said, had no reasonable or probable cause whatsoever, to suspect or imagine that the said B. R. was the father of such child, but on the contrary thereof, the said A. B. was then and there informed by the said A. U. that he the said A. B. was the father of such child, of which she the said A. U. was so pregnant as aforesaid; and whereas in truth and in fact, she the said A. U. never told or informed him the said A. B. that the said B. R. was the father of such child; and whereas in truth and in fact, he the said A. B. so wickedly and unlawfully endeavoured to persuade, solicit, and instigate the said A. U. to swear as aforesaid, in order that he the said A. B. might be exonerated, freed, and discharged from divers expenses which might accrue to him, as being the father of such child, after the same should be born of the body of her the said A. U. against the peace of our said lord the king, his crown and dignity. [quære if the conclusion of the preceding precedent is not more correct.]

That heretofore, to wit, at the session of oyer and terminer of our lord the king, holden at K. in the county of S. on, &c. before Sir R. F. knight, one of the justices of his majesty's court of king's bench, and Sir W. C. knight, then one of, &c. then justices of our said lord the king, assigned, &c. [set out commission of oyer and terminer as in last vol.] by the oath of H. V. esquire, &c. [the names of the grand jury,] good and lawful men of the county aforesaid, then and there sworn and charged to enquire for our said lord the king, for the body of the county aforesaid, it was presented in manner and form following, to wit, [here set out the indictment.] Wherefore the sheriff of the county aforesaid, was commanded not to omit, for any liberty in his bailiwick, but to take the said C. D. to answer the premises, which said indictment* the above named justices of our said lord the king, afterwards, to wit, at the delivery of the gaol of our said lord the king, holden for the said county of on the said, &c. before the aforesaid Sir R. E. knight, Sir W. C. knight, and others, their associates, then justices of our said lord the king, assigned to deliver his said gaol of the prisoners therein, &c.; and afterwards, at the same delivery of the said gaol of our said lord the king, held for the county aforesaid, at, &c. aforesaid, in the said county, on the said, &c. before the said justices of our said lord the king, and other their associates aforesaid, came the said C. D. in the custody of T. C. esquire, sheriff of the county aforesaid, in whose custody in the said gaol for the cause aforesaid, he had been before committed, being brought to the bar here in his proper person, who was committed to the said sheriff, and forthwith concerning the premises in the said indictment above specified and charged on him as above, being asked in what

(u) See 4 Wentw. 250. and law, ante 317, 8.

manner he would be tried, the said J. G. said he was not guilty thereof, and concerning which, for good and ill, he did put himself upon his country, upon which said issue; such proceedings were had, that afterwards, to wit, on the said delivery of the said gaol of our said lord the king, so held as aforesaid, a certain trial was held by a jury of the said county, taken between our said lord the king, and the said C. D. as by the record thereof doth more fully appear, upon which said trial evidence was given on behalf of our said lord the king, that the felony and robbery in the said indictment above specified, was committed by the said C. D. about half an hour after six in the afternoon, on the fourth day of June, in the eighth year, &c. And the jurors, &c. now here sworn and charged to enquire for our said lord the king, for the body of the said county of

-, upon their oath aforesaid, do further present, that A. B. late of, &c. being a person of wicked and evil mind and disposition, and devising and intending as much as in him lay, to prevent the due course of law and justice, and to cause and procure the said C. D. to be entirely acquitted of the said felony and robbery charged on him, and by the said indictment to escape unpunished for the same, did before the said trial, to wit, on, &c. at, &c. unlawfully, and wickedly solicit, incite, and endeavour to persuade one E. F. to appear as a witness on the said trial so as aforesaid had, for and on the behalf of the said C. D. and on the said trial falsely to depose, say, and give in evidence upon his oath, to the jury of the county aforesaid, that the said C. D. carried a suit of clothes on the fourth day of June last, (meaning the fourth day of June, in the eighth year, &c. the day on which the said felony and robbery in the said indictment above specified, were proved as aforesaid to have been committed) to the said C. D. at his lodgings (meaning the [*480] lodgings of him the said C. D.) at the Queen's Head, in the Ship yard (meaning ship yard, in the county last aforesaid) between four and five (meaning, &c.) in the afternoon of the same day, and that he the said E. F. staid there an hour, and that the said C. D. was then sick, and did not buy his clothes, whereas in truth and in fact, the said E. F. did not go to the said C. D. on the fourth day of June, in the year last above mentioned, at any time in the same day, at the Queen's Head, in S. yard, aforesaid, or at any other place whatsoever, on any account whatsoever, and whereas in truth and in fact, at the time when the said A. B. did so solicit, incite, and endeavour to persuade the said E. F. to give such evidence upon his oath as aforesaid, he the said A. B. well knew that he the said E. F. would not give his evidence according to the truth, and that the same evidence so to be given, was false, feigned, and altogether fictitious, to the evil example, &c. and against the peace, &c.

