Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol I).djvu/83

§. 3. o vigorouly withtood the repeated attacks of the civil law; which etablihed in the twelfth century a new Roman empire over mot of the tates on the continent: tates that have lot, and perhaps upon that account, their political liberties; while the free contitution of England, perhaps upon the ame account, has been rather improved than debaed. Thee, in hort, are the laws which gave rie and original to that collection of maxims and cutoms, which is now known by the name of the common laws. A name either given to it, in contraditinction to other laws, as the tatute law, the civil law, the law merchant, and the like; or, more probably, as a law common to all the realm, the  or folcright mentioned by king Edward the elder, after the abolition of the everal provincial cutoms and particular laws before-mentioned.

though this is the mot likely foundation of this collection of maxims and cutoms, yet the maxims and cutoms, o collected, are of higher antiquity than memory or hitory can reach: nothing being more difficult than to acertain the precie beginning and firt pring of an antient and long etablihed cutom. Whence it is that in our law the goodnes of a cutom depends upon it’s having been ued time out of mind; or, in the olemnity of our legal phrae, time whereof the memory of man runneth not to the contrary. This it is that gives it it’s weight and authority; and of this nature are the maxims and cutoms which compoe the common law, or , of this kingdom.

unwritten, or common, law is properly ditinguihable into three kinds:&ensp;1.&ensp;General cutoms; which are the univeral rule of the whole kingdom, and form the common law, in it’s tricter and more uual ignification.&ensp;2.&ensp;Particular cutoms; which for the mot part affect only the inhabitants of particular ditricts.&ensp;3.&ensp;Certain particular laws; which by cutom are adopted and ued by ome particular courts, of pretty general and extenive juridiction. Rh