nearer or more remote female ancestor; for instance, whether the purchaser's paternal grandmother or his paternal great-grandmother had the best claim to be taken as the root of descent, and similarly in tracing descents on the mother's side. This question is now settled by the Act, which has decided (s) in favour of the more remote female ancestor, whether on the paternal or maternal side, and thus we arrive at our last rule.

Canon.

VIII. Where there shall be a failure of male paternal New Eighth ancestors of the person from whom the descent is to be traced and their descendants, the mother of his more remote male paternal ancestor or her descendants shall be the heir or heirs of such person, in preference to the mother of a less remote male paternal ancestor, or her descendants: and where there shall be a failure of male maternal ancestors of such person and their descendants, the mother of his more remote male maternal ancestor and her descendants shall be the heir or heirs of such person, in preference to the mother of a less remote male maternal ancestor, and her descendants. If, therefore, there is a failure of the purchaser's male paternal ancestors, and his heirs must be sought for amongst his female paternal ancestors, his father's mother or her descendants will come last in order of selection. Next, if all the paternal ancestors, male and female, of the purchaser, and their heirs, have failed, recourse must be had to his maternal ancestors. In that case, his mother will first be his heir, and then descent must be traced through her ancestors, by the same process as has been followed in tracing descent through the purchaser's father, and thus, supposing all the intervening heirs to have failed, the inheritance will at last devolve upon his maternal grandmother and her heirs. If these fail, there will be no more heirs of the purchaser: in that case, the

(8) S. 8.

person last entitled must be sought for, and the process gone through again with him. Finally, if it is utterly impossible to find any person entitled to the inheritance, it will escheat to the Crown as lord of the fee.

CHAPTER VII.

OF COPYHOLDS.

tenure can be

THE origin of copyholds has been treated of in an No copyhold earlier part of this work. It is, therefore, only neces- created now. sary, as to that point, to add that no copyholds can be created at the present day. The existing form of copyhold tenure is the result of a number of very gradual changes, each of which, being an encroachment upon the rights of the lords of manors, was not recognised by the law until it had been impressed with the stamp of long-continued custom. Hence arose the saying, that "time is the nurse of manors (a). And since it is manifestly impossible to create a custom, it follows that it is impossible to create a copyhold to be held according to that custom. Nor is it possible to create a copyhold by providing for land being held according to the custom of some existing manor. For in every copyhold there must be " fect tenure between very lord and very tenant" (b); in other words, all the services due from the tenant must be centred in one lord. But it has been for a long time impossible to originate such a tenure, inasmuch as the Statute of Quia Emptores (c), passed in the year 1290, enacted that every feoffee of lands should hold them of the same chief lord, and by the same services and customs, as his feoffor had done. If, then, a feoffor does not reserve any new services to himself, the land is held by its former tenure; if he does, the services due from the tenant are not centred

(a) Co. Cop. s. 31.
(b) Ibid.

(c) 18 Ed. I. c. I.

per

But quasi manor may be created by statute.

in one lord, and there is not therefore a perfect tenure. "Upon the reason of this it is, that if the lord of a manor purchase foreign land, lying without the precincts and bounds of the manor, he cannot annex this to the manor, though the tenants be willing to do their services; for this amounteth to the creation of a new tenure, which cannot be effected at this day" (d). A quasi manor may, however, be created by Act of Parliament, as was done by the 37 Hen. VIII., c. 2, which enacted that certain parts of Hounslow Heath should be of the nature of copyholds. There is also an Case of grant apparent exception to the general rule in the case of the waste lands of a manor, for in manors where there is a custom to that effect, part of the waste may, although never granted before, be granted by the lord to a tenant, to be held according to the custom of the manor. But this is not really an exception, for land of this description having been granted by virtue of an immemorial custom, is considered to be as much a copyhold tenement as if it had been held from time immemorial by copy of court roll (e).

of waste lands.

Division of manors into

freehold and copyhold.

hold manors.

Ordinary manors may be divided into two kinds, namely, freehold and copyhold. Freehold manors are those which have freehold tenants; copyhold manors are those which have only tenants by base tenure, This chapter and it is to this latter kind that we shall, in general, treats of copy refer in the following pages. There is, however, another variety of manor which should be briefly noticed; that, namely, which is distinguished as customary manor. Manors of this kind are to be found principally on the border counties between England and Scotland, and were granted originally on condition of performing military service against the Scotch when required (f). They are held, in general, for lives, the lord being bound to renew the terms

Customary

manors.

when necessary, and are expressed to be held "according to the custom of the manor only, and not at the will of the lord;" but they are, in fact, merely a superior kind of copyholds, the freehold remaining in the lord, as in the case of ordinary copyholds (g).

manors.

It has been already mentioned that to every manor, Reputed as originally created, a court baron was an essential incident. The fact, however, that a court baron cannot be held in the manor (as happens, for instance, when there are not at least two freehold tenants holding of the manor and subject to escheat), although it puts an end to the manor in point of law (h), does not altoget her extinguish it. Such a manor is said to be a "reputed" manor, and the prescriptive rights in it (i). court baron prevent the holding of a customary court for the manor, and such a court may now be held by the lord of the manor, or by his steward or deputy, although there may not be any tenant present at it (j).

lord may still exercise his
Nor does the absence of a

manors re

Inasmuch as copyhold tenure depends upon custom, All dealings in all dealings in copyholds must be regulated by the gulated by customs of the manor, the best evidence of which are custom. the various entries made from time to time in the

manor roll.

Any one setting up a custom of a manor must show that it has been immemorial, uninterrupted, peaceably acquiesced in, reasonable, certain, and compulsory (k).

New estates in copyholds can only be granted by Estates in the lord of the manor, or his steward or deputy, and copyholds. must be evidenced by entries in the manor roll. In

(9) Stephenson v. Hill, Burr. 1273, 1278; Portland v. Hill, L. R. 2

Eq. 765.

(h) Glover v. Lane, 3 T. R. 445, 447.

(i) Soane v. Ireland, 10 East, 259. (j) 4 & 5 Vict. c. 35, s. 86.

(k) 2 Wat. Cop. 46.