7 
 
 THE 
 
 R E P L Y 
 
 TO 
 
 Some Reflexions 
 
 OH 
 
 ASGILL’s Elky,(^. 
 
REPLY 
 
 TO 
 
 Some Reflexions 
 ESSAY 
 
 ON A 
 
 Regiftry, 
 
 FOR 
 
 Titles of Lands. 
 
 IFay of a Letter to the Author 
 j of the Reflexions. 
 
 LONDON, 
 
 printed for at his 
 
 Printing-Hoafe behind Sr. Chriflofher’s 
 Chmh^ in Thread-needle-ftreet, the back* 
 fide of the £A-c/)<t»^e. 1599. j 
 

 ■ THE • 
 
 R EP I^Y 
 
 TO 
 
 Some Reflections, &c: : 
 
 I F I may be intrufted to make an 
 AbftraQ: of my own Effay, it is 
 To Ajfert and Prove, 
 i» That Free-hold Lands in 
 England may be incumbered in divers 
 manners, and in divers places, which 
 renders the Titles thereunto incertain, 
 and therefore is a Deficiency in the 
 Law. 
 
 2. That the Conveyances by Leale 
 and Releafe, lately invented upon the 
 Statute of IKes, being Clandeftine Con¬ 
 veyances, and now become the com¬ 
 mon 
 
to . , 
 
 lAon Conveyances oj the Kingdom, 
 ddih occafton^Neceffity of a Regiftry 
 
 toVrevedt them. 
 
 And Page ii. I have Challenged 
 the Inns of Court to .(hew, That either 
 the Common Law, or Parlifments o/Eng¬ 
 land, eiMr dirmed any Incmfrances to 
 affeli LMi Ut by folemn Livery and 
 Mm, or Matter of. Record, and that 
 therefore thefe Clandejline Conveyances are 
 crept in^ contrary to the true Intent and 
 Meaning of Parliaments, and all the avow'^ 
 ed Laws and Ctifioms of the Kjngdom. 
 
 And this ( i know; it was, that 
 gave you Confidence to fingle your 
 I’elf out, as the Goliah of the Law, to 
 anfwer me : In which ( Bully-like) 
 you Lugg out with a Threat in your 
 Mouth. Promifing, 
 
 i. To my Jrguments are 
 
 advanced on Suppofitions and Opinions 
 in the Ut>, tphkh are in thenijelves 
 either fatfe or miftakm, or at kaftvd’’ 
 ry broken and imperfebl. 
 
 1, HowW they may be juft in 
 
 tJmJelyeS) 
 
*^ 5 ] . 
 
 thmJeheSj they conclude nothing to the 
 pur^ofcy viz. the ^eceffuy of a (^e- 
 
 Pflry- 
 
 And to Charge me with Fallliood 
 in the Matter of my Challenge, you 
 
 %» 
 
 Page 12. that Lands ti>m others 
 pife to he incumbered than by yvery 
 and Seifin, or matter on ^cord : And 
 for this you inftance, 
 
 1. iBy 4 Leafe for Tears. 
 
 1. A l^eyife by Will. 
 
 Grant of a ^ent Charge. 
 
 4. A to a T)ij[ei;^r. 
 
 5. A Surrender. 
 
 ' For Reply to which, in affirm¬ 
 ance of my EJfa^, I fay, 
 
 I. That to,a Leafe for Years at Com¬ 
 mon Law, the Transferr of the Pof- 
 feffion by Entry was Neceffary to per- 
 feO: the Conveyance, fo as to make 
 the Leflee carable of taking a Releafe, 
 which is direaly contrary to a Bargain 
 and 
 
»nd Sale for Years by the Statute, of 
 which I have Complained, as being 
 perfectly executed to this intent with¬ 
 out any Entry. 
 
 2. That to a Grant of a Rent there mull 
 be an Attornment, which is theSdfiri of 
 the Rent, and all the PolTeflion that a Rent 
 is capable of, and by this the Teuant 
 hath the ffne Notice to know to whom 
 to pay his Rent, as he hath by a Fepf- 
 ment of the Land. Tho’ I Confels, 
 that in both thefe Caib of a Leafe for 
 Years, and Grant of a Rent, the Deeds 
 themfeives, without any Entry, ar^ the 
 initiating of a Title, lb asj:p give the 
 Grantees a Right to have their Title 
 perfefted; for the Leffee by . Virtue of 
 his Leafe ni^iy enfor, and the Grantee 
 of the Rent may Compel an Attorn¬ 
 ment; and fb may 'a Man by Articles 
 and a Suit in Chancery compel the | 
 making of a Deed: But ’till thefe things 
 be done, the Title is not perfefl. But 
 indeed in your Difeourfe of the Na¬ 
 ture of a Bargain and Sale, before the 
 Statute,, you leem to value g Title to I 
 Suit in Chancery, 3 S tnucH as a. Title 
 
j. As to a Releafe to a Dlffelzof* 
 There is an aftual Transfer of the Pot 
 feflion by Entry, before the Releafe 
 can opetare, and the Entry is as an Ef- 
 fential Part of the Conveyance as the 
 Releafe; for they both make but one 
 Conveyance. 
 
