82 ENFORCEMENT OF THE STATUTES OF LABOURERS 



all commodities had been well-nigh universal. The pen- 

 alties inflicted for the endeavor to obtain this increase 

 must now be considered. 



(5) Penalties — Of the confused and complicated sys- 

 tem of penalties indicated by the enactments, a brief sum- 

 mary must here be attempted.' In the first ordinance 

 the following penalties for infringement are mentioned : 

 compulsory service clause, gaol until security of good 

 behaviour is given; contract clause, imprisonment; agri- 

 cultural zvages clause, for givers and takers the forfeit of 

 double what was paid, promised or received, in excess 

 of the legal rate, to go to the aggrieved party or to any 

 who will sue ; in the case of lords, treble ; artisans' wages 

 clause, gaol ; victuallers claicse, double of what was paid 

 in excess.^ In the second ordinance which has to do 

 only with the wages and price clauses, the forfeit of the 

 " excess," /. e. of the difference between the legal and 

 the actual rates, is substituted for the greater penalty of 

 the first ordinance and in this case also is to go to the 

 plaintiff, if any sue, and otherwise towards the subsidy.' 

 In the statute, in the case of agricultural labourers, refusal 

 to swear obedience to the articles and breaking of the 

 oath when sworn, are to be punished by stocks or gaol 

 until security of good behaviour is given ; in the case of 

 artisans, the penalties for breaking of their oaths are 

 fine, ransom, and imprisonment at the discretion of the 

 justices. In general, infringement of any clause of the 

 statute is to be punished by these three means, the im- 

 prisonment to last until security for good behaviour be 



'The disposition of the penalties is merely referred to here and is 

 treated at length in pt. i, ch. iii. 



-App., 9, 10 and 11. I am inclined to believe that this interpreta- 

 tion of the amount forfeited is correct. 



' App., 260. For an account of this measure, cf. pt, i, ch. iii, s. i, A. 



