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Cosen, _An Apologie_ (etc.), 70. See his book for the modes of proceeding. Cf. also Hale, _Crim. Prec_., Introd., p. lviii. In commenting on Archdeacon Hale's book, which we have so often here cited (_A Series of Precedents in Criminal Causes from the Act Books of Ecclesiastical Courts of London_, 1475-1640 [pub. in 1847]), Sir J.F. Stephen in his _History of Crim. Law in England_, ii, 413, makes these observations:
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It is difficult even to imagine a state of society in which, on the bare suggestion of some miserable domestic spy, any man or woman whatever might be convened before an archdeacon or his surrogate and put upon his or her oath as to all the most private affairs of life; as to relations between husband and wife; as to relations between either and any woman or man with whom the name of either might be associated by scandal; as to contracts to marry, as to idle words, as to personal habits, and, in fact, as to anything whatever which happened to strike the ecclesiastical lawyer as immoral or irreligious.
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_ that Johnson had sworn to the truth. Though pronounced innocent, Johnson was condemned to pay the costs of all the formalities that the apparitor had set in motion against him, and a last time was dragged into court in order to be admonished under pain of excommunication to pay these fees, amounting to £1. 3s. 4d., within a month! The case had extended from 11th June, 1600, to 22nd May, 1601. _Surtees Soc_., lxxxiv (1888), 359-362. Cf. also the following:
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Minchinhampton, Gloucester, Acc'ts, _s.a._ 1576 (archbishop's visitation), _Archaeologia_, xxxv.
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Leverton, Lincoln, Acc'ts, _s.a._ 1579, _Archaeologia_, xli, 365. Under 1595 the Leverton wardens have the entries:
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and:
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The last is explained by a third entry:
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(_Op. cit_., 367.) This looks like bribery, or blackmail, or both. For examples of bribery see Wing Acc'ts, _s.a._ 1561, _Archaeologia_, xxxvi (
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). Abbey Parish Acc'ts, _s.a._ 1600, _Shrop. Arch. Soc_., i. 65 (
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). Great Witchingham Acc'ts, _Norfolk and Norwich Arch. Soc_., xiii, 207 (
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Simp the sumner for his fees for excusing us from Norwich ). _St. Mary Woolchurch Haw_, London, _Acc'ts, s.a_. 1594 (
gpt
). Hale, _Crim. Prec_., 202 (
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1590). For examples of fees paid for absolution from an unjust excommunication see _Minchinhampton Acc'ts, s.a_. 1606 (
gpt
). St. Clement's, Ipswich, Acc'ts, _East Anglian_, in (1890), 304 (
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Payed for owr Absolution to the Commissary, being reprimanded for that we did not give in our Verdict, where as we nether had warning nor notice given us of his Corte houlden, ij[s.] x[d.]: and:
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Payed more ffor the discharg of his boocke, viijd.