pose to sale flesh meat to divers persons, to the jurors aforesaid as yet unknown (p); to the common nuisance (q) of all the liege subjects of our said Lady the Queen, and against the peace, &c.

Indictment for obstructing a Clergyman in the Burial of the Dead, by assaulting him and others (r).

That, heretofore, to wit, on, &c. and before the commission of the peace hereinafter next mentioned, to wit, at the parish of —, in the county of certain corpse had been then and there lawfully brought to the church and churchyard of the said parish for christian burial, according to the rites and ceremonies used by the church of England; and that one A. B. was a clerk in the holy orders of the said church of England, and then and there present in the said church and churchyard of the said parish of in, &c. for the purpose of acting as such clerk in orders, in and about the burial of the said corpse, according to the said rites and ceremonies, and was then and there lawfully acting in the execution of his said duty in and about the said burial of the said corpse in the manner last aforesaid, and the jurors, &c. that C. D. late of the said parish, in, &c. labourer, on, &c. at the said parish aforesaid, in the said churchyard, and church of the said parish, did then and there unlawfully, wilfully, and contemptuously interrupt, hinder, and obstruct the said A. B. so being such clerk in orders, as aforesaid, and then and there being in the execution of his duty as such, in reading the order for the burial of the dead, and in attending the burial of the said corpse as such clerk in orders, and did then and there unlawfully, wilfully, and contemptuously, by threats and menaces, and by violently assaulting the said A. B. and E. F. in the peace of our Lady the Queen, then and there being in the said church and churchyard, did prevent and hinder the burial of the said corpse, in the said churchyard, in a quiet, decent, and suitable manner, according to the said last-mentioned rites and ceremonies, and against the peace, &c.

Indictment for disturbing a Dissenting Congregation,

52 G. III. c. 155, s. 12. (s)

That heretofore, to wit, at the general quarter sessions of the peace holden at A. in and for the county of W. the

day of in the year of the reign of our sovereign Lady Victoria, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland Queen defender of the faith, before A. B. and C. D. esquires, and others their fellows, justices, of our said Lady the Queen, assigned to keep the peace of our said Lady the Queen in the said county, and also to hear and determine divers felonies, trespasses, and other misdemeanours, in the said county committed,

(p) If they are known, their names must be stated.

(9) This allegation was omitted in R. v. Brotherton, Stra. 702, as well as "against the form of the statute." Such an act done in a corner might perhaps not be indictable at common law, Drury v. Desfontaines, 1 Taunt. 134.

(r) This form was suggested by R. v. Cheere, 7 D. & R. 461, and is intended to meet the objections there held fatal; but unless some act of violence, or at east some abusive or threatening ex

pressions, disturbing the due and tranquil performance of the rites of the church, are laid and proved accordingly, the only remedy is in the spiritual court.

(8) This indictment must be preferred to the grand jury at quarter sessions and may be tried there, (52 G. III. c. 155, s. 12); but when found, may be removed into Q. B. by certiorari, and either tried there, (R. v. Wroughton, 3 Burr. 1683), or at the assizes, (R. v. Wadley, 4 M. & S. 508).

J. N. clerk, teacher and preacher to a congregation of protestants dissenting from the church of England, scrupling infant baptism, did then and there, pursuant to the statute in such case made and provided, certify to her majesty's justices of the peace assembled in quarter sessions aforesaid, that he had appointed a certain house situate at —, in the parish of B. in the county aforesaid, therein to assemble and meet for religious worship, and which was then and there duly registered and recorded according to the directions of the statute in such case made and provided, and the jurors aforesaid, upon their oaths aforesaid, do further present, that afterwards, to wit, on, &c. at, &c. a congregation of protestants dissenting from the church of England, of which the said J. N. was then and there teacher and preacher, were assembled for the public worship and service of Almighty God, in the house aforesaid, so certified, registered, and recorded as aforesaid (t), and that J. S. late of, &c. labourer, J. W. late of, &c. carpenter, and E. W. late of, &c. labourer, afterwards, to wit, on, &c. whilst the said congregation was so assembled as aforesaid, and during divine service at, &c. unlawfully, willingly, and of purpose, maliciously and contemptuously did come into the said congregation during service as aforesaid, and did then and there willingly and of purpose maliciously and contemptuously disquiet and disturb the said congregation, (by then and there talking, cursing and swearing with a loud voice, and also by talking with a loud voice to the said J. N., he the said J. N. then and there being in the pulpit,) the doors of the said meetinghouse and place where the said congregation were so assembled as aforesaid not being then locked, barred, or bolted (u); against the form of the statute in such cases made and provided, and against the peace of our Lady the Queen, her crown and dignity.

