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THE Earl of PEMBROKE's Case, In Reference to the Amendments in Wales.
PHilip late Earl of Pembroke, the Brother of the now Earl, having married the Dutchess of Portsmouth's Sister, in pursuance of an Agreement made by him, in Order to that Marriage, for settling a Jointure on her, in case she survived him, did by Demise and Redemise settle the yearly Rent of 1500 l. per annum, issuing out of all his Mannors and Lands in Glamorganshire; and in order to make that a good Security to her, he having only in those Mannors and Lands an Estate tail-male, with a Remainder in tail-male to the now Earl, did in the Year 1675, levy a Fine, and suffer two Recoveries of all the said Man∣nors and Lands, but declared no Use of the Freehold and Inheritance thereof, there being no Agreement for settling of any Estate on any Issue, Male or Female, on that Marriage. After the suffering of which said Recoveries, the said Earl Philip died without Issue-Male of his Body, having only one Daughter, the Lady Charlott Herbert, now Wife to the Lord Jefferye; after whose Death the now Earl of Pembroke being in∣formed that there were several gross Errors in the said Fine and Recoveries, did bring several Writs of Error to reverse them, but could procure no Return to be made on the said Writs of Error, till after the late Lord Chancellor Jefferye had concluded the said Marriage of his Son; and two Persons were sent down by the said late Lord Chancellor to procure Amendments to be made in the said Fine and Recoveries; and then the Re∣cords and Writs were returned in the Court of King's-Bench, as they were amended; some of which Amend∣ments being illegal, and not warranted by Law, and being procured by Power and Practice, the Effect of the said now Earl's Bill is to set aside the said Amendments.
The Amendments that the now Earl i••sists on to be made contrary to Law, is in altering of the Date of the Writ of Covenant, which was dated the 1st of April, in 27 Car. 2. which was altered and dated the 3d of November before, which they did to make it precede the Dedimus, for taking that Fine which was dated that 5th of November; which being an Amendment of an Original Writ, is not warranted by the Common Law, or any Statute, and was so declared by the Judges, whilst this Bill was depending in the House of Peers; and that the Judg of the Grand Sessions could not by Law make any such Amendment.
The other Error insisted upon by the said Earl, is, That Earl Philip being not in Person in Wales at the time of suffering the Recovery, a Commission, stiled a Dedimus, issued to several Commissioners named in that Commission, impowering three or two of them to take the Earl's, naming his Attorney to appear for him, as Vouchee in the said Recovery, which was executed by Herbert Salladin, and Francis Negus; where∣as Herbert Salladin was no Commissioner named in that Commission, and so was executed but by one of the Commissioners therein named, and therefore void. To supply which gross Error, the Judg of the Grand Sessi∣ons ordered a new Dedimus to be made, and put Herbert Salladin's Name into it, on pretence that the former Dedimus was lost; and that Herbert Salladin was therein named one of the Commissioners for taking the said Warrant of Attorney; which Pretence none of the Lord Jefferye's Witnesses, being examined at the Lords Bar, could make out or prove that Herbert Salladin's Name was ever in such Commission.
And the now Earl insists on it, that his Name was not in any such Commission for these Reasons:
First; That in the Entry of the said Commission on the Roll on Record, neither the Christian Name nor Sirname of Herbert Salladin is mentioned.
Secondly; That the Name of Herbert Salladin in the Commission for taking the Fine, is written on a Ra∣zure; and 'tis very probable it was so put into that Commission after the Sealing of it; the Lord Jefferye's Wit∣ness who made out the Commission, being examined to that Matter at the Bar of the Lords, said, he could not tell that it was put in before the Sealing thereof.
Thirdly; That when the now Earl sent for Copies of the Records and Proceedings, in order to bring his Writs of Error, Mr. Hughes, the Officer who kept the Records in the Grand Sessions, did in examining the Copies of the Records, after they were writ, refuse the now Earl's Agent to peruse the Dedimus, and did read to him the Dedimus for taking the Fine, instead of the Dedimus for taking the Warrant of Attorney for the Recovery.
That the Deputy Prothonory, who had the Custody of the said Records being then Agent for the Lady Pembroke, did in the Year 1688, before the said Amendments were made, offer one Anthony Phillpott one hundred Guinea's, if he would acknowledg he had seen the said Dedimus for taking the said Warrant of At∣torney, and that the Name Herbert Salladin was therein written as a Commissioner.
All which the now Earl thinks are plain Proofs that Herbert Salladin was never therein named a Commissioner; and that the Commission is purposely imbezzl'd and conceal'd, that the Truth might not appear; that there might be a Pretence for making a new one under Co∣lour that the former Commission was right and casually lost.
In the ingrossed Bill there is a Proviso to make the said Mannors and Lands, in case the said Fine and Re∣coveries should be revers'd, liable to such Debts of the said Earl Phillip, as the said Mannors and Lands would have been subject unto, if the said Fine and Recoveries had stood good, and not been revers'd. And also that in case the other Mannors and Lands descended and come to the Lady Charlotte, Wife of the now Lord Jefferyes, should not be of the Value of 10000 l. to be sold, being her Mother's Portion, to make those Mannors and Lands, of which the said Fine and Recoveries were levied and suffered, liable to the raising of such Part of the 10000 l. as the said other Mannors and Lands shall not amount unto.