sale. About three weeks or a month after the insertion of the first advertisement, a warrant must be taken out to fix a time for the sale, and it must be served on all the parties' clerks in court. The warrant being attended, the master, with the approbation of all parties, will fix the time; and the second advertisement, which is usually called the peremptory advertisement, stating the time, must then be prepared, and inserted in the Gazette (b). The estate may be sold either before the master; or, if from the situation and nature of the estate the sale ought not to take place in town, it may be sold in the country before the master's clerk, or any other person authorised by the master (c). The plaintiff's solicitor should attend at the sale, which is conducted in the following manner: The master's clerk prepares a particular of the lots to be sold, with spaces between each lot. The lots are successively put up at a price offered by any person present, and every bidder must sign his name and the sum he offers, in the space on the particular, under the lot for which he bids, and formerly 2s. 6d. was paid to the master's clerk for every bidding; but that regulation, which had a tendency to damp the sale, has lately been very properly abolished, and in lieu of the half-crowns, a sum is allowed to the clerk, as part of the expences attending the sale. The best bidder is of course declared the purchaser. If any lots are not sold, they must be again advertised for sale (d). The payment of a deposit, and the investment of it in the funds, are governed by the same rules as are adhered to where the contract is between party and party (e). The court will on motion discharge the purchaser, and (b) Sce 1 Turner's Practice by Ven. 127. (c) See 2 Fowl. Prac. 305. Fowl. Pract. 306, 307. (e) Vide supra, p. 39; Ambrose v. Ambrose, 1 Cox. 194. substitute substitute any other person in his stead; but this will not be done unless such person pay in the money, and an affidavit be made that there is no under-bargain, for the new purchaser may give the other a sum of money to stand in his place, and so deceive the court (f). Formerly, the practice seems to have been to require the consent of all the parties in the cause, as well as the consent of the original purchaser (g). Although more of an estate is sold than is necessary for the purposes of the trust by virtue of which the decree was made, yet the purchaser can make no objection to it, the decree being a sufficient security to him, as it cannot appear but that it was right to sell the whole. If, however, the decree were, that the master should sell Greenacre, and he sells Blackacre, an objection to the sale would be good (h); although it seems that it may be laid down as a general rule, that a purchaser shall not lose the benefit of his purchase by any irregularity of the proceedings in a cause (i). If a decree is obtained by fraud, it may, of course, be relieved against (k); and it has been said that a purchaser is bound to see, that, at least as far as appears on the face of the proceedings before the court, there is no fraud in the case (1); but, if the court itself is imposed upon, it would be a strong measure to imply notice of the fraud to the purchaser, from the very proceedings before the court. But a person having a legal lien, as a judgment creditor not coming in under the decree, would not be bound by it, and might proceed against the purchaser, unless he obtained a legal interest overreaching the lien, in which case the claim being merely in equity, the court would protect the purchaser buying under its decree (m), or rather would not lend its aid to the judgment creditor against him. In sales by auction or private agreement, the contract is complete when the agreement is signed; but a different rule prevails in sales before a master; the purchaser is not considered as entitled to the benefit of his contract till the master's report of the purchaser's bidding is absolutely confirmed; and I shall now proceed to show what steps a purchaser must take to obtain an absolute confirmation of the master's report. The purchaser must, first, at his own expense, procure a report from the master, of his being the best bidder for the lot he has purchased. After the report is filed, and an office-copy of it taken by the purchaser, he must, at his own expense, apply to the court by motion, of which no notice need be given (n), that the purchase may be confirmed. Upon this application the order will be confirmed nisi (o), that is, unless cause be shewn against the same in eight days after service. The purchaser must, at his own expense, procure an office-copy of this order from the register. If no cause be shown within the eight days, the purchaser must, at his own expense, apply to the court to confirm the report absolutely, which will be done of course (p), on an affidavit of the service of the order (q), and a certificate of no cause having been shown. (m) Barrett v. Blake, 2 Ball and Beat. 354. (n) See Parker's Analysis, 141. (0) For a form of the order, see 2 Fowler's Pract. 308, The cer (p) For a form of the order, see 2 Fowler's Pract. 311. (q) For forms of the affidavit, see 2 Turn, Pract. 503, 522. Parker's Anal.98; 2 Fowl. Pract 310. tificate tificate is obtained from the register by application to the entering clerk, and leaving the order nisi the day before. Notice of this application need not be given (r). The bidder not being considered as the purchaser until the report is confirmed, is not liable to any loss by fire or otherwise which may happen to the estate in the interim (s), nor is he until the confirmation of the report compellable to complete his purchase (t); but upon the report being confirmed he will be compelled to carry the contract into execution (u). If the purchaser neglect to complete his purchase, the practice is, to confirm the report, and then if the purchaser is supposed to be responsible, to get an order to inquire whether the party can make out a good title (x), and if he can, to obtain an order upon the purchaser to complete his purchase (y); (I) but if the purchaser is unable to complete his purchase, then on the report being confirmed, it is moved to discharge him from the bidding (≈), and notice of this motion must be given to the (r) See 1 Turn. Pract. 129. (s) Ex parte Minor, 11 Ves. Jun. 559; see 13 Ves. Jun. 518. (t) Anon. 2 Ves, Jun. 335. (u) Barker v. Holford, and Eggington v. Flavel, 2 Anstr. 344, cited. (z) Notice must be given of the motion for this order. For a form of the notice, see 2 Turner, 650. (y) See 2 Fowl. Pract. 318, 325. (*) Cunningham v. Williams, 2 Anstr. 344. (I) A motion was made before Lord Erskine, that the purchase-money should be paid in by the purchaser. The purchaser did not appear. Af ter consulting the Register, who had searched for precedents, and expressing his unwillingness to do any thing to prejudice sales by the court, the Chancellor refused the motion, but ordered the title to be referred to the master, and then, he said, if a good title could be made, he would compel payment of the money according to the usual practice. Ch. 22d July, 1806, MS. Anon. purchaser purchaser (a). But a purchaser will not be permitted to baffle the court; and therefore, instead of discharging the purchaser from his bidding, the court will, if required, make an order that he shall, within a given time, pay the money, or stand committed (b). When the report is absolutely confirmed, the purchaser is entitled to a conveyance on payment of the purchase-money, and may, after giving notice of his intention (c), apply to the court for leave to pay his purchasemoney into the Bank (d), and to be let into possession of the estate; but this application should of course not be made until the title be approved of (e). When the money is paid according to the order, the purchaser must, at his own expense, obtain a certificate of the payment of it. money If the estate be subject to an incumbrance, which appears upon the report, the purchaser should, after giving notice of his intention (f), apply to the court for leave to pay off the charge, and to pay the residue of the purchaseinto the Bank. But where an incumbrance on the estate does not appear on the report, and any of the parties refuse, or are incompetent to consent, a purchaser cannot apply any part of his purchase-money in discharge of the incumbrance, though perhaps, if the parties be all competent to consent and do consent, it may be done (g). Where two or more persons purchase one lot, the money must be paid altogether, the court will not allow them to |