 Ahd becaufe I Obfervei that where* 
 as 1 have in my Effay afed thele Weirds* 
 Livery and Seifin, and fome ocher Words, 
 as Records, Titles, Notices, &c, in their 
 large fenfe, according to common intent, 
 you wou’d take Advantage of me, by 
 Commenting upon thetil, according to 
 their Arid Sigriification in Tet-nas of 
 Law. rie endeavour to explain this 
 Controverfie about Livery and Set fin. 
 
 When a Deed is made firft, and 
 the Poffeflionis taken afterwards, this 
 the Lawyers call a Feofrnent. 
 
 And when the Poffeflion is taken 
 firft, and the Deed made aftervVards, 
 this they call a Rekaft. 
 
 l^ow becaufe I won’t contradid the 
 lawyers in their Terms of Art, I nei¬ 
 ther did rier do fay; that both thele 
 are Teofriients, Or that both of theirt 
 Ire <Releafes. But I did and do 
 
E 1 
 
 tViac according to common Senfe, they 
 hXhrrame fort of Conveyan^ 
 cS ^and are both executed by Livery 
 J r.n hpcaufe there is an aaual 
 ant»le Transfer of the Poffeffion, 
 i,Hheoneas welUs the other; with- 
 
 For the Law hates to do any thing| 
 ,wiceby Circu«yof Ata. 
 
 Min. is in Cuftody of the Sheritt oy 
 anyone Writ executed 
 . is in his Cuftody oPf 
 • then delivered, or otherwife the She 
 riff rauft let him go as faft as he takes 
 
 him, in order to take him again. And 
 
 Sea. 460. , faith, 
 
 Ter.ms^of Art, than-,:ihe Rcafon ^ 
 
[ 7 ] 
 
 iflg Bufinefs, you would not Vaunt fo 
 much of your Vi^ory ov^r me in this 
 Pointr 
 
 4. As to a Surrender, I fay, that 
 a Surrender is" hot an Incumlirance tin 
 Landj but a Djfcharg^ of an Incutn- 
 brance ; and whftt I have Taid in my' 
 ElTay, is of the Miriher of creating In¬ 
 cumbrances, and- hot 0^ difchargmg 
 them. For a Judgment, whi'cfr iS ad 
 Incumbrance upon Record, niay 'H^7'(fiF 
 charged by a Releaie whieh i^ not re-" 
 corded, and fo. feveral other^'Rights 
 may he, releafed ^vithout Livery^or 
 Record*,, and therefore, you might as' 
 well have inftanced in any of them as 
 in a Surrender.. 
 
 '..9. As to a Deyife by Will, I fay^ 
 That tho^ the Makers of the Law, ja H. 
 8. by which Lands are devileable, d|d 
 not thereby particularly direO: fuch De- 
 vifes to be regiftred, yet they knew 
 that long before the making, th^t Sta,> 
 lute. Wills were ufually. jegiftred, 
 whereby all the Devifes therein might 
 .appear. And as to what you fay, 
 7hat 'Lands king hy the Cttfiom of fe- 
 md\Bomghs, %vifedk kfnre tk rm- 
 
this ^tme, ii 4 fufficmt Mvper ta 
 lhm [4 of the Cuftomofthehnt 
 iomto the contrary t is (by your leave,) 
 taking a Point of Law without asking: 
 For the Cufomofthe IQn^domAs the Cow- 
 m» Law oiEngland, but the Guftotn 
 of an Hundred particular Boroughs is 
 
 obt, and therefore nothing that you lay 
 
 of thei^i, can be at\ Anfwer to wfiat 
 ifayofthat. ... 
 
 I thinKthefe-are all the Opinions in 
 taw, in-which yon would feem to 
 charge me withFallhood. ' 
 
 Now follow you in your next 
 Task, which is to Ihew niy Notions 
 ■ miftakcn, broken and icnperfett* 
 
 Page fou /ly, I have not eiw- 
 
 nmted all the hy wM Lafids 
 
 my kmMnkred. 'f \ 
 
 Reply. Truly Sir, nor you neither, 
 and (Iho’Tbwn you much more Law 
 •and Memory than I have) Tie give 
 you’till the Publication of yOur next 
 Refieaions, to make an Inventory of 
 theie incumbrances j for there’s as'ma- 
 
[?] 
 
 py feveral ways of incumbring Lands, 
 as there are feveral fpecies of Profits 
 belonging to them, as Herbage, Pan-, 
 page and Eftpvers above Ground, and 
 Mines under,, all which may be par- 
 ticularly granted, and every fuch Grant 
 is an Incumbrance : However, I thank 
 you, for ftrengthnlng nny Argument: 
 For if the multiplied ways of Incum¬ 
 brances, are the caufe of the incertainty 
 of Titles, the more way? the more in- 
 pertain. 
 
 Page 5. Tom fay, my word In¬ 
 cumbrance ■ doth mt cotHpi^elmd ■ Con^, 
 yeyances of Land. 
 
 ■ ..Refly. For this, Tie put you a Cafe^ 
 (which when you have anf\\’ered, I’le 
 anfww the' two you have put me ') 
 ‘^. conveys his Land to B. and then 
 makes a Deed ,of^it to C. apd Cove' 
 hants with C. that he hath pot indum- 
 ber’d it; ^ery. Whether the Convey, 
 ance to B. be a Breach of the Cove¬ 
 nant with C ? But I find this Word 
 Imumkam is unlucky to Regiftries. 
 
