THE JURY AND ITS DEVELOPMENT. 309 porter, which is given below. 1 Of course this in principle is just as much helping the jury by evidence as if a witness came before them to testify. The fact that they might be ignorant of such things was noticed in the Stat. West. II. c. 25, in providing against certain dangers from the festinum remedium of the novel disseisin : If the defendant against whom the assise may have passed in his absence afterwards show the justices charters or releases " in which the jury were not examined, nor could be, because not mentioned in pleading, and probably they might be ignorant of such writings," — the jury and the parties were to be resummoned. (Y. B. 13 Edw. III. 80.) In 1339 (Y. B. 13 Edw. III. 80), Scharshulle, J., is reported as saying that since a warranty requires a specialty, if it be not pleaded or put in evidence, a finding of it by the assise shall not hold. It was the rule in attaint, as well before as after witnesses were allowed to testify to jurors, that the plaintiff should give nothing in evidence to the "grand jury," as they called it, additional to what the first jury had had; for the question was whether, upon what these knew and ought to know, their verdict was false. 2 In 135 1-2 (Lib. Ass. 121, 12), counsel complains of his adversary in attaint, that he is putting forward in his pleading a release not pleaded in the first case, of which, therefore, the first jury could not have had cognizance. But he is answered that there was no opportunity to plead it, and that it was given in evidence to the former jury. A distinction was made between sealed writings and others. The former were regarded as authenticated by the seal ; the others were not "authentic." Yet, just as counsel might freely make statements of fact to the jury, unsupported otherwise, so they might exhibit to them unsealed writings. The jury could carry out with them only writings under seal. The presence of the writing at the private consultation of the jury seems to have been conceived of as if it were a witness to a deed, or one of those who testified to a view, or those present at the giving of 1 m Note. — If a charter be put forward to inform the assise after they are sworn and charged, the charter will not be received unless the assise ask for it. To have the charter inform the assise, one should plead on the charter and say this : * He did not die seised, etc., for he enfoeffed us by this charter, and then put forward the charter to inform,'" etc. (Y. B. 20 Edw. I. 20.) 2 Brooke, Ab. Attaint, 68; Rolfe v. Hampden, 1 Dyer, 53 b (1542); Heydon v. Ibgrave, 2 ib. 129 b (1556).
