magistrates to require some public functionary, such as the high constable or one of the county or borough constabulary, to take upon himself this office, and although we know of no penalties which can be inflicted in such a case upon refusal, there is never found in practice any difficulty upon the subject, the duty of a prosecutor being exceedingly simple, and the expenses allowed being to a constable a sufficient remuneration, in addition to his ordinary pay, to induce him readily to undertake the duty. Under the 14 Vict. c. 11, where a complaint is made of offences upon a servant or apprentice under that act, or of any bodily injury inflicted upon any poor person under the age of sixteen years, for which the party committing it is liable to be indicted; and the circumstances of which offence amount in point of law to a felony, or an attempt to commit a felony, or an assult to commit a felony, and two justices taking the examination shall certify that they deem it necessary that the prosecution should be conducted by the guardians, or if no guardians, by the overseers of the parish in which the offence was committed, such guardians or overseers shall, upon service of such certificate or a duplicate thereof, conduct the prosecution (ss. 6 and 7.)

Binding over Prosecutor and Witnesses.]-Upon the subject generally of binding over the prosecutor and witnesses, the 11 & 12 Vict. c. 42, contains some practical directions. By section 20 it is enacted—

That it shall be lawful for the justice or justices before whom any such witness shall be examined as aforesaid to bind, by recognizance, the prosecutor and every such witness to appear at the next court of oyer and terminer or gaol delivery, or superior court of a county palatine, or court of general or quarter sessions of the peace at which the accused is to be tried, then and there to prosecute, or to prosecute and give evidence, or to give evidence, as the case may be, against the party accused, which said recognizance shall particularly specify the profession, art, mystery or trade of every such person entering into or acknowledging the same, together with his christian and surname, and the parish, town

ship or place of his residence; and if his residence be in a city, town or borough, the recognizance shall also particularly specify the name of the street and the number (if any) of the house in which he resides, and whether he is owner or tenant thereof or a lodger therein; and the said recognizance, being duly acknowledged by the person so entering into the same, shall be subscribed by the justice or justices before whom the same shall be acknowledged, and a notice thereof, signed by the said justice or justices, shall at the same time be given to the person bound thereby; and the several recognizances so taken, together with the written information (if any), the depositions, the statement of the accused and the recognizance of bail (if any) in any such case, shall be delivered by the said justice or justices, or he or they shall cause the same to be delivered to the proper officer of the court in which the trial is to be had, before or at the opening of the said court on the first day of the sitting thereof, or at such other time as the judge, recorder or justice who is to preside in such court at the said trial shall order and appoint: Provided always, that if any such witness shall refuse to enter into or acknowledge such recognizance as aforesaid, it shall be lawful for such justice or justices of the peace, by his or their warrant, to commit him to the common gaol or house of correction for the county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough or place in which the accused party is to be tried, there to be imprisoned and safely kept until after the trial of such accused party, unless in the mean time such witness shall duly enter into such recognizance as aforesaid before some one justice of the peace for the county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough or place in which such gaol or house of correction shall be situate: Provided nevertheless, that if afterwards, from want of sufficient evidence in that behalf, or other cause, the justice or justices before whom such accused party shall have been brought shall not commit him or hold him to bail for the offence with which he is charged, it shall be lawful for such justice or justices, or any other justice or justices of the same county, riding, division, liberty, city, borough or place, by his or their order in that behalf, to order and direct the keeper of such common gaol or house of correction where such witness shall be so in custody to discharge him from the same, and such keeper shall thereupon forthwith discharge him accordingly.

The following forms are provided by the statute :—

in the parish of

in the borough of

(surgeon), of which said house he is tenant), personally came before me, one of Her Majesty's justices of the peace for the said (county), and acknowledged himself to owe to our Sovereign lady the Queen the sum of of good and lawful money of Great Britain, to be made and levied of his goods and chattels, lands and tenements, to the use of our said lady the Queen, her heirs and successors, if he, the said C. D., shall fail in the condition indorsed.

Taken and acknowledged the day and year first above mentioned before me,

at

CONDITION TO PROSECUTE.

