Selected quad for the lemma: justice_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
justice_n	england_n	king_n	time_n	2,928	5	3.5319	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A67239	A prospective glasse wherein Englands bondage under the Normane yoke, with the rise, growth, and continuation is clearly asserted, a subject not yet treated upon ... shewing how the law came to be in an unknown tongue, and from whence the judges and other inferior lawyers had their beginning, and in opposition to former law, how the 4 termes of the yeer came to be kept : as also, the corruption of this law, bringing with it the fines and rents to the lord of the manor for all free- holds and copyhold land : being a collection from the most choice of modern historians : with some copyhold land : being a collection from the most choice of modern historians : with some brief observations upon Scripture, as proving from thence that this law is contradictory to the nature of God's dealing with the sons of man, and contrary to the nature of freedome / by a lover of Englishmens freedomes.	Lover of Englishmens freedomes.; Walker, Henry, fl. 1641-1660.	1649 (1649)	Wing W380; ESTC R24593	17,780	25

fashioned by him as should be best fitting for his advantage And in the 86. page of the same History the stoutest of the Nobility and Gentlemen were spent either by war or banishment or by voluntary avoidance out of the Realm all these he stript of their estates and instead of them he placed his Normanes insomuch as scarce any family of the Nobilitie of England was left to bear any office or any authoritie within the Realm And so likewise in the Acts of the Church in pa. 173. he gave the Normanes the chiefest possessions of the Land he changed all the Temporall Laws of the Realm And so in the Summary of English Chronicles in p. 41. the Normanes accomplished their pleasure upon the English-men that there was no Nobleman of that Nation left to bear rule over them so that it was a reproach to be called an English-man In the Acts and Monuments of the Church in pag. 173. that William the Conquerer ordained Laws at his own pleasure profitable to himself but grievous and hurtfull to the people abolishing the Laws of King Edward the Confessor whereunto notwithstanding he was sworn before to observe and maintain And so in the Acts of the Church in pag. 44. he changed all the Temporall Laws of the Realm And so likewise again in the Acts and Monuments of the Church in pag. 166. contrary to his Oath at his Coronation he abolished the Laws of Edward the Confessor and placed the most part of his own Laws in his own language to serve his purpose which as yet to this present day in the same Normane language do remain Further to make the thing in hand clearer I shall speak as it is declared in the Lives of the three Normane Kings of England in pa. 101. William the Conquerer caused part of those Laws which he established to be written in the Normane language which was a barbarous and broken French not well understood of the naturall French and not at all of the vulgar English the residue were not written at all but left almost arbitrary to be determined by reason and discretion at large Hereupon it followed partly through the ignorance of the people and partly through malice of some Officers of Justice who many times are instruments of secret and particular ends that many were extreamly tangled many dangered many rather made away then justly executed And in the 96. pag. of the same History of the Lives of the three Normane Kings of England William the Conquerer in the beginning of his Reign ordained that the Laws of King Edward should be observed together with other Laws that he did prescribe but afterward he commanded that nine men out of every County should be chosen to make a true report what were the Laws and Customes of the Realm of these he changed the greatest part and brought in the customes of Normandy in their stead commanding that Causes should be pleaded and all matters of form dispatcht in French And in the Summary of English Chronicles in pa. 41. there sprang up wicked Customes the more the people spake of equity the more wrong was done the Justicers were authors of all unrighteousnesse In these words these things offer themselves to consideration First that the end of William the Conquerers Laws was for his own profit and that appears by the way that he took in making of his Laws in his own language which was a barbarous and broken French not well understood of the naturall French and not at all of the vulgar English so that the people of England was under a Law that they understood not which must of necessitie be a sore and heavie yoke for the people to bear from this Will the Conquerer arose the Law in an unknown tongue which to this day is a bondage to the English Nation For a Nation to be under a Law that they know not is to be under a curse so in Deut. 28. 49 50 51. The Lord shall bring a Nation against thee as swift as the Eagle flyeth a Nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand A Nation of a fierce countenance which shall not regard the person of the old nor shew favour to the young He shall eat the fruit of thy cattell the fruit of thy land untill thou be destroyed All these things have come upon this Land by the Normanes in these words In the Acts of the Church he gave the Normanes the chiefest possessions of the Land he changed all the Temporall Laws of the Realm Secondly the Laws of William the Conquerer were and are bondages to the English Nation when as by policie he commanded that nine men out of every County should be chosen to make a true report what were the Laws and customes of the Realm before the Conquest and then to change the greatest part and bring in the customes of Normandy in their stead commanding that Causes should be pleaded and all matters of form dispatcht in French By this it is apparent from whom the pleading of Causes by Lawyers came up and surely if the thing be well considered it is a grievous burden to the Commoners of England that must give away their money to the Lawyers to plead their Causes by this the poore Commoner of England payes dear for coming by that which is his own when he hath occasion to deal with the Lawyer By this pleading of Causes by Lawyers the poore Commoner buyes his Law at a very hi●h and excessive rate A poore man may work a quarter or half a yeer to get as much money as the tryall of one Suit at Law will cost and when the Lawyer hath pleaded and gotten the money the thing at last must be ended by arbitration I find in the way two main things to be answered The first is this From what principall the Lawyers and Councellors as they now stand did rise To this I answer From an arbitrary power profitable to themselves but grievous and hurtfull to the people And if the originall of their standing be looked into it will so appear For the Conquerer making such Laws as that the Commoners of England could not have the benefit of the Law but through the Normane Lawyers making merchandize of the Law to the people and so great gains came in to the Lawyer through this subtilty and knowing well that by that craft they had their living made Laws that none should be a Lawyer but he that took his degrees at the Universitie or Inns of Court so that it came to a custome and yet is that parents set their children to School to study Law that thereby they might be rich and having learned the Art to use the silver hook they became great the parents nor the childe consider not at all the tyranny of the rice of that custome And thus as a childe is bound to a mas●er to learn his trade and to be a Free man of that place in which he hath served the time of his Indenture so the Lawyers