 'Major 
 
Major Gen. Ludlow in his Memoirs' 
 takes Notice, That upon a Bill for a 
 Regiftry then brought into the HoUfc' 
 oiCammoftSf the Lawyers kept them 
 three Months upon the Word Ineum- 
 trances. I retnernber indeed ( amongft 
 the School-Boys) we had a nice Di- 
 ftirtdion in Miagick, between* ( two 
 CompcHinds tjf ) Incuhus and Sue- 
 eukri both which we had learnt to 
 be tht Pofleflioh of the ‘-Devil: feut 
 Incuks (it feems) is the Devil With¬ 
 in a Man; and Succuks the Devil ly¬ 
 ing upon: him ; which the Coiiiitry 
 People call a 
 
 Page 7. Toil e^^ofe my Ignorance 
 0/ the and O^ration of a Bar¬ 
 gain 'and ‘ Sale before the Statide.-' 
 
 ‘Refl)f, To. this I can only fay, that 
 I never faw^any Author fo much Con- 
 tra^ift himfelf in font Pages, as you 
 have done to this J^oittt in your 'Jth, 
 hhjgthfk loth, or/ elfe I cg^n’t under- 
 ftand them/ I otyn 'C indeed ) that 
 (for Contradi 3 ;ion-ifak’e I fuppofe) you 
 
C*^3 
 
 liave flatly denyed my Affertiorjin three 
 words: But coming to argue upon ir, 
 you have Confeffed all I have faid. 
 Like Felons who plead Not Guilty ( for 
 Form-fake )'tho’ they know the EvF 
 dence will be againft them. 
 
 . Page xu ToH ^j^me me for fay¬ 
 ing, that the. 'Deyke of Conyeyancing 
 hy Leafe and %e!eafe, is an ^Ahufe of 
 the Statute of Hies ; Whereas, fay you, 
 the Statute hath (mtwlthflandmg ) its 
 full Operation. 
 
 Reply, So fay I, and more too; for 
 the Parliament have given an Inch, and 
 the Lawyers have taken an Ell; and 
 I always underftood too much ufe of 
 any thing to be an abule of it. 
 
 Page 15. low Correct yne again,' 
 for frying that the Statute for hiroll-‘ 
 nients is Eluded 5 mhereas (fay yon ) 
 page i y. ’tis only Avoided. 
 
 Reply. For this faying, Sir, and this 
 only, 
 
C'O 
 
 fitily, I heartily begg your Pardon; and 
 Knock under Table. 
 
 Page t y. To« fetch nie ahout Agm^ 
 for faying that this Statute w aVojdei 
 by the Lea[e ad (^eledJSj (fijl 
 
 you) the firjl Avoidance u>as by the CoVe^ 
 nantto.fund jei7ei^ and that the Leaje 
 and ^leaje was [vice invented, iafiead 
 of the Covenant to jland feiT^d. 
 
 Re^ly. But 5 ir, they fay in our Coun¬ 
 try, That the Receiver is as bad ad 
 the Thief, ^nd the Truth is, (as you 
 fay ) that becaufe the Lawyers found, 
 that this Covenant to ftand feized 
 would nor do all manner of Bufinefsj 
 they invented the Leafe and Relcafe, 
 which hath done it cfFe6tually. 
 
 ©Mf then you fay, It had been more 
 proper for me, to have infianced in this 
 Covenant to jland feized, which was the 
 firfl Evafion of the Statute, and is now 
 out of ufe} than in the Leafe and 
 
[ '3 2 
 
 /w/e, tfhicJ? ms Inyeiitcd aftcrwiudsf 
 and is mw in up. 
 
 Reply. By this, I perceive, if you 
 were to Lampoon the Fafhions, you 
 would fail foul upon Ruffs- and high 
 Collars, fllort Boots and long Spurs^ 
 and lec the Fopperies of the prefent 
 Age go free. 
 
 Page: 28. You ptd fault v>ith tn^ 
 definitton of Title, as Jifferent from tnj 
 Lord Coke’j. 
 
 Reply. Now only to (how how Cap¬ 
 tions you are, (for this fignifies nothing 
 to bur piirpole) my Definition is, That 
 to make A Tttle, is to take the Property 
 of a thirsg frornone Many a»d pat it into 
 another', and Lord G/’e’s is, litidnsep 
 ui(Ia cAiifapo^deitdi qnod noftrum efi, viz.. 
 [he meant whereby a Matt comes to Land. 
 And pray Sir, can any Man have a bet¬ 
 ter means to come to Land, than by a 
 Conveyance from him that had it be¬ 
 fore?. 
 
Ch] 
 
 page 28. Jn the Jme you m* 
 tradB ?«e, for joying that feme ]S[o~ 
 tice is necejfary to all'Title, whereas fay 
 you, hy a Gift of Goods they are yefted 
 without ISfotice to the Donee, and jo¬ 
 ts the Duty upon a Dond tvithout No¬ 
 tice to the Ohligce. 
 
 Reply. Very good. But fuppofe the 
 Donor or Obligor deny the Execution 
 or' the Deed, muft there not be iome 
 Witnefs to prove it ? and this is what 
 I have faid, that there ought to be 
 Notice to other Perfons befides the 
 Parties, to evidence the Deed, leaft the 
 Seller deny it. 
 
