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The day preceding Good Friday, on which princes gave llms.

MAXINE. An established principle or proposition. A principle of law universally admitted, as being a correct statement of the law, or as agreeable to natural reason.

Coke defines a maxim to be "conclusion of reason," and says that it is so called "quia ma.r1?ma ejus dignitas et certtssinla am:toritux, et quad 1m1.rimL' omnibus 119'obet‘ur." Co. Litt. Ila. He says in another place: "A maxlme is a proposition to be of all men confessed and granted without proofe, argument, or discourse." Id. 6712.

The maxims of the law, In Lalin. French, and English, will be found distributed through this book in their proper alphabetical order.

Ma.xime [incl aunt contrnria. Iris at in- Jm-is. The greatest enemies to peace are force and wrong. Co. Litt. 161D.

Maximun en-or-is populns magister. Bacon. The people is the greatest master of error.

"MAY," in the construction of public statutes. is to be construed "must" in all cases where the legislature mean to impose a positive and absolute duty, and not mere- ly to give a discretionary power. Minor v. l\[ecl|anlcs' Bank, 1 Pet. 44'}, 64, 7 L. Ed. 47; New York v. Furze, 3 Hill (N. Y.) (312. 615.

MAYHEM. In criminal law. The act of unlaufuiiy and violently depriving an- other of the use of such of his members as may render him less able, in fighting. either to defend himself or annoy his adversary. 4 Bl. Comm. 205. Foster v. People, 50 N. Y. (204; Terrell v. State, 86 Tenn. 523. 8 S. W. 212; Adams v. Barrett, 5 Ga. 412: Foster v. People, 1 C010. 29-}.

Every person who unlawfully and inaliclously deprives a human being of a member of his body, or dlsahles, disfigures, or renders lt useless, or Cuts or disables the tongue. or puts out an eye, or slits the nose. ear, or lip. is guilty of mayhem. Pen. Code Cal. 5 203.

MAYEEMAVIT. Maimed. This is a term of art which cannot he supplied in pleading by any other word, as mtm'lara't, trunz-at.-it, etc. 3 '1‘hom_ Co. Litt. 548: Com. v. Newell. 7 Mass. 247

MAYN. L. F1‘. A hand; handwriting. Britt. C. 28. MAYNOVER. L. Fr. A work of the

hand; a thing produced by manual labor. Yenrb. M. 4 Edw. III. 38.

MAYOR. The executive head of a munlupal corporation: the governor or chief

767

MEANDER

magistrate of a city. Waldo v. Wallace, 12 Ind. 577; People v. New York, 25 Went}. (N. Y.) 36; Crovatt v. Mason, I01 Ga. 246, 28 S. I11. 891.

—1lIa.yoz-'5 court. A court sstnhlishcd in some cities, in which the mayor sits with the powers of a police judge or committing magistrate in respect to offenses committed within the city, and sometimes with civil jurisdiction in small causes, or other special statutory powers.—Mny- or’: court of London. An inferior court having jurisdiction in civil cases where the whole cause of action arises within the city of London.—MayoraIty. The office or dignity of n mayor.—Mayoress. The voile of a mayor.

MAYORAZGO. In Spanish law. The right to the enjoyment of certain aggregate property. left with the condition thereon imposed that they are to pass in their integrity. perpetually. successively to the eldest son. Schm. Civil Law, 62

MEAD. Ground somewhat watery. not plowed, but covered with grass and flowers. Enc. Loud.

MEADOW. A tract of low or level land producing grass which is mown for hay. Webster.

A tract which lies above the shore, and is overflowed by spring and extraordinary tides only, and yields grasses which are good for hay. Church v. Meeker, 34 Conn. 429. See State v. Crook, 132 N. C. 1053. 44 S. E. 32; Scott v. Willson. 3 N. . 322; Barrows v. MeDermott, 73 Me 441.

MEAL-RENT. A rent formerly paid in meal.

MEAN, or MESNE. A middle between two extremes, whether applied to persons, things, or time.

MEANDI-IR. To meander means to follow a winding or flexuous course: and when it is said, in a description of land "thence with the meander of the rlver." it must mean a meandered llne.—a line which follows the sinuosihes of the river,—or, in other words, that the river is the boundary between the points indicated. Turner v. Park- er, 14 Or. 341, 12 Pac 49" Schurmeier v. St. Paul & P. R. CO., 10 Minn. 100 (Gil. 75), 88 Am. Dec 59.

This term is used in some jurisdictions with the meaning of surveying and mapping a stream according to its meanderiugs. or windings and turnings. See Jones v. Petti- bone, 2 Wis. 317.

—Meander lines. Lines run in surveying particular portions of the public lands which border on navigable rivers. not as houndaries of the tract, but for the purpose of defining the sinuosities of the banks of the stream, and as the means of ascertaining the quantity of land in the fraction subject to sale, and which is to he paid for by the purchaser. In preparing the official plat from the field notes, the mean der line is represented as the border line of the stream, and shows that the water-course, and