D O W E R. 
wards he does, and dies; here D’s widow may nevcrthe- 
lefs be endowed. Abr. Caf. 217. A. is tenant in tail of 
lands, the remainder to'B. in tail, remainder to A. in 
fee ; if A. bargains and fells the land to C. and his heirs, 
the wife of the bargainee (hall have dower, determinable 
upon the death of the tenant in tail. 10 Rep. 96. And 
if a feoffment he made upon a condition to reinfeoff, and 
the feoffee take a wife, (lie may have her dower till rein- 
feoffment, or an entry made for not doing it : and fo it is 
of other defeafible eftates. Perk. 420. If one be diffei- 
fed, and after doth marry, if he die before entry, his 
wife fliall not have dower : and where a perfon recovers 
land in a real aftion, and before his entry or execution 
made he dieth, the wife (hall net be endowed of this 
land. 2 Rep. 56. In thefe cafes the lmfband was not ac¬ 
tually feifed; for, as before obferved, where there is a 
feifin in law, flie fliall be endowed. So that thefe cafes 
depend on the conftruftion of what is, and what is not, 
a feifin in law. 
Although of copyhold lands a woman fliall not be en¬ 
dowed, unlefs there be a fpecial cuftom for it ; yet if 
there be a cuftom to be endowed thereof, then (lie fliall 
have theafliftance of fucli laws as are made for the more 
fpeedy recovery of dower in general, being within the 
fame mifehief, and therefore fliall recover damages with¬ 
in the ftatute of Merton. 4 Co. 22. Of tithes women 
were not dowable till 32 Hen. VIII. c. 7 ; for before that 
ftatute tithes were not a lay fee, but now they are dow¬ 
able of them. Style's P.R. 122. 1 Rol. Abr. 682. Of an 
advowfon, be it appendant or in grofs, a woman fliall be 
endowed ; for this may be divided as to the fruit and 
profit of it, viz. to have the third prefentation. Co. Litt. 
32. 3 Leon. 155. 
By the old law, grounded on the feodal exaflions, a 
woman could not be endowed without a fine paid to the 
lord": neither could flie marry again without his licence ; 
left flie fhould contract herfelf, and fo convey part of 
the feud, to the lord’s enemy. This licence the lord 
took care to be well paid for ; and, as it feems, would 
fometimes force the dowager to a fecond marriage, in 
order to gain the fine. But to remedy thefe oppreflions, 
it was provided, firft by the famous charter of Hen. I. 
A. Di 1101, and afterwards by Magna Charta, that the 
widow fliall pay nothing for her marriage, nor fliall be 
diftrained to marry afrefli, if flie choofes to live without 
a lmfband ; but fliall not, however, marry againft the 
confent of the lord ; and farther, that nothing fhall be 
taken for aflignment of the widow’s dower, but that flie 
fhall remain in her hufband’s capital manfion-houfe for 
forty days after his death, during which time her dower 
fhall be afligned. Thefe forty days are called the wi¬ 
dow’s quarantine ; a term made ufe of in law to fignify 
the number of forty days, whether applied to this occa- 
fion or any other. The particular lands, to be held in 
dower, muft be afligned, by the heir of the hufband, or 
his guardian ; not only for the fake of notoriety, butalfo 
to entitle the lord of the fee to demand his fervices of 
the heir, in refpeft of the land fo holden. For the heir 
by this entry becomes tenant thereof to the lord, and 
the widow is immediate tenant to the heir, by a kind of 
fub-infeudation, or under-tenancy, completed by this in- 
veftiture or aflignment ; which tenure may ftill be cre¬ 
ated, notwithftanding the ftatute of quia.emptor.es, becaufe 
the heir parts, not with the fee-fimple, but only with an 
eftate for life. If the heir or his guardian do not aflign 
her dower within the time of quarantine, or do aflign it 
unfairly, flie has her remedy at law, and the fheriff is 
appointed to aflign. Co. Litt. 34, 5. Or if the heir (be¬ 
ing under age) or his guardian, aflign more than'fhe ought 
to have, it may be afterwards remedied by a writ of 
admeafurement of dower. Finch L. 314. If the thing 
of which fhe is endowed be divifible, her dower muft be 
fetout b.y metes and bounds, but if it be indivifible, fhe 
muft be endowed fpecially; as of the third prefentation 
to a church, the third toll-difh of a mill, the third part 
Vol. VI. No. 329, 
41 
of the profits of an office, the third flieaf of tithe, and 
the like. Co. Litt. 32. 
