And the heirs of Lenthall are not allowed to nominate a Marshal, without the consent of the mortgagees, as appears by the following Clause, viz. That all and every deputation or ⚫ deputations, grant or grants, at any time heretofore made, or executed by Wm. Lenthall, esq. of the said office of Marshal of the Marshalsea of the said Court of King's Bench, is ' and are hereby declared void, and of none effect; and that all and every succeeding • Marshal shall from time to time, and at all times hereafter, be constituted and appointed by the said William Lenthall, his heirs and as· signs, by and with the consent, in writing, under the hand and seal of Edmund Boulter, esq. his executors, administrators and assigns, until the debt, owing by the said William Lenthall to the said Edmund Boulter, exécutor of sir John Cutler, baronet, deceased, be satisfied.'

That in July, 1708, the manors and lands which were mortgaged with the said office for securing the said 10,000l. were sold for the sum of 8,7001.; 7,600l. whereof was paid towards the discharging the principal and interest of the said mortgage.

That in the year 1718 Charles Bodvile, earl of Radnor, claiming under the said sir John Cutler, and his said executor, Edmund Boulter, did by indenture, bearing date the 20th day of September, 1718, assign to Joseph Studley, his executors, administrators, and assigns, in consideration of a competent sum, all his right and title to the money, secured upon the said office, which in the said deed he mentions to amount to 19,2847. 2s. 4d. which is said to have arisen to that sum by the adding of interest, repairs, and other charges.

was

That, on examination of witnesses, it appeared, that the said competent sum 10,500l. which was all the money that was paid by the said Studley to the said earl. [B.] That the said Studley purchased these securities in trust for other persons, and divided them into shares; which, being sold at various prices, by divers mesne assignments and transfers came into the hands of the present Mortgagee viz.

Mr. John Preston

Twentieth Parts.

offices in the disposition of the Marshal, whereby they have received a much greater sum, than the interest of the said 10,500l. to this time amounts to. [C.]

That Lenthall's claim to the freehold of the said office hath been conveyed to, and kept in, Trustees; and these Trustees have, generally, been men of mean circumstances, and nominated at the request of the Mortgagees. [D. 1.]

The present Trustees are James Slann, a footman to one of the Mortgagees, and John Wildey, a scrivener; which said Trustees, in pursuance of a verbal order of four of the Mortgagees, did, by lease, dated the 14th day of January, 1729, let to Richard Mullens, esq. the office of Marshal and Keeper of the prisoners in the King's Bench prison, for three years; which prisoners (as appears by the Commitment Books) are in number 657, and arecharged with 126,4841. 12s.; besides great numbers, who are charged, without specification of the sums, they being charged on surren ders to actions, the number of which actions amount to 398, and the sums due may, proba bly, be very great. [D. 2.]

The Committee do not find, that any security (except their own personal security) hath been taken, or required, from any Marshal of the King's Bench, for the safe keeping of the prisoners, either by the Trustees, or by any other; and the Marshals, as well as the Trustees, have, generally, been men of very mean circumstances; and the Mortgagees having thus screened themselves behind Trustees, nominated at their own request, deem themselves not answerable for escapes; so the creditor hath no person, of any substance, to have recourse to, in case of an escape; the conse quence of which (amongst many other examples) appeared very evidently in the case of Mr. Poulter: [E.] He was indebted to Mr. William Wilson in the sum of 18,000l. for which he was charged in exccution in the King's Bench prison, and chose rather to make the Marshal a large present, than to pay his own debts. Mr. Machen who was then Marshal, accepted of the money; Poulter went to Holland; and Wilson sued, and recovered judgment against Machen the Marshal; who (being an insolvent, remained a prisoner in his own gaol; and Wilson applied to the court of King's Bench that the profits of the office might be sequestered for his debt; but the Mortgagees made such a claim, as to protect them; so that Wilson, having a right, but no remedy, and being by this slight of law intirely ruined, shot himself in despair.

The office of Marshal of the said prison was let to the said Richard Mullens by a Trustee, by the consent and direction of the Mortgagees, in January, 1724, for the annual rent of 7007.; he being, over and above, obliged to pay the annual sum of 22l. 10s. as a fee farm rent, and also an annual sum of 30l. to the Chamberlain, nominated by the Mortgagees; the whole amounting to 750l. per annum.

