Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol I).djvu/166

150 I. to the manner and time of aembling. The parliament is regularly to be ummoned by the king’s writ or letter, iued out of chancery by advice of the privy council, at leat forty days before it begins to it. It is a branch of the royal prerogative, that no parliament can be convened by it’s own authority, or by the authority of any, except the king alone. And this prerogative is founded upon very good reaon. For, uppoing it had a right to meet pontaneouly, without being called together, it is impoible to conceive that all the members, and each of the houes, would agree unanimouly upon the proper time and place of meeting: and if half of the members met, and half abented themelves, who hall determine which is really the legilative body, the part aembled, or that which tays away? It is therefore neceary that the parliament hould be called together at a determinate time and place: and highly becoming it’s dignity and independence, that it hould be called together by none but one of it’s own contituent parts: and, of the three contituent parts, this office can only appertain to the king; as he is a ingle peron, whoe will may be uniform and teady; the firt peron in the nation, being uperior to both houes in dignity; and the only branch of the legilature that has a eparate exitence, and is capable of performing any act at a time when no parliament is in being. Nor is it an exception to this rule that, by ome modern tatutes, on the demie of a king or queen, if there be then no parliament in being, the lat parliament revives, and is to it again for ix months, unles diolved by the ucceor: for this revived parliament mut have been originally ummoned by the crown.