Notary public

“ Notaries Public (Vol. ii., p. 393.) .—Why does your correspondent MANLEIUS think this form of expression "putting the cart before the horse?" Public notary (though that phrase is sometimes erroneously used) is not so exact as "notary public;" for a notary is not, as the first form would imply, a public officer appointed by the public to perform public services, but an individual agent through whose ministry private acts or instruments become publici juris. ”

“ The statute of Mississippi (H. & H. Digest, 609, sec. 33) provides, that in all cases where it may be necessary to have the testimony of a notary public in any suit touching a protested note, bill of exchange, or other instrument, the official act of such notary, certified under his hand and attested by his notarial seal, shall be deemed, held, and taken to be conclusive evidence of the protest of such note, bill, or other writing on the day it purports to have been made; and the notary shall not be required to go beyond the limits of the county of his residence to give evidence of the facts. ”

“ Aware of the difficulty of sustaining their opinion, if the same rule of evidence applied to the statements of the notary that would apply to the same statements on oath by a private individual, they say he is a public officer, and it is not to be presumed that he would do so useless an act as to go to the house of the acceptor and demand payment if he had not the bill with him, and that the law will presume the notary had done his duty. ”

“ For this reason the remaining magistracies and offices of notary-public have not been sold. I shall give an account to your Majesty, later, of whatever is done with regard to them, and the sum they bring will be placed in the royal treasury as soon as it is collected. [Marginal note: "Write to the governor that, in what refers to the offices of regidor, it is not expedient that there be the condition permitting them to renounce the offices. The sales must be made in the usual way. As regards the notarial offices, what has been done is approved."] ”

“ Have I done nothing for you, M. d'Aguilhe? Have I not been a good client to you?"
"Nevertheless, sir, nothing can weigh with me against the rules of my profession," pompously replied the Notary. "A Public Person must not allow himself to be swayed by private considerations."
"In what lies your difficulty in changing this deed?" Germain asked.
"A deed once deposited in the archives of the Notary is sacred."
"But you see a mistake has been made?"
"Etiquette, Monsieur."
"You see that the honour of the family is concerned in rectifying that mistake." ”

“ But inasmuch as it would be difficult to have these present letters sent to all places where desirable, we wish, and with similar accord and knowledge do decree that to copies of them, signed by the hand of a notary public commissioned therefor and sealed with the seal of any ecclesiastical officer or ecclesiastical court, the same respect is to be shown in court and outside as well as anywhere else, as would be given to these presents, should they be exhibited or shown. ”

“ For this purpose the grantor goes before a Justice of the Peace, or Notary Public, or, if the grantor is not resident in the state where the real estate is situated, then before a State Commissioner of Deeds, or if in a foreign country, then before a consul. These are persons qualified by appointment to the office which they hold, to take acknowledgments. The deed is shown the officer, to whom grantor makes the acknowledgment that the document by him signed is his free act and deed; and by whom a certificate to that effect by him signed, is attached to the deed. ”

“ The law presumes that every officer has done his duty, and when we find at the foot of an affidavit the certificate of a notary public the law presumes that the paper above it was in the precise condition at the time the certificate was placed there in which it is then. That is the presumption of law, and there is only one way to overcome that presumption. You must prove to the contrary. One of the easiest ways on earth to do that is to bring the officer. They did not bring J. S. Taylor here from New Mexico, the man before whom Peck acknowledged the affidavit in this case. ”

“ The issue is one entirely of fact, in which the burden of proof is upon the plaintiffs. Callan, the notary public, testifies with particularity to the circumstances attending the execution of the note and of the deed of trust in his presence, and to the acknowledgement of the latter before him, and to his signing his name as a witness to the execution of each. ”

“ A warrant of commitment by a justice of the peace must state a good cause certain and be supported by oath. [20] A notary public is not authorized to administer oaths in federal criminal proceedings; hence a warrant based on affidavits verified before a notary is invalid. ”

“ The notes not being paid at their respective maturities,-the first one on the 27th of April, 1874, and the second one on the 27th of April, 1874,-before the close of banking hours on those days, were handed by the firm to a notary-public of the county, with instructions to demand payment of them, and if they were not paid to protest them and send notice of non-payment to the indorsers. No other directions were given. The notary knew that the maker resided on his plantation, and had no place of business in the city ”

“ For greater satisfaction and surer success, I command you that as soon as you have received these letters you shall—with the aid of the notary-public of the royal officials, or of your secretary, as may appear best to you—compile a book, in which, after you have inserted these letters and other documents, you will enter the orders that you may give, and the decisions that you may make. Accordingly, there will be evident from them both the time that is gained or lost in the execution of your orders, so that with this guide you may govern to better advantage ”

“ By them we are informed that it is the settled law of the State, that 'a bank receiving commercial paper, as an agent for collection, properly discharges its duties, in case of non-payment, by placing the paper in the hands of a notary-public to be proceeded with in such manner as to charge the parties to it, and secure the rights of the real owner ”

“ Counsel for the United States further insists that a proper construction of section 1778 will authorize a notary public in any state to administer oaths to officers of national banking associations, when making reports to the comptroller of the currency, if justices of the peace may lawfully do so in this district. ”

“ If his knowledge of the residence of the maker could have required him to leave the city, so it would have done had the maker resided one hundred miles distant instead of twelve or fifteen. But on this head we are not called upon to express an opinion. It is enough here that the notary was not, in this matter, the agent of the bankers. He was a public officer whose duties were prescribed by law; and when the notes were placed in his hands, in order that such steps should be taken by him as would bind the indorsers if the notes were not paid, he became the agent of the holder of the notes. ”

