LEGISLATION ANTERIOR TO "OHARTA FORESTA." -m 



[hundred courts] ; and from all burdens respecting arms, 

 which the English call warscot, \i.e., show of armour, and 

 perhaps militia duty] ; and from all summons to any other 

 court, except that of the forest. 



" 10. Let the causes of the middling and lower officers, 

 and the correction of them, as well civil as criminal, be 

 judged and decided by the provident wisdom and reason 

 of the first class, but the enormities of the first class, if 

 any should happen (lest any crime should go unpunished), 

 we will punish ourselves in our royal anger. 



" 11, 12, and 13 respect the holding of courts. 



" 14 to 27, enumerate crimes of the forest as to hunting, 

 &c. Of these I shall only notice 



" 21. There shall not be the same penalty and forfeiture 

 for a gentleman (whom the Danes call ealderman) and a 

 common person ; for a master and a servant ; for one 

 known and one that is not known ; nor one and the same 

 treatment of civil and criminal causes, of those relating to 

 the beasts of the forest, and of the royal beasts, of vert and 

 of venison ; for a crime respecting the venison has been 

 ranked from the old time, and not undeservedly among 

 the greater crimes ; but one respecting the vert, except in 

 its being an infraction of our royal chase, is so small and 

 trifling, that our constitution scarcely notices it, never- 

 theless if any one offends therein, let him be esteemed a 

 criminal of the forest. 



' 28. Let no one cut any of our wood, or underwood, with- 

 out leave of the chiefs of the forest; which, if any one do, he 

 shall be adjudged guiltyof an infringement of the royal chase 



" 29. But if any one shall cat down an oak (ilicem), or 

 any tree, that furnishes food for the beasts of the forest, 

 beside infringement of the royal chase, he shall pay to the 

 king twenty shillings. 



" 30. I will, that every free man shall have venison or 

 vert at pleasure on his open grounds (plana) on his own 

 lands, but without chase [or the right of punishing in- 

 truders] ; and let all avoid mine (venison or vert), where- 

 ever I think proper to have it." 



P 



