a city court in the county, for crimes not punishable with death;

3. To hear and determine appeals from orders of justices of the peace under the provisions of law respecting the support of bastards;

4. To examine into the circumstances of persons committed to prison as parents of bastards, and to discharge them in the cases provided by law;

5. To try and determine complaints under the provisions of law respecting masters, apprentices and servants ;

6. To review the convictions of disorderly persons actually imprisoned, and to execute the powers conferred and duties imposed by law in relation to those persons;

7. To continue or discharge recognizances, undertakings and bonds of persons bound to keep the peace or to be of good behavior and to inquire into and determine the complaints on which they were founded;

8. To compel relatives o poor persons and committees of the estates of lunatics to support such persons and lunatics in the cases and manner prescribed by law;

9. To exercise the powers conferred by law in relation to the estates of persons absconding and leaving their families chargeable to the public;

10. To let to bail persons indicted therein for any crime triable therein as provided by law;

11. To let to bail persons committed to the prison of the county before indictment for any offense triable in the court; 12. To discharge persons who have remained in prison without indictment or trial in the cases prescribed by law;

13. To revoke licenses in the cases and mode prescribed by law;

14. To grant new trials in all cases tried therein;

15. To execute such other powers and duties as may be conferred by statute, or are now defined by special statute relating thereto.

(a) Sessions must be held according to law.-Under the law a court of sessions cannot be held, except as therein prescribed. (People v. Moneghan, 1 Park., 570.)

(b) When void.-Where one of the members of the court of sessions, granting an order of maintenance, is one of the individuals who, as superintendent of the poor, apply for the order, the court have no jurisdiction and the proceedings and order are void. (Baldwin v. McArthur, 17 Barb., 41s; Converse V. Same, 17 Barb., 410.

(c) Cannot award costs.-Courts of sessions, unless authorized specially by statute, cannot award costs in bastardy proceedings. (Wasburne v. Oversters of Hebron, 9 Johns., 19.)

(d) Cannot arraign on charge of murder.--The court of sessions have no power to arraign a defendant and receive a plea to an indictment for murder. (People v. McCraney, 21 How., 149.)

() May grant new trials.-Under post § 465 have power to grant new trials.

(f) May set aside verdict.-A court of sessions may set aside a verdict for irregularity. (Gay v. Monroe Gen. Sess., 12 Wend., 272.)

§ 40. Indictments to be sent to oyer and terminer.-A court of sessions must send every indictment there found for a crime not triable therein to the court of oyer and terminer of the county or to a city court having jurisdiction to try and determine the

same.

(a) General sessions may transfer indictment for murder.-An indictment for murder found in general sessions may be transferred to oyer and terminer for trial. (Thompson v. People, 6 Hun, 135; Dolan v. People, id. 493; 64 N. Y., 485.)

§ 41. Other indictments that may be sent to oyer and terminer.— A court of sessions may send an indictment pending therein to the court of oyer and terminer of the same county, to be determined according to law, and if such indictment is remitted back without trial by the court of oyer and terminer, the court of sessions may proceed thereon.

(a) May remit back.-The oyer and terminer may, in their discretion, remit back to the general sessions an indictment found in the sessions and removed by order of a circuit judge. (People v. N. Y. Gen. Sess., 3 Barb., 144.)

(b) May receive back.-The oyer and terminer also may receive back from the general sessions and try tndictments found in the oyer and terminer and sent to the sessions for trial. (People v. Gay, 10 Wend., 509.)

$42. By whom held.-A court of sessions must be held by the county judge, with two justices of sessions to be designated according to statute. If the justices of sessions, or either of them fail to attend the commencement of, or during the term, or if his office at such time is or becomes vacant, the county judge by an order entered in the minutes, may designate any justice. of the peace of the county to serve as justice of sessions during the term, or if the order is made by reason of non-attendance, until the absentee attends.

(a) A verdict cannot be received in the absence of one of the justices. (inman v. People, 13 Hun, 266.)

