Petition :
To His Excellency Dr. Cornelis Joan Simons
Governor and Director of the far-famed
Island of Ceylon, the coasts of Madura,
Inchiado etc.
It was on the 18th of February and 15th of October, last year that the petitioner Bras d'Andrado submitted two consecutive petitions from which Your Excellency has seen in what manner the petitioner had been despoiled of his parveny properties; how in consequence he had been constrained to institute proceedings against the present possessor thereof, Louis Pieris, resident of Kalutara; how he had been pronounced, to have won his case according to the annexed judgement of the Hon. the Court of Justice of this Castle; and how he had therefore requested that the dessave of the Colombo district might be authorised to carry into execution the aforesaid judgement according to its form and contents.
Instead of securing this last result, however, the petitioner was informed that he would have to wait until the return from Batavia of the former Dessave Class Schodt ; due to the fact that, by numerous obscure means, a pretence bad been put forward to the effect that by an old custom that various dessaves had consistently enjoyed and exercised, in their private capacity as distinct from the Land Raad, the right to evict persons settled in their district from their properties on the bare complaint of creditors and without any form of process or acknowledgement of debt, much less adverse judgement of Court
and thereby (if the said claim be true and maintainable) the powers of the dessaves in the said connection would appear to be adequatley strengthened and safeguarded against the attack of any challenger.
The petitioner however, takes the view, Your Excellency, that it is unheard of for a private individual to proceed to eviction in respect of a debt without previously obtaining Judgement; while summary execution, without setting in motion the machinery of the law, is a right applicable only in the case of public land for the collection of assessed rates and taxes. Hence, by decree of the High and Mighty Lords the States of Holland it was expressly forbidden that anybody, whether by business negotiation or simple deed of gift, should seek to usurp that right; and indeed this has been the interpretation upheld on several occasions by the aforementioned provincial courts.
On these grounds the petitioner once again in all humility prays that Your Excellency will be pleased to cause the above-noticed equitable sentence to be carried into effect and to direct the Hon. the Dessave Bolscho, on behalf of the petitioner, to evict Louis Pieris in terms of the Court order from the gardens etc. which are held by him unlawfully.
and should this be granted to him . . . . . . . .
BRAS D'ANTHRADE
Petition
- Page 1.
Petition - Page 2.
Judgment :
Extract from the Civil Judgement Roll maintained for the Hon'ble the Court of
Justice of the Castle of Colombo where, among other entries, the following
stands recorded in verbis, viz :
Friday the 3rd August 1703
Present :
The Hon'ble Mr. Joan Christiaansz Toorze, President.
The Hon'ble Mr. Pieter Macare
The Hon'ble Mr. Gerrit Hoflant
The Hon'ble Mr. Aernout Valk
The Hon'ble Mr. Gabriel Heyman
The Hon'ble Mr. Joannes Strick
The Hon'ble Mr. Pieter Roos
The Hon'ble Mr. Engelbert van Rhee, and
The Hon'ble Mr. Gerard Bessels
MEMBERS
also,
Daniel Tiste, Secretary.
Petitioner Bras d'Andrado formerly Chief of the Lascorins at
Kalutara
contra
Respondent Louis Pieris free resident of that town
Judgment delivered
The Court, after consideration of the case, restores to the petitioner the possession of the gardens and other properties of which he was unlawfully dispossessed and directs the respondent to withdraw and restrain his hands therefrom while at the same time permitting the petitioner to take possession of them at his pleasure without offering him any hindrance therein
and moreover directs the respondent to restore to the petitioner all the proceeds and profits which he has enjoyed during the period of his illegal occupation with costs, reserving however the respondent's action of warranty in respect of such persons as he shall decide
True Copy
In the Castle of Colombo on the
13th of May 1705
Daniel Tiste, Secretary.
