ORIGIN OF COMMONS. 9 



common field system, with its three great fields in each 

 village or parish, and with its waste lands open to all. 

 A large part of the inclosures coriiplained of in Tudor 

 times consisted not of inclosures of the waste lands, hut 

 in doing away with the system of common fields, and 

 in converting them into individual property, freed from 

 the obligation of throwing them open during a portion 

 of the year. Such inclosures continued to be frequent, 

 under the authority of private Acts, down to modern 

 times, and not a few cases still exist of land called 

 Common Fields, or Lammas Land, held on this system 

 of tenure, and thrown open during a part of each year. 

 Interesting examples of it will be referred to later in the 

 cases of Tollard Farnham and the Hackney Commons. 



The introduction of the feudal system gradually 

 effected a great change in the relations of individuals 

 to one another and to the waste lands. The new 

 system had its origin in military necessity. The 

 country was by degrees parcelled out into commands 

 among military chiefs, who were at first appointed only 

 for life, but who later acquired the right of inheritance 

 for their eldest sons or heirs. The Chief assumed 

 command, and later exercised the rights of property 

 over the district assigned to him, which generally cor- 

 responded to the ancient village, and which became the 

 " Manor." The Chief, thus appointed, had the right of 

 summoning to arms the inferior landowners within his 

 district or Manor, who thus became in a military sense 

 his dependants, bound to render him military service. 

 They held their land, however, on certain tenure, and 



