and along the said public street and common king's highway aforesaid, called Warwick Lane, as they ought and were wont and accustomed to do; to the great damage and common nuisance of all his majesty's liege subjects, going, returning, passing, repassing, riding and labouring, in, through and along the said public street and common king's highway; to the evil, &c. and against the peace, &c. And the jurors, Fourth &c. do further present, that the said W. S. on, &c. afore- count, for said, and on divers other days and times between that day cattle, &c. driving and the day of taking this inquisition, with force and arms, at London aforesaid, in the parish and ward aforesaid, in a certain public street and common king's highway there, called Warwick Lane, used for all the king's subjects, on foot, and with their horses, coaches, carts and carriages, to go, return, pass, repass and labour, at their free will and pleasure, and injuriously did drive, and cause to be driven, divers, to wit, &c. on each and every of the said days, in and along the said public street and king's common highway, called Warwick Lane, to a certain house of the said W. S. there, for the purpose of the same being slaughtered there, and did also, on the day and year aforesaid, and on each and every of the said 'other days, wrongfully and injuriously put and place, and cause and procure to be put and placed, divers, to wit, ten carts in the said public street and common king's highway, for the purpose of gathering, collecting and receiving the horns, hides, skins, excrements, offal, and other filth of the said animals, after the same had been slaughtered, and the said last mentioned carts, in the same street and king's common highway, on the day and year aforesaid, and on each and every of the said days and times,* [*632] wrongfully, injuriously, did permit and suffer to be and remain for a long space of time, to wit, for the space of five hours on each and every of the said days; by means of which said driving of the said oxen, cows, calves, sheep, lambs and swine, for the purpose aforesaid, and also of the said putting and placing the said carts in the said public street, and the suffering them to remain there for the space of time aforesaid, the said public street and common king's highway aforesaid, then and on the said other days, for and during all the said time, and each of those days respectively, was obstructed and straitened, so that the liege subjects of our said lord the king could not then, and on the said other days and times respectively, go, return, pass, repass, ride and labour, with their horses, coaches, carts and other carriages, in, through and along the said public street and common king's highway aforesaid, called Warwick Lane, as they ought and were wont and accustomed to do; to the great damage and common nuisance, &c. [as in third count.] 70 Indict ment for making INDICTMENTS, &c. FOR NUISANCES TO WATER Kent. [Commencement as ante 2.] That the river of Thames is, and from time whereof, &c. was an ancient navigable river and common* king's highway, for all the liege subjects embank- of our lord the king, with their ships, vessels, boats and narrowing craft, to pass, repass and navigate, at their free will and the river pleasure, to wit, at, &c. and that J. R. late of, &c. on, &c. ments and Thames. (m) with force and arms, at, &c. aforesaid, in the said navigable (m) This was the indictment against Rosher and others, tried at assizes, 52 Geo. III. See other precedents, Cro. C. C. 306. 4 Wentw. 223. Burn, J. Highways. Starkie, 661. Cro. C. A. 381. Offence. As a navigable river is a king's highway, and protected by the same regulations, any obstruction to its course is punishable in the same way with a nuisance to a public road, Hawk. b. 1. c. 76. s. 1. Its soil belongs prima facie to the crown, and not to the occupiers of the adjoining lands, though it may be shown to be vested in a private individual, Dougl. 441. The antiquity of an obstruction will be no ground to shew that it is legal, 6 East, 195. And even the rightful existence of a weir of brushwood will not authorise the building one of stone in its room. For the fish, ་ ! during all the time aforesaid, could not, nor can they now, pass, repass and navigate, with their ships, vessels, boats and craft, in and along the said river and common highway there, as they before used and were accustomed to do, and still of right ought to do, without great peril and danger of their lives, and the destruction and loss of their said ships, vessels, boats and craft; to the great damage and common nuisance of all the liege subjects of our said lord the king, in and along the said river and common king's highway there, passing and repassing, and navigating with their ships, vessels, boats and craft, as aforesaid; to the evil example of all others in the like case offending, and against the peace, &c. And the jurors, &c. do further present, that the said J. R. Second afterwards, to wit, on the said, &c. with force and arms, at, count. &c. aforesaid, unlawfully, wilfully, knowingly and injuriously, did raise, erect and place, and cause to be erected, raised and placed, a certain other embankment, composed of wood, gravel, earth, chalk, rubbish, stones and other materials, in and upon the soil and bed of the said river Thames, and common king's highway there, in the stream and waterway of the same, of great length and width, to wit, of the length of one hundred feet along the stream of the said river, and common king's highway, parallel with the banks thereof, and of the width of eighty feet athwart and across the stream and waterway of the same, and the said embankment, so as aforesaid erected, raised and placed, from the said, &c. until the day of taking this inquisition, to wit, at, &c. aforesaid, he the said J. R.