a writ was sent, through the Chancery, to the Justices of the Common Bench convey ing the instructions as prayed. Such writs usually appear as part of the record of the case upon the rolls of the Court of Com mon Pleas, but the petitions themselves, whether granted or not, have to be sought on the Rolls of Parliament, or if not there enrolled, among the separate Parliamentary Petitions. They are of much importance in the history of the law because they afford a connecting link between Common Law and Equity. They usually have in them the characteristic words "pur Dieu" ("for God's sake"), which are also in the Bills, or Peti tions addressed to the Council, and in later times to the Chancellor alone, for the pur pose of commencing a suit. The records of the Court of King's Bench have also to be consulted, in aid of the re ports, for two distinct purposes. Some of the -few reported Crown cases are there to be found, as well as all the proceedings in Error upon judgment in the Court of Com mon Pleas, and in some other Courts, includ ing the Court of King's Bench in Ireland. The early King's Bench Plea or Judgment Rolls are in two parts, the skins of both of which, however, are sewn together at the top in the same manner as the skins of the Common Bench Rolls. One part has the name of the Chief Justice at the head of each skin, the other part the word " Rex," and the skins of each part have a separate num bering. In later times the two parts were separated, one being assigned to the Plea Side, the other to the Crown Side, of the Court. The Crown cases are found upon the "Rex" part of the earlier rolls, the pro ceedings in Error and some other matters on the part bearing the name of the Chief Justice. The proceedings in Error constitute the most important portion of these Rolls in re lation to the Year Books, as they show all the assignments of error and subsequent pleadings with great precision, together, of
course, with the affirmance or reversal of judgment. They also include a copy of the whole record of the case in the Court below, which might serve as a substitute should the original by any chance be lost. During the progress of cases in the Court of King's Bench, as during the progress of cases in the Court of Common Pleas, peti tions could be, and not uncommonly were, addressed by the parties to the King in Council in Parliament, and then went through the same course. It sometimes happens that an Assise Roll ought to be consulted for the purpose of il lustrating some of the points which may have arisen in an action of Assise. When the case has been removed into the Bench profiler difficultatcm, it is sometimes found that there are several Assise Rolls relating to the same case which differ inter se. In a case, for instance, in Trinity Term, 13 Edward III. (No. 61, Boddenho i Derby and others) there are no less than four Assise Rolls be sides the enrolment among the Placita de Banco. In these there are material varia tions extending even to the writs sent from the King to the Justices of Assise, in conse quence of petitions from the parties, or other wise. The record as sent into the Common Bench is, of course, that which must be ac cepted as correct, if so accepted by the Com mon Bench itself either after objection, or when no exception has been raised. It is, nevertheless, obvious that there may be oc casions when the Assise Rolls themselves may be of considerable importance where questions have arisen as to the correctness of the record sent in to the Bench. Instances do also occur, though rarely, in which the reported cases have been argued out and determined before the Justices of Assise alone without any reference to the Common Bench. It is not always easy to discover the corresponding Assise Roll for two reasons : one that the series of Assise Rolls in the Public Record Office appears to be incomplete, the other that the arrange
