The judge has no right to ask if you object on religious
grounds, or to put any question. He is bound by the provisions of the
Act, and the enactment applies not only to all forms of the witness
oath, whether in civil or criminal courts, or before coroners, but to
every oath which may be lawfully administered either in Great Britain or
Ireland.
A witness engaged to give expert evidence should demand his fee before
going into court, or, at all events, before being sworn.
With regard to notes, these should be made at the time, on the spot, and
may be used by the witness in court as a refresher to the memory, though
not altogether to supply its place. All evidence is made up of
testimony, but all testimony is not evidence. The witness must not
introduce hearsay testimony. In one case only is hearsay evidence
admissible, and that is in the case of a _dying declaration_. This is a
statement made by a dying person as to how his injuries were inflicted.
These declarations are accepted because the law presumes that a dying
man is anxious to speak the truth. But the person must believe that he
is _actually_ on the point of death, with _absolutely_ no hope of
recovery.
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