Page:The Green Bag (1889–1914), Volume 08.pdf/190

 The Quaint Laws of Howel Dda.

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THE QUAINT LAWS OF HOWEL DDA. By George H. Westley. THE sociologist, the student of legal lore, and the searcher after the pictur esque in mediaeval literature, all may find in the quaint laws of Howel Dda an abun dant store of treasure. Howel Dda, or Howel the Good, ascended the throne of Old South Wales in 909, and reigned for forty-one years, during which period he carefully revised the standing decrees of his predecessors, and added such new ones as he deemed necessary for the proper govern ing of his people. The Howellian Code is contained in three books, the first dealing almost wholly with the laws regulating the Royal Court, the second chiefly with those relating to women, and the third, or Proof Book, with those pertaining to the crimes of murder, theft, arson, etc. Let us take a brief glance through the three books in turn. The Royal Court consisted of twenty-four officers, sixteen of whom waited upon his majesty, while the other eight attended upon the Queen. These dignitaries were entitled by law to receive a suit of woolen garments from the King, and a suit of linen from the Queen three times a year, at Easter, at Whitsuntide, and at Christmas. Having thus provided for the decencies of the Court, the first book goes on to deal with the "worth" of each member thereof. Naturally the King is the most precious personage of the lot. We are told that his value is his "saraad" threefold, a saraad being the satisfaction allowed by law for injury. There is mentioned the King of Aberfraw, whose saraad was "a hundred cows for every cantref (i. e. hundred town ships) in his kingdom, and a white bull with red ears to every hundred cows, and a rod of gold of the same length as himself, and as thick as his little finger, and a plate of gold as broad as his face and as thick as the nail of a ploughman who has been a

ploughman for seven years." Such was the penalty for injuring the King, and such threefold was his personal value. The Queen also had her saraad, and it might be claimed by her from anyone vio lating her protection, striking her a blow, or snatching anything out of her hand. It was only a third of the King's however, and was to be paid without gold or silver, as though a feminine fondness for those pre cious metals might tempt her to provoke insult. First among the officials of the Court was the Chief of the Household. This function ary was allowed by law "three messes and three hornfuls of the best liquor that may be in the Palace." The Priest, who ranked second, was not treated so liberally, being allowed only one mess and one hornful of liquor, quality not mentioned. Yet while thus stinted in the matter of food and drink, the Priest received courtly deference as the representative of the Church, for the law reads, "he is the King's confessor, to whom the King is to rise and to sit down after him and to hold his sleeves while he shall wash himself." Passing over the Steward, one of whose duties is to "swear for the King," and the Chief Falconer, who was compelled to lodge in the barn, " lest smoke should effect his birds, " we come to the fifth on the list, the Court Judge. Law in the tenth century seems scarcely to have been a liberal pro fession. At any rate this dignitary was not very generously treated by the Howellian Code. His worth was reckoned at only six kine and six score of silver, a value no greater than that of the page, the cook, and the very lowest on the list, the candlebearer. He had to " administer justice without fee " to everybody at the palace, and to " share with the other judges " the