In Tit. XXXI. it is stated that Franks, Burgundians, Alamanni, and others, of whatever nation, living in the Ripuarian country, are to be judged and dealt with, if guilty, according to the law of the place of their birth, and not by the Ripuarian law, and it is significantly added that (living away from their kinsmen as they often must be) if they cannot find compurgators they must clear themselves by the ordeal of ‘fire or lot.’[122] Here we come upon one of the strongest tests of tribal custom in its insistence upon the necessity of a man being surrounded by a kindred before he can be a fully recognised tribesman. Unless he be surrounded by kinsmen who can swear for him, under tribal custom, he must have recourse to the ordeal in case of any criminal charge. There is a clause, not inconsistent, I think, with Tit. XXXI., which seems to draw a clear distinction in favour of tribes more or less nearly allied in blood with Franks, viz. the Burgundians, Alamanni, Bavarians, Saxons, and Frisians, resident in the Ripuarian district, as contrasted with the _Romanus_, who surely must be the Gallo-Roman. In Title XXXVI. the following wergelds are stated, the slayer being a Ripuarian in all cases:-- A stranger Frank 200 solidi ” ” Burgundian 160 ” ” ” Romanus 100 ” ” ” Alamann } ” ” Frisian } 160 ” ” ” Bavarian } ” ” Saxon } [Sidenote: Wergeld of the _Romanus_ 100 solidi instead of 200 or 160 solidi.] Thus the Roman stranger is placed in the lowest grade. His wergeld is only 100 solidi--half that of the Ripuarian or Salic Frank--whilst those tribes nearer in blood to the Frank are classed together with a wergeld of 160 solidi, not much less than that of the Frank. Indeed, there is reason to believe that these were the wergelds of the several tribes in force in their own country according to their own laws.[123] In this connection the view of M. Fustel de Coulanges, that the term ‘Romanus’ is confined to the libertus freed under Roman law, hardly seems natural. The evidence seems to show that the man freed under the formalities of Frankish law thenceforth lived under Salic law and became a Frankish freeman with a freeman’s wergeld of 200 solidi, whilst the man who became a freedman under process of Roman law thenceforth lived under Roman law, and became a Roman freeman--a Romanus--with a wergeld of only 100 solidi. The inference that the difference in status was the result of difference in blood is not altered by the fact that the social status awarded to the Gallo-Roman was the same as that of the libertus in some other laws.