another upon a bare ſuggeftion that he is the king's accomptant; but whether he is ſo, or not, is never controverted. In this court, on the equity ſide, the clergy have long uſed to exhibit their bills for the non-payment of tithes; in which caſe the ſurmiſe of being the king's debtor is no fiction, they being bound to pay him their firſt fruits, and annual tenths. But the chancery has of late years obtained a large ſhare in this buſineſs.
An appeal from the equity ſide of this court lies immediately to the houſe of peers; but from the common law ſide, in purſuance of the ſtatute 31 Edw. III. c. 12. a writ of error muſt be firſt brought into the court of exchequer chamber. And from their determination there lies, in the dernier reſort, a writ of error to the houſe of lords.
VIII. The high court of chancery is the only remaining, and in matters of civil property by much the moſt important of any, of the king's ſuperior and original courts of juſtice. It has it's name of chancery, cancellaria, from the judge who preſides here, the lord chancellor or cancellarius; who, ſir Edward Coke tells us, is ſo termed a cancellando, from cancelling the king's letters patents when granted contrary to law, which is the higheft point of his jurifdiction[1]. But the office and name of chancellor (however derived) was certainly known to the courts of the Roman emperors; where originally it ſeems to have ſignified a chief ſcribe or ſecretary, who was afterwards inverted with ſeveral judicial powers, and a general ſuperintendency over the reſt of the officers of the prince. From the Roman empire it paſſed to the Roman church, ever emulous of imperial ſtate; and hence every biſhop has to this day his chancellor, the principal judge of his conſiſtory. And when the modern kingdoms of Europe were eſtabliſhed upon the ruins of the empire, almoſt every ſtate preſerved it's chancellor, with different juriſdictions and dignities, according to their different conſtitutions. But in all of them he ſeems to have had the ſupervifion of all charters, letters, and
- ↑ 4 Inſt. 88.
