s provision coming in
dispute, on an appeal preferred to these supposed visitors, they
directed the legality of their own appointment to be argued: and, as
this college was a mere civil, and not an eleemosynary foundation,
they at length determined, upon several days solemn debate, that they
had no jurisdiction as visitors; and remitted the appellant (if
aggrieved) to his regular remedy in his majesty's court of king's
bench.

AS to eleemosynary corporations, by the dotation the founder and his
heirs are of common right the legal visitors, to see that that
property is rightly employed, which would otherwise have descended to
the visitor himself: but, if the founder has appointed and assigned
any other person to be visitor, then his assignee so appointed is
invested with all the founder's power, in exclusion of his heir.
Eleemosynary corporations are chiefly hospitals, or colleges in the
university. These were all of them considered by the popish clergy, as
of mere ecclesiastical jurisdiction: however, the law of the land
judged otherwise; and, with regard to hospitals, it has long been
held[c], that if the hospital be spiritual, the bishop shall visit;
but if lay, the patron. This right of lay patrons was indeed abridged
by statute 2 Hen. V. c. 1. which ordained, that the ordinary should
visit _all_ hospitals founded by subjects; though the king's right was
reserved, to visit by his commissioners such as were of royal
foundation. But the subject's right was in part restored by statute 14
Eliz. c. 5. which directs the bishop to visit such hospitals only,
where no visitor is appointed by the founders thereof: and all the
hospitals founded by virtue of the statute 39 Eliz. c. 5. are to be
visited by such persons as shall be nominated by the respective
founders. But still, if the founder appoints nobody, the bishop of the
diocese must visit[d].

[Footnote c: Yearbook, 8 Edw. III. 28. 8 Aff. 29.]

[Footnote d: 2 Inst. 725.]

COLLEGES in the universities (whatever the common law may now, or
might formerly, judge) were certainly considered by the popish clergy,
under whose direction they were, as _ecclesiastical_, or at least as
_clerical_, corporations; and therefore the right of visitation was
claimed by the ordinary of the diocese. This is evident, because in
many of our most ancient colleges, where the founder had a mind to
subject them to a visitor of his own nomination, he obtained for that
purpose a papal bulle to