The provision of this section is not limited to cases in which one justice only is absent. (Cyphers v. People, 31 N. Y.. 373; 5 Park., 666.)

(b) May appoint a justice. However, if one of the justices of sessions after hearing a portion of a trial, leave the bench, and the county judge appoints another to take his place, a conviction by the court so constituted would be erroneous. (Bland v. People, 41 N. Y., 604.)

So if one of the justices of sessions be called as a witness and give material testimony. (Dohring v. People, 2 S. C., 458.)

$43. Justice disqualified. Whenever a justice of sessions is disqualified to act in any cause or proceeding pending in a court of sessions, the county judge must designate some other justice of the peace of the county, to act as member of the court during the trial or determination of such cause or proceeding.

3 R. S., 236, § 14; Id., 436, §§ 2, 7, 8; Laws 1883, ch. 111.

() May appoint associate justice.--If a member of the court of sessions is absent or be disqualified from acting in a particular proceeding, the county judge may supply the vacancy. (Baldwin v. McArthur, 17 Barb., 414.)

§ 44. (Amended 1886.) Justice disqualified.-If the county judge is, for any cause, incapable of acting in any criminal action or proceeding pending in the court of sessions, the court must transfer the same to the court of oyer and terminer of the county, or to a city court having jurisdiction of such an action or proceeding, or may request the county judge of any other county, except New York and Kings, to preside at and hold courts of sessions and county courts in said county.

3 R. S., 236, § 13.

§ 45. When and where held; jurors. A court of sessions must be held at such times as the county judge of the county, by order, designates, and at the place where the county courts are held for trial of issues of fact by a jury. Such order must designate the terms at which a grand or petit jury, or both, or neither, is required to attend; and neither a grand jury nor a petit jury is required to be drawn, or summoned to attend a term thus designated to be held without a jury. The order must be published in a newspaper printed in the county, for four successive weeks previous to the time of holding the first term under such order.

(a) Grand juries in courts of session; how organized.—This section is in harmony with the provisions of post § 225, § 226, § 227, and taken together, constitute a complete system by which grand juries may be drawn and summoned to meet exigencies under all circumstances. (People v. Rugg, 3 N. Y. Crim. R. 172, 98 N. Y., 537.

(b) No order of the board of supervisors is necessary. (Id.)

(c) The board of supervisors make their order, only in those cases when no designation has been made by the county judge. (Id.)

§ 46. Jurors, how drawn. If a county judge fail to designate the term at which a grand and petit jury is required to attend, the grand and petit jurors must be drawn and summoned for each term mentioned in the order mentioned in the last section.

3 R. S., 234, § 1.

(a) Effect of improper notice -The omission of a county judge to desig nate, in an order for terms of the court of sessions, any terms to be held without a jury, does not render the court null or deprive it of power to impanel a grand jury. (Cyphers v. People, 31 N. Y., 373; 5 Park., 666.)

§ 47. (Amended 1882.) Clerk.-Except in the city and county of New York and the county of Kings, the clerk of the county is the clerk of the court of sessions thereof.

3 R. S., 236, § 20; Laws 1874, ch. 90.

§ 48. Writ or process. Every writ or process issued out of a court of sessions may be tested on any day of the term in which the court is sitting, and be made returnable on any other day of the same term, or at the next term.

3 R. S., 236, § 18.

§ 49. (Amended 1886.) Compensation of justice. A justice of sessions is entitled to receive three dollars for each day's attend

ance at a court of sessions and to five cents a mile for traveling expenses in coming to and returning from the court. The justices of the sessions in the county of Kings shall each receive the compensation allowed to them by law in force before the adoption of the Code.

3 R. S., 240, § 53; Laws 1859, ch. 496.

CHAPTER III.

THE COURT OF GENERAL SESSIONS IN THE CITY AND COUNTY OF NEW YORK AND THE COURT OF SESSIONS IN THE COUNTY

OF KINGS.

SECTION 50. This court continued; proceedings now pending.

