Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol I).djvu/375

 Ch. 9. lay out their own money in purchaing materials for repairs, where there is not ufficient within the parih, and hall be reimbured by a rate, to be allowed at a pecial eions. 4. In cae the peronal labour of the parih be not ufficient, the urveyors, with the content of the quarter eions, may levy a rate (not exceeding 6d. in the pound) on the parih, in aid of the peronal duty; for the due application of which they are to account upon oath. As for turnpikes, which are now univerally introduced in aid of uch rates, and the law relating to them, thee depend entirely on the particular powers granted in the everal road acts, and therefore have nothing to do with this compendium of general law.

VI. therefore, latly, to conider the overeers of the poor; their original, appointment, and duty.

poor of England, till the time of Henry VIII, ubited entirely upon private benevolence, and the charity of welldipoed chritians. For, though it appears by the mirrour, that by the common law the poor were to be "utained by parons, rectors of the church, and the parihioners; o that none of them dye for default of utenance;" and though by the tatutes 12 Ric. II. c. 7. and 19 Hen. VII. c. 12. the poor are directed to abide in the cities or towns wherein they were born, or uch wherein they had dwelt for three years (which eem to be the firt rudiments of parih ettlements) yet till the tatute 26 Hen. VIII c. 26. I find no compulory method chalked out for this purpoe: but the poor eem to have been left to uch relief as the humanity of their neighbours would afford them. The monasteries were, in particular, their principal reource; and, among other bad effects which attended the monatic intitutions, it was not perhaps one of the leat (though frequently eteemed quite otherwie) that they upported and fed a very numerous and very idle poor, whoe utenance depended upon what was daily ditributed in alms at the gates of the religious houes. But, upon the total diolution of thee, the inconvenience of thus encou- Rh