Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol I).djvu/95

§. 3. pecies of conveyance (called a deed of feoffment) convey away his lands in fee-imple, or for ever. Yet this cutom does not impower him to ue any other conveyance, or even to leae them for even years: for the cutom mut be trictly purued. And, moreover, all pecial cutoms mut ubmit to the king’s prerogative. Therefore, if the king purchaes lands of the nature of gavelkind, where all the ons inherit equally; yet, upon the king’s demie, his eldet on hall ucceed to thoe lands alone. And thus much for the econd part of the, or thoe particular cutoms which affect particular perons or ditricts only.

.&ensp; third branch of them are thoe peculiar laws, which by cutom are adopted and ued only in certain peculiar courts and juridictions. And by thee I undertand the civil and canon laws.

may eem a little improper at firt view to rank thee laws under the head of , or unwritten laws, eeing they are et forth by authority in their pandects, their codes, and their intitutions; their councils, decrees, and decretals; and enforced by an immene number of expoitions, deciions, and treaties of the learned in both branches of the law. But I do this, after the example of ir Matthew Hale, becaue it is mot plain, that it is not on account of their being written laws, that either the canon law, or the civil law, have any obligation within this kingdom; neither do their force and efficacy depend upon their own intrinic authority; which is the cae of our written laws, or acts of parliament. They bind not the ubjects of England, becaue their materials were collected from popes or emperors; were digeted by Jutinian, or declared to be authentic by Gregory. Thee coniderations give them no authority here: for the legilature of England doth not, nor ever did, recognize any foreign power, as uperior or equal to it in this kingdom; or as having the right to give law to any, the meanet, of it’s ubjects.