For endea

vouring to persuade a

woman to com

nocent per

son. (x)

[*481]

INDICTMENTS FOR ATTEMPTS TO SUBORN
TO COMMIT PERJURY.

That before and at the time of the committing of the offence herein after next mentioned, that is to say, on, &c. one E. F. late of, &c. was pregnant of a certain child before then bemit perjury in gotten on the body of her the said E. F. by A. B. late of, &c. swearing a and that the said child then was likely to be born a bastard, child to an in- and to be chargeable to the said parish of, &c. to wit, at, &c. aforesaid. And the jurors, &c. do further present, that the said A. B. being a person of an evil and wicked mind and disposition, and not having, &c. but being moved and seduced, &c. and wickedly and maliciously contriving, devising, and intending not only to exonerate himself from being the reputed father of the said child, and from the trouble, charges and expenses of his monies that might arise and ensue therefrom, but to deprive C. D. late of, &c. of his good name, fame, credit, and reputation, and to put him to great trouble and expense of his monies, and also to cause the said C. D. to be falsely charged with getting the said E. F. with child, and with being the father of the said child with which the said E. F. was then and there so pregnant as aforesaid, did on the said, &c. at, &c. aforesaid, unlawfully and maliciously solicit, incite, and endeavour to persuade the said A. B. to go, and did then and there promise to give her the said A. B. the sum of five pounds of lawful money, &c. if she would go before some justice of our said lord the king assigned to keep the peace of our said lord the king, in and for the said county of Essex, and before such justice, falsely, wickedly, and corruptly say and depose, and swear and make oath, that the said C. D. was the father of the said child with which the said E. F. was so pregnant as aforesaid; whereas in truth and in fact, the said A. B. at the time of his so soliciting, inciting, and endeavouring to incite the said E. F. corruptly and falsely to swear as aforesaid, well knew that the said C. D. was not the father of the said child with which the said M. M. was so then pregnant as aforesaid. And so the jurors, &c. do say, that the said A. B. on the said, &c. at, &c. aforesaid, did unlawfully, wickedly, and maliciously solicit, incite, and endeavour to persuade the said E. F. corruptly and falsely to commit wilful and corrupt perjury, as aforesaid, to the great damage of the said C. D. to the great

(x) The attempt to persuade a witness to swear falsely is a misdemeanour at common law, though ineffectual, Hawk. b. 2. c. 69. s. 10. 2 East, 17. 6 East, 474. See the three

following precedents, and Trem. P. C. 82. And see indictment for dissuading a witness from giving evidence, ante, 235. and indictments for subornation, ante 475, 477.

displeasure, &c. in contempt, &c. to the evil example, &c. and against the peace, &c.