His lease was renewed in January last; and by indenture, bearing date the 14th day of the said month, he covenants with James Slann and John Wildey, to pay them 700l. per ann. clear of all taxes; besides which, to pay the fee farm rent, &c. although all the open and legal profits, of which the said Mullens could give any account to the Committee, amounted to about 3501. per annum, and no more,

The high rents of the said office cannot be made up, without great oppression; much less can the other fees, with which it is loaded, be complied with; insomuch that the Marshals generally continue but a short time in that office, there having been 15 from the year 1668 to the year 1724; and sometimes, on a prisoner's being committed for a considerable sum, the Marshal accepts of money to grant him the Rules, and suffers him to escape; [F.] and, if the plaintiff recovers against the Marshal, he turns himself a prisoner into his own gaol, which is accompanied with a kind of gaol delivery: The insolvent Marshal, being in this condition, generally refuses to give his successors any account of the prisoners, to whom he gave the Liberty of the Rules, and by this proceeding the new Marshal does not apprehend himself to be charged or chargeable with them. On this occasion a rule of court is sometimes granted, for the new Marshal to take all the prisoners in the rules, and persons, who have escaped; but the Marshal does not think him self obliged to re-take them, and it gives the new Marshal a pretence to squeeze great sums of money out of such prisoners, as enjoy the rules. [G.]

Over and above the aforementioned exorbi tant rents, on a new Marshal's being sworn, it hath been usual for him to pay 100 guineas to the Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench, and 50 guineas to each of the Puisne Judges of that court. The present Marshal, when he was sworn Marshal (in pursuance of a lease, granted to him in 1724) gave a purse of 100 guineas into the hands of sir John Prat, knight, then Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench, and one other purse, containing 50 guineas, to Mr. Justice Fortescue, and the like sum to Mr. Justice Powis; and he offered the like sum to sir Robert Raymond, knight, then one of the Puisue Judges of that court, who refused the same, saying, he did not know any such fee was due, and that, if it was not a legal fee, he would not take it; but that he would inform himself of the Lord Chief Justice, and the other Judges and some days after he accepted the said sum, having seen the Lord Chief Justice, and the other Judges of the said Court. [Vide D. 2.]

The said Richard Mullens was again sworu into the said office on the 25th day of January, 1729, his former lease heing then expired, and a new one obtained; on which occasion sir Robert Raymond, knight, Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench, and the other Judges of the said Bench, did not accept of any Fee whatso ever from the said Marshal.

Over and above these Fees or Presents, paid by the Marshals, on their being sworn into the said office, they used to pay, every Christmas, to the Lord Chief Justice of the King's Bench 20 guineas, and to each of the puisne Judges 10 guineas, until such time, as the present sir Robert Raymond came to be Lord Chief Justice: He then generously refused to accept of any such presents, and would never receive any gratification whatsoever from the said Marshal; and he was imitated in this by Mr. Justice Reynolds, who, though he accepted the 10 guineas, sent the same, by his Clerk, to be distributed amongst the prisoners of the said prison; and all the Judges of the said Court have now followed this example: at Christmas, 1729, they all refused to accept any presents from the said Marshal.

Not only the Marshals, but the deputy Marshals, usually made presents (on their admittance) to the Lord Chief Justice of the said Court: Mr. John Morris, who is now deputy Marshal, on his buying that office, besides the purchase money paid by him for the said office, made a present to the Lord Chief Justice Holt of 20 guineas, which, as far as he remembers, he gave to him with his own hands. [H.]

That, upon inspecting the said King's Bench Prison, it appears to be in very bad repair, and not capable of containing a third part of the number of prisoners, even now in the Marsbal's custody, who amount to 657; which number is much less, than used to be in that custody, before the late acts of parliament against frivolous Arrests, and for relief of insolvent debtors: and it is remarkable, that not one person, discharged by the said late act (for relief of insolvent Debtors) hath been re-committed for any new Debt.

The common side of this prison is divided into little cabins, or lodges, the floors of many of which are six or eight feet below the level of the ground; the master's side is in a very bad condition; and the whole in no way adequate to the vast rent paid for it.

Many complaints were laid before the Committee, of cruelties committed by former Marshals of the said prison, particularly, of a mur der of one Allen, a prisoner in the said prison, in the year 1723, when Machen was Marshal and also complaints of exorbitant sums having heen taken for the liberty of the rules.

But the requisite attendances on other services of the House have made it impracticable to go through the examinations of these coinplaints, before the conclusion of this session.

However, the Committee having examined all the prisoners on the common side, and many of those on the Master's side (who are mostly new prisoners, committed since the be ginning of the late parliamentary enquiries into the State of the Gaols) it appeared by their examinations, that no violence or cruelty hath been used to them by the present Marshal, but, on the contrary, that he hath done many acts of compassion and charity towards those on the common side; by which, and by his free confes

sions, and satisfactory answers given to the Committee, upon his several examinations be fore them, he hath rather entitled himself to favour, than blame.

