as there are many per lucida intervalla; that their lands and tenements shall be safely kept without waste and destruction; and that they and their houshold shall live and be maintained competently with the profits of the same, and the residue besides their sustentation shall be kept to their use, to be delivered unto them when they come to right mind; (quando memoriam recuperaverint) * so that such lands shall in no wise be aliened; and the king shall take nothing to his own use, and if the party die in such estate, then the residue shall be distributed for his soul by the advice of the ordinary. This phrase, when they shall have recovered their memory' and the frequent use of such phrases as the following, viz. homme de bon memory,'' being of sound memory and understanding,' and the like, which occur so frequently in our old law books, plainly demonstrate, that it was the then prevailing opinion, that insanity was either a mental and corporeal disease in which the memory was the faculty chiefly impaired, or, which is much the same thing, that a total or a very great defect of memory was so constant a sympton in such a disease, as to afford an infallible criterion by which that disorder of the mind which amounts to husanity in law might be ascertained. Thus Skakspeare— -It is not madness That I have uttered; bring me to the test, And I the matter will re-word; which madness Whether it is an infallible test at all times and in all cases, may be doubted; but in courts of justice it has been often tried with success. The editor remembers a lunatic who gave her testimony in chief, upon a pretended assault committed upon herself, with the greatest clearness and precision, and with such case and cloquerce as to impress many with a belief that she possessed an acute and well-disciplined mind; upon cross-examination the counsel put her to the test by simply asking her to repeat the story; this she could not do, but in so wild and confused a manner, raved about Judge Buller, the court of Chancery, and an old law suit, as to leave no doubt in the mind of any one, that her testimony could not be safely received. The medical writers with which the editor is acquainted, particularly the accurate Dr. Cullen, consider the want of memory as incident to the discase, and as producing, as it necessarily must, the want of right judgment. For as he says, four reasoning, and our intellectual operations always equire the orderly and exact recollection or memory of associated Extract from Frowicke's Reading on the Prerogative. Dominus Rex habebit custodiam terrarum fatuorum naturalium, &c." Vide Statute. CEST Artycle est in affyrmans dell comen ley; car le roy avera le custody dez fooles naturals per le coinen ley; par ceo qu'ill nyant discreeyon de ruter ses enheritances et pur ceo que per sou act son heyr, ne serre disheryte; et pur ceux cases, le roy avra le custody de le terre, durant son vie naturall, trouvant a luy reasonable sustynance in victu et vestitu; et apres sa mort son prochyn heyr avera le terre, &c. Et de quicunque seignior le terre soyt tenus est ne materyall, car memesque terre soyt tenus dell roy, unc ill avra tout son terre, ut supra. 2. Item, si soyt trouve quun tiell morust son heir deins age, et tient d'ant seign', et puis apres, per briefe de Ideocia, soyt inquirend quill est foll natural de nester, le seign perdra le gard; mez aut est si soit trouve per lucida intervalla ut postea inferius, &c. TRANSLATION. The King shall have the Custody of Natural Fools, &c. (See the Statute.) THIS article is in affirmance of the common law; for the king shall have the custody of natural fools, by the common law, because they have not discretion to govern their inheritances, and in order that by his act, his heir shall not be disinherited. And for these causes the king shall have the custody of the lands, during his natural life; finding him reasonable sustenance, in food and raiment and, after his death, his next heir shall have the land, &c. And of whatsoever lord the land shall be held is not material; for although the land should be holden of the king, yet he shall have all his land, ut supra. 2. Also, if it be found that one died, his heir within age, and he hold of another lord, and then, after, by writ of ideocy, it is inquired that he is a natural fool from his birth, the lord shall lose his ward. But it is otherwise, if it is found per lucida intervalla: ut postea inferius,&c. Ideas.' But speaking of mania he says, that which for the most part distinguishes the disease is a hurry of mind in pursuing any thing like a train of thought, and in running from one train of thought to another; and adds, that maniacal persons are very Trascible,' 3. Item, le case, per le comen ley, que le roy avra les terres, est prie per feasans domage; carle tenant dyr. en le conclusion, domage fayt salve le foy que jeo doy au roy; le quill prie quar le roy avra le preemynens all corps d'oine; et auxy le seign' ne poit maynt son villene, pur lentrest dell roy, &c. et ne se: a ydeott a aut home destre in gard; car. per intendment quant aut gard vient a pleyn age ill avra discrecyon de ruler ses terres, mez ideot nemi per intendement; et pur ceo le seign' serra ouste del gard de ideott per le roy, &c. ut supra. 