LEASE. 419 
woods to the fame leffee for fixty years, and a third leafe 
to him ot the manor for thirty years, without any excep¬ 
tion. Refolved, that by the acceptance of this future 
leafe, the leafe for fixty years was furrendered ; becaufe 
by fuel) acceptance the leffee had affirmed that the leffor 
had authority to make a new leafe. 5 Rep. 11. Ives's cafe. 
In a fpecial verdift in trefpafs, the cafe was, a leafe was 
made to hufband and wife for their lives, and afterwards 
they accepted a new leafe for themfelves and their fon : 
habendum to all three of them, a die datus indenture?, for the 
term of their lives, with a letter of attorney to make live¬ 
ry. Adjudged, that the acceptance of a fecond leafe, to 
commence a die datus, was a furrender of the fir ft, and 
this by the exprefs agreement in writing of the lelfees 
themfelves; forotherwife the leffor had no power to make 
a new leafe. Moor 636. 
By flat. 29 Geo. II. c. 31, infants, lunatics, and femes co¬ 
vert, may apply to the courts of chancery or exchequer, or 
to the courts of equity of the counties palatine of Chef- 
ter, Lancalter, and Durham, or to the courts of great fef- 
fion of Wales, by petition or motion in a fummary way ; 
and, by the order of thofe courts refpeftively, fuch per- 
fons may, by deed only, without 'levying a fine, furrender 
leafes for lives or years, and take new leafes for lives or 
years, of the premifes comprifed therein. 
Lelfees are bound to repair their tenements, except it 
be mentioned in the leafe to the contrary. Though a 
leffee for years is not obliged to repair the houfe let to 
him, which is burnt by accident, if there be not a fpecial 
covenant in the leafe, that he fhall leave the houfe in good 
repair at the end of the term ; yet, if the houfe be burnt 
by negligence, the leffee fhall repair it, although there be 
no fuch covenant. A leffee at will is not bound to fuf- 
tain or repair, as tenant for years is. If the houfe of fuch 
a tenant is burnt down by negligence, aftion lies not 
againft the tenant; but aftion lies for voluntary wafte, 
in pulling down houfes, or cutting woods, &c. 5 Rep. 13. 
A ieffee who covenants to pay rent and to repair, with an 
exception of cafualties by fire, is liable upon the covenant 
for rent, though the premifes are burnt down, and not 
rebuilt by the leffor after notice; but the tenant will be 
relieved in equity, when the landlord recovers the value 
againft the infurer. 
A leffee rr.uft not, when near the end of his term, injure 
the land by improper tillage for his own immediate bene¬ 
fit, fo as to leave the land in a reduced Hate. Cafe : W. 
Childe, efq. of Kinlet, in Shropfhire, plaintiff; and John 
Afprey, farmer, of the fame place, defendant. The iffue 
■was, whether a tenant, under a leafe for twenty-one years, 
could, towards the conclufion of it, fow a much greater 
quantity of wheat and other grain than cultomary, al¬ 
though there was no fpecial claufe in the leafe to reftrift 
him from doing fo; or whether a general covenant, “ to 
ufe manure, and employ the farm in a good hufband-like 
manner, and not impoverifh and make barren the fame,” 
did not fufficiently reftrain the tenant from an excefs of 
tillage. The facts, on the part of the plaintiff, having 
been fubftantiated by the evidence of land-furveyors and 
farmers of the firft abilities and character, and not con¬ 
troverted by the witneffes on the other fide, the judge 
(Le Blanc) fummed up the evidence, and clearly eftablilh- 
ed the law ; and a fpecial jury gave a verdift for the plain¬ 
tiff, with 3C0I. damages, exclufiveof 75I. for dilapidations 
on the farm, ho ufe, and other buildings, with colls. 
A provifo in a leafe for twenty-one years, that the land¬ 
lord fhall re-enter, on the tenant’s committing any aft of 
•bankruptcy whereon a commiffion fhall iffue, is good, 
a Term Rep. 133. The bankruptcy of the leffee is no bar 
to an action of covenant (made before his bankruptcy) 
brought againft him for rent due after the bankruptcy. 
