31 Proceedings of the Council of Maryland, 1694 97.

       Lib. H. D. observe & give Judgmt according to the severall Acts of

             Assembly re!ating to his Office, he is likewise to follow &

             observe the Civill Law where there is no Maxim of the Com

             mon Law or Statute Law against it; And in any case where

         p. 232   the Civill Law or Statutes are silent there he ought to give

             Judgmt according to Equity & good conscience provided the

             same is not against any Law as aforesd and tho the Judge is

             bound to take Notice of the Law as aforesd in giving his

             Decree or sentence yet cannot he trye any matter that is

             properly cognoscible in his Mats Courts of Common Law.

               That as to a Court of Delegates in Examining a Sentence

             of the Commissary they either ought to Affirm it or Reverse

             it, ffor I do humbly conceive there is a difference when a per

             son brings his prohibition to stop some part of the Commis

             saries sentence in a matter that doth not properly !ye afore

             him, there a destroying part of a Judgmt doth not destroy the

             whole because each Court can go no further than their own

             Jurisdiction but where a person Appeals from the sentence of

             a Commissary he Appeals from the whole sentence to a Court

             of the same Jurisdiction, which ought either to affirm or

             Reverse the sd Sentence and can give no other Judgmt

                    All which is humbly submitted to yor Excell

                               by Yor most humble & obedient

                                         Servant

                                             Philip Clarke.

             Mr Goldes- In obedience to your Excell Commands to know

                    what the Jurisdiction of a Court of Delegates is and

             touching whether there does not lye an Obligation on them

             the Jurisdic-     .         . .

             tion of a of either affirming or reversing the Commissaries

             Court of Sentence &ca Or whether they can affirm one part

             Delegates of the sentence & let alone another part, and whether

             they may make a Judgmt of their own. I Answer That the Juris

             diction of the Court of Delegates is an Ecclesiasticall Jurisdic

             tion, and is of the same nature of the Court of the Bishop or

             Arch Bishop, that they are a Superiour Court, in as much as

             they do Examin the sentence which is given in the Ecclesias

             ticall Court whether it be well given or not.

               2: They are obliged either to Affirm or Reverse the sen

             tence given in the Court of the Bishop or Arch Bishop And

             they cannot divide the Sentence because that they are to Judge

             vpon the whole, whether good or bad, well given or ill given

             and to give Judgmt accordingly.

               3: They cannot make any other Judgmt of their own than

             whether the first sentence be good or bad, because there is not

          p. 233 any new Matter to be laid before them; but the whole matter