54 History of the 



deputed, and courts established for their due administration. The 

 courts so constituted were— the " Justice-Seat," held every third 

 year before the Chief Justice in Eyre of the Forest ; the " Swain- 

 mote," held thrice every year before the verdurers, and a jury 

 composed of twelve swains or freeholders ; and the " Woodmote," 

 or " Attachment," held once in every forty days before the 

 verdurers. Of the holding of the Justice-Seat, forty days' notice by 

 proclamation had to be given. 



The officers of a Forest were the warden, warder, or keeper, 

 rangers, verdurers, foresters, agistors, regarders, bailiffs, and bedels, 

 woodwards or woodreeves. The preservation of the " venison " 

 was intrusted to the foresters ; and the " vert " was in charge of 

 the woodwards or woodreeves, and the regarders. The verdurers 

 or verderers are the judges of the Forest courts. The business of 

 the bedel or beadle was to give notice of the time when the Courts 

 of the Forest were to be kept, to make all kinds of proclamations 

 in Court and out of it, and to e.xecute all the processes of the 

 Forest. 



" Venison," in the language of the Forest laws, is a technical 

 term, and includes game of every kind. " Vert " has reference to 

 the trees and shrubs which afford shelter to the game, and signifies 

 " everything that bears a green leaf, but especially great and thick 

 coverts." 



A Forest differs from a Chase in three things — ift its Laws, its 

 Officers, and in its particular Courts for the execution of the Laws. 

 Offenders in a Chase are punishable by the Common Law, and 

 not by the Laws of the Forests. The officers who are called 

 Foresters in a Forest, are named Keepers in a Chase. 



Beasts of Forest are hart, hind, hare, boar, and wolf. Beasts of 

 Park or Chase are the buck, doe, fox, marten, and roe. Beasts of 

 Warren are the hare, coney, and roe — all, legally, wild animals of 

 venery. Fowls of Warren are such as the partridge, quail, rail, 

 pheasant, woodcock, mallard, and heron. 



The king appropriated the Forests for his own special use and 

 pleasure. With Chases and Parks it was otherwise ; these could 



