Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume X.djvu/276

 270 LEATHER Where a tenant, with consent of the landlord, enters into possession without any express bargain, he is a tenant at will. To avoid some technical incidents of this tenancy, there grew up in England a custom, which the law soon sanctioned, of considering such an estate as a tenancy "from year to year." The one es- sential principle is, that a tenancy at will may be determined by the will of either party, but only after reasonable notice given by the party intending to terminate the tenancy. There is no uniformity either of rule or usage as to what this notice should be. In some instances, a notice of six months may still be necessary, as it is in England. One of three months is more frequently sufficient ; and in some states the notice must be equal to the interval be- tween the periods of payment of rent. The rule is given in most of our states by statute, but depends in some upon adjudication or usage. Generally, the notice should cover the whole of the interval between payments. Thus, if the rent is paid quarterly, and three months' notice is sufficient, and the notice is given in the middle of a quarter, it takes effect at the end of the next quarter. No particular form of notice is necessary; but there must be reasonable certainty in the description of the parties, of the premises, of the purpose, and of the time. If a tenant for years holds over after the determination of his lease, he is technically a tenant on sufferance ; and a ten- ant on sufferance is not a tenant at will. But by the prevailing rule of this country, such a person, if the lessor do not object to his hold- ing over, is a tenant at will, holding upon all the terms and conditions of the expired lease which have not necessarily expired with it; that is, for example, he pays the same rent, at the same time. If the lessor sells and trans- fers all his estate, the tenant now owes rent to the purchaser. If he sells a part only, there must be an apportionment of rent. So if the lessor die in the midst of the term, the rent is apportioned accordingly. If the lessor and his assignee agree as to the apportionment, the lessee is bound by it, because it is of no inter- est to him whether he pays to one or another. As to the remedy of the lessor for rent due, in some states the law of distress for rent re- mains. (See DISTBESS.) Where it does not, the lessor has only the same remedy he would have for any other debt of the same amount. There are in most of our states provisions resembling those of the statute of frauds, which determine what leases may be oral, and what must be in writing. So also it is generally provided that leases of a certain length (most frequently seven years) should be recorded in the registry of deeds. LEATHER (Sax. lether, from lithe, lither, soft, flexible), an insoluble compound of the gela- tine and fibrine of hides and skins with tannic acid, though under the general name of leather are included many kinds in which the hide or skin is preserved and made suitable for various uses without such chemical union of the gela- tine and tannin, and also where other materi- als than tannic acid are used in combination with the gelatine and fibrine of the skin. From the most remote periods leather has been pre- pared for clothing and various useful and or- namental articles. The Hebrews ornamented it by giving it bright colors, as appears by the mention in Exodus of rams' skins dyed red ; and they employed it, after the manner of the Egyptians, for vessels to contain water, and for a multitude of other uses. The paintings and sculptures of Thebes represent many of the methods of working leather practised by this people as very similar to those of the pres- ent time. Figures of men are seen currying, stretching, and working it, employing a semi- circular knife like that of modern curriers, the awl, a stone for polishing the leather, and other implements such as shoemakers now use. In their shops a prepared skin was suspended as the emblem of their trade, together with ready- made shoes and other articles in leather. For covering harps, shields, &c., their leather was ornamented by embossing and coloring. For strong cords it was cut into thongs and twist- ed like ropes ; and it was also used in the form of straps. For tanning they used the pods of the sont or acacia, the acanthus of Strabo and other writers, and probably also the bark and wood of the rJius oxyacanthoides, and the bark of the acacia seal, both natives of the desert. Of the methods of preparing the leather used by the Romans no accounts are preserved ; and the processes of the middle ages also are lost. The Saracens, it is recorded, used alum, the efficacy of which for preserving skins is well understood. The Calmucks at the present time make use of a solution of alum and of statice root, and also of sour milk, in prepar- ing the skins of sheep and other animals. From the largest species of sea carp they have from remote times prepared garments which are nearly water-proof, making use of sour milk, or some astringent, with which the skins, first dried and cleaned, are dressed three times a day, after which they are finished by expo- sure for several days to a dense smoke. The Britons exported skins in early times, but af- terward learned the art of tanning, and carried it on in establishments of great extent erected on the banks of the streams. Many rude na- tions now prepare leather by methods of their own. In both North and South America the dried skins, cleaned from the hair, are placed in earthen vessels with the powdered brains and some water, and heated to about 95 F. The cerebrous matter forms a lather, which thoroughly cleans the skins and makes them pliable. After remaining immersed for some time, they are taken out and stretched tightly in a frame, in which state they are rubbed with a smooth stone to expel the water and fat. Sometimes after this they are also smoked, by which they are made to resist better the action of water. In the Pacific countries of North