And the jurors aforesaid, upon their oath aforesaid, do further present, that the said J. S., J. W., and E. W. afterwards, to wit, on, &c. with force and arms, at, &c. did willingly, and of purpose, maliciously, and contemptuously come into a certain congregation of protestants dissenting from the church of England, then and there assembled for the worship and service of Almighty God, in a certain meetinghouse there situate, and the said congregation then and there wilfully, willingly, and of purpose, maliciously and contemptuously did disquiet and disturb, (by talking, laughing, swearing, and cursing with a loud voice,) [or as the case may be,] the said meeting-house, where the said congregation were so assembled, as aforesaid, being then and long before certified, registered, and recorded, according to the direction of the statute in such case made and provided. And the doors of the said meeting-house and place where the said congregation were so assembled, not being then locked, barred, or bolted; against the form of the statute in such case made and provided, and against the peace, &c. (x).

2. OFFENCES AGAINST THE QUEEN, GOVERNMENT, AND ·

MAGISTRATES.

Offences against the queen and government, e. g. sedition, &c. seem

(t) See R. v. Hube, (on 1 W. & M. Sess. 1, c. 18, s. 19); 5 T. R. 542, cited 1 B. & Ad. 869.

(u) This averment made to satisfy s. 11, does not seem necessary, for it is in a distinct clause, not forming part of that on which the indictment is framed,

and is not in R. v. Wadley, 4 M. & S. 508.

(x) By s. 12, each defendant is, on conviction, liable to the penalty of 401. A like provision exists for protecting Catholic chapels, 31 G. III. c. 33, s. 10.

out of jurisdiction of sessions of peace since 5 & 6 Vict. c. 38, but offences against magistrates may still be tried there.

Indictment for insulting a Justice in the Execution of his Office. That heretofore, to wit, on, &c. a special session of the peace was holden at, &c. before certain justices of the peace of our sovereign Lady the Queen for the said county of, -, to wit, before P. Q., R. S., and X. Y., and others their fellows, being justices as aforesaid of the county of aforesaid, who had then and there assembled and met together, with purpose and intent to authorize and empower certain persons, then and there also assembled and attending, to keep respectively in their respective parishes within the said county of certain common inns and alehouses, as by the laws of this realm the said justices as aforesaid were authorized and empowered to do, at which said session so then and there holden as aforesaid, before the justices above named, and others their fellows as aforesaid, came A. B. late of, &c.; and the said A. B. on being then and there, to wit, at the said session so holden as aforesaid, before the said justices as aforesaid, demanded a license from the said P. Q., R.S., and X. Y., and others their fellows so as before assembled, in order that he the said A. B. might be authorized and empowered, at a certain house known and distinguished by the sign of the White Swan, at, &c. to sell ale for and during the year next ensuing but the said P. Q., R. S., and X. Y., and others their fellows so then and there assembled, being justices of our said lady the Queen for the county of aforesaid, then and there refused to grant any leave, license, or authority to the said A. B. to sell ale at —— aforesaid, in the county aforesaid, for the said year then next ensuing; whereupon the said A. B. wickedly and maliciously intending to traduce the authority, and impede the proceedings, as well as to vilify the characters, of the said justices, so being then and there in the due and proper execution of their duties, uttered and pronounced, and loudly published to the said justices so assembled and met together as aforesaid, in the presence and hearing of divers of her majesty's liege subjects, these false, scurrilous, and contemptuous words of and concerning the said P. Q., R. S., and X. Y., and others their fellows, justices as aforesaid, then and there assembled, and of and concerning the execution of their said duties, that is to say, "you are all (meaning the said P. Q., R. S., and X. Y., and others their fellows, then and there assembled) a parcel of tyrannical villains, and ought to be hanged for depriving a poor man of his bread,” (meaning that the said P. Q., R. S., and X. Y., and others their fellows, then and there assembled, ought to be hanged for depriving him the said A. B. of his bread, by refusing him the said A. B. a license to sell ale, which he the said A. B. had then and there required from them the said P. Q., &c. and which they the said P. Q., R. S., X. Y., and others their fellows, justices as aforesaid, had then and there refused to grant to him the said A. B.); in disturbance of the administration of justice, and against the peace, &c. (y).

(y) Scandalous aspersions of a magistrate in the execution of his office, are regarded as criminal, and subject the offender to punishment, at the discretion of the court in which he is convicted; Holt on Lib. 153; 1 Russell, C. & M. 328. And, to these, the rule is strictly confined; for, if the language, however

opprobrious, apply only to the justice in his private capacity, no indictment can be supported. So that, if a man at a parish meeting apply to an absent magistrate abusive names, as if he say, "if he is a sworn justice, he is a rogue and a forsworn rogue," or if he apply to him the names of ass, fool, coxcomb, or block

3. OFFENCES AGAINST PUBLIC DECENCY.

Indictment for digging up and taking away a Dead Body from a Churchyard (z).

That A. B. late of, &c. on, &c. with force and arms, &c. at, &c. the churchyard of and belonging to the parish church of the same parish there situate, unlawfully did enter, and the grave there, in which the body of one M. B. deceased had lately before then been interred, and then was, with force and arms unlawfully, voluntarily, wilfully, and indecently did dig, open, and afterwards, to wit, on the same day and year aforesaid, with force and arms, at, &c. the body of him the said M. B. out of the grave aforesaid unlawfully and indecently did take and carry away; against the peace, &c.

