sum in controversy is
large enough to give jurisdiction, it is not only the right, but it is
the judicial duty of the court, to examine the whole case as presented
by the record; and if it appears upon its face that any material error
or errors have been committed by the court below, it is the duty of
this court to reverse the judgment, and remand the case. And certainly
an error in passing a judgment upon the merits in favor of either
party, in a case which it was not authorized to try, and over which it
had no jurisdiction, is as grave an error as a court can commit.

The plea in abatement is not a plea to the jurisdiction of this court,
but to the jurisdiction of the Circuit Court. And it appears by the
record before us, that the Circuit Court committed an error, in
deciding that it had jurisdiction, upon the facts in the case,
admitted by the pleadings. It is the duty of the appellate tribunal to
correct this error; but that could not be done by dismissing the case
for want of jurisdiction here--for that would leave the erroneous
judgment in full force, and the injured party without remedy. And the
appellate court therefore exercises the power for which alone
appellate courts are constituted, by reversing the judgment of the
court below for this error. It exercises its proper and appropriate
jurisdiction over the judgment and proceedings of the Circuit Court,
as they appear upon the record brought up by the writ of error.

The correction of one error in the court below does not deprive the
appellate court of the power of examining further into the record, and
correcting any other material errors which may have been committed by
the inferior court. There is certainly no rule of law--nor any
practice--nor any decision of a court--which even questions this
power in the appellate tribunal. On the contrary, it is the daily
practice of this court, and of all appellate courts where they reverse
the judgment of an inferior court for error, to correct by its
opinions whatever errors may appear on the record material to the
case; and they have always held it to be their duty to do so where the
silence of the court might lead to misconstruction or future
controversy, and the point has been relied on by either side, and
argued before the court.

In the case before us, we have already decided that the Circuit Court
erred in deciding that it had jurisdiction upon the facts admitted by
the pleadings. And it appears that, in the