These
constituted a special Jury, and the oath prescribed by law far these
jurors was as follows; "You shall well and truly try the issue between
the parties, and a true verdict give, according to law and equity, and
the opinion you entertain of the testimony." Under the pleadings, the
entire history of the case went before this jury, and their verdict was
final. It was this method of trial which prevented so long that great
desideratum in all judicial systems--a court for the correction of
errors and final adjudication of cases.
Dishonest litigants feared this special jury. Their characters, as that
of their witnesses, passed in review before this jury, whose oaths
allowed a latitude, enabling them frequently to render a verdict,
ostensibly at variance with the testimony, but almost always in aid of
the ends of equitable justice.
The system was eminently promotive of honesty and good morals, as well
as the ends of justice; for men's rights before it were not
unfrequently determined by the reputation they bore in the community in
which they lived. This fact stimulated uprightness of conduct, and
often deterred the wrong-doer.
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