 And now Sir, I thank you for giv¬ 
 ing me my from any more 
 
 of your Animadverfions upon my falfe 
 er raiftaken Notions in the Law. But, 
 
C-M 
 
 would pi’ove hy Lo^kk Por^ fciy you^ 
 if Conyeyancjs hy Leafi or %ekaje he 
 the only grievances in the incertain' 
 ty of Titlesy and that thefe were made 
 hy Elufton of the Statute for In* 
 rollments i therefore ifa froVifion were 
 made for inrolling all ^srgains .and 
 Salesj M well fir Im dS 
 . it Vfould remedy the Mtfchief without 
 regiftring all. 
 
 Reply. By this you would confine my 
 Argument to make good your own: 
 For tho’ I lay the blame more parti¬ 
 cularly upon Leafes and Reiea(es,(as be- 
 ing moft us’d) I don’t by that quit 
 my other Arguments, or fay there is 
 no other Mifchief; Nor will any Inroll- 
 ment remedy the Mifehiefs, without 
 giving a preference to Deeds fo in- 
 rolled, to Deeds not inroiled, which 
 is all the Regiftry offered ; And whe- 
 tlier it be called Regiftry or Inrollment, 
 doth not alter the Cafe. 
 
 But pray Sir, by the way, give me 
 C 2 leave 
 
r 'O 
 
 leave to intrude a little upon your 
 .Trade bf Reflefiions, for I dare lay, tio 
 one that Tias read them', but thinks 
 either that you are concerned in fome 
 Office, or Fees for inrollments, or write 
 for fbme one elfe that is. And for 
 what you hint againft new Officers and 
 liew Fees, I only fay, that I can make' 
 no Comparifbn between old and new 
 Officers, unlefs I, know their Names., 
 But for Fees, Pie undertake, that Deeds 
 may be regiftred for half the Money 
 they are now inioUed ; not that I am 
 underbidding you, but I bbferve you 
 are concerned fOr the'Subject. 
 
 Pag. 48. XoH tell tiSj )'0M have gone 
 through the two ^Branches of your De* 
 fign\ with what Juccef the IVorid may 
 judge. 
 
 Reply. Yes! very great! opus 
 
 c-xegt. Welcome to the Butts Gentle¬ 
 men. And now you are at leilure to 
 t)ivert your Pelf with me. And to 
 begin, 
 
 3 28. 
 
C>7 3 
 
 page i8. Jou dre pleafed to mentis 
 on nvo con fiderable parts of my Effay 
 to he Wit and Malice. 
 
 Reply. To this I can’t return you a 
 lefs Complement than, That your R5- 
 Scciions feem to be written wjth as 
 much Wit, and as little Malice as you 
 could. ' ' . 
 
 page 48. Xou fay the Clergy thhik 
 their bejt Anfwer to me, is a ftlent 
 Scorn and Contempt. 
 
 Reply. Why then ( I fay that for 
 ’em ) they have more Command of 
 their PafTion than you have. 
 
 page 41. You fayj 1 might 
 cjuoted (precedents more to my purpofe, 
 than out of the Old and New 7 eJ}a» 
 ment. 
 
 Reply. By this I Conjecture, thefc 
 1 are the two lafl: places you ever look 
 I for any thing in. ' 
 
 Page 49. 
 
Reply. Why this may be ! and yet 
 Sermon was never the worfe, 
 nor Felix ever the wifer for trembling 
 at it: They who never think* of thefe 
 things by ;themfelves, are fubjed to 
 fuch when they hear them 
 
 from others. 
 
 Hi fu»t pi mpknt & ad omnk 
 fulgura pdlent. 
 
 page 50. "iav, muld he Wy fe^ 
 vere on thofe words in my ^reface^ I 
 Hope I Have fucK a Warrant to 
 fearch for Truth, that will juftifie 
 me in breaking through all Crafts 
 and Sciences to find it; as Hun¬ 
 ger juftified ^ayidind hisMeti,f6r 
 entring the PrielVs Houfe, and eat- 
 
E'? 3 
 
 ng the Shew-Bread : Becaufe ( fav 
 )ou ) David was a and 
 haye frero^ativesj and therefore might 
 k juflifysd in that which ( perhaps ) 
 might intitle a Man of Mr. Afgilh. 
 Station to another ^wardj ( Anglice, 
 to he Hangd.) 
 
 Reply. Why then it feeras ’tis but 
 perhaps, and fo you ar.e not pofitive, 
 but have made a Prerogative Cafe oP 
 it, Whether a. Kjn£s breaking a Priefis 
 Houfe be Burglary? As to that, Sir, 
 
 tho’ I don’t Care to ftew my felf a 
 
 Volunteer in Cafes of Prerogative, yet 
 I dare give my Opinion in this Cafe, 
 That if David had had no Men with 
 him, nor any that would have come 
 when he called ’em, the Priefts would 
 have made this aftion Burglary : But 
 his addition of Men ( which I have 
 inferred in my Preface, and you have 
 left out of your Paraphrafe ) is very 
 Material in this Point, f as I humbly 
 conceiveJ and quite alters the Cafe ; 
 Jho’ after all, David was no King 
 
[ 20 , 3 , 
 
 at the time of this Fad committed. 
 
 page 44. Tou fdy I haie mde m 
 proyijion for the J^nomnce and Difyo- 
 jiejij oj th'ofe wh 6 Tranjail Matters in 
 Title. 
 
