Page:Archaeological Journal, Volume 6.djvu/284

 166 OBSCURE WORDS IN CHARTERS. Prince complaining of a disseisin by the sheriff of certain nativi, of whom the petitioner had been immemorially pos- sessed, the answer was : — " Testatum est quod clamant esse liberce conditionis, eo quod antecessores sui fuerunt adventicii de Hibernia et gratis posuerunt se in advocaria domini. Se si poterit eos in Curia domini Principis disrationare pro villanis suis, amoveantur de advocaria," ^ In another document, cited by Sir H, Ellis in his Introduc- tion to the Record of Carnarvon,^ from the Lansd. MS., it is stated to be the duty of the Raglot of the advowry (advocarise) of Bromfield and Yale to receive " adventivos et forinsecos homines qui sponte . . . .in advocariam domini devenire voluerint," during good behaviour, for a certain annual payment as agreed upon in form accustomed ; to present and enrol them in the steward's court ; " eosque et alios ejus- dem tenurse manutenere et defendere secundum legem et consuetudinem patria? in omnibus causis in curia domini ad sectam partium' quarumcunque forinsece motam vel moven- dam, si prsedicti tenentes advocarii .... stare voluerint recto in Curia domini ; sin autem,^ infra diem et annum dupli- cabunt advocariam suum," &c. Any " adventicius " who remains three days and nights within the lordship without becoming an advocarius, " minime in advocaria existens," forfeits his goods. The above extracts warrant us in considering advocatio as equivalent to protection, and in describing the advocarii, in some instances at least, as villans adventive, a species of relation not unknown to our old law ; compatible with the personal freedom of the tenant, yet liable to the inci- dents of servile tenure. They were settlers and strangers from another territory or demesne, who entitled themselves to the protection of the lord of the land, and to the liberties enjoyed by his original or native tenants, by becoming enrolled in the list of his avowed men, and submitting to certain dues ascertained by the lord's officers or by, local custom. In these advocarii or adventive tenantry we discern, without much difficulty, traces of a head of local or custo- mary law familiar to the custumals of France, — the droit de ^_ Page xi. There seems to be a good deal of confusion '' " Ad sectam pertin' " in the jjrinted and error in the punctuation throughout ; copies : a clear error. but I presume that the original MS. is in fault.
 * Record of Carnarvon, p. 21 G. ** " Sinantem " in the printed copy.