44 ON THE PROBABLE ORIGIN 
the delegated’ powers of the civil governor, the 
Rector or Judex, and of the military commander, 
the Dux or Comes, were transferred, originally 
without separation, to the duke or count ap- 
pointed by the king. But this substitution of 
their own system for that of the Roman empire 
was by no means carried so far, as to banish 
the law or even the forms which had been pre- 
viously established, where any considerable Ro- 
man population still remained. Not only was 
it the privilege of every one of German extrac- 
tion to be judged according to his -hereditary 
law, though different from that of the kingdom 
in which he was settled, but those of Roman 
descent were entitled to an adjudication accor- 
ding to the forms and principles of Roman law. 
Hence the distinction of personal law.—This 
they could obtain only by the ancient constitu- 
tion of the Curia being preserved, the barbarians 
themselves being too ignorant to administer 
Roman law, although judicial proceedings might 
be carried on under their presidency. The pri- 
vilege of being so judged the Roman population 
were/not likely ever to abandon, and the barba- 
rians, who before they left their native country 
had scorned the confinement of walls, appear to 
have contented themselves with the occupation 
of the land, and to have left the old inhabitants of 