 Replji. The 'Whole De^n of the Re* 
 giftry is to prevent liifnonefty : But 
 for Core of Ignorance, I hope you 
 don’t exped it from me, whom you 
 have fo often Charged with it ; and 
 that you have Stiled me Gentlmm in 
 one Line, and called ms Impudent in 
 the. next, puts me in Mind of the Ci* 
 vility'of the Coif given by one Serje¬ 
 ant at Law to another, at Siltsburj/^ 
 JdizeSf Brother! you are d Rafcal. 
 
 page 49. ton fay^ 1 fhmld not 
 have Vifclofed the Uyfierks of wj 
 Trade, 
 
 Reply, And yet in page 4. "tou hint, 
 that all I have faidof the Priells and 
 Lawyers, is but a Tranfcrip.t from 
 Lord Coke. ‘ ^ 
 
c^>] 
 
 page 52. Tou fay^ TImt the Tros 
 pofals of%egt(lm^ haVing been Jiill re* 
 jeBed by the iVifdom of our Forefa¬ 
 thers^ is jome Jrgument a^ainjl it. ■ 
 
 Repl)r. There is no more a Species 
 ofaRegiftry, than faith) there 
 
 is of Kings, who in fome Countries 
 are Hereditary, forae Elettive, fome 
 Annual, and fome for Life,, and ail 
 thefe, inveftcd with different Powers. 
 
 I have feen fome Prdpofals for Re- 
 gifl-ries calculated for Rebellion. To 
 burn all the Records, Fore-clofe Men of 
 fheir Rights for Non-claim upon blow¬ 
 ing a Horn, levelling all Titles, and 
 -beginning the World anew. And there¬ 
 fore the Re|e£iion of fuch a Regiftry 
 as this, is ho Argument againft ano¬ 
 ther otherwife calculated. 
 
 And for thofe Gentlemen, who are fo 
 complacent as to declare for a Regiftry 
 ip General, and yet find fault with all 
 thait arepropofed,’riH they fhall pleafe to 
 define the Nature of what they would 
 have, i prefume they muft be thought 
 to be againft all. 
 
 D 
 
C»3 
 
 But as to rejeOiion of Laws by pre¬ 
 cedent Parliaments, we have feveral 
 . Examples of receiving them afterwards, 
 as the taking away the Court of Wards, 
 the Grant of the foie Trade to the 
 h^kSf the Tax upon. Paper, d'r. 
 which laft I efpccially mention, becaufe 
 your old Friend, Fdian Phillij/s^ wri¬ 
 ting againft a Regiftry about fifty years 
 fince, puts the Propofal for that and 
 Statiipt-Paper together, as Badges of 
 Spani/b' Smcryy atid you have refeiri- 
 bled it to Thraldom and bafe Tv^nure, 
 and againft the Freedom of Freehol¬ 
 ders, ( Not to be at liberty to cheat Mea 
 of their Money !) Then, 
 
 In page 4 You pve another 'Po- 
 lltical Hint agmjl a hy iphkh 
 
 I know you mean that old 
 That a ^e^iftry under a Monarchy is dan* 
 verom^ by difeoyerin^ Ejlatcs and Settle* 
 'ments to tk Cro’.vn^ whereby ^ Jq ?n<ike 
 them hahlc to /ittaindcrt. , (, 
 
 Peiily, Why pray, as the Cafe'now 
 ftands; 
 
3 . 
 
 {lands j Suppofe a Man is. attainted of 
 Treafon, {hall not the King have an 
 Office found for his Land, upon Evi' 
 dence only that he received the Protits, 
 ( and I hope a Regiftry don’t furnilh 
 out that Evidence) and this puts the 
 Heirs or Purchal'ers to plead and lliow 
 their Deeds, and lure thofe Deeds 
 would not be lels, but rather more 
 valid ( in this Cafe) for being re* 
 giftred. And yet whoever harh a Mind 
 to keep any Settlement fecret, need not 
 regifter it, for nothing can defeat it 
 but another Deed regifter’d, which 
 can’t be done, but by the Grantor him- 
 felf. 
 
 And as to difco'vering the Monies 
 of Mortgagees, whereby to tax 
 ^em, I Ihould not be forty to fee that 
 effeded any way in eafe of Lands, 
 tho’ they may effedually regifier their 
 Mortgages, without difeovering the 
 Summsfecured. And I believe, there are 
 ■not many Examples of forfeiting Monies 
 at Intereft by Attainders, for Uiurcrsaie 
 generally Old Men or Young Women, 
 who fcldora arc caught in Plots againlt 
 
[m] 
 
 ing eafie in their Fortunes, won’t ven- 
 ture (upon any Revolution) to meet 
 a new King fo far 2isBre?itford^h[\\ they 
 have feveral Affidavits of the former 
 being fafely landed on the other fide the 
 Water. But, 
 
 page 48. Tok haye dejlred the 
 Reader to take Notice, lhat what you 
 have [aid is only in Anfwer to Ur, Af- 
 gill. 
 
