Civil Government in the United States Considered with Some Reference to Its OriginsFiske, John
History
Civil Government in the United States Considered with Some Reference to Its Origins
Fiske, John
United States -- Politics and government
26. If any one holding of us a lay fee die, and the sheriff, or our
bailiffs, show our letters patent of summons for debt which the dead
man did owe to us, it shall be lawful for the sheriff or our bailiff
to attach and register the chattels of the dead, found upon his lay
fee, to the amount of the debt, by the view of lawful men, so as
nothing be removed until our whole clear debt be paid; and the rest
shall be left to the executors to fulfil the testament of the dead;
and if there be nothing due from him to us, all the chattels shall
go to the use of the dead, saving to his wife and children their
reasonable shares.[33]
[Footnote 33: A person's goods were divided into three parts, of which
one went to his wife, another to his heirs, and a third he was at
liberty to dispose of. If he had no child, his widow had half; and if he
had children, but no wife, half was divided amongst them. These several
sums were called "reasonable shares." Through the testamentary
jurisdiction they gradually acquired, the clergy often contrived to get
into their own hands all the residue of the estate without paying the
debts of the estate.]
27. If any freeman shall die intestate, his chattels shall be
distributed by the hands of his nearest relations and friends, by view
of the Church, saving to every one his debts which the deceased owed
to him.
28. No constable or bailiff of ours shall take corn or other chattels
of any man unless he presently give him money for it, or hath respite
of payment by the goodwill of the seller.
29. No constable shall distrain any knight to give money for
castle-guard, if he himself will do it in his person, or by another
able man, in case he cannot do it through any reasonable cause. And if
we have carried or sent him into the army, he shall be free from such
guard for the time he shall be in the army by our command.
30. No sheriff or bailiff of ours, or any other, shall take horses
or carts of any freeman for carriage, without the assent of the said
freeman.
31. Neither shall we nor our bailiffs take any man's timber for our
castles or other uses, unless by the consent of the owner of the
timber.
32. We will retain the lands of those convicted of felony only one
year and a day, and then they shall be delivered to the lord of the
fee.[34]
[Footnote 34: All forfeiture for felony has been abolished by the 33
and 34 Vic., c. 23. It seems to have originated in the destruction
of the felon's property being part of the sentence, and this "waste"
being commuted for temporary possession by the Crown.]
33. All kydells[35] (wears) for the time to come shall be put down in
the rivers of Thames and Medway, and throughout all England, except
upon the sea-coast.
[Footnote 35: The purport of this was to prevent inclosures of common
property, or committing a "Purpresture." These wears are now called
"kettles" or "kettle-nets" in Kent and Cornwall.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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