such a recognizance, with sureties' for the peace, is grantable; and then, how it may be forfeited. 1. Any justice of the peace may, ex officio, bind all those to keep the peace, who in his presence make any affray; or threaten to kill or beat another; or contend together with hot and angry words; or go about with unusual weapons or attendance, to the terror of the people, and all such as he knows to be common barretors; and such as are brought before himby the constable for a breach of peace in his presence; and all such persons, as, having been before bound to the peace, have broken it, and forfeited their recognizances. Also, wherever any private man hath just cause to fear that another will burn his house, or do him a corporal injury, by killing, imprisoning, or beating him; or that he will procure others so to do; he may demand surety of the peace against such person: and every justice of the peace is bound to grant it, if he who demands it will make oath, that he is actually under fear of death or bodily harm; and will shew that he has just cause to be so, by reason of the other's menaces, attempts, or having lain in wait for him; and will also farther swear, that he does not require such surety out of malice, or for mere vexation. This is called swearing the peace against another: and if the party does not find such sureties, as the justice in his discretion shall require, he may immediately be committed till he does. 2. Such recognizance for keeping the peace, when given, may be forfeited by any actual violence, or even an assault, or menace, to the person of him who demanded it, if it be a special recognizance; or, if the recognizance be general, by any unlawful action whatsoever, that either is or tends to a breach of the peace; or more particularly, by any one of the many species of offences which are crimes against the public peace; or by any private violence committed against any of his Majesty's subjects. But a bare trespass upon the lands or goods of another, which is a ground for a civil action, unless accompanied with a wilful breach of the peace, is no forfeiture of the recognizance. Neither are mere reproachful words, as calling a man knave or liar, any breach of the peace, so as to forfeit one's recognizance, (being looked upon to be merely the effect of unmeaning heat and passion,) unless they amount to a challenge to fight. The other species of recognizance, with sureties, is for the good abearance or good behaviour. This includes security for the peace, and somewhat more; we will therefore examine it in the same manner as the other. 1. First, then, the justices are empowered by the statute 34 Edw. III. c. 1. to bind over to the good behaviour towards the King and his people, all them that be not of good fame, wherever they be found; to the intent that the people be not troubled ner endamaged, nor the peace diminished, nor merchants and others, passing by the highways of the realm, be disturbed nor put in the peril which may happen by such offenders. Under the general words of this expression, that be not of good fame, it is holden that a man may be bound to his good behaviour for causes of scandal, against good morals, as well as against the peace; as, for haunting bawdy-houses with women of bad fame; or for keeping such women in his own house; or for words tending to scandalize the government, or in abuse of the officers of justice, especially in the execution of their office. Thus also a justice may bind over all night-walkers; eaves-droppers; such as keep suspicious company, or are reported to be pilferers or robbers; such as sleep in the day, and wake in the night; common drunkards; whoremasters; the putative fathers of bastards; cheats; idle vagabonds; and other persons whose misbehaviour may reasonably bring them within the general words of the statute as persons not of good fame: an expression, it must be owned, of so great a latitude, as leaves much to be determined by the discretion of the magistrate himself. But, if he commits a man for want of sureties, he must express the cause thereof with convenient certainty; and take care that such cause be a good one. 2. A recognizance for the good behaviour may be forfeited by all the same means, as one for the security of the peace may be; and also by some others, As, by going armed, with unusual attendance, to the terror of the people; by speaking words tending to sedition; or by committing any of those acts of misbehaviour, which the recognizance was intended to prevent. But not by barely giving fresh cause of suspicion of that which perhaps may never actually happen: for, though it is just to compel suspected persons to give security to the public against misbehaviour that is apprehended; yet it would be hard, upon such suspicion, without the proof of any actual crime, to punish them by a forfeiture of their recognizance, SCENE BETWEEN HENRY V, AND THE LORD CHIEF JUSTICE. (From Shakspeare's Second Part of Henry 1v.).. William Shakspeare, the most illustrious dramatic writer the world has produced, deserves a more distinguished notice than we have space to afford at present. He was born at Stratford-upon-Avon in 1564; being the eldest son of John Shakspeare, a dealer in wool, who had nine other children. He is said to have died poor. The Poet's early years were passed in bad habits. He associated himself with a company of deer stealers; and was