Odger's English Common Law

Chapter V.
HALADMINISTRATION.
One potent cause of sedition, riot and breaches of the
peace is the abuse of power by officers of State. All oppres-
sive and overbearing acts on the part of those who are " drest
in a little brief authority " are sternly forbidden by our law.
Holders of the highest offices in the Empire have before now
been severely punished for misconduct. Three Lord Chan-
cellors—Michael de la Pole in 1384, Lord St. Albans (Sir
Francis Bacon) in 1622, and Lord Macclesfield in 1725
were convicted of bribery on impeachment; while Lord
Westbury was compelled to retire from office in 1865 in
consequence of scandals connected with a near relative, whom
he had appointed to a semi-judicial office. In 1626 the Earl
of Middlesex, Lord High Treasurer of England, was found
guilty of refusing to hear petitions referred to him till he had
been bribed. 1 And Warren Hastings, the greatest of our
Indian administrators, was forced to retire into private life,
because of the cruelty and rapacity with which he was
alleged to have treated the Begums of Oude.
In this chapter we shall deal with such offences as :
I. Extortion and oppression.
II. Eefusal to act.
III. Bribery and corruption.
IV. Offences against the purity of elections.
I. Extortion and Oppression.
If any public officer, in the pretended exercise of the duties
of his office, illegally and from some improper motive takes
from any person against his will any money or valuable thing
which is not then due from that person, he is guilty of
1 See Stephen's History of the Criminal Law, Vol. III. p. 262.
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