through the unjustnesse of their custome served a time to come to be a Lawyer whose first rice was from the will of a Tyrant The originall of a servant serving a time to a master is to learn a trade that so he may make the benefit of his ware even so the rice of a man being a Lawyer is that he may sell the Law to his chapmen otherwise called Clyants so that the Law is bought and sold by the Lawyer and the Clyant Surely if this were looked into with an eye of reason it would appear to be as unjust namely the practise of Lawyers to ingroce the Law into their own hands to make merchandize of it as the monopolizing Pattentees The second quaere that may be made is how the Lawyers appear to be bondages to the Commoners of England I answer in this that if any one seek for the benefit of the Law he must fee his Lawyer or else he must loose his right So that as in the time of Christ the Jews could not have the benefit of their Law but by the Romane governors and that appears about the tryall and condemning of Christ they must lead him away to Pilate that he might condemne him for they could not of themselves without Pilate Even so the Commoners of England cannot have the benefit of the Law but by feeing the Normane custome-upholders Another quaere may be made But how should any man come by that which is his own but by the Lawyers To this I answer That it is the Law not the Lawyers that gives any man his right and if there were no Lawyers yet persons might come by their own by Law For I reason thus That the Lawyers themselves ought to plead according to Law and then if it be so it must be considered that the ground of the Lawyers plea ought not to be from themselves but from the Law and so consequently it must follow that the Lawyers themselves are in no other place but to get away money from the Clyant who might if things were equally carried come by his right without them In the History of the Lives of the three Normane Kings of England in pa. 98. saith thus That William the Conquerer ordained also his Councell of State his Chancery his Exchequer his Courts of Justice which alway removed with his Court these places he furnished with Officers and assigned foure Termes in the yeer for the determining of controversies among the people whereas before all Suits were summarily hea●d and determined in the gemote or monthly Convention in every hundred without formalities or delay If it be looked upon in the Courts of Chancery and Exchequer the Officers that are in those Courts are such as stand by the Normane customes and that appears in their customes of pleading Causes for money making merchandize of the Law and so consequently of other Courts of Law the benefit of making merchandize of the Law is onely in the hands of Judges Councellers and Lawyers And further that the Commoners of England may be kept in ignorance from knowing the Law that they may live under and are judged by all Writs are issued forth in Latin and Causes pleaded in Latin The second thing that presents it self unto consideration is the foure Termes in the yeer to end controversies among the people and the custome of this is a great bondage to the Commoner when he hath occasion to go for Law and the bondage consists in three things First the coming from all parts of the Kingdom to Westminster foure times a yeer whereby the poore Commoner is put to great charges and pains to get all things ready for his journey and many times are constrained to borrow money to bear their charges the journey being long and chargeable and for the experience of them that have had to come upon such designes to Westminster from all parts of the Kingdom testifie by the filling of their purses at home and their emptying of them by the way and at London and Westminster Secondly this is not all the laying out and spending of their money in the long journeys from all parts of the Kingdom to Westminster but when they come thither there are Lawyers and Councellors to fee which is many times as much and more twice told then the clyants expences in his journey Thus hath the Normane customes brought heavie burdens upon us and upon our fore-fathers in this thing so that well may that speech of Christ which he spake to the Lawyers in his time be justly applyed to the Lawyers in our time Wo unto you also ye Lawyers for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be born Thirdly this is a bondage again in this sence by hindering the old custome before the Conquest which was to have every mans Cause tryed in the Hundred where he lived without coming to Westminster at all and so had justice in the Hundred once every moneth From the things that have been spoken these things do offer themselves to our consideration First that for persons so judged by Laws in an unknown tongue is an arbitrary power contrary to true reason and honest plain dealing Secondly for Lawyers to have money for pleading of causes is to make merchandize of the Law to the people Thirdly for the standing and custome of Lawyers as now they are is a representative of slavery and bondage Fourthly for pleading of Causes in an unknown tongue is to take away the key of knowledge Luk. 11. 52. from the people of their liberties birth-rights and Laws and to keep them in blindnesse and ignorance Fiftly for coming to Westminster from all parts of the Kingdom is a spending of the Commoners money loosing of his time and neglect of justice done to the Commoner as was in that short time once every moneth in every Hundred before the Conquest According unto that equall rule As ye would that men should do unto you so do you unto them for this is the Law and the Prophets is the practise of all Arbitrary power whatsoever condemned And surely if ever there was an arbitrary power in any thing it was and is in this to make Laws in an unknown tongue to govern and rule a people The unjustnesse of this custome may more fully appear if we look into the manner of Gods giving of his Laws unto the sons and daughters of men if it be looked into in what manner God gave the Law unto the children of Israel it will appear to be given in that tongue they could understand Deut. 30. 11 12 13. This Law which I command thee this day is not hid from thine eyes neither is it far off It is not in heaven that thou shouldst say Who shall go up for us into heaven and bring it unto us and cause us to hear it that we may do it Neither is it beyond the Sea that thou shouldst say Who shall go over the Sea for us and bring it unto us and cause us to hear it that we