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I. TOWN CUSTOMS.

An English city or borough,1 in the early Middle Ages, is to be looked upon, in the greater number of cases, simply as a manor or group of adjacent manors, where facilities for trade or handicraft have led to a larger and more concentrated population than could have subsisted merely on the agriculture of the rural community. In each of these towns local customs grew up, just as the “custom of the manor" existed in each village in the open country; but more highly developed, as a consequence of the closer population, mercantile occupation, and more active life of the townspeople.

Since these local customs existed only as rules traditionally observed and remembered, they were but seldom made a matter of written record. The few still existing have been preserved by peculiar cicumstances. In some forty-one cases the pecuniary relations to the king involved in the customs of the towns attracted the attention of the commissioners who made the reports for Domesday Book. Those of Chester are given in the greatest detail. The customs of Newcastle were formulated in the time of Henry II, but refer to a period at least as early as the close of the eleventh century. The "Usages of Winchester,' "Ordinances of Worcester" and "Office of the Mayor of Bristol" are collections of city customs similar to those printed and translated here, and are printed in Smith's English Gilds, Early English Text Society, 1870. The last of the three is also in Ricart's Kalendar, Camden Society, 1872.

CUSTOMS OF CHESTER.

Latin: Domesday Book, I, 262, b. ; and Stubbs' Select Charters, 83-95.

The city of Chester, in the time of King Edward, paid tax as being of fifty hides; three and a half hides of which were outside of the city. That is, one and a half hides were beyond the bridge, and two hides in Newton and Redcliff, and in the bishop's borough; these paid tax with the city.

In the time of King Edward, there were in the city 431 houses paying tax. And besides these the bishop had 56 tax-paying houses. Then the city paid ten and a half marks of silver; two parts belonged to the king and the third to the earl. And the following laws existed there :

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When peace had been granted by the hand of the king, or by his letter or through his bailiff, if any one broke it, the king had 100 shillings for it. But if the same peace of the king, at his order had been granted by the earl, if it was broken, of the 100 shillings which were given therefor, the earl had the third penny. If, however, the

1 There seems to be no consistent distinction between cities and boroughs in Domesday and earlier use: later it was customary to call the seat of a bishop a city and all other considerable towns boroughs. 2 A hide was a unit of taxation or of measurement, equalling in the latter case approximately 120 acres. It is here evidently the former. 3 The mark of silver was equal to 13s. 4d. ; of gold, £6.

same peace was infringed when granted by the reeve of the king or the officer of the earl, it was compounded for by forty shillings, and the third penny belonged to the earl.

If any free man of the king broke the peace which had been granted and killed a man in his house, all his land and money came to the king, and he himself became an outlaw. The earl had the same concerning his man making this forfeiture. No one, however, except the king, was able to grant peace again to an outlaw.

He who shed blood between Monday morning and the ninth hour of Saturday compounded for it with ten shillings. From the ninth hour of Saturday to Monday morning bloodshed was compounded for with twenty shillings. Similarly any one paid twenty shillings who did this in the twelve days after Christmas, on the day of the Purification of the Blessed Mary, on the first day of Easter, the first day of Pentecost, Ascension Day, on the Assumption or Nativity of the Blessed Mary and on the day of All Saints.

He who killed a man on these holy days compounded for it with £4; but on other days with forty shillings. Similarly he who committed burglary or assault, on those feast days or on Sunday £4. On other days forty shillings.

Any one setting prisoners free' in the city gave ten shillings. But if the reeve of the king or of the earl committed this offence he compounded for it with twenty shillings.

He who committed theft or robbery or exercised violence upon a woman in a house compounded for each of these with forty shillings.

If a widow had illegitimate intercourse with any one she compounded for it with twenty shillings; a girl, however, with ten shillings for a similar cause.

He who in the city seized upon the land of another and was not able to prove it to be his, was fined forty shillings. Similarly also he who made a claim upon it, if he was not able to prove it to be his.

He who wished to make relief of his own land or that of his relative gave ten shillings.

If he was not able or did not wish to do this the reeve took his land into the hand of the king.

He who did not pay the tax at the period at which he owed it compounded for it with with ten shillings.

1The word hangewitham thus translated, has also been considered to mean the offence of hanging a person without warrant of law.

Ducange.

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