“ That the court erred in refusing the instruction asked for by the defendant's counsel.
3. That the declaration is radically and essentially defective.
1. It may be said, that the objection to the evidence of the notary public goes to his credibility rather than to his competency. But inasmuch as the bank would be absolved from responsibility if the notary committed an error, and all the liability to the party injured by the fault would devolve upon the notary, it clearly became his interest to exonerate himself from it by proving that he committed no fault. His interest was strong and direct. ”

“ We maintain,
1. That the defendant in this case is not, under his confession that he had released the drawers of the note from their responsibility, entitled to demand any notice of dishonor of the note in any form. He discharged every interest which entitled him to any notice whatever.
2. But if protest of notice might be required, then we insist all in this case was legally conformed to such requirement.
By statutes of Mississippi, (How. and Hut., 430, sect. 24,) authorizes justices of the peace to perform duties of the notary public. ”

“ But in practice there is no way (as it seemeth) of resigning, but either to do it by personal appearance before the ordinary, or at least to do it elsewhere before a public notary, by an instrument directed immediately to the ordinary, and attested by the said notary; in order to be presented to the ordinary, by such proper hand as may pray his acceptance. In which case the person presenting the instrument to the ordinary doth not resign nomine procuratorio, as proctors do ”

“ John's day, he appointed two alcaldes in ordinary, one alguacil-mayor, and twelve regidores; and on the day following he appointed one notary for the cabildo and two notaries public for the court of the said alcaldes, [1] as is set forth in greater detail, and appears by the list of the said appointments, which are in my possession. ”

“ The court say in the case in Johnson, that it was a fact proper for the decision of the jury. In this case the jury have not found this fact. They say that the notary intended to refer to the note in question. But they do not say that the indorser knew that the notice alluded to the same note.
The knowledge of the indorser is the most material fact. The intention of the notary is of no moment; and in this case it is clear that he never intended to allude to a note of 1400 dollars. ”

“ In the course of a quarter of an hour every one had assembled in the chamber of the paralytic; the second notary had also arrived.
A few words sufficed for a mutual understanding between the two officers of the law. They read to Noirtier the formal copy of a will, in order to give him an idea of the terms in which such documents are generally couched; then, in order to test the capacity of the testator, the first notary said, turning toward him:
"When an individual makes his will, it is generally in favor or in prejudice of some person." ”

“ If the certificate were an official act and material as a separate acknowledgment of the execution of the will, as in the acknowledgment of a deed, the case would be different, since it has never been supposed that a notary, who takes an acknowledgment of a deed, could be counted as a witness to the deed without a separate signature. ”

“ The profession of notary is meat, drink, and lodging: every man's house is free to me--his bed and board I share, and there is neither wedding, christening, nor funeral, in ten parishes that can go on without me. Governors and intendants flourish and fall, but Jean Pothier dit Robin, the itinerant notary, lives merrily: men may do without bread, but they will not live without law--at least, in this noble, litigious New France of ours. ”

“ State, justices of the peace, magistrates, clerks of all courts and prosecuting attorneys offices and their assistants, notary publics as well as the registrars of mortgages and deeds shall be permanent, and shall hold their positions as long as their respective posts exist. ”

“ Maitre Mouche lifted up his hand—with a black woollen glove on it—as if making oath to the truth of these statements. Then he added:
“I am enabled, by the very character of my profession, to know a great deal about people. A notary is, to a certain extent, a father-confessor.
“I deemed it my duty, Monsieur, to give you this agreeable information at the moment when a lucky chance enabled you to meet Mademoiselle Prefere. There is only one thing more which I would like to say. ”

“ The competency of a notary as a witness is discussed in 2 Bailey's S.C.. Rep. 183.
An agent is generally a competent witness as to matters within his agency. 1 Bingham, 368; 6 Lea. R. 29; 1 N. H. Rep. 192; 5 Martin, N. S., 310. See also 15 Wend. 314.
2. The notary not only proved his own acts, but the general usage and custom of allowing different days of grace upon notes discounted by a bank and those merely deposited for collection. It is admitted, that if courts have, by their decisions, settled and established what the usage is, it becomes as binding as statute law. ”

“ The case has not been brought into court; for legal proceedings cost so much money. The sale is to be made by voluntary agreement. Now, this notary has applied to one of my clients to lend him his name for this purchase. My client, a poor devil, says to me: 'There's a fortune to made out of that house by fooling the notary.'"
"And they do that sort of thing in business!" said Brigitte, quickly. ”

“ The original shall be retained by the notary, and if either of the parties shall desire an authenticated copy, it shall be given them as a safeguard of their rights. And in suits for the said amount, only one real, and no more, may be collected between judge and notary. ”

“ In the first place, my dear fellow, he has a private income of sixty thousand francs; and he is a notary of the real old sort, a notary while he walks or sleeps; his children must be little notaries and notaresses. He is a heavy, pedantic creature, and that’s the truth; but on his own ground, he is not the man to flinch before any power in creation.... No woman ever got money out of him; he is a fossil pater-familias, his wife worships him, and does not deceive him, although she is a notary’s wife.—What more do you want? as a notary he has not his match in Paris. ”

“ And as for liberty, why you see, sir, in fine weather, in a starry night, I think it would be a nice thing indeed to be racing over the heath with my fellows; but, after all, liberty's very uncomfortable: a man must work for his bread, you know."
The notary sighed.
"Cheer up, sir!" said the Vagabond, in happy unconsciousness of the real cause of the notary's sigh. "Cheer up, sir! To-morrow you'll have your own room; and since Mr. Völgyeshy's your lawyer, I am [Pg 103] sure you'll get through the business, however ugly it may be. ”