Indictment for preventing the Interment of a Dead Body by an

Arrest.

That A. B. and C. D. on, &c. with force and arms, at, &c. in, &c. a certain dead body, to wit, the body of M. B. then and there being, unlawfully and wickedly did arrest (a), take, and carry away, and cause and procure to be arrested, taken, and carried away, with an unlawful and wicked intention, to prevent the interment and burial of the said dead body of the said M. B. which ought to have been done and performed according to the rites and ceremonies of the church of that part of this realm called England; against the peace, &c.

Indictments for keeping a Common Brothel, or Disorderly House :post, tit. NUISANCE.

See

Indictment for Bathing publicly near Public Ways and Habitations.

That H. O. G. late of - unlawfully, deliberately, and wilfully did expose and exhibit himself naked, near to, and in front of, diverse houses of the liege subjects of our said lady the Queen, situate at, &c. aforesaid, and also near to a certain public and common queen's highway there, and also in the presence of divers liege subjects

head, no indictable offence will have been committed; 2 Stra. 1157-8; 2 Salk. 698; 2 Camb. 142. And it seems that to render any words thus indictable, they must be spoken to the magistrate, and not in his absence; 2 Camb. 142; 2 Stra. 1157; R. v. Read, 1 Stra. 420-1.

(z) This has always been holden a misdemeanour indictable at common law; 4 Bla. Com. 235; 2 T. R. 733; R. v. Lynn; and so was selling the dead body of a person, capitally convicted, for dissection, whether there was direct evidence or not that the defendant sold the body for lucre and gain and for dissection; R. v. Cundick, 1 D. & R. N. P. C. 13; Graham, B. If the shroud, coffin,

or any other chattel accompanying the dead body be taken away, with intent to steal, such taking is a larceny. See 2 & 3 W. IV. c. 75. Anatomy schools.

(a) A vulgar notion at one time prevailed, that it was lawful to arrest the corpse of a person deceased for a civil debt due from the party in his life time. But it is now clearly ascertained that no such practice is lawful; indeed to prevent the body from being interred, is an offence against decency, and as such indictable under the class of misdemeanours; Jones v. Ashburnham, 4 East, R. 465; Young's case, 2 T. R. 734; 2 Bla. Com. 472, 8th ed.; 1 Burn's Ecc. Law by Tyrwhitt, 258,259.

of our said Lady the Queen, both male and female, with intent to vitiate and corrupt the morals of her majesty's liege subjects, and against the peace, &c. (b).

And the jurors, &c. that the said H. O. G. on, &c. at, &c. unlawfully, deliberately, and wilfully did expose himself naked to divers of her said majesty's liege subjects; against the peace, &c.

Indictment for indecently Exposing the Person in indecent

Postures (c).

That H. O. G. late of, &c. and intending, as much as in him lay, to vitiate and corrupt the morals of her majesty's liege subjects, and to stir up and excite in their minds filthy, lewd, and unchaste desires and inclinations, on, &c. at, &c. unlawfully, wickedly, deliberately, and wilfully did expose and exhibit his private parts, in an indecent posture, situation, and practice, to divers of the liege subjects, both male and female, of our said lady the Queen, with intent to vitiate and corrupt the morals of her majesty's liege subjects, and to stir up and excite in their minds filthy, lewd, and unchaste desires and inclinations; against the peace, &c.

SECTION XVII.

NUISANCES.

Indictable Nuisance, what.]—A common nuisance is an offence against the public, either by doing a thing which tends to the annoyance of the queen's subjects, or by neglecting to do a thing which it is the duty of the party to do, and which the public good requires. The principal cases of nuisance consist,

1. In omitting to repair Public Highways or Bridges.

2. In obstructing, encroaching on, or annoying the Public in using Public Highways, Bridges, or Shores.

3. In carrying on unwholesome Occupations near to Public Ways or Habitations; keeping Brothels, dangerous Animals, &c.

1. Nuisance by omitting to repair Public Highways and Bridges.]— The consideration of prosecutions for the non-repair of highways and

(b) Undressing on a beach and bathing in the sea, so near inhabited houses as to be distinctly visible from them, is an offence, though the houses are recently erected, and the bathing at that place was previously general; R. v. Crunden, 2 Camb. 89.

(c) When an indictment contained two counts, two instances of exposure were allowed to be given in evidence, viz., one on each of two separate days, or two separate instances on the same

day; for, as the day laid in the first count was immaterial, exposure on another day may be proved on that count. Then as the second count charged the offence as done on the "day and year on aforesaid," a second exposure, viz. the day laid in the first count may be shown; and if different days are laid in different counts any number of acts of exposure may be shown; Rowbattel's case, 1 Lewin's Cr. R. 83.