“Such was the engine of war with which they hoped to make a breach in the wall of my soul,” the bishop says, intimating that they had learned the way by past experience. The custom of giving presents to officials was so firmly established that even the reforming bishop hesitated to interfere with it. Accordingly, in order not to offend the suitors, he felt constrained to accept articles of small value, such as eggs, bread, wine, tender chickens, and birds, “whose body is small but good to eat.” Little change was made in the ordinary forms of the Frankish judicial system by Charles; the count still continued to hold his tribunal as in Merovingian times, the freedmen of the county were expected to be present as assessors, but owing to the difficulty of securing an intelligent tribunal in this haphazard way, Charles instituted a chosen class of assessors called “scabini,” who were to be taken from the class of “well-born, prudent, and God-fearing men.” This body was both the judge and jury, as the count only acted as their presiding officer and pronounced the sentence formulated by them. From the verdict of this tribunal there was an appeal either to the King or to the judgment of God, the favorite form of which at this time was the test by the cross. In this test, the defendant, holding his arms in the form of a cross, had to stand upright without changing his position, while the clergy recited certain prayers. If any movement was made, it was taken as a sign of guilt. In the palace the King himself often acted in the capacity of judge in the first instance, and he also heard appeals either in person or by proxy through the count of the palace. Considerable care was taken that the right of appeal should not be used indiscriminately. The palace officials had important governmental as well as personal functions; their general collective title was the “palatins.” There was no Mayor of the Palace, the first place being held by the count, who, as has just been noted, had judicial duties. The administration of the palace was also in his hands. The religious services of the household were directed by the arch-chaplain; then came the chamberlains, treasurers, seneschals, butlers, constables, and the master of domestic functions. Counts of the palace are found in the command of armies; one of them being killed by the side of Roland at Roncesvalles, another in Saxony. Seneschals had charge of the kitchens, but they are also mentioned as valiant warriors. Butlers were also diplomatists, and we find a constable fighting the Slavs on the Elbe.