The defendant may, on the return. of process, and before answering, make an offer in writing to allow judgment to be taken against him for an amount, to be stated in such offer, with costs. The plaintiff shall thereupon, and before any other proceedings shall be had in the action, determine whether he will accept or reject such offer. If he accept the offer, and give notice thereof in writing, the justice shall file the offer and the acceptance thereof, and render judgment accordingly. If notice of acceptance be not given, and if the plaintiff fail to obtain judgment for a greater amount, exclusive of costs, than has been specified in the offer he shall not recover costs, but shall pay to the defendant his costs accruing subsequent to the offer. $$ 65, 66. [Obsolete.] $67. The justices' courts of cities, shall have jurisdiction in the following cases, and no other: 1. In actions similar to those in which justices of the peace have jurisdiction, as provided by sections 53 and 54. 2. In an action upon the charter or by-laws of the corporations of their respective cities, where the penalty or forfeiture shall not exceed one hundred dollars. $68. The provisions of sections 55 to 64, both inclusive, relating to forms of action, to pleadings, to the times of commencing actions, to the rules of evidence, to filing and docketing transcripts of judgments, to their effect, and the mode of enforcing them, and to proceedings where title to real property shall come in question, shall apply to the courts embraced in this title; except that, after the discontinuance of the actions in the inferio court upon an answer of title, the new action may be brought either in the supreme court, or in any other court having jurisdiction thereof, and except also that in the city and county of New-York, a judgment for twenty-five dollars or over, exclusive of costs, the transcript whereof is docketed in the office of the clerk of that county shall have the same effect as a lien, and be enforced in the same manner as and be deemed a judgment of the court of common pleas for the city and County of New-York, § 69. The distinction between actions at law and suits in equity, and the forms of all such actions and suits, heretofore existing, are abolished; and, there shall be in this state, hereafter, but one form of action, for the enforcement or protection of private rights and the redress of private wrongs, which shall be denominated a civil action. $70. In such action, the party complaining shall be known as the plaintiff, and the adverse party as the defendant. 71. No action shall be brought upon a judgment rendered in any court of this state, except a court of a justice of the peace, between the same parties, without leave of the court for good cause shown, on notice to the adverse party; and no action on a judgment rendered by a justice of the peace, shall be brought in the same county within five years after its rendition, except in case of his death, resignation, incapacity to act, or removal from the county, or that the process was not personally served on the defendant, or on all the defendants, or in case of the death of some of the par ties, or where the docket or record of such judgment is or shall have been lost or destroyed. $72. Feigned issues are abolished; and instead thereof, in the cases where the power now exists to order a feigned issue, or when a question of fact, not put in issue by the pleadings, is to be tried by a jury, an order for the trial may be made, stating, distinctly and plainly, the question of fact to be tried, and such order shall be the only authority necessary for a trial. $73. The provisions contained in the chapter of the revised statutes, entitled " of actions and the times of commencing them," are repealed, and the provisions of this title are substituted in their stead. This title shall not extend to actions already commenced, or to cases where the right of action has already accrued; but the statutes now in force shall be applicable to such cases, according to the subject of the action, and without regard to the form. $74. Civil actions can only be commenced within the periods prescribed in this title, after the cause of action shall have accrued, except where, in special cases, a different limitation is prescribed by statute. and in the cases mentioned in section seventy-three. But the objection that the action was not commenced within the time limited, can only be taken by answer. $75. The people of this state will not sue any person for, or in respect to any real property, or the issues or profits thereof, by reason of the right or title of the people to the same unless, 1. Such right or title shall have accrued within forty years before any action or other proceeding, for the same shall be commenced; or unless, 2. The people, or those from whom they claim, shall have received the rents and profits of such real property, or of some part thereof, within the space of forty years. $76. No action shall be brought for, or in respect to, real property, by any person claiming by virtue of letters patent, or grants from the people of this state, unless the same might have been commenced by the people as herein specified, in case such patent or grant had not been issued or made. § 77. When letters patent or grants of real property shall have been issued or made by the people of this state, and the same shall be declared void by the determination of a competent court, rendered upon an allegation of a fraudulent suggestion, or concealment, or forfeiture or mistake, or ignorance of a material fact, or wrongful detaining, or defective title, in such case, an action for the recovery of the premises so conveyed, may be brought either by the people of this state, or by any subsequent patentee or grantee of the same premises, his heirs or assigns, within twenty years after such determination was made; but not after that period. 78. No action for the recovery of real property, or for the recovery of the possession thereof, shall be maintained unless it appear that the plaintiff, his ancestor, predecessor or grantor, was seised or possessed of the premises in question, within twenty years before the commencement of such action. 79. No cause of action or defence to an action founded upon the title to real property, or to rents of services out of the same, shall be effectual, unless it appear that the person prosecuting the action, or making the defence, or under whose title the action is prosecuted or the defence is made, or the ancestor, predeces sor or grantor of such person, was seised or possessed of the premises in question, within twenty years before the committing of the act in respect to which such ac tion is prosecuted or defence made. $80. No entry upon real estate shall be deemed sufficient, or valid as a claim, unless an action be com menced thereupon within one year after the making of such entry, and within twenty years from the time when the right to make such entry, descended or ac crued. $81. In every action for the recovery of real property, or the possession thereof, the person establishing a legal title to the premises, shall be presumed to have been possessed thereof within the time required by law; and the occupation of such premises by any other person, shall be deemed to have been under and in subordination to the legal title, unless it appear that such premises have been held and possessed adversely to such legal title, for twenty years before the commencement of such action. § 82. Whenever it shall appear that the occupant, or those under whom he claims, entered into the posses sion of premises under claim of title, exclusive of any other right, founding such claim upon a written instrument, as being a conveyance of the premises in question, or upon the decree or judgment of a compe |