 Reply. Why then ! if the Reader finds 
 more Jefi: than Earnefl: in my Reply, 
 I defire him to take Notice, That it 
 is to make it more fuitable to your 
 Reflexions. And by this and your 0* 
 ther Grave Sentences, and General Cau* 
 tions, I fuppofe you would be under- 
 ftood, that you could have wrote bet¬ 
 ter on this SubjeX if yon had a Mind 
 
 to it. And therefore, to give you a 
 
 further Opportunity of fhswing that 
 Faculty, Ifhall add.fomething more to 
 my former Affertions, as Ma':ter for your 
 further RefleXions. 
 
 I. AITer- 
 
I. Afferdoii. 
 
 That the mnt of a General 
 gijlry^ hath been the Occafion of 
 multiplying Laws to present Frauds 
 in the Titles of Lands, 
 
 Proved, '“j ''Hat this was the Occa- 
 P fion of making this Sta¬ 
 tute of VJes, 27 H. 8. the feveral Sta¬ 
 tutes againft Fraudulent Conveyances, 
 feveral Claufes in the Ad 29 Car. 2. 
 to prevent Frauds and Perjuries, and 
 all the late Ads againft Clandeftine 
 Mortgages, and to fecure Purchafers, 
 appears by the Preambles of the feve- 
 ral Ads, which recite abufes by Secret 
 Deeds,Ures,(:^^. which might have been 
 prevented by a Regiftry ; for all Frauds 
 in Titles came by Concealments, and 
 when they are Regiftred, they can’t be 
 Concealed. 
 
 II. AfTertion, 
 
II. Affertion. 
 
 heftks other Jnmmnmides 
 which may and do arifi in the 
 Conjlruciion and Ufe of 
 Laws when they are knowHy the 
 very Multiplication of tim is a 
 iBurden to the feople hy rendring 
 thm difficulty if not mpoffiblty 
 to be known by them. 
 
 Froved. I may venture to hint at 
 other Inconveniencies in New Laws, 
 when the Author of thefe Refledlions, 
 Page 53. faith, We are not without Ex- 
 ferience of Jome Laws in f orce, whofe De- 
 jtan ('‘tis true ) was the Prevention of 
 fraud, and yet have furnifhed out more 
 Buftnefs for Weftminfter Hall than the 
 Miliafes they have prevented would per¬ 
 haps have occafmed. Witnefs the Sta¬ 
 tute of Vfes and Wills. Out of which 
 thefe Clandeltine Conveyances have 
 been formed. 
 
C^7l 
 
 And how many Debates have arl- 
 fcn in the CourteofLaw, about Deeds 
 fraudulent or not fraudulent, and in 
 the Courts of Equity about Notices 
 of Incumbrances, Rights of Redemp¬ 
 tion, &c. before they come to be fettled 
 and , known as Judgments or; Rules 
 of Courts by the Lawyers themfelves ? 
 
 But for the meer Layity, they can 
 never come to know ’em, by reafon of 
 the multitude of the particulars, and 
 the diftance of time between one AS 
 and another, and the comparing therti 
 together, in order to underftand them, 
 and fo they run into, the Breach of 
 them without knowing it; and there¬ 
 fore if that Queftion in Cafe 
 
 QjLsritur^ ut crefcunt tot mgm voln- 
 minaLegum ? 
 
 h fromptt C4i{fa e/?, Crefcit in orht 
 dolus. 
 
 had been inverted, the Anfwer might 
 have been inverted too 
 
 QjMns ? 
 
ut orhis hhet tot mult a e^f- 
 em^U dolorum, 
 
 h from^tu, Cau/a e/?, jarA tiolmeii 
 hak/ft. 
 
 . the . difficulty of the Knowledge of 
 the Law, is not fo much from the 
 abftrufenefs of the Matter, whereby 
 to puzzle the Judgment, but from the 
 number oftheParticulars,which burdens 
 the Memory ; for all Cafes of Cornmon 
 Life are known as well to the Clients, 
 as to die Lawyers. There is not a 
 greater Article in the Laws of 
 
 than The Defcent of Linds to the 
 EUe(l Son as Heir, and yet this being 
 a common Cafe, every Man is his own 
 Lawyer in it. And were a Regiftry 
 fettled, the Ufe of it would become fo 
 common, that the Knowledge of the 
 Law, and Pradice of it, would become 
 univerfil. V/hereas the Law of Titles 
 now lying difperfed in feveral Vo- 
 luraes, which muft be compared with 
 one another, ’tis a Difeourageraent 
 to the Students of the Law themfelves, 
 
 to enquire after them. 
 
The Multiplication (and confequsnt' 
 ly the Ignorance) of Laws, is a I'ecret 
 Curfe fallen upon Man, which infen- 
 fibly confutnes his Eflate, without his 
 taking any Account of it. 
 
