Evening star., 1943-10-08
Further Discussion Of Word
Used by Supreme Court Crier.

To the Editor Of The Star
Your interesting and recondite edi-
torial of October 5 on "Oyez," the
thrice repeated cry with which the new
l7-year-old crier opened the Supreme
Court, stated that he used that term
according to q custom much older
than the Government of the United
States, or, indeed, that of any other
nation in the world You further
stated that nobody knows exactly how
or when or where the employment of
such expletives started"
You probably were generanzing about
the use of such expletives." but the
impression left that the origin of "oyez
is unknown, needs correction. 1t seems
reasonably certain that the use of
'oyez' by court criers in England could
not have antedated the Norman con-
quest l066), because the origin of the
"expletive' in Anglo-French is well
known.
"Oyez," variant "oyes," comes from
the Anelo-French verb oyer being
the second person plural imperative,
meaning hear ye" oyer is from
Old French "oir" Modern French
OUR in itself very curiously in
flected world. All these descend directly
from the Latin "audre," to hear, from
which also comes audience" The die
tlonaries and law glossaries are in
agreement on this derivation.
The suggestion is that this use of
"oyez' dates from the reign of Henry
VIII, from the creation Of the courts
or commissions of oyer and terminer." :"
a tWo-thirds French, one-third English
term meaning to hear and determine.
Blackstone tells us CIV Comm. 268-e)
that the high court of admiralty had
criminal jurisdiction of all crimes and
oftenses committed either upon the sea,
or on the coasts, out of the body or
extent OF any English county, and, by
statute Is Richard II, c. 3, "of death
and mayhem happening in great ships
being and hovering in the main stream
OF great rivers, below the bridges of the
same rivers, which are then a sort of
ports or havens; such as are the ports Of
AJoiltoii anu NlOuSCSIel, tllOuSH Jley lie
at a great distance from the sea-
But Blackstone continues, "as this
court proceeded without jury, in meth
Cd much conformed to the civil law, the
exercise of criminal jurisdiction there
was contrary to the genius of the law
of England: inasmuch as a man might
be there deprived of his life by the opin-
ion of single judge, without the judg-
ment of his peers. And, besides, as in
nocent persons might thus fall sacri-
flee to the caprice of single man, so
very gross offenders might, and did fire.
quently, escape punishment: for the rule
of the civil law is, how reasonably
shall not at present inquire, that no
judgment of death can be given against
offenders, without proof by two witnesses,
or confession of the fact by themselves
This was always great offence to the
English nation: and therefore in the
eighth year of Henry vi it was endeav-
ored to apply remedy in Parliament:
Which then miscarried for want of the
royal assent. However, by the statute %
Henry VIII, c. Is, it was enacted that
these offenses should be tried by COM
missioners of oyer and terminer, under
the Kings great seal - ="
He then points out that the trial of
these Offences" before the commissioners
of "oyer and tsrminer" embodied the