| Chap. 6.
5 E. 6.25. |
Justices of the Peace.
Two Justices may take Recognizance of Ale-house keepers
for keeping
good Orders, &c. according to their discretions. |
23 |
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Two Justices may appoint Over-seers of Woollen Cloth
by the year, or
for shorter time, by their discretion. |
Cloth. |
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Clothiers, their Word folks imbeziling any part
shall be Punished, &c.
by the discretion of two Justices. |
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Two Justices may grant their Warrant to call before
them any person
or persons which in their discretions shall be thought fit to discover
any offence
in the making of deceivable Woollen-cloth, &c. 21 Jac. chap. 18. |
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Servants, &c. assaulting their Master, may be
imprisoned for one year,
or less, at the discretion of two Justices. |
Labourers. |
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Two Justices may (by their discretion) compel Women
to serve, and
for such wages, and in such sort, as they think meet. |
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Two Justices may tax others of the County (by their
discretions) towards
the relief of the places infected, &c. |
Plague. |
| 43 El. 2. |
Two Justices may tax any in
the Hundred (by their discretions) towards
the relief of the Poor of any Town that is over-charged. |
Poor. |
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Two Justices may dispose of all Forfeitures to grow
upon the Statutes
of Rogues, at their discretions, &c. |
Rogues. |
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Two Justices may assess (according to their discretions)
proportionably
all the Parishes within the Hundred, towards a Contribution for the parties
charged upon a Robbery, &c. |
Robbery. |
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Two Justices shall take order (by their discretion)
to set poor Souldiers,
&c. to work that cannot get work; and, for want of work, may tax
the Hundred (by their discretions) for the relief of such Souldiers,
&c. |
Souldiers. |
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Two Justices may fine (by their discretions) the
head Officers in Boroughs
and Market-Towns that do not view, &c. all Weights and Measures,
or do not break and burn the defective. |
Weights. |
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Two Justices may fine (at their discretions) all
Buyers and Sellers with
unlawful Weights and Measures. |
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There be some other Statutes, and some other Cases,
wherein the discretion
of the Justices of Peace (out of their Sessions) is tolerated: but
the counsel of Cicero herein is to be observed. Sapientis
est Judicis cogitare
tantum fibi esse permissum, quantum sit commissum ac creditum. |
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§. 5.
Co. 5.101.
& 10.140 |
Also the sayings of the Right Honourable, and late
Reverend Judge
and Sage of the Law, (in his Fifth part, in Rook's Cae, and in his
Tenth
part in Knightlie's Case) are worthy of observation: sc.
That discretion is a
Knowledg or understanding to discern between truth and falshood, between
right and wrong, between shadows and substance, between equity
and colourable glosses and pretences, and not to do according to our wills
and private affections, for talis discretio discretionem confundit.
And therefore in both the recited Cases it was holden that though the word
in the Commission of Sewers do give Authority to those Commissioners to
do according to their discretions, that yet their Discretion ought to be
limited
and bounded with the rules of Reason, Law, and Justice, and their proceeding
must be secundum Legem & Consuetudinem Angliæ; and so
of other
like Commissioners. Again, Discretion, faith he, is scire vel
discernere per
Legem quid sit justum; viz., Salem Sapientiæ ue sit insipidus;
& Salem Conscientiæ, ne sit diabolus. |
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And (as M. Lambert well said) no way better
shall the Discretion of a
Justice of Peace appear, than if he (remembring that he is Lex loquens)
shall contain in himself within the lists of Law, and shall not use his
discretion, |
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