 The firft Law delivered to Man was 
 terminated in one fingle Point, and 
 that but a Negative ; Only of thd Ttee 
 tho!f Jhalt not CAt, which being fo 
 fliort and plain, could neither burden 
 his Memory, nor puzzle his Judgment. 
 But Man refufing to hold his Life by 
 fo eafie aTei'jure, he had (for his Pu> 
 nifiament) delivered him a Law of 
 a Thoiifand Commandments, which 
 neither we nor our Fathers were able 
 to hear ; not from the difficulty of any 
 one Precept, ( for they were all trivial 
 Performances) but from the multitude 
 of the Particulars, and this very thing of 
 it felf (without any more ) coll: the 
 People one e^th. of their Eftates, ( for 
 fo is the Value of Tithes computed ) 
 to maintain an Order of Preilfliood, 
 who ihould apply ihemfelves to that 
 Science only, and thereof upon all Oq- 
 cafions inform the People, ( who w'cre 
 otherwire employed ,) 
 
, C ?«] 
 
 And as this Law of Certnmies and 
 fliverjt CommAndments was deliver¬ 
 ed for a Curfe, fb the raking away 
 the former, and the Abridgment of 
 the latter, was the beginning of the 
 Redemption of the World; for tk Ce- 
 nmonks of the Levitkal Law being- 
 taken away by the Death of Chtilf, 
 and the Commaadments of the Moral 
 Law being by him abridged into one 
 Precept, Do unto all men, as you would 
 they (Imdd do unto you ; for this is the Law 
 and the Prophets : Every Man’s Con- 
 fcience became his own Lawyer. And 
 thereby the Order of Piiefthood became 
 jpfo fdlto diffolved, as being ufelefs to 
 the World, ’till by degrees they rallyed 
 again, and getting into Synods- and 
 general Councils, with Canons, Creeds^ 
 Articles, &c. they at length fplit the 
 Gofpel into as many Items as the Law 
 was before, and thereby , regained a 
 pretence to the Tithes, which how¬ 
 ever tjiey could not get fettled ’till the 
 12r/A^‘Century after Chrifl:; when the 
 Decree of the Council at Lateran, 
 An, 1179. or (as tny Lord Coke faith ) 
 a decretal EpiRls of Pope Innocent 
 
E 3 J ,3 
 
 Third, M. 1200. procured Tithes to 
 be firll appropriated to the Parilh 
 Prielts. 
 
 And if the Fees certain now pay¬ 
 able by the People,, for the Knowledge 
 of the Laws Ecclefiaftick, together 
 With the accidental Fees paid for the 
 Knowledge of the Municipal Laws ot 
 the Kingdom, ( as they come to have 
 Occafion for them) were annually fum¬ 
 ed up together, their Total would 
 ftrike deep in the. Revenues of the 
 Kingdom. Not that I propofo to low¬ 
 er the Fees of the Church or the Law, 
 as far as there is Occafion for them; 
 But could the Occafions of them be 
 reduced, I prefume, the Honourable 
 Profeflbrs of either Science would not 
 e^tpeO: to be paid fg;: nothing- 
 
 III. AITer- 
 
Ill Affertion. 
 
 Tljat as the Delay of a General 
 ^eyijlry hath hitherto occaftoned 
 the Multiplying of Laws to pre¬ 
 vent Frauds in Titles, fo the long* 
 er it is delayed, the more Laws 
 mufl he multiplyed for that puir* 
 poje. 
 
 Proved. They fay a Regiftry fig- 
 nifies norhing ’till forty or fifty Years 
 after ’tis made, and fo they faid fifty 
 Years ago: But if inftcad of that, it 
 had been then fettled, we had riOW 
 received the Benefit of it: And fhould 
 that Objeftion prevail in other Cafes, 
 we mull: neither plant Oaks nor Or¬ 
 chards, but leave off Generation, bc- 
 caufe our iffue arrive not to Manhood 
 ’till'6ne and Tv/enty. 
 
 It is expected that Frauds in Titles 
 ■will increafe, and confequently Laws 
 rauff be multiplyed to prevent ’em; and 
 ■ vvheii 
 
when all’s done, it muft come to a Re- 
 giftry at laft, after fome more Cheats 
 have inforced it; and therefore in the 
 mean time we are at double Charge, 
 in mending an Old Houfe, which muft 
 bd Nev' Built at laft. 
 
 IV. Affertion. 
 
 ’That the Jpprehenfwn of Frauds in 
 Titles dra1t)s 'a Sufpition upon pod 
 7itles as jpell as bady and confe- 
 ,^umtly. doth depreciate the Value 
 of Lands in pneral. 
 
 . Proved. ^ One of the firft Objefiio 
 ons againft a Regiftry is, That Frauds 
 in Titles are not 16 confiderable as they 
 are made to be. Suppofe that true, 
 yet from the prefen t impoflibility of 
 making Titles certain, they are all fu- 
 Ipefted to be falfe. It may be faid, 
 that Robberies and Burglaries are not 
 fo common, as that Men fbould always 
 ride armed, or keep their Doors fhut, 
 and yet they do think therafelves obli- 
 
C?43 
 
 ged to be on their defence, becaufe 
 they know not when the Thieves will, 
 come. Suppofe there were the like 
 Hazard in the Titles of Stock in the 
 Bank, &c. as in the Titles of Lands,. 
 viz. That this Stock were transferra- 
 ble at large out of a Regiftry, and 
 that every fuch particular Transferr, 
 together with general Incumbrances of 
 Judgments, Statutes, &c. were to affed 
 it, as they do Lands, and that the Con¬ 
 veyances of it were to be made by 
 Lawyers, with recitals,.<^»d rvhereash, See. 
 ihewing all the mean Affignments 
 through which they came, and. a Set 
 of Covenants afterwards for being law¬ 
 fully feized, &c. whether this very al- 
 twation of the Title, without any thing 
 elfe, would not of it felf depreciate the 
 Value of Stocif 20 /. per Cent, and; yet 
 perhaps there might not be one falfe 
 Title in a hundred Transferrs. Why 
 then if it be ruppofed, that the Chang¬ 
 ing the Title of Lands to the Title 
 of Stock, would depriciate it fo much, 
 I can’t think but the changing the Ti¬ 
 tle of Stock to the Title of Lands, 
 would much advance the Value of 
 them, 
 
C 35 ] 
 
 them, and’ this Title to Stock is no'’ 
 thing but a Regiftry, which doth take 
 away the ufe of 
 
 Firfi, All Recitals of main Affign- 
 ments, becaufe in the very Accounts- 
 of the Regiftry it appears, by whom 
 all Transferrs were made. 
 