4. Item, si l'escheator trouve qun est ydeott, le roy seissera; mes nemi sur nude suggestyon, mes si soyt trouve, virtute officii, cest auxilor. pour le roy, ou per briefe, &c. Mesme le ley, si soyt trouve per comyssion, &c. 5. Item, quand tiell office est retourne virtute brezis, a donques le idcot viendra in Chancery, per especiallbriefe, et serra examine la: mez ill avera travers a dire quill nest ideott; purceo que le ley ne adjugera lui d'aver cons daschun chose pour son avantage et per ceo trouve per examination, &c. mez siun estrange_avera traverse de ceo pur son disherison, &c. quod nota *. serra 3 Also, the cause by the common law, that the king shall have the lands is prayed in doing homage, for the tenant shall say in the conclusion, homage done save the faith, that I owe to the king; because which he prays shall have the preeminence ... and also the lord cannot maim his villien for the interest of the king; and likewise an ideot resembles not another man with respect to wardship; for by intendment when another ward comes to full age, he will have discretion to manage his lands, but ideot not so, by intendment ; and, therefore, the lord shall be ousted of the wardship of an ideot, by the king. 4. Also if the escheator find that one is an ideot, the king shall seize; but not upon naked suggestion, but, if it be found virtute officii; or in aid for the king; or by writ, &c. The same is the law, if it be bound by commission, &c. 5. Also, although such an office is found by virtue of a writ, yet the ideot shall come into chancery, by special writ, and be examined there; but he shall have travers to say that he is not an ideot; for the law does not adjudge him to have cognizance of any thing, but for his benefit, and therefore it.shall be found by examination; but if a stranger he shall have a traverse of it for his disherison, &c. quod nota, &c. The passages marked thus are obscure in the original. 6. Item. Le statute parle, quod rex habebit custodiam fatuorum naturalium, &c. Donque sill tr. in le tayll, pur term de vie, ou pur term dauter vie, ou a terme d'ans, per elegit, ou estutute merchaunt, le roi eux seisera; mez le roy ne eux gardera, durant sa vie, mez pour cy long terme come ill eux deins avera, sill fuit de bon memory, &c 7. Item, si le Ideott ad un annuitje, ceo n'est terre ne tenement; unc. ie roy ceo avra purceo quill est un profytt all ideot, &c. 8. Donques le'statut: parle mèrement des necessaria, &c. ceo serra intend, come le terme voet entend; sicome in manger et boyer, housbote, heybote, victus et vestitus; &c. 9. Item, signior meine et tenant, le meine est ideot, le roy avra le rents et profits de cestui; mez il navra homage, ne fealty; car ces corporell service apertyent all corps dell mein tenure; car null poit ceo accepter, sinon le person mesme, &c. io. Item, sí le roy ad un qui tient de auters seigniors, ill perdront leur hommage et fealty, pur le temps; car Ideott ne poit estre jure, &c.: mez ill poient suer per petycion au roy pour lour rents, &c. 6. Also the statute says, that the king shall have the custody of natural fools, &c.; therefore, if the lands are held in tail for life, or for term of another's life, or for a term of years, by elegit, or statute merchant, the king shall seise the lauds, but he shall not keep them during his life, but only for such term as he would have in them, if he were of sound memory, 7. Also, if the ideot has an annuity, this is neither land nor tenement, yet the king shall have it, because it is a profit to the ideot. 8. Although the statute speaks merely of necessaries, &c. this shall be intended as the term may be intended; as, in meat and drink, housebote, haybote, food and raiment, &c. 9. Also, mesne lord and tenant are, the mesne is ideot, the king shall have the rents and profits of this latter, but he shall not have bumage nor fealtys for those corporal services appertain to the body of the mesne tenure, for no one can accept them, but the person himself. 10. Also, if the king has one who holds of other lords, they shall lose their homage and fealty for the time; for an ideot cannot be sworn,' &c. But they may sue by petition to the king for their rent, &c, 11. Les paroix soynt inveniat eis necessaria," &c. [Ceux parols seront confynes in tyell forme; si soyt home de grande sank, ill navera draps dore, mez de lame et navera XX hommes attendants sur luy, mez un ou deux, et n'avera sinon grand vyands come comen person & sanz wyne et delicatz, &c. Issint il ne sera dit neces saria accord: a son degree,' mcz in ce chose serra accord a son degree, sicome Esqyer, ou gentylhome est fayt baron et ad [cuculage]* [tutulage] [entulage] ill poit la approver [appeller] accordant a son estat &c. 12. Item, si le Roy ad myll lyvres de terre d'un Ideott; il avera touts les profits, fore: solement sustenance dell ideott; car le statut est capiendo exitus &c. 13. Item, le statut parle sine casto et dystructione &c.; mez, si le roy fayt lease, le ideot n'averà remyde ne son heir nient plus; et si le ideot fait wast null remedy pur le roy; mez si le ideot ad terres per terme de vie, le roy fayt lease, nul remydy, mes solement petition. 14. Item si le terior de vie face wast & est atteyni de felony, le roy avera le terre dur . . sa vie naturall; et sill face wast unc:, cestui in reversion ne reavera le terre, dur: sa vye naturell; mez per petycion pur unentry* ill serra recompence pour le wast. 11. The words are inveniat eis necessaria &c; these words shall be confined in such form; if he be a man of great blood, he shall not have cloth of gold, but of wooll, and he shall not have twenty men, attendants upon him, but one or two; and shall have only gross vyands as a common person, &c. without wise and delicacies, &c. So, it shall not be said neccssaries according to his degree; but in this it shall be according to his degree; as if equire or gentlemen is made baron and has .. . according to his estate. he may app. 12. Also, if the king has a thousand pounds out of the lands of an ideot, he shall have all the profits; except only sustenance for the ideot; for the statute is taking the issues," &c. 13. Also, the statute says without waste and destruction' &c. but if the king makes a lease, the ideot shall not have remedy, nor his heir any more than be; and if the ideot does waste, no remedy for the king; but if the ideot has land for term of life, the king makes a lease, no remedy, but only petition. 14. Also, if the termor for life commits waste, and is attainted of felony, the king shall have the lands during his natural life; and if he commits waste again, yet he in reversion shall not have the lands again during his natural life; but by petition . he shall be recompensed for the waste, |