204 THE FORESTS OF ENGLAND. 



year of his reign, contains many useful regulations, more 

 particularly in respect to the proceedings which were to 

 be had in the forest courts. Nothing worth noticing 

 appears to have occureed in the time of Edward II., but 

 in the reign of his successor we find several new regula- 

 tions in respect to trespasses committed in forests, parti- 

 cularly a statute which enacts that no person shall be taken 

 or imprisoned for vert or venison unless taken within the 

 ' mainour.' We find also a general pardon of all offences 

 that had been previously committed in the royal forests. 

 Notwithstanding the wise and prudent regulations of 

 Edward III., the officers of the forest must have renewed 

 their attempts, and used improper means to influence the 

 verdicts of juries upon the subject of forest offences ; other- 

 wise it is fair to presume that the aid of Parliament would 

 not have been resorted to by Kichard II. in the seventh 

 year of his reign. Here the regulations of the forest seem 

 to have rested for many years. It is true, indeed, that 

 hunting in forests in the night with painted visors was made 

 a felony by Henry VII., as well as the entering into a forest 

 with intent to steal deer by Henry VIII. ; but the latter 

 statute was repealed by his successor, Edward VI., towards 

 the close of his reign, and Mary and Elizabeth showed no 

 inclination to tyranise over their subjects through the 

 medium of forest laws. The character of Charles I. has 

 been the subject of much discussion. Amongst the various 

 abuses which existed in the reign of that unfortunate mon- 

 arch, we find the latent power of the forest laws most 

 unseasonably revived. He summoned the forest courts, 

 and called forth the full extent of their powers to his assist- 

 ance ; not that his intention was to punish the offences 

 created by the forest laws, but to extort revenue inde- 

 pendent of the grant of Parliament, which, however, 

 passed an Act, the principal object of which was to give 

 effect to former laws respecting the boundaries of forests. 

 No alteration or amendment seems to have been deemed 

 necessary at the time of the Reformation ; a justice seat 

 was, however, held for form only in the time of Charles II. 