The aflignment of the lands is for the life of the wo¬ 
man ; and if lands are afligned to a woman for years, in 
recompenfe of dower, this is no bar of dower ; for it is 
not fucli an eftate therein as flie fhould have. 2 Danv. Abr. 
668. Alfo where other land is afligned to the woman, 
that is no part of the lands wherein fhe claims dower; 
that aflignment will not be good or binding : for there 
muft be certainty in what is afligned ; otherwife, though 
it be by agreement, it may be void. 1 Injl. 34. If a wife 
accept and enter upon lefs land than the third of the 
whole, on the (heriff’s alignment, flie is barred to demand 
more. But if, where a -wife is entitled to dower of the 
lands of herfirfthufband,herfecond hufband acceptsof this 
dower lefs than her third part,after his death flie may refufe 
the fame, and have her full third part. Fitz. Dower, 121. 
If a wife, having right of dower in the land, accept of 
a leafe for years thereof after the death of her hufband, 
it fufpends the dower ; though not fucli acceptance of 
a leafe before the hufband’s death ; for then the wife has 
only a title to have dower, and not an immediate right of 
dower. Jenk. Cent. 15. A widow accepting of dower of 
the heir, againft common right, fliall hold it fubjedl to 
the charges of her hufband ; but otherwife it is if flie be 
endowed againft common right by the fheriff. 2 Danv. 
672. By provifion of law, the wife may take a third 
part of the hufband’s lands, and hold them difeharged. 
If dower be afligned a woman on condition, or with an 
exception, the condition and exception are void. Cro. 
Eliz. 541. Where there are three manors, one of them 
may be afligned to the wife in dower in lieu of dower in 
all three ; though it is faid that a third part of every 
manor ought to be aflign. d. Moor 12, 47. The flierilf 
may aflign a rent out of the land in lieu of dower ; and 
her acceptance of the rent will bar dower out of the 
fame land, but not of other lands. 1 Nelf. Abr. 680. 
A woman entitled to dower cannot enter till it be 
afligned to her, and fet out either by the heir, turtenant 
or fheriff, in certainty. Plowd. 529. None- can aflign 
dower but thofe who have a freehold, or againft whom 
a writ of dower lies ; therefore a tenant by ftatute mer¬ 
chant, ftatute ftaple, or elegit, or leffee for years, cannot 
aflign dower, for none of thefe have an eftate large 
enough to anfwer the plaintiff’s demand. Co. Litt. 35. 
If a woman be dowable of land, meadow, pafture, wood. 
See. and any of thefe be afligned in lieu of dower of all 
the reft, it is good, though it be againft common right, 
which gives her but the third part of each, for the heir’s 
enjoyment of the refidue fufficiently accounts for her 
title to what flie has. 1 Rol. Abr. 683. If lands whereof 
a woman hath no right to be endowed, or a rent out of 
fucli lands be afligned in lieu of her dower, this does not 
bar her demand of dower, for flie, having no manner of 
title to thofe lands, cannot without livery and feifin be 
any more than tenant at will, which is no fufficicnt re¬ 
compenfe for an eftate for life, which her dower was to 
be. Co. Litt. 169. If the heir within age aflign to the 
wife more land in dower than fhe ought to have, he him- 
lelf (hall have a writ ofadmeafurement of dower at full age 
by the common law. If the wife, after aflignment of dower, 
improves the lands, fo as thereby they become of greater 
value than the other two parts, no writ of admeafure¬ 
ment lies; fo if they be of greater value, by reafon of 
mines open at the time of the aflignment, no writ of ad¬ 
meafurement lies, becaufe the land in quantity was no 
more than (he ought to have; and then it is lawful to 
work the mines, which were open at the time of fuch 
aflignment. 2 Injl, 368. 5 Co. 12. 
Upon preconcerted marriages, and in eftates of confi- 
derable confequence, tenancy in dower happens very lel- 
dom : for the claim of the.wife to her dower at the common 
law, diffufing itfelf fo extenfively, it became a great clog 
to alienations, and was otherwife very inconvenient to 
families. Wherefore fince the alteration of the ancient 
M law 
