CHANCERY 653

questions that may be objected to by either of the parties shall be noted by
the examiner upon the deposition; but he shall not have power to decide
on the competency, materiality or relevancy of any question proposed or
evidence elicited, nor as to the competency or privilege of any witness
offered. All questions of privilege raised, or demurrer interposed, by any
witness, to questions propounded, shall be at once reported by the examiner
to the Court or Judge thereof for decision, and the Court or Judge shall
hear and determine the same without delay; and in such cases the Court
may award cost as justice may appear to require; and in all cases the Court
shall have full power to deal with and to direct the payment of the cost of
incompetent, immaterial or irrelevant evidence, or any part thereof, as
justice may require, apart from the general cost of the case.¹

This section has no application to proceedings in the orphans' court. Gantt v. Trott,
107 Md. 327.

An. Code, 1924, sec. 274. 1912, sec. 257. 1904, sec. 239. 1888, sec. 221. Rule 39.

286. So soon as the examination of witnesses before the examiner shall
be concluded, the original depositions, with all vouchers, documents, or
other papers filed with the examiner as evidence, shall be put together in
proper order and form, so as to be convenient for reference and use, and be
authenticated by certificate and signature of the examiner, and by him
enclosed, with the titling of the cause endorsed thereon, and filed with the
Clerk of the Court, without delay; he shall also return properly authenti-
cated all other exhibits filed with him as evidence.²

An. Code, 1924, sec. 275. 1912, sec. 258. 1904, sec. 240. 1888, sec. 222. Rule 40.

287. Testimony shall be taken without any unnecessary delay, and
it shall be the duty of the examiner to avoid such delay as far as possible.
After the lapse of a reasonable time for the taking of testimony, either
party may obtain a rule on the adverse party to close the taking of his
testimony within such reasonable time after notice of such rule as may be
deemed proper; and any testimony taken after the lapse of that time shall
not be read in evidence at the hearing of the cause. But it shall be in the
discretion of the court to enlarge the time, on application of the party
against whom such rule may have been obtained, upon sufficient cause
shown.

See notes to sec. 288.

An. Code, 1924, sec. 276. 1912, sec. 259. 1904, sec. 241. 1888, sec. 223. Rule 41.

288. Evidence taken and returned shall be opened by the clerk, and
shall remain in court ten days, subject to exception, before the cause shall
be taken up for hearing unless by agreement of the parties, such time be
waived; but after the expiration of that time the cause shall stand for hear-
ing, unless some sufficient cause be shown to the contrary. This section not
to apply to interlocutory applications.

Where exceptions are filed five days after a decree was passed but were not acted
upon by the lower court, neither this section nor the decisions of the court of appeals
are complied with. Nalle v. Safe Deposit & Tr. Co., 120 Md. 196.

An exception should be noted at the time testimony is taken to the evidence deemed
inadmissible; no reason need be stated unless the objection is to the question as
leading. While the testimony is lying in court under this section, written exceptions

¹ Thus amended by equity rule 38, November 21, 1919, adopted by the court of ap-
peals in accordance with sec. 18 of art. 4 of the Constitution.

² Thus amended by equity rule 39, Nov. 21, 1919, adopted by the court of appeals in
accordance with sec. 18 of art. 4 of the Constitution.