A plaintiff may by leave of the court amend his bill either before answer or after ; that is, ho may strike out parts and insert new parts; and it is not easy to say what aro the limits to the amount of altera tion. A defendant is rarely permitted to amend his answer.
A demurrer in needs little explanation further than what has been given. [Envier. When it is a demurrer to the whole bill, which is the most kind of demurrer, the object generally is to get rid of the suit, and to avoid an answer which may give the plaintiff some discovery. If the demurrer is allowed, the suit is properly at an end; but leave is often given to the plaintiff to amend his bill, parti cularly where the demurrer is for want of proper parties. If the demurrer is overruled, the suit proceeds.
A plea in equity may require a few worda of explanation. A plea in bar to the whole bill, which is the common kind of plea, is an averment which is offered as a substantial answer to all the statements and charges in the bill, though it is not in form such an answer. In fact, a plea in equity is the same thing as a plea at law : it is the defendant's answer to the whole of what is adversely alleged, and as it does not in terms answer all that is adversely alleged, it must be taken to admit that to be true which it does not in terms answer, because the averments of the plea are offered as a complete answer to the bill. In the old books there is no distinction made between a plea in equity and an answer in equity; nor is there any difference sub stantially. " A plea ie a special answer to a bill, differing in this from an answer in the common form, as it demands the judgment of the court in the first instance whether the matter urged by it does not debar the plaintiff from his title to that answer which the bill required" (Lord Iledeadale, in Roche v. iforjell, 2 8. and L., p. 724.) Now, as a complete answer is that which the plaintiff requires, and is entitled to if his bill is good in substance and form, and as discovery is In many cases his chief object, and in some cases lila only object, it is evident that before any further proceedings can be taken in the matter of a bill to which a defendant pleads, it must be determined whether the idea is good in form : and for this purpose the averments of the plea must be considered as true; and all that part of the bill must also be considered as true to which the plea is no direct answer.
Now, the plea is good in form if it contains averments which either directly negative all the allegations in the bill that give the plaintiff a title to relief against the defendant, or positive averments which destroy the effect of such allegations. The plea is bad in form if the averments of the plea, though true (as on arguing the formal good ness of the plea they are assumed to ) e), are not a complete answer either by or affirmation or both, to all the allegations in the bill which give the plaintiff a title to that which ho demands of or against the defendant. The formal badness of such plea is a fleece. sary consequence of the admitted truth of all those parts of the bill to which the avennente of the plea do not extend. In order therefore that a plea may be taken as a sufficient answer to the whole bill, it must contains eufficient averments to negative or displace all the allegations in the bill which, if true, gave the plaintiff a title to relief. But inasmuch as a plea is tin answer, the defendant must, in addition to the averments, give an answer upon oath to all those statements and charges in the bill upon which he is interrogated, which, if true, would destroy the effect of the matter pleaded ; and this is called supporting a plea by an answer, which is generally necessary. If the plea is decided to be good in form, then the truth of the plea alone is in issue between the plaintiff and defendant, and the cause is heard on the issues so joined : just as, in the case when) the bill is answered, the cause is heard upon all the issues of law and fact joined by such bill and answer. If a plea is simply overruled, tho defendant must answer the bill. If it is overruled, the answer in support of the plea, if them is one, may serve for an answer as far as it goes, and the court may accordingly order it to stand for an answer to such part of the bill, with liberty to except to it or not, according as it may ho an insufficient or sufficient answer to that part of the bill to which it extends.