32 Germany. 



territories, the inhabitants of which were placed under 

 special "forest laws," and adjudged by special "forest 

 courts." 



Presently the king's right of ban was granted with 

 the land grants to his barons and to the clergy. Ban- 

 forests also grew up through owners of properties 

 placing themselves and their possessions under the 

 protection of kings or bishops or other powerful 

 barons and giving in exchange this hunting right, 

 and in various other ways. At the same time the 

 headmen of the Mark (Obermdrker, Graf, Waldgraf), 

 who from being elected officers of the people had 

 become officials of the king, began to exercise, by- 

 virtue of their office, the jurisdiction of the king, and 

 declaring the ban for their own or their friends' benefit, 

 excluded the Marker from their ancient right to hunt 

 and fish freely over the territory of the Mark. 



While in this way the freedom of the communal 

 owners was undermined, the institution of banforests 

 had nevertheless its value in that it led to forest pro- 

 tection, restriction in forest use and restriction in 

 clearing, all this, to be sure, merely for the benefit of 

 the chase. Special officers to guard the rights of the 

 king, forestarii, chosen from the free and freedmen, 

 and also superior officers, forestmasters , were instituted, 

 to administer the chase and enforce the restrictions 

 which went with it. 



Gradually, with the loss of property rights, there 

 came also a change in the political rights of the marker 

 or commoners, through the large barons interfering 

 with self-government, assuming for themselves the 

 position of Obermarker, appointing the officials, and 



