case of default the Master will certify the same and make his Report of it, excluding the defaulters their costs. The costs must be disposed of in some way before the Master can make his general Report. On the attendance upon the Master on the day or days appointed by the warrants, all the solicitors usually assemble with their respective Clerks in Court, whose peculiar province it is to decide what is fit or unfit to be allowed.

When all the matters referred by the Decree have been gone through and completed, the Master's general Report is the next object in the suit, it being the ground of the final Decree to be made when the cause is again to be heard on further directions. The proceedings upon the general Report are similar to those already mentioned as regards his separate Report. Therefore, when a draft of the Report has been bespoken and is prepared, warrants are to be taken out to settle the Report served, attended and proceeded upon precisely in the same way, with necessary variations, as warrants on the Report of maintenance.

It may be here observed, that the object of the fourday warrant taken out for the Master to sign his Report is not attendable, but merely meant to allow time to the parties to bring in objections, if they think proper. Should none be left within that time the parties are precluded from excepting to the Report afterwards. Having obtained the Report signed by the Master, it must afterwards be filed with the clerk in the Report Office, and an office copy thereof obtained, and then proceed to confirm it by giving a motion paper to counsel, with instructions "to move to confirm the Master's general Report nisi," which is a motion of course. The Order inade thereon is to be drawn up with the Registrar of the day, which he will do on production of the motion paper. Having obtained and perfected the Order by passing and entering it in the usual way, copies thereof must be made and served on the Clerks in Court of the several defendants; and if, within the eight days limited by the Order nisi, no

cause be shown against confirming the Report (which cause would be the filing of exceptions) you will obtain from the Clerk of the Exceptions in the Register Office, a certificate written by him, upon the Order nisi to that effect, and which certificate should be dated on the day on which the Order absolute is moved for. On the day of moving counsel should be instructed by a motion paper, accompanied by the Order and certificate thereon, " to move to confirm absolute the Master's Report," which is an Order of course, and must be drawn up in the usual way, by leaving with the Registrar the Order nisi, and an affidavit previously sworn of the service thereof, together with the motion paper signed by counsel. Any party in the cause may confirm the Report, on default or delay of the party who ought to do it. A Report may be confirmed absolutely in the first instance, without an Order nisi, by consent of all parties, which is done by their giving a motion paper to counsel to consent.

The Master's Report, being now absolutely confirmed, is completed, and the cause ready to be set down to be heard on further directions.

This is done by petition to the Lord Chancellor or Master of the Rolls, as the case may be, under Orders 6 and 10 of the Orders of 5th May, 1837. In cases where exceptions have been taken to the Master's Report, it is most usual to procure the cause to be set down for further directions, to come on to be heard with the exceptions taken to the Report; in which case the directions of the Court will be given on the whole view of the matter. Having ascertained before whom the cause should be set down to be heard, pursuant to the above Orders, a petition to the Lord Chancellor, or Master of the Rolls, as the case may be, should be prepared and fairly transcribed on brief paper book-ways, and presented to the secretary of the judge before whom the cause is to be heard, which he will procure to be answered, which answer consists in granting the prayer, and requiring notice of it to be given forthwith

The

notice required to be given is by drawing up the Order with the Registrar, and serving the Clerk in Court of the opposite party with a copy of it duly passed and entered.

On taking away the Order from the Registrar it should be ascertained from his clerk that the cause is set down in the proper course of hearing; the fee for which will be 1s., if for further directions only, and 2s. if for further directions and costs. An affidavit of the service of the Order must be made and filed, and an office copy obtained to be read in Court on the hearing, in case the adverse party does not appear.

The brief for the hearing should state the ordering part of the Decree, the Master's Report, accompanied by such observations as may be thought necessary for the purpose of drawing counsel's attention to all the necessary points, and adding also a sketch of the directions to be prayed. The former briefs of counsel on the hearing must accompany each counsel's brief on further directions.

The solicitor should from time to time look into the Registrar's Office, to ascertain when the cause is likely to get into the Registrar's paper of causes for the day, and when in to attend the Court, as on the original hearing, with all his papers, having previously delivered his briefs to counsel and had a consultation, if necessary. If it be a cause in which there are funds in Court, the solicitor should be provided with a certificate from the Accountant General of the money and funds, which he must bespeak two days before he receives it.

When the cause has been heard, the Decree or Order made upon the hearing should be drawn up and perfected with the Registrar, in the same way as under the Decree made on the original hearing.

The Order being duly passed and entered, a copy of the title and ordering part of it should be made and left in the Master's Office, and then proceed, in

like manner as under the original decree, to carry these subsequent directions into effect.

(For further information as to proceedings before the Master, see 1st Grant.)

PROCEEDINGS FOR DEFENDANTS.

The plaintiff's solicitor is supposed to lead in prosecuting the suit in the Master's Office. In such case the defendant's solicitor will follow the requisitions made upon him by the service of the warrants for the various purposes of the suit, as noticed in the proceedings for the plaintiff. The accounts in an executorial suit are usually one of the earliest proceedings in the Master's Office. These accounts are to be framed in regard to the personal estate in one account, in the form of an account current Dr. and Cr., and to the rents and profits of the real estate (if any) in another account. When carried in with an affidavit, sworn by the defendants, to verify the payments, copies will be taken by the plaintiff, who will investigate and compare them with his documents, with a view to ascertain what has been received by the defendants, therefore the creditor side must comprise every sum laid out or expended by the defendants in their character of executors, with the dates and times of payment, the persons to whom, and purposes for which made, paid or applied, and should also embrace any other executorial claims. But should the accounts first carried in be deemed insufficient by the plaintiff, he will then, under Order 61, of April, 1828, exhibit interrogatories for the defendant's examination in respect of such supposed insufficiency. To prepare an examination for defendant's executors to interrogatories in the Master's Office, the same attention is requisite as in preparing an answer. It should be remembered, in

all cases, that supposing the defendant has, by the schedules to his answer, carried his receipts and payments down to the latest period he could previously to the filing of his answer, his examination begins only with his receipts and payments subsequent thereto; thus carrying on his accounts from the foot of his answer to the time of putting in his examination. A counsel's signature is not necessary to such examination, and therefore no fee for perusing or settling is allowed in adverse costs. The draft examination being prepared, is to be ingrossed on parchment in the same way as an answer; it must then, in like manner, be signed and sworn before the Master in the cause, instead of at the public office, which, when so sworn, is left in the Master's Office, and the usual warrant on leaving taken out and served, underwritten, "The defendants, the executors, have left their examination." But if a commission be necessary for a party resident in the country, the Master's certificate of such necessity should be obtained, upon which certificate you move by counsel, as of course, for such commission, and upon the Order being made your Clerk in Court, on production of the Order, will make out the commission, upon which occasion you proceed in precisely a similar mode to that of a commission for taking an answer. On the return of the commission you obtain from your Clerk in Court an office copy of the examination as taken, of which also the plaintiff is to take a copy, when your Clerk in Court has informed plaintiff's Clerk in Court of the commission being returned. Should you be pressed for time to enable you to put in examination, the Master, on application, will allow so much as to him appears reasonable or you may obtain one Order as of course by motion, or by petition at the Rolls, for a month's further time. This Order, when drawn up, must be served in the usual way. Should you exceed all the time allowed, the defendant will be liable to process of contempt, viz., a Serjeant-atArms.

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