458 POLITICAL INSTITUTIONS. 



under King John, the central government was liberalized, 

 towns acquired the power to elect their own magistrates. 

 Conversely when, at the Restoration, monarchical power 

 increased, there was a framing of the &quot; municipalities on a 

 more oligarchical model.&quot; And then comes the familiar case 

 of the kindred liberalizations of the central government 

 and the local governments which have occurred in our own 

 time. 



511. From those local governing agencies which have 

 acquired a political character, we turn now to those which 

 have retained the primitive family character. Though with 

 the massing of groups, political organization and rule become 

 separate from, and predominant over, family-organization 

 and rule, locally as well as generally, yet family-organization 

 and rule do not disappear ; but in some cases retaining their 

 orginal nature, in some cases give origin to other local 

 organizations of a governmental kind. Let us first note how 

 wide-spread is the presence of the family-cluster, considered 

 as a component of the political society. 



. Among the uncivilized Bedouins we see it existing sepa 

 rately : &quot; every large family with its relations constituting a 

 small tribe by itself.&quot; But, says Palgrave, &quot; though the clan 

 and the family form the basis and are the ultimate expression 

 of the civilized Arab society, they do not, as is the case 

 among the Bedouins, sum it up altogether.&quot; That is, political 

 union has left outstanding the family-organization, but has 

 added something to it. And it was thus with Semitic societies 

 of early days, as those of the Hebrews. Everywhere it has 

 been thus with the Ayrans. 



The [Irish] Sept is a body of kinsmen whose progenitor is no longer 

 living, but whose descent from him is a reality. . . . An association of 

 this sort is well known to the law of India as the Joint Undivided 

 Family. . . . The family thus formed by the continuance of several 

 generations in union, is identical in outline with a group very familiar 

 to the students of the older Eoman law the Agnatic Kindred.&quot; 

 Not only where descent in the male line has been established, 



