Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol I).djvu/460

 444 if by forcibly marrying a woman, he could prevent her from being a witnes, who is perhaps the only witnes, to that very fact.

the civil law the huband and the wife are conidered as two ditinct perons; and may have eparate etates, contracts, debts, and injuries : and therefore, in our eccleiatical courts, a woman may ue and be ued without her huband.

, though our law in general coniders man and wife as one peron, yet there are ome intances in which he is eparately conidered; as inferior to him, and acting by his compulion. And therefore all deeds executed, and acts done, by her, during her coverture, are void; except it be a fine, or the like matter of record, in which cae me mut be olely and ecretly examined, to learn if her act be voluntary. She cannot by will devie lands to her huband, unles under pecial circumtances; for at the time of making it he is uppoed to be under his coercion. And in ome felonies, and other inferior crimes, committed by her, through contraint of her huband, the law excues her : but this extends not to treaon or murder.

huband alo (by the old law) might give his wife moderate correction. For, as he is to anwer for her mibehaviour, the law thought it reaonable to intrut him with this power of retraining her, by dometic chatiement, in the ame moderation that a man is allowed to correct his ervants or children; for whom the mater or parent is alo liable in ome caes to anwer. But this power of correction was confined within reaonable bounds ; and the huband was prohibited from uing any violence to his wife, aliter quam ad virum, ex caua regiminis et catigationis uxoris uae, licite et rationabiliter pertinet. The civil law gave Rh