201. per annum. Which offices and salaries were granted to the plaintiff by the late bishop of Winchester by letters patent, with a clause of distress if unpaid. The bishop pleaded the statute 1 Eliz. c. 19. § 5., and also that the offices aforesaid were not ancient offices of the bishopric, nor were usually granted for life; that the said fees were not the ancient fees; that the said offices were useless and merely nominal, no duty or service being to be done for or in respect of them.

The jury found a special verdict, that the offices of chief steward and conductor of the men, &c. were ancient offices of the bishop, and had been anciently and usually granted for life, with an annuity: that the annuity of 100%. was the ancient fee that the same were granted to the plaintiff by Jonathan late bishop of Winchester, which grant was approved by the dean and chapter, and confirmed by them. They then found the statute 1 Eliz., and that these offices, at the time of making that act, and since, were merely nominal; no duty, attendance, or service being to be done for or in respect of them. And as to the office of master-keeper of all beasts in the parks, or chief parker, they found that it was not an ancient office.

The question on this special verdict was, whether Sir J. Trelawney was entitled to hold the two first mentioned offices, and to recover the arrears against the bishop. As to the office of chief parker, the facts found by the special verdict, made an end of any question concerning it, and the point was given up.

Lord Mansfield said,-At common law a bishop, with the confirmation of his dean and chapter, might exercise every act of absolute ownership over the revenues of his see, and bind his successors, as much

as tenant in fee could bind his heir. Then came the restraining statute 1 Eliz. But patents or grants of offices, with fees, salaries, or profits annexed to them, were not mentioned in that act. There were no general words adapted to the case of offices; yet there was not a single bishopric at that time without some offices granted. Had the legislature meant to restrain the regranting them, as they should drop in, it must have been done by a special provision; with an exception of some, at least of judicial offices. As the general restraint was not extended to the case, there was no occasion to make exceptions. Continuing ancient offices with the ancient fee, in the usual manner, was not a dilapidation of the revenue of the bishopric; every bishop left this power to be exercised by his successor, as his predecessor left it to be exercised by him; such grants being no new charge upon the bishopric, which only remained liable to the same fees or salaries, to which it was liable before. And after stating several cases, he concluded in these words:-"The office in question in this case is found never to have been more useful or necessary than it is now; yet all the bishops of Winchester, from the 1 Eliz., have thought the grants of it valid; every succeeding bishop has submitted to the grant made by his predecessor; and the greatest men of the kingdom, or the nearest relations of the bishop, have successively held the office. The present bishop thought this grant good for eleven years, but has conceived a doubt, from the misapplication and repetition of inconclusive and contradictory arguments, about the office being necessary; whereas we are all unanimously of opinion that an office and fee which existed before the 1 Eliz. is not within the statute; but may be granted since, precisely in the

What Offices may be granted to

Two Persons.

same manner in which it was granted before: that the utility or necessity of such an office is no more material since the 1 Eliz. than it was before. This opinion we think agreeable to the words and intent of the act, and every precedent since the statute: therefore there must be judgement for the plaintiff. 21. Ministerial offices, requiring only common skill and diligence, may be granted to two persons: and so may also some judicial offices established by act of parliament. But an ancient judicial office cannot be granted to two persons. Thus, King Henry VI. having granted the office of High Admiral to the 4 Inst. 146. Duke of Exeter and his son, the Judges held it to be void, the charter being of a judicial office; for such ancient offices must be granted as they formerly had been. 22. A grant to two persons to be Chief Justices of 11 Rep. 3 b. any of the courts at Westminster would be void; but as to offices incident to the King's courts at Westminster, it seems to be in the discretion of the Judges, if they see that an office in their courts comprehends too much for one man to execute, to join another person with him. In such a case it must however be still granted as one office; for if it is divided into two or three offices, the prescription is interrupted, and it is not a grant of the ancient office.

23. Ecclesiastical offices, though of the judicial kind, may be granted to two persons, where there has been a usage of granting them in that manner.

2 Wm. &

Mary, st. 2.

c. 2.

Bew,

24. The bishop of Llandaff granted the office of Jones v. chancellor or commissary of his diocese to two per- Carth. 213. sons, to hold the same conjunctim et divisim, to them 4 Mod. 16. and the survivor of them. It was agreed by the counsel on both sides, that this office had been anciently and usually granted in this manner. On

1 Show. 289.

1 Salk. 465.

What Estate may be had in an Office.

a case stated out of Chancery, and referred to the Court of King's Bench, the question was, whether this was such a judicial office as could be granted to two persons. Resolved, that it was a good grant, because of the long and constant usage. And it was said, that the offices of most of the bishoprics in England were, and had been constantly so granted.

25. Salkeld reports, that in this case the Court said, if an office be granted to two, and one dies, the office does not survive, but determines. As if there are two sheriffs, and one of them dies, the other cannot act otherwise, if granted to two and the survivor of them.

26. With respect to the estate or interest which may be had in an office, several of the great offices of state were, and still continue to be, hereditary. Dyer, 285. Thus, the office of Earl Marshal was held by the Earl of Pembroke in fee simple: the office of Great Chamberlain was held by the Earls of Oxford in fee simple; from whom it descended to the Dukes of Ancaster in the same manner; and upon the death of Robert Duke of Ancaster in 1779, it descended to his two sisters and coheirs.

2 Inst. 382.

97 b.

27. Although the offices mentioned in the last section are called offices in fee, yet the estate in them is not, strictly speaking, an estate in fee simple; for it is only inheritable by the lineal descendants of the first grantee of the office; not by any collaterals.

28. The offices of sheriff, gaoler, park-keeper or 9 Rep. 48 b. forester, steward or bailiff of a manor, have also been granted in fee simple. And it is held, that where an office may be granted in fee, it may be granted for life; or to one for life, remainder to another for life,

29. With respect to judicial offices, they cannot, in general, be granted for a greater estate than for life; because they are only exerciseable by persons of skill and capacity.

844.

Fox, 1 Show.

491.

30. If an office be granted to a person, quamdiu 1 Inst. 42 a. se bene gesserit, the grantee has an estate for life. Roll. Ab. For as nothing but misconduct can determine his Harcourt v. interest, no one can prefix a shorter time than his life, since it must be by his own act, which the law will not presume, that his estate can determine. If Id. the words be, quamdiu se bene gesserit tantum, the estate will not be abridged by the addition of the word tantum.

31. The Judges of the several courts at Westminster formerly held their offices durante bene placito. By the statute 13 Will. III. c. 2. it was enacted, that their commissions should be quamdiu se bene gesserint; but that it should be lawful to remove them on an address of both Houses of Parliament. Now, by the stat. 1 Geo. III. c. 23. the Judges are continued in their offices during their good behaviour, notwithstanding any demise of the Crown; but may be removed on an address of both Houses of Parliament.

32. Offices which do not concern the administration of justice, and only require common skill and diligence, may be granted for years; because they may be executed by deputy, without any inconvenience to the public.

33. The office of Register of Policies of Insurance Vale v. Priour, in London, was granted by the King for years; and Hard. 351. adjudged to be a good grant, because it did not concern the administration of justice, but only re- Jones v. required the skill of writing after a copy.

Clerk,
Hard. 46.

34. Offices of this kind may be granted to one Bellamy v. person in trust for another; and the Court of Borrough, Forrest, 97, Chancery will compel the execution of such a trust.