Set on the Guilty by which Means the Prosecutors have been
considerably out of Pocket and are by the Charge attending Such
Prosecutions greatly discouraged from pursuing Prosecutions
of this kind which they apprehend necessary and commendable, of
Service to the Publick and to the Cause of Christianity.

These being the Severall Objections which Occurred and
Difficulties raised, your Committee thought it their Duty to
consider them Seperately to endeavour to give an Answer
to them to State their Sentiments of this Matter & Submit
the whole to the Judgement of this Court.

As to the first Objection whether Indictment the proper way of
proceeding your Committee find on Enquiry that about Six years
ago when Prosecutions of this kind were carried on against the
Butchers , they did as was Supposed and publickly Said make
a Purse among themselves to try the Matter, and they then
Suggested and insisted that this was not a Crime at Common Law,
and therefore not punishable by Judictment, and one of the Butchers
Standing Trial and being found guilty this was made a Point in
arrest of Judgement and Solemnly argued in this Court by at least
two Council of a Side and took up the best part of a Morning
when the Court took time to consider of it, and at a future day
unanimously gave their Opinion that it was Malamin Se,
contrary both to the Laws of God & Man a Crime of a
Publick Nature, of Manifest ill tendency, of Great Disservice
to Religion and was often a hindrance to the Buyer, but
certainly to the Seller and his Servants from attending at Publick
Worship. It being then proved to the Court that the Markets
were open and Meat publickly exposed to Sale on Stalls at
eleven and twelve o' Clock at noon on the Lords Day, Since
this Solemn Determination it has never in this Court been
disputed whether an Indictment will lye or not Neither did the
Butchers themselves think proper to remove this into the Court of
Kings Bench which undoubtedly they would have done had they
imagined that Court wou'd have been of a different Opinion, or
had they had been advised to have tryed that Court and that they
did advise with Councel on that head may very well be presumed
as [..] they Seemed very Sanguine at that time and prepared with Money
for any further Expence if the Shought they could have Succeeded.