o him, to swear, fyle, and deliver upon his Honour, he shall search,
enquire, and redress the same at his uttermost power: And that, if it
shall happen in so doing to quit and absolve the persons complained upon
as Clean and Innocent: Yet if he shall any ways get sure Knowledge of the
very Offender, he shall declare him foul of the Offence, and make lawful
Redress and Delivery thereof, albeit the very Offender be not named in the
Complaint: And this Oath of the Wardens not only to be made at the first
Meeting hereafter to ensue, but also to be made every Year once solemnly,
as aforesaid, at the first Meeting after _Mid-summer_, to put them in the
better Remembrance of their Duties, and to place the fear of God in their
Hearts."[39]

The following oath was also administered to the jury:--"Ye shall truly
enquire, and true deliverance make between the Queen's Majesty, and the
prisoners at the Bar, according to the evidence that shall be given in
this Court. As God keep you and Holydome."[40]

These formalities having been duly observed, the trial of the prisoners
was then proceeded with. Bills were presented on the one side, and on the
other, setting forth with considerable fulness of detail the nature and
extent of the damages that had been sustained. The prisoners against whom
these indictments had been made were then called to answer the charges
preferred against them.

There were at least three ways in which these cases could be tried. In the
first place, the bill might be acquitted _on the honour of the warden_.
But should it afterwards be found that the warden in acquitting the bill
had proceeded on imperfect information, and had acquitted upon his honour
a bill that was in reality "foul," then the complainant was at liberty to
prosecute a new bill, and demand that justice should be done. The case was
then tried by a jury who "fyled" or "cleared" the bill at their
discretion. When a bill was "fyled," that is to say declared true, the
word "foul" was written on the margin, and when it was "cleared," the word
"clear" was inserted.

But further, bills might be _tried by inquest or assize_, which was the
method most frequently adopted, such cases being decided by the juries on
their own knowledge, and on the evidence sworn to in open court.

The third way of dealing with bills was by a "_Vower_." The significance
of this method is fully explained by Sir Robert Bowes, who says:--"The
inquest or assise of Scotlande, no