The act or process of uniting several actions into one trial and judgment, by order of a court, where all the actions are between the same parties, pending in the same court, and turning upon the same or similar issues; or the court may order that one of the actions be tried, and the others decided without trial according to the judgment in the one selected. Powell v. Gray, 1 Ala. 77; Jackson v. Chamberlin, 5 Cow. (N. Y.) 282; Thompson v. Shepherd, 9 Johns. (N. Y.) 202.