Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol I).djvu/319

 Ch. 8. of his lands was formerly veted in the lord of the fee ; (and therefore till, by pecial cutom, in ome manors the lord hall have the ordering of idiot and lunatic copyholders ) but, by reaon of the manifold abues of this power by ubjects, it was at lat provided by common conent, that it hould be given to the king, as the general conervator of his people, in order to prevent the idiot from wating his etate, and reducing himelf and his heirs to poverty and ditres : this fical prerogative of the king is declared in parliament by tatute 17 Edw. II. c. 9. which directs (in affirmance of the common law ,) that the king hall have ward of the lands of natural fools, taking the profits without wate or detruction, and hall find them necearies; and after the death of uch idiots he hall render the etate to the heirs; in order to prevent uch idiots from aliening their lands, and their heirs from being diinherited.

the old common law there is a writ de idiota inquirendo, to enquire whether a man be an idiot or not : which mut be tried by a jury of twelve men; and, if they find him purus idiota, the profits of his lands, and the cutody of his peron may be granted by the king to ome ubject, who has interet enough to obtain them. This branch of the revenue hath been long conidered as a hardhip upon private families; and o long ago as in the 8 Jac. I. it was under the conideration of parliament, to vet this cutody in the relations of the party, and to ettle an equivalent on the crown in lieu of it; it being then propoed to hare the ame fate with the lavery of the feodal tenures, which has been ince abolihed. Yet few intances can be given of the oppreive exertion of it, ince it eldom happens that a jury finds a man an idiot a nativitate, but only non compos mentis from ome particular time; which has an operation very different in point of law. Rh