408 ///. THE COLONIAL PERIOD colonies to adopt the English common law as a rule of adjudi- cature. This was done in South Carolina by the act of December, 1712.^ Before, in 1692, the assembly in an address to Governor Ludwell had complained because " the Palatine Court assumed to put in force such English laws as they deemed adapted to the province; but the assembly conceived that either such laws were valid of their own force, or could only be made so by an act of assembly." ^ The proprietors as- sumed that all laws of England applied to the colonies, but in 1712 they receded from their position by approving the act adopting the common law and such statutes of England as had been selected by Chief Justice Trott as applicable to the condition of the colony.^ The act of 1712 puts in force all English statutes declaring the rights and liberties of sub- jects, as well as the common law, except where it may be found inconsistent with the customs and laws of the prov- ince. The law concerning military tenures and ecclesiastical matters is especially excepted. The courts are here, as in Maryland, given the power to apply the principles of the common law. In North Carolina the same object was ac- complished by the act of 1716, entitled " An act for the better observing of the queen's peace," which declares the colony to be " a member of the crown of England," and provides that the common law shall be in force in this gov- ernment " so far as shall be compatible with our way of living and trade." The practice of issuing writs is specially excepted. Certain enumerated statutes, such as the statute confirming the privileges of the people and security of trade, the statute of limitations, and the statute of frauds, are also adopted by this act. From the scanty records of the early days of the colonies we can glean that the proceedings were often very informal. The discretion of the magistrates in inflicting punishment was very wide, as is apparent from the cases cited by Hawks in his history.*
- See Robt. Mills, Statistics of South Carolina, p. 196.
' Rivers, Historical Sketch of South Carolina, p. 433.
- Statutes of South Carolina, II, 401.
- Hawks, History of North Carolina, II, 122, 218.