* unlawfully, wilfully, knowingly and inju- [*634] riously, did continue, and still doth continue, to the great damage and common nuisance of all his majesty's liege subjects, and against the peace, &c. And the jurors, &c. do Third further present, that the said J. R. afterwards, to wit, on the count. said, &c. with force and arms, at, &c. aforesaid, in the said river, and common king's highway there, and in and upon the bed and soil thereof, and in the stream and waterway thereof, unlawfully, wilfully, and knowingly and injuriously, did erect, raise and place, and cause to be erected, raised and placed, a certain wharf, composed of wood, chalk, gravel, earth, rubbish, stones and other materials, of great length, to wit, of the length of one hundred feet along the stream and waterway thereof, parallel with the banks thereof, and of the width of eighty feet athwart and across the stream and waterway thereof, and the said wharf, so as aforesaid, erected, raised and placed, in the said river, and common king's highway there, from the said, &c. until the day of taking this inquisition, at, &c. aforesaid, he the said J. R. unlawfully, wilfully, knowingly and injuriously, did continue, and still doth continue, by reason whereof the liege Fourth count. subjects of our said lord the king, during all the time aforesaid, could not, nor can they now, pass, repass and navigate with their ships, vessels, boats and craft, in and along the said river and common king's highway there, as they before used and were accustomed to do, and still of right ought to do, without great peril and danger of their lives, and the destruction and loss of their said ships, vessels, boats and craft, to the great damage, &c. [conclusion as ante 633.] And the jurors, &c. do further present, that the said J. R. afterwards, to wit, on the said, &c. with force and arms, at, &c. aforesaid, unlawfully, wilfully, knowingly and injuriously, did cast and throw, and caused to be cast and thrown, divers and very many large quantities of wood, gravel, earth, chalk, rubbish, stones and other materials, in and upon the soil and bed of the said river, and common king's highway there, and in the stream and waterway thereof, to wit, one hundred waggon loads of wood, one hundred waggon loads of gravel, one hundred waggon loads of earth, one hundred waggon loads of chalk, one hundred waggon loads of rubbish, one hundred waggon loads of stones, and one hundred waggon loads of other materials, thereby then and there raising and producing a certain great mound, projecting and extending to a great length and width, to wit, the length of one hundred feet along the stream and waterway of the said river, and common king's highway there, parallel with the banks thereof, and of the width of eighty feet across and athwart the stream and waterway thereof, and the said mound so raised and produced as aforesaid, from the said, &c. until the [*635] day of taking this inquisition, to wit, at, &c. aforesaid, he the said J. R. unlawfully, wilfully, knowingly and injuriously, did continue, and still doth continue, to the great damage and common nuisance, &c. and against the peace, &c. For mak or wharf Kent. That part of the river Thames which passes, runs and ing an em- flows in, through, and along the county of Kent, is, and from bankment time whereof the memory of man runneth not to the contraprojecting ry, has been an ancient and common king's highway, for all into the his majesty's liege subjects, with their ships, vessels, craft, Thames. wherries and boats, to sail, row and navigate, and safely to con(n) vey their wares, goods, and merchandizes, together with themselves, their mariners, and passengers, on board the same, to either bank of the said river, at their free will and pleasure, and for their common benefit and advantage, and that A. P. late of, &c. together with divers other persons, whose names are to the jurors aforesaid as yet unknown, on, &c. and on divers other days and times between that day and the finding of (n) This was the indictment against Peck and others, A. D. 1801. this inquisition, near to a certain ancient and long used and accustomed public and common landing-place, for the landing of his majesty's liege subjects from their respective ships, vessels, craft, wherries, and boats, in the parish of Milton next Gravesend, in the county aforesaid, then and there being, with force and arms, as well at the said parish of as in the parish of M. unlawfully, designedly and injuriously, did cast and throw, and cause and procure to be cast and thrown, into and upon the bed, stream, course, and waterway of the said river of Thames, and common king's highway there, divers and very many large quantities of chalk, stone, dirt, and rubbish, to wit, twenty thousand tons of chalk, stone, dirt, and rubbish, thereby forming a great mound, wharf, and embankment, projecting and extending into, athwart, and across the bed, stream, course, and waterway of the said river and common king's highway there, to a very great extent and length, to wit, to the extent and length of forty feet, to wit, to the extent and length of twenty feet, in the said parish of G. and twenty feet in the said parish of M. and along the shore and bank of the said river and common king's highway there, to a very great extent and breadth, to wit, to the extent and breadth of other forty feet, to wit, twenty feet thereof in the said parish of G. in the county aforesaid, and twenty feet thereof in the said parish of M. in the county aforesaid, whereby, and by means whereof, the bed, stream, course, and waterway of the said river and common king's highway there, during all the time aforesaid, became, and was, and still* is, greatly straitened and narrow- [*636] ed, and great quantities of mud, soil, sand and gravel, during all the times aforesaid, accumulated, and still continue to accumulate, near and about the same mound, wharf, and embankment, and near and about the said ancient and long used and accustomed public and common landing-place, in and upon the bed, stream, course, and waterway of the said river, and common king's highway there, and the navigation of his majesty's liege subjects in and along the said river, and common king's highway there, was, during all the time aforesaid, and still is, greatly impeded and rendered less safe and secure than it before was, and otherwise would have been, and of right ought to be, and the landing of his majesty's liege subjects at the said ancient and long used and accustomed public and common landing-place there, was, during all the time aforesaid, and still is, greatly circumscribed, obstructed, and impeded, and rendered difficult and dangerous, to the great damage and common nuisance of all his majesty's liege subjects, in, along, and upon the said river, and common king's highway there, passing, repassing and navigating, and of all his majesty's liege subjects landing from |