The Express.
London, England, 1847-09-09 00:00:00

INFORMATION FOR PRISONERS.

8111,—A most irregular practice is growing up, of
arrestirg for interest, and mot only for interest on all sorts
of debts, but also on the costa, under the assumed power of
the Ist & 2nd V ict., e. 110, sec. 17, which sec ion is as fol-
lows : " And be it enacted that every judgment debt shall
airy interest at the rite of 41. per cent. per annum from
the time of entering up the judgment, or from the time of
the commencement of this act, in cases of judgments then
entered up and not carrying interest, until the same shall be
satisfied ; and such interest may be levied under a writ of
execution on such judgment."
As all this can be done without taking a man's body, and
as personal liberty is not to be abridged without express
words, or the unavoidable consequence of an act of parlia-
ment, these words of the act do netwarrant the issuing writs
of capiu far interest. To " levy" never meant to take
a man yet (except for the Queen); or at any rate,
in its largest construction, must extend only to his
pecuniary and and not his bodily substance ; for,
though it may be settled that • mill in a deed
will carry with it mill-atones, still we know well that •
pound of flesh in • bond will not pass one drop of blood.
Ist, monstrous as it is, some of the writs sow issued run
thus: " Take A. 8., if he shall be found in your bailiwick,
and him safely keep, so that you may have his body before
us at Westminster, immediately after the execution hereof,
to satisfy C. D., as well • oertam debt of 221. 2s. 22., which
the said C. D. lately in our court before us at Westminster
recovered against the said A. B. ; u also 771. 7s. 7d., which
in our same court were awarded to the said C. D. for his da-
mages, which he had sustained as well by reason of detaining
the said debt as for his costs and charges by him about his
snit, in that bk half expended, whereof the said A. B. is con-
victed, as appears to us of record, together with interest upon
the sum of 991. 9s. 9d., at the rate of 4 per cent. per ann.,
from the let day of Sept., A.D. 1846, on which day the
judgment aforesaid was entered up." These writs are usually
endorsed with the word " levy ;" but that does not mend the
wait. Writs of ca. sa. were endorsed " levy " long before the
act passed, and though of itself an irregularity, the practice
being in favour of liberty, it became legal for sheriffs to take
the money in place of the person ; but the filling up the writ
as • ea. s, for interest on costs being a reverse practice, the
frequency of the abuse does not make it law.
The above section is part of • branch of the act which ap-
plies exclusively to remedies against property. This branch
consists of the 13 sections from the 11th to the 23rd, inclu-
sive, and begins with the following preamble :—" And
whereas the existing law is defective in not providing ade-
quate means for enabling judgment creditors to obtain satis-
faction from the 'property of their debtors, and it is exile.
(tient to give judgment creditors more effectual remedies
against the real and personal estate of their debtors than they
ciarunder the existing law." Therefore, there can be no
raisedas to the intention. The act also clearly in-
tended a gentle inducement to refrain from arrests, by giving
this new power to levy for interest on the foil amount of the
judgment; but the flagrant abuse I point out comes and
tarns this inducement to • further encroachment on liberty.
Such abuses, sir, are none the lees abuses because they
creep on undetected, and become by dint of time inveterate
practice too obstinate to be corrected without the trouble of
an action to ascertain the law; and they unseal their own
existence by those circumstances of distress, etsfunes, and
ignorance, which they create. In this way die frellignialiem
which reaches prisoners generally is so imperfect, that awn-
ban of persons taken in execution for the damages and cods
in ejectment have remained and some still remain in custody
many years after the expiration of the one year, which is the
period limited in such cases by the act of 48th Geo. 111., C.
123 ; and vesting orders are now obtained and adhered to
against such prisoners, although they are of no force what-
ever after the party is discharged under this act.
I should proceed to some information for Chancery pri-
soners, which is much required, as to the effect of the general
orders of Bth May, 184.5, in varying Sugden's art, and which,
though they do not vary it to the prejudice of prisoners, are
greatly abused in this respect ; but I fear I have already
made this too long, and only beg to add, that if you do me
the honour to insert it I will communicate further on this
subject in a future letter for your most enterprising and
valuable paper, remaining, W. COBBETT.
Queen's Prison, Bth Sept., 1847.