4- Term Rep. 94. 1 hough a bankrupt cannot give a lien 
on any particular goods, yet he may take a demife, and 
agree that the rent fhall be payable on a particular day ; 
e.g. he may agree to pay half a year’s rent in advance ; 
\vhere s by the cuftom of the country, half a year’s rent 
1 
becomes due on the day on which a tenant enters. And 
in this cafe the law gives the landlord a power of diftrain- 
ing on that day. a Term. Rep. 600. See Rent, Dis¬ 
tress, Sit. 
If a ieafe contain a covenant that the leffee, his execu¬ 
tors, &c. fhall not fet, let, or ajfign-over, the whole or part 
of the premifes without leave in writing, on pain of for¬ 
feiting the leafe; the adminillratrix of the leffee cannot 
under-let without incurring a forfeiture, though for lefs 
time than the whole term ; a parol licence to let part of 
the premifes does not difeharge the lefiee from the reftric- 
tion of fuch a provifo. 2 Term Rep. 425. But a warrant 
of attorney to confefs judgment, on which a leafe is taken 
in execution, and fold, is no forfeiture of the leafe under 
a covenant not to let, fet, afjign , Sc. yet, where a tenant 
gave fuch warrant of attorney to a creditor, for the ex¬ 
prefs purpofe of enabling the creditor to take the leafe in 
execution, this was held a fraud on the covenant, and the' 
landlord recovered the premifes in ejeftment. 6 Term. 
Rep- 57> 3°°- 
A landlord cannot maintain an aftion of covenant for 
rent againft an under-tenant who holds for a term lefs 
than the time granted in the original leafe. But, if the 
whole of a term is made over by the leffee, although in 
the deed he referves the rent, and a power of entry for 
non-payment to himfelf, and not to the original leffor; and 
although he introduce new covenants; the perfon to 
whom it is made over may fue the original leffor or his 
affignee of the reverfion, or be fued by them as aflignee of 
the term, on the refpeftive covenants in the original leafe. 
Dougl. 187. 
Perfons for whofe lives eftates are held by leafe, See. re¬ 
maining beyond fea, or being abfent, feven years, if no 
proof be made of their being alive, fiiall be accounted 
dead. 19 Car. II. c. 6. See Life-Estate, and Occu¬ 
pancy. 
With regard to the profits of lands fowed by tenant 
for years, there is this difference between him and tenant 
for life : that where the term of tenant for years depends 
upon a certainty, as if he holds from Midfummer for ten 
years, and in the laft year he fows a crop of corn, and it 
is not ripe and cut before Midfummer, the end of his 
term, the landlord fhall have it; for tlve tenant knew the 
expiration of his term, and therefore it was his own folly 
to fow what he could never reap the profits of. Litt. § 68. 
But where the leafe for years depends upon an, uncer¬ 
tainty, as, upon the death of the leflor, being himfelf only 
tenant for life, or being a hufband feized in right of his 
wife ; or if the term of years be determinable upon. a. life 
or lives; in all thefe cafes, an eflate for years not being 
certainly to expire at a time foreknown, but merely by 
the aft of God, the tenant, or bis executors, (hall have 
the profits in the fame manner that a tenant for life or 
his executors fiiall be entitled thereto. Co. Litt. 56. Not 
fo if it determine by aft of the party himfelf ; as if tenant 
for years does any thing that amounts to forfeiture ; in 
which cafe the emblements (hall go to the leffor, and not 
to the leffee, who hath determined his eftate by his own 
default. Co. Litt. 55. 2 Comm. 144. 
Where the term of a leafe is to end on a precife day, 
there is no occafion for a notice to quit; unlefs the par¬ 
ties come to a frefh agreement. In the cafe of a tenancy 
from year to year, there mud be half a year's notice to> 
quit ending at the expiration of the year. Six calendar 
months' notice is not fufficient. And there is no diftinc- 
tion between houfes and lands as to the time of giving no¬ 
tice to quit. 1 Term. Rep. 54. 159. 162, 3. 
The enabling falute, 32 Hen. VIII. c. 23 , empowers, 
three manner of perfons to make leafes, to endure for three 
lives, or one-and-twenty years, which could not do fo be¬ 
fore. As firft, tenant in tail may by fuch leafes bind his 
iffue in tail, but not thofe in remainder or reverfion.. Se¬ 
condly, a hufband feifed in right of his wife, in fee-fimple 
or fee-tail, provided the wife joins in fuch leafe, may bind, 
her and her heirs thereby. Lallly, all perfons feifed. of an. 
dkvta- 
4 