prosecuted for robbing the park of Sir Thomas Lucy; whom he further offended by a copy of verses which he fixed to his park gates. At eighteen he married Anne Hathaway, the daughter of a yeoman in his neighbourhood, by whom he had a son and two daughters; but in two generations after, his descendants were extinct. At the age of twenty-two he joined himself to the stage players in London, and soon brought out some of his earliest plays; in which he himself acted, though with no great share of merit. The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet is said to have been his first performance. Having acquired a fortune of about £300 per ann., he retired to his native town of Stratford, and there died, on his birth-day; having completed his fifty-second year on April 29, 161. The house in which he was born has long since been removed, as well as a favourite mulberry tree, planted by himself; which one Gastrel is said to have cut down in spite to the inhabitants. Though he wrote upwards of thirty plays, these were not published in a collection till several years after his death; and eminent as his reputation now is, it is remarkable, that within 100 years after his death, his fame was forgotten; nor did it revive until a better taste in dramatic poetry restored to him the distinguished station which his name now holds in the world of literature.] Enter King Henry. Ch. Just. Heaven save your Majesty. K. Henry. This new and gorgeous garment, Majesty, Brothers, you mix your sadness with some fear : But Harry, Harry. Yet be sad, good brothers, That I will deeply put the fashion on, And wear it in my heart. Why then be sad: Lun. &c. We hope no other from your Majesty. K. Henry. You all look strangely on me and you most You are, I think, assur'd I love you not. [To the Ch. Just. Ch. Just. I am assur'd, if I be measur'd rightly, Your Majesty hath no just cause to hate me. K. Henry. No! How might a Prince of my great hopes forget So great indignities you laid upon me ? What! rate, rebuke, and roughly send to prison Th' immediate heir of England! Was this easy? May this be wash'd in Lethe, and forgotten? Ch. Just. I then did use the person of your father; Question your royal thoughts, make the case yours; K. Henry. You are right justice, and you weigh this well Therefore still bear the balance and the sword: And I do wish your honours may increase, For which I do commit into your hand Th' unstained sword that you have us'd to bear, My voice shall sound as you do prompt mine ear; To your well practis'd wise directions. And, Princes all, believe me I beseech you ;— In which you, father, shall have foremost hand. [To Ld. Ch. Jus. The Fireside Companion; NO. III. PENN'S ADVICE TO HIS FAMILY. [The name of William Penn is well entitled to the honour of his countrymen. He was the son of Sir William Penn, Admiral of the Fleet; who gave him a liberal education but bearing a discourse from one Thomas Love, a celebrated preacher among the Quakers, he was won over to their singular doctrines, which gave great offence to his father, and subjected him to a long series of persecutions; which he endured with inflexible patience; defending his opinions in numerous tracts and apologies. At the Admiral's decease he inherited a considerable estate; in addition to which, King Charles II, who had borrowed of his father a large sum of money, granted him a province in North America, which his Majesty named Pennsylvania. Mr. Penn proceeded thither accordingly the open air, he drew up an excellent take possession; and having concili ated the Indians at a general assembly in code of laws for the government of his extensive territory. Under such encouragement numerous settlers joined him from Europe; upon which he founded the City of Philadelphia; a name which bears an appropriate reference to the Society of Friends; to which he had now permanently allied himself. He subsequently returned to England; and died at his seat in Buckinghamshire, in 1718, at the age of seventy-four. Mr. Penn was not more distinguished for the steadiness and probity of his public conduct, than by the exemplary piety and mild demeanour of his domestic life; of which some interesting proofs are afforded in the following letter to his family, previous to his embarkation for America. 6 My dear wife and children, My love, which neither sea, nor land, nor 'death itself, can extinguish or lessen toward you, 'most endearedly visits you with eternal embraces, and will abide with you for ever; and may the God of my life watch over you, and bless you, and do you good in this world and for ever!-Some things are upon my spirit to leave with you in your respective capacities, as I am to one a husband, and to the rest a father, if I should never see you more in this world. My dear wife! Remember thou wast the love of my youth, and much the joy of my life; the most beloved, as well as most worthy of all my earthly comforts: and the reason of that love was more thy inward than thy outward excellencies, which yet were many. God knows, and thou knowest it, I can say it was a match of Providence's making; and God's image in 'us both was the first thing, and the most amiable and engaging ornament in our eyes. Now I am to leave thee, and that without knowing whether I shall ever see thee more in this world, take my counsel into thy bosom, and let it dwell with thee in my stead while thou livest.” |