. 260. in n. 
The privileges of parliament are very large and indefi¬ 
nite ; and therefore when, in 31 Hen. VI. the houfe of 
lords propounded a queftion to the judges concerning 
them, the chief juftice, fir John Fortefcue, in the name 
of his brethren, declared, “ That they ought not to make 
anfwer to that queftion, for it hath not been ufed afore¬ 
time that thejuftices fhall in any wife determine the pri¬ 
vileges of the high court of parliament; for it is fo high 
and mighty in its nature, that it may make law ; and that 
which is law, it may make no law ; and the determination 
and knowledge of that privilege belongs to the lords of 
parliament, and not to thejuftices.” Seldon’s Baronage, 
c - 4 - 
Inconvenience to the community does undoubtedly 
arife from thefe undefined privileges ; for how is a man 
to avoid committing an offence which is not declared to 
be fuch by either the common or the ftatute law ? What 
is called the common law of the land fprings out of an 
early period of our hiftory, the loweft boundary of which, 
according to Sir Matthew Hale, is the reign of Richard I. 
But in that reign the houfe of commons did not exift. 
It is clear, therefore, that the houfe cannot claim the 
power of punifhing without trial for what it calls breach 
of privilege from the common law; and it is equally cer¬ 
tain that there is no Jlatute which confers the power. 
What right, then, can the houfe have to fay of its own 
motion, “ We will afl'ume and exercife this power, be- 
caufe it is neceflary (as was faid in the cafe of the fhip- 
money) for our fupport, and we are judges of the necefli- 
ty.” It were to be wiflied (fays Dear. Swift) the houfe 
of commons would form a pandeft of their own power 
and prerogatives, to be confirmed in as folemn a manner 
as Magna Charta. Free Briton , Mar. 2, 1731. 
There are, however, feveral privileges of the members 
of either houfe, which are fufficiently certain and noto¬ 
rious. Thefe are, privilege of fpeech, of perfon, and, be¬ 
fore the flat. 10 Geo. III. c. 50. of their domeltics, and 
of their lands and goods. As to the firft, privilege of 
fpeech, it is declared by the flat. I. W. & M. ft. 2. c. 2. as 
one of the liberties of the people, “ that the freedom of 
fpeech, and debates, and proceedings in parliament, 
ought not to be impeached, or queftioned, in any 
court or place out of parliament.” And this free¬ 
dom of fpeech (with other privileges) is particularly 
demanded of the king in perfon, by the fpeaker of the 
houfe of commons, at the opening of every new par¬ 
liament. If any member of either houfe, however, fpeak 
words of offence in a debate, after the debate is over he 
is called to the bar, where commonly on his knees he 
receives a reprimand from the fpeaker: and, if the of¬ 
fence be great, he is fent to the Tower. 
The other privileges, of perfons, ar.d heretofore of fer- 
vants, lands, and goods, are immunities as ancient as Ed¬ 
ward the Confeffor. And ftill, to affault by violence a 
member of either houfe, or his menial fervants, is a high 
contempt of parliament, and there punifhed with the ut- 
moft feverity. It has likewife peculiar penalties annexed 
to it in the courts of law, by ftat. 5 Hen. IV. c. 6. and n 
Hen. VI. c. 11. By this latter ftatute, aflaultir.g a mem¬ 
ber coming to or attending in parliament incurs the pe¬ 
nalty of double damages. Neither can any member of 
either houfe be arrefted and taken into cuftody, unlefs for 
fome indictable offence, without a breach of the privilege 
of parliament. 
But all other privileges which derogate from the com¬ 
mon law in matters of civil right are now at an end, fave 
only as to the freedom of the member’s perfon ; which in 
a peer (by the privilege of peerage) is for ever facred 
and inviolable; and in a commoner (by the privilege of 
parliament) for forty days after every prorogation, and 
forty days before the next appointed meeting ; which is 
now, in effeft, as long as the parliament fubfifts, it fel- 
dom being prorogued for more than fourfeore days at a 
time. 2 Lev. 72. It does not appear that the privilege 
from arreft is limited to any precife time after a dijfqlution; 
but it has been determined by ^11 the judges, that it ex¬ 
tends to a convenient lime. Prynne is of opinion, that it 
continued for the number of days the member received 
wages after a dift'olution ; which were in proportion to 
the diftance between his home and the place where the 
parliament was held. 4 Pari. Writs. 68. 
As to all other privileges which obftruft the ordinary 
courfe of juftice, they were reftrained by ftats. 12 W. III. 
c. 3. 2 & 3 Ann. c. 18. n Geo. II. c. 24. and totally abo- 
liftied by ftat. 10 Geo. III. c. 50. which enafts, that any 
fuit may at any time be brought againft any peer or mem¬ 
ber of parliament, their fervants, or any other perfon en¬ 
titled to privilege of parliament; which (hall not be im¬ 
peached or delayed by pretence of any fuch privilege, 
except that the perfon of a member of the houfe of com¬ 
mons fliall not thereby be fubjeft to any arreft or itnpri- 
fbnment. Likewife, for the benefit of commerce, it is 
provided by ftat. 4 Geo. III. c. 33. that any trader, hav¬ 
ing privilege of parliament, may be ferved with legal 
procefs for any juft debt to the amount of iool. and, un- 
lefs he makes fatisfaftion within two months, it (hall be 
deemed an aft of bankruptcy ; and that a commiffion of 
bankrupt-may be iffued againft fuch privileged traders in 
like manner as againft any other. 
As to the fpecial privileges and claims of peers; we 
may obferve, that, by the charter of the foreft, confirmed 
in parliament 9 Hen. III. every lord, fpiritual or tempo¬ 
ral, fummoned to parliament, and pafling through the 
king’s forefts, may, both in going and returning, kill one 
or two of the king’s deer without warrant. They have 
alfo a right to be attended by the judges of the court of 
king’s bench and common pleas, and fuch of the barons 
of the exchequer as are of the degree of the coif, or have 
been made ferjeants at law, and likewife by the mafters 
of the court of chancery, for their advice in point of law, 
&c. The fecretaries of ftate, the attorney and folicitor 
general, and the reft of the king’s counfel, being fer¬ 
jeants, were alfo ufed to attend the houfe of peers, and 
have, to this day, their regular writs of fummons if¬ 
fued out at the beginning of every parliament : but, 
as many of them have of late years been members of 
the houfe of commons, their attendance here is fallen 
into difufe. 
Every peer, by licenfe obtained from the king, may 
make another lord of parliament his proxy, to vote for 
him in his abfence, which no member of the houfe of 
commons can do, becaufe he is himfelf but a proxy for a 
multitude of other people. Proxies cannot be ufed in a 
5 committee. 