J. S.

The condition of the within-written recognizance is such, that whereas one A. B. was this day charged before me J. S., justice of the peace within mentioned, for that (fc., as in the caption of the depositions); if therefore he the said C. D. shall appear at the next court of oyer and terminer, or general gaol delivery (or, at the next court of general quarter sessions of the peace) to be holden in and for the (county) of (*) and there prefer, or cause to be preferred, a bill of indictment for the offence aforesaid against the said A. B., and there also duly prosecute such indictment, then the said recognizance to be void, or else to stand in full force and virtue.

CONDITION TO PROSECUTE AND GIVE EVIDENCE.

Same as the last form to the asterisk (*), and then thus: and there prefer, or cause to be preferred, a bill of indictment against the said A. B., for the offence aforesaid, and duly prosecute such indictment, and give evidence thereon as well to the jurors who shall then inquire of the said offence, as also to them who shall pass upon the trial of the said A. B., then the said recognizance to be void, or else to stand in full force and virtue.

CONDITION TO GIVE EVIDENCE.

Same as the last form but one to the asterisk (*), and then thus: and there give such evidence as he knoweth upon a bill of indictment

to be then and there preferred against the said A. B. for the offence aforesaid, as well to the jurors who shall there inquire of the said offence, as also to the jurors who shall pass upon the trial of the said A. B.; if the said bill shall be found a true bill, then the said recognizance to be void, or else to stand in full force and virtue.

NOTICE OF THE SAID RECOGNIZANCE TO BE GIVEN TO THE PROSECUTOR AND HIS WITNESSES.

to wit. of

at

to appear at the next court of (general quarter sessions of the peace) in and for the (county) of to be holden in the said (county) and then and there (prosecute and) give evidence against A. B.; and unless you then appear there and (prosecute and) give evidence accordingly, the recognizance entered into by you will be forthwith levied on you. Dated this day

The practical mode of taking a recognizance, has already been pointed out (ante, p. 49.)

Commitment of Witness for refusing to enter into Recognizance.]-It has been seen that by section 20 of the 11 & 12 Vict. c. 42 (ante, p. 171), a witness who refuses to enter into or acknowledge his recognizance, may be committed to prison until the trial, unless before then he consents to enter into it.

such a

In

case the warrant of commitment is to be as

Whereas A. B. was lately charged before the undersigned (one) of Her Majesty's justices of the peace in and for the said (county),

of

for that (c., as in the summons to witness), and it having been made to appear to (me) upon oath, that E. F., of

was

likely to give material evidence for the prosecution, (I) duly issued (my summons to the said E. F., requiring him to appear) before (me)

on

at

E. F., and him in the (county),

or before such other justice or justices of the peace as should then be there, to testify what he should know concerning the said charge so made against the said A. B. as aforesaid; and the said E. F. now appearing before (me), or being brought before (me), by virtue of a warrant in that behalf, to testify as aforesaid, hath been now examined by (me) touching the premises, but being by (me) required to enter into a recognizance conditioned to give evidence against the said A. B. hath now refused so to do these are therefore to command you the said constable to take the said safely to convey to the (House of Correction) at of , aforesaid, and there deliver him to the said keeper thereof, together with this precept; and I do hereby command you, the said keeper of the said (House of Correction) to receive the said E. F. into your custody in the said (House of Correction), there to imprison and safely keep him until after the trial of the said A. B. for the offence aforesaid, unless in the mean time such E. F. shall duly enter into such recognizance as aforesaid, in the sum of pounds, before some one justice of the peace for the said (county), conditioned in the usual form to appear at the next court of (oyer and terminer, or general gaol delivery, or quarter sessions of the peace), to be holden in and for the (county) of and there to give evidence before the grand jury upon any bill of indictment which may then and there be preferred against the said A. B., for the offence aforesaid, and also to give evidence upon the trial of the said A. B. for the said offence, if a true bill should be found against him for the same.

day of

in the

(instant),

Whereas by (my) order dated the reciting that A. B. was lately before then charged before (me) for a certain offence therein mentioned, and that E. F. having appeared before me, and being examined as a witness for the prosecution in that behalf, refused to enter into a recognizance to give evidence against the said A. B., and I therefore thereby committed the said E. F. to your custody, and required you safely to keep him until after the trial of the