 Secondly, All Covenants for a good 
 Title; becaufe the Regiftry it felf fhows 
 it is a good Title; and therefore in all 
 Conveyances of Coppy-holds, and Fen- 
 Lands in their Regiftry, there’s no Reci¬ 
 tal of things paft, nor Covenants againft: 
 them, becaufe it always appears upon< 
 the Roll, and this makes the Convey¬ 
 ances of thofe Lands fo Ihort, being only 
 the Words of Grant, Parcels and Ha¬ 
 bendum, and confequently the Titles 
 areeafierperufed, and lefs hazardous"- 
 For: the very Length of Deeds doth of 
 it felf hazard the Titles, by caufing 
 Miftakes in perufing them. 
 
 Indeed I can’t pretend, that a Marri¬ 
 age Settlement, whereby Lands are to be 
 entailed on the Ill'ue Male,with provifion 
 for raifing Monies on feveral Contingen¬ 
 cies, Ihould be as fhort as a bars 
 Transfer of Stock without any fucb 
 Settle- 
 
Settlement of it, flor can fuch a Settle¬ 
 ment made of Stock, be as fhort as a 
 bare Transferr of Lands. But why all 
 the Words of Grant and Hahendnmy 
 may not be as ftiort in a Transferr of 
 Land as of Stock, I can’t apprehend, 
 and then there can be no difference in 
 the Length of them, but in the Name- 
 ing of the Parcels. And therefore to 
 foy, that a Regiftry of Lands may 
 not be made as perfeft, and the Title 
 thereof as readily transferrable as Stock, 
 is to fay, that the fame thing can’t 
 be done within an Inns of Court, as 
 is at Grocers-Hallf or the EaJi-hdijt 
 Houfe. 
 
 To me the Transferr of Titles feems 
 to refemble the Carriage of Commo¬ 
 dities, which is to be confidered in the 
 Price, as well as any thing elfe. And 
 if this be doubted, and the Regiftry be 
 rejefted, I could only will], that an 
 Experiment were made, to change the 
 Titles of Stock, Tallies, Bills, &c. ( or 
 at leaft of one Branch of them ) into 
 the Titles of Lands, to fee whether 
 this Clogg on theit Transferr would 
 
hot make them as dead Commodities 
 as Land is now. 
 
 V. Affertion. 
 
 That the Efiahlilh'mg a %egi^ry k 
 - the Metropolisj mil be as conymknt, 
 and kfs chargeable^ than to fettle 
 it in each County. 
 
 : Proved. That d Men (bould have 
 fiice brought home to their Doorr^ mi 
 their Buftnefs done near Home^ Ibunds 
 popular. But tho* the Soil of the Lands 
 iyes in the proper Counties, yet the 
 ,Transferrs of the Title follow, the Law¬ 
 yers, and the Lawyers follow the 
 Terms, which are in the Metropolis, 
 and therefore the Transferrs of Titles 
 are generally made there. 
 
 However this Regiftry don’t alter 
 the Execution of Dceds^' but leaves 
 that to be done by the Parties, any 
 vvhere, as it was before. So that the 
 F additional 
 
adHitional ttoubleby the.Regiftry, is on-i 
 ly the Tranfmitting the Deeds frora the 
 Place where they are executed, to the 
 Place of Regiftry ; and were there a Re- 
 giftry in every County, they muft be 
 tranfmitted to the Place where that Re- 
 gilfry is kept, and the Party need carry 
 them nb further,ihorder to regifter them 
 mLoMo»: Becaufe the Regifters in ic>»- 
 don will find it their Intereft to fettle 
 Deputies in every County, whb fhall 
 tranfmit and receive back all Deeds, 
 without trouble to the Parties. So 
 that the Regiftry in London wUl hQ 
 as convenient as the Regiftry in teaclf 
 County. 
 
 And as it will be as convenient,- fp 
 it will be lefs chargeable. For fltouli 
 Regiftries be fettled in each County^ 
 there imuft be a General Regiftry in 
 London, to which the Entries of all 
 the County Regiftries muft be trant 
 mitted, or elfe they would be of no 
 ufe for Searches: And therefore, all 
 great Incumbrances which affeO: Lands, 
 are recorded in the Courts at Weft- 
 mnfter. And ’tis Obfervable, that the 
 Office 
 
—j 
 
 Office of Regiftry for Transferting Feni 
 lands, is foept in Lo/fdo». 
 
 But as this Regiftry is calculated, 
 it may be firft fettled in any one place, 
 and from thence be extended, or elfe 
 fupprelTed, according to the Experience 
 and Succefs of it. '