MODERN ENGLISH PROCEDURE of Procedure, on affidavit by himself, or by any other person who can swear positively to the facts, verifying the cause of action and the amount claimed, and stating in his belief there is no defence to the action, apply to a Master for liberty to enter judg ment for the amount so endorsed. The Master may thereupon, unless the defend ant by affidavit, or by his own viva voce evidence, or otherwise shall satisfy him that he has a good defence to the action on its merits, or disclose such facts as may be deemed sufficient to enable him to defend, make an order empowering the plaintiff to enter judgment accordingly. Under these simple rules, and in the way in which they are administered, a plaintiff may obtain a judgment upon a promissory note for thousands of pounds, or for a bill for goods sold and delivered, or for the pos session of premises, or for any cause of ac tion above stated, in three weeks from the time the writ was issued. If the judge upon reading the affidavit of the defendant in opposition to the applica tion for summary judgment, is not disposed to direct judgment to be entered forthwith, he may give the defendant leave to defend upon bringing the money in dispute into court, or he may, either upon such terms or without any terms, direct that the case be put into a "short cause" list and be tried with or without pleadings. How well the system works in practice, and to what an extent the labors of the trial judge are relieved and the time of the court is saved, is evident from the fact that about a fourth of the total judgments obtained by plain tiffs are signed under Order XIV, and that they are three or four times the value in money of the judgments signed after trial in the usual way. Nor do these figures fully represent the efficacy of Order XIV. Judgment is not entered in many cases in which an order for it is made; the parties agree to a compromise, or enter into an arrangement to pay by instalments. (2) SUMMONS FOR DIRECTIONS. If the
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writ is not specially endorsed as provided by Order III, Rule 6, the plaintiff must in every action, except an Admiralty action, take out a summons for directions, that is, a summons or application asking the judge to give directions as to the future conduct of the proceedings. This application must be taken out after appearance and before the plaintiff takes any fresh step in the action. On the hearing of the application either party may ask for such directions as he desires, but the judge is not bound to give the directions asked for but has the fullest discretion to make such order as may be just with respect to all the interlocutory proceedings. If; for example, both parties ask for pleadings the Master may neverthe less send the action to trial without plead ings. He has also power to alter the time fixed by rule for either pleading or trial and, generally, may decide whether the parties shall furnish each other with particulars, whether interrogatories shall be delivered and answered, whether documents shall be inspected or commissions to examine wit nesses shall be issued, as well as any other interlocutory matter or thing, and as to the mode and place of trial. (3) A COMPETENT STAFF OF MASTERS. It will be observed by the last two paragraphs that to a staff of judicial officers known as Masters in Chambers great power is given. A Master at Chambers is an officer of the Court who has power to decide, in the first instance, subject to an appeal to a judge, all or nearly all the preliminary questions which arise in an action pending trial, and to enter judgment, as under Order XIV, and in other cases. By the Despatch of Business Act, 1867, a majority of the judges were authorized to make rules from time to time empower ing the Masters to transact any such busi ness and to exercise any such authority and jurisdiction as by statute or the rules and practice of the courts were transacted and exercised by a judge sitting at Cham bers. The office is one of dignity and honor. The incumbent who receives a salary of
