Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol II).djvu/357

 Ch. 20. of making it, and afterwards becomes impoible by the act of God, the act of law, or the act of the obligee himelf, there the penalty of the obligation is aved: for no prudence or foreight of the obligor could guard againt uch a contingency. On the forfeiture of a bond, or it's becoming ingle, the whole penalty was recoverable at law: but here the courts of equity interpoed, and would not permit a man to take more than in concience he ought; viz. his principal, interet, and expenes, in cae the forfeiture accrued by non-payment of money borrowed; the damages utained, upon non performance of covenants: and the like. And the tatute 4 & 5 Ann. c. 16. hath alo enacted, in the ame pirit of equity, that in cae of a bond, conditioned for the payment of money, the payment or tender of the principal um due, with interet, and cots, even though the bond be forfeited and a uit commenced thereon, hall be a full atisfaction and dicharge.

2. A recognizance is an obligation of record, which a man enters into before ome court of record or magitrate duly authorized, with condition to do ome particular act; as to appear at the aies, to keep the peace, to pay a debt, or the like. It is in mot repects like another bond; the difference being chiefly this; that the bond is the creation of a freh debt or obligation de novo, the recognizance is an acknowlegement of a former debt, upon record; the form, whereof is, "that A. B. doth acknowlege to owe to our lord the king, to the plaintiff, to C. D. or the like, the um of ten pounds," with condition to be void on performance of the thing tipulated: in which cae the king, the plaintiff, C. D. &c, is called the cognizee, "is cui cognocitur;" as he that enters into the recognizance is called the cognizor, "is qui cognocit." This, being either certified to, or taken, by the officer of ome court, is witneed only by the record of that court, and not by the party's eal: o that it is not in trict propriety a deed, though the effects of it are greater than a common obligation; being allowed a priority in point of payment, Rh