The said prisoners also declared, that they had heard of terrible oppressious formerly, none af which have happened of late, the ears of the present Lord Chief Justice of the court of King's-bench being always open to the complaints of the prisoners, and he having with great patience heard all their petitions.

Their chief Complaints, at present, are the great distress they are reduced to, the charities not being sufficient for maintenance of the poor prisoners; and that the being admitted on the common side, and thereby entitled to the benefit of the charities, which are confined to that side, is granted as a particular favour, and not as a general right; and that it is with great difficulty a poor wretch on the master's side, though never so miserable, can be admitted on the common side, to share in these Charities.

The Marshal is chiefly enabled to pay his rent, by permitting prisoners, on security, to live out of the prison, any where within the rules. [Vide E.] The straitness of the prison, and its incapacity to contain the numbers, thereto usually committed, occasioned the prisoner's application to the Court of King's-bench for more room; who took upon them to impower the Marshal to suffer his prisoners to live out of the walls of the prison, he being answerable for their forth-coming. The limits, within which such prisoners were allowed to be, were fixed by the Court of King's-bench; and that space of ground is called the Rules, and now deemed part of the prison. The Court of King's-bench hath taken on them to enlarge the said space; particularly, in the time, when sir John Prat, knight, was Lord Chief Justice, the Court then declared, that it was in their power to extend the rules in such manner, as they should think fit.

If this be law, all England may be made one extended prison.

The prisoners make large presents to the Marshal, for the Liberty of these Rules; and, being under his protection, and in his favour, may take houses, or lodgings, within the rules, and live in a very easy manner; whilst the poor honest debtor, who hath paid away all his substance, to satisfy his creditors, is a close prisoner within the prison: Thus the debtor, who will not pay his creditors, lives at ease; and he, who cannot pay, suffers.

The Prisoners, enjoying the liberty of the Rules, are, by the present usage of the Court of King's-bench, in some manner protected even in criminal cases; for, if they are guilty of the greatest crimes, or disorders, they cannot (by the opinion of that Court) be committed by any authority, but that of the Judges of the said Court of King's-bench; so that, if a murder, riot, or mutiny, should happen, whilst the said Judges are on the circuits, or otherwise absent, there is no power to commit to the county gaol any prisoner in the rules, who shall be concerned

therein; for, should a Justice of the peace, on complaint made, commit a prisoner in the rules to the county gaol, he would, it seems (by a late opinion of the said Court) be deemed guilty of a rescue and escape, and be liable to the debts of the prisoner, whom he had so committed.

For it appears, that a complaint was made, in December, 1728, to Samuel Woodham, esq. one of his Majesty's justices of the peace for the county of Surry, against Humphry Heybord and Joseph Allen. (two prisoners in the rules) for violently assaulting a woman, and other misdemeanours; and they not being able to find security for their appearance at the next quarter sessions for the said county, Mr. Woodham committed them to the said county gaol: On this, the Marshal moved the Court of King's Bench for an attachment against Mr. Woodham; and the matter being brought before the court, the court declared, that Mr. Woodham, in committing the said Heybord and Allen (prisoners in the custody of the Marshal) to the county gaol, upon any pretence whatsoever (notwithstanding the county gaol was within the rules of the prison of the King's Bench) was guilty of a rescue: after which, the Court interposed, and prevailed with the said Mullens (the Marshal) to make up the matter, on Mr. Woodham's paying 317. costs, for committing two prisoners, who had broke the peace, and could not find security.

The high Rent, paid by the Marshal, occasions exorbitant fees, extortions, and maoy other inconveniencies.

The Marshal bath one shilling per night, for every prisoner, who lies in a spunging-house; which may be a great inducement to him to keep prisoners from coming into the prison.

The Prison Fees are exorbitant; and the Judges having met together, and proceeding to take the same into their consideration, in order to their making a reduction thereof, pursuant to the late act, a doubt arose, whether they could, or ought, to reduce the said fees, because of the property of the mortgagees and this matter remains for the further consideration of parliament.

That no Security being given for safe custody of the prisoners, and the artful confusion of the title between the trustees for Leuthall, and the mortgagees, render the custody of the said prison unsafe, and precarious.

It appeared to the Committee, that, notwithstanding the inconveniency, arising from the claim of the mortgagees, and the high rent paid by the Marshal, yet this prison of the King's Bench is much better regulated than any other prison,, the Committee hath enquired into; which they cannot but ascribe to the care of the Lord Chief Justice Raymond, who, not accepting of any presents, or fees, from the Marshal of the said prison, hath kept the said Marshal strictly to the performance of his duty; and his lordship hath heard, and redressed, the complaints of the prisoners.

It appeared to the Committee, that there are now in being some Books and Lists of