§ 50. (Amended 1882.) This court continued; proceedings now pending. The courts known as the court of general sessions in and for the city and county of New York, and the court of sessions in and for the county of Kings are continued, with the jurisdiction conferred by the next two sections and no other. But nothing contained in this section affects their jurisdiction of actions and proceedings now pending therein.

§ 51. (Amended 1882.) Its jurisdiction. The court of general sessions of the city and county of New York, and the court of sessions of the county of Kings have jurisdiction:

.1. To try, determine and punish according to law, all crimes cognizable within their respective counties, including crimes punishable with death or imprisonment in the State prison for life;

2. To exercise, in cases arising in their respective counties, the same powers as are conferred by this Code upon courts of sessions in other counties;

3. To try and determine any indictment found in the court. of oyer and terminer of the county, which has been sent by order of that court to and received by the court of sessions therein; and

4. To exercise such powers as are now prescribed by special statute relating thereto.

Id., §§ 66, 67, 70; see, also, Session Laws cited under last section.

(a) Case may be removed after arraignment.—An indictment for murder found in the general sessions of New York may be transferred to the oyer and

terminer for trial either before or after arraignment. (Thompson v. People, 6 Hun, 135; Dolan v. People, Id., 493; 64 N. Y., 485.)

When it appears that novel, intricate and important questions of law are likely to arise on the trial, that it is a matter of great public interest and that great care must be taken to prevent injustice being done to the defendant, and that the case is of the highest importance, such fects furnish good cause for its removal from general sessions to the oyer and terminer. (People v. Squires, 4 N. Y., Cr. R. 444.)

(b) The court of general sessions of the city and county of New York, has no jurisdiction to discharge a prisoner committed by a police magistrate, in default of giving the undertaking required by post § 89, to keep the peace. (People v. Boyle, 2 N. Y. Cr. R. 34.)

(c) Order of removal not part of record.—On error, an order for the removal of the case from the oyer and terminer to the court of sessions need not appear on the record. (May v. People, 12 Hun, 380.)

(d) General sessions may discharge the jury.-Has power to discharge a jury in case of felony, if unable to agree. (People v. Goodwin, 13 Johns., 187.)

(e) May grant new trials.-The court of general sessions of New York has power to grant new trials upon the merits in cases tried before them. (Lonergan v. People, 39 N. Y., 39.)

(†) Has jurisdiction on Governor's Island.—The general sessions have jurisdiction over offenses committed on Governor's Island. (People v. Lent, Wheeler's C. Cases, 548.)

(g) Must send to oyer and terminer certain cases.-It is the duty of the New York court of sessions to send to the oyer and terminer all indictments for offences which they cannot try. (People v. Shepard, 11 Abb. Pr., 59; 19 How, 446.)

(h) Must be on motion.-The New York general sessions will not transfer to the oyer and terminer indictments found in the sessions except on motion, and on notice to the district attorney or the accused, as the case may be. (McFarlands, case, 7 Abb. (N. S.), 348.)

(i) May resentence prisoner.-After affirmance in court of appeals, court of sessions may resentence a prisoner. (Walters v. People, 19 Abb., 212.)

§ 52. Division of court. The court of general sessions of the city and county of New York is divided into three parts. R. S., 241 § 62.

§ 53. (Amended 1882.) Parts, by whom held.—Any one of the three parts of the courts of general sessions of the city and county of New York may be held by the recorder of the city of New York, or the city judge, or the judge of the court of general sessions. A judge of the court of common pleas for the city and county of New York may also hold it. The court of sessions of the county of Kings must be held by the county judge of the county of Kings, with two justices of the sessions, designated according to statute.

Id. § 58.

§ 54. When held and its duration.-Each part of the court of general sessions in and for the city and county of New York, may be held each month, commencing on the first Monday and continuing so long as, in the opinion of the judge sitting and of the district attorney, the public interest requires, but one part only is required to be held during the month of July and August, and two parts only during the rest of the year.

While prolonging its session for the purpose of concluding a trial, the court