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Pleadings in
suits on con-
tracts.
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pleaded, unless such plea contains a good defence, and unless
the defendant or some one in his behalf shall, under oath or
"affirmation, state that every plea so pleaded by the defendant
is true; and shall further state the amount of plaintiff's
demand, if anything, admitted to be due or owing, and the
amount disputed, and further, that the affiant verily believes
the defendant will be able at the trial of the cause to produce
sufficient evidence to support the plea as to the portion dis-
puted, and that he is advised by counsel to file the said plea;
and such plea shall be accompanied by a certificate of counsel
that he so advised the party making such oath or affirmation,
and if the copartnership or incorporation of any of the parties
to the suit shall be alleged in the declaration and the affidavit
to be filed therewith, as hereinafter provided; or if there shall
be filed with the declaration in said cause, any paper purport-
ing to be signed by any defendant therein, the fact of such
alleged copartnership or incorporation, and the genuineness of
such signature shall be deemed to be admitted for the purposes
of said cause, unless the said affidavit shall further state that
the affiant knows, or has good reason to believe, such allegation
of copartnership or incorporation to be untrue, or that such
signature was not written by or by the authority of the person
whose signature it purports to be, in case any part of the debt
or damages claimed be admitted to be due, the plaintiff
shall be entitled forthwith to an entry of judgment there-
for with costs, in the discretion of the court, to the time
of entry of such judgment, and if the amount so admitted to be
due shall not be below the jurisdiction of the court, the plaintiff
may at once have execution therefor, and upon such entry of
judgment the plaintiff may join issue or reply to the pleas as
to the disputed portion, and the case shall be proceeded with
as to such disputed portion in the same manner as if the suit
had been originally instituted for the recovery of the same;
and the court shall have jurisdiction as to such disputed
portion in all cases where the amount originally claimed shall
be within the jurisdiction of the court, but if either judgment
in the case be below the jurisdiction of the court, no execution
shall issue from that court on the same, and the provisions of
section 17 of article 26 of the Code of Public General Laws
shall apply thereto; yet if the sum of the two judgments shall
equal such jurisdiction they may then be included in an execu-
tion issued from that court; provided, that the court for good
cause shown, may, by its order in writing, passed at any time
before judgment, extend the time for filing such pleas and
affidavits, which extension shall suspend, until the expiration
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