That A. B. late of, &c. being a wicked and evil-disposed person, and minding and intending great injury to one C. D. of, &c. a good and valuable subject of our said lord the king, and unjustly to cause and procure him to be put to great charges and expense of his monies, and to give security for the maintenance of a child, of which one E. F. spinster was on, &c. pregnant, and which by the laws of this realm was likely to become a bastard, did on the same, &c. aforesaid, at, &c. aforesaid, unlawfully and wickedly solicit, instigate, persuade, and procure the said E. F. to go before one of the justices of our said lord the king assigned, &c. [as ante, 182.] and that she the said E. F. in consequence of such solicitation, instigation, persuasion, and procurement, did go in her own proper person before G. H. one of the justices of our said lord the king assigned, &c. [state the filiation as ante 438, 9] whereas in truth and in fact, he the said A. B. at the time when he so endeavoured to persuade, solicit, and instigate the said E. F. to make oath and swear as aforesaid, then and there well knew that the said C. D. would be put to great charges and expense of his monies, if she the said E. F. would swear as aforesaid; and whereas in truth and in fact, he the said A. B. at the said time when he so endeavoured to* persuade, solicit, and instigate the said E. F. to make oath and swear as aforesaid, had no reasonable or probable cause whatsoever to suspect or imagine that the said C. D. was the father of such child, but on the contrary thereof, the said A. B. was then and there informed by the said E. F. that he the said A. B. was the father of such child, of which she the said E. F. was so pregnant as aforesaid; and whereas in truth and in fact, she the said E. F. never told or informed him the said A. B. that the said C. D. was the father of such child; and whereas in truth and in fact, he the said A. B. so wickedly and unlawfully endeavoured to persuade, solicit, and instigate the said E. F. to swear as aforesaid, in order that he the said A. B. might be exonerated, freed, and discharged from divers expenses which might accrue to him as being the father of such child, after the same should be born of the body of her the said E. F. in contempt, &c. to the evil and pernicious example, &c. and against the peace, &c.

Shropshire. The jurors for our lord the king upon their oath present, that at the assizes, &c. [here state the caption of the assizes holden at Shrewsbury, as ante 366 or 368 and that there was an issue between A. B. and C. D.] And the jurors

The like in

another

form. (y)

[*482]

For endeavouring to suborn a person to give evidence on a

trial at the assizes. (z)

[*483]

For endcavouring to

suborn a bailiff to swear a res

aforesaid, now here sworn on their oath aforesaid, do further present, that before the trial of the said issue, and during the time the same was depending, to wit, on, &c. A. B. late of, &c. not having, &c. but being moved and seduced, &c. and wickedly contriving and intending as much as in him lay, to prevent justice and pervert the due course of law, and minding and intending unjustly to aggrieve the said C. D. the defendant above named, and wickedly to cause and procure the said C. D. to be convicted of the premises alleged against him in the said issue, and thereby to subject him to the payment of great sums of money for damages and costs, to be recovered against him in the suit then in question between him and the said A. B. as aforesaid, then and there, to wit, on the same day and year last aforesaid, at, &c. aforesaid, did unlawfully and wickedly solicit, instigate, and as much as in her lay endeavour to persuade one E. F. spinster, to be and appear as a witness, on the part and behalf of the said A. B. the plaintiff aforesaid, at the trial of the said issue so as aforesaid joined, and upon the same trial, falsely to swear and give in evidence to and before the jurors of the said jury so sworn and taken between the said parties to try the said issue as aforesaid, of and concerning the premises alleged by the said A. B. against him the said C. D. in the said issue, in substance and effect following, that is to say, that the face of the said A. B. was blue after the blow,* (meaning a supposed blow) alleged in the declaration of the said A. B. contained in the said issue to have been given and struck by the said C. D. the defendant aforesaid, in and upon him the said A. B. Whereas in truth and in fact, the face of the said A. B. was not blue nor any ways changed in colour by reason of any blow he had received from the said C. D., nor did he the said C. D. ever assault the said A. B. or give him the said A. B. any blow so as to cause the face of the said A. B. thereby to become blue or any ways changed in colour; but in truth and in fact, the said A. B. at the time she so solicited, instigated and endeavoured to persuade the said E. F. to swear and give in evidence as is aforesaid, had caused the face of him the said A. B. to be stained with ink, to wit, at, &c. aforesaid, and he the said A. B. did thereupon then and there tell the said E. F. that he the said E. F. might safely swear the face of the said A. B. was blue after the blow, in contempt, &c. in manifest subversion of justice, to the evil and pernicious example of all others, &c. and against the peace of our said lord the king, his crown, and dignity.

That J. D. late of, &c. being a wicked and evil disposed person, not having the fear of God before his eyes, but being moved and seduced by the instigation of the devil, and concue in a mat- triving and falsely, wickedly, and maliciously intending by unter depending lawful ways and means one C. D. of his monies to deceive