I04 



ENFORCEMENT OF THE STATUTES OF LABOURERS 



commissions for enforcing the ordinance of labourers that 

 are enrolled for this period all contain some reference to the 

 application of the excess to the subsidy ; ^ in the separate 

 commissions for labourers issued for Lindsey and Suffolk, 

 a careful line is drawn between the powers of the justices 

 of labourers and those of the collectors, while in the other 

 cases the justices are empowered to inquire as to whether 

 the collectors have carried out their instructions for tlie 

 assessment and collection of the " excess." 



From this evidence certain definite conclusions may be 

 drawn : it is clear that for nine counties, at least, there was 

 a vigorous attempt to apply the " excess " in aid of the 

 subsidy ; and since no provisions are recorded as to methods 

 of accounting it is probably a fair inference that in other 

 cases also the total tax included such " excess;" but it is, of 

 course, impossible to make any estimate as to the amount. 

 It is to be recalled that the number of appointments of 

 justices of labourers for this period is too few to explain 

 the statement in the preamble to the statute that commis- 

 sions were issued for each county ; since the collectors were 

 to assess as well as to levy the penalties technically known 

 as the " excess " it is more than probable that the statement 

 applies to them and that the council intended that they 

 should have a large part of the burden of the enforcement 

 of the wages and price clauses of the ordinance of labourers 

 and that the justices should be responsible to the crown for 

 all other forms of penalties, amercements, fines etc. imposed 

 under the ordinance.^ The clumsy division of power be- 

 tween the two sets of officials, the lack of specific provisions 

 as to their relation, the absence of definite instructions as 



'Pages 10-13. From this statement the commission for Durham 

 must be excepted. 

 'Page 13. 



