Page:The Green Bag (1889–1914), Volume 12.pdf/68

Rh scipe," "villata," or "viens" ), which in its ecclesiastical form was called a "parish". Some townships were free, others dependent, but all were presided over by a head man called " tun-gerefa" (cf. German "graf"), who in the latter case was nominated by the lord of the land. Such a township had its own " gemot " or assembly, where bylaws were made; but it is uncertain how far we may press the analogy betweenit and the early German" mark." A higher form of township was the " Burh," always the residence of a king, magistrate, or prominent noble. So we read of " cyninges tun," in Alfred's laws, while Bede speaks of Lincoln as such in the seventh century, having a " gerefa " as an officer. This of ficial was called " port-gerefa," in such mercantile places as London, Bath, Bodmin, and Canterbury.

Between these towns and the shires came the Hundred or " Wapcntake," the latter term being of uncertain etymology but referring rather to an armed gathering of freemen than to a local division : moreover, it must be borne in mind that neither one term nor the other actually occurs in any document before the tenth century laws of King Kdgar, which also make first mention of "tithing " as a synonym for township. The tradition, apparently dating from the twelfth century, that Alfred set England in order by setting ten families in one -tithing and ten tithings in one hundred is clearly unhistorical. None the less, it is highly important to appreciate the nature in the ninth century of a local idea clearly manifested in the tenth, of which there are distinct vestiges in the primitive organization of the German "pagus." The probable truth is that in and before Alfred's time each of many districts, varying in size and bounded by natural rivers and hills, contributed a hundred warriors to the host in the hour of national need : and that out of this custom came a local division which in Edgar's and Aethelred's days became the basis of special taxation and police regulations; a monthly " Hundred-gemot," competent to declare folk-right in every suit, came, in the reign of Henry I, to be attended by lords within the hundred or their stewards, the parish-priest, the reeve, and the four best men of each township.

Intermediate divisions between the hundred and the shire, which may or may not have begun to be recognized in the time of Alfred, were the "Ridings" of Yorkshire, the " Rapes " of Sussex, and the " Lathes" of Kent.

In reaching the distribution into " Shires," we come to what very possibly was really the addition of Alfred to the land government of England. The term shire or "scir," signifies simply a share of a larger whole, and in former Anglo-Saxon days meant the territorial sphere assigned to an officer or magistrate. Thus Bede speaks often of the "Bishop's scire," while in Ine's Laws (A. D. 688-725) we have simply "scir" and " scir-man." A charter of Aethclstan, which, however, is probably spurious, speaks of omiifs Cantcscyrae thaini, but in the Anglo-Saxon chronicle (A. D. 851, 860) we find " Hamptonscire, Defnascire, and Bcarroscire," appearing side by side with "the Dorsaetaes, the Wilsaetas, and the Sumersaetas" (cf. the opening of Asser's "Life of Alfred." "In villa regia quaedicitur Wanading in illa paga quae nominatur Berrocscire"). Bearing in mind the connection of Alfred with these chronicles and the absence of contrary evidence, it seems reasonable to believe that Alfred invented "shires" when coming to terms with Danish Guthrum. Shires do not appear in their ecclesiastical form as archdeaconries until the twelfth century. The shire-officers were an " Kaldorman" and a special " gerefa," called the "sheriff." The " ealdorman," originally elected into the " Witena-gemot" with the consent of the king and "witan," seems to have held an office which became hereditary even before the introduction of