Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol II).djvu/107

 Ch. 6. with himelf, and therefore held it an implied manumiion. But, in cae the lord indicted him for felony, it was otherwie; for the lord could not inflict a capital punihment on his villein, without calling in the aitance of the law.

, by this and many other means, in proces of time gained coniderable ground on their lords; and in particular trengthened the tenure of their etates to that degree, that they came to have in them an interet in many places full as good, in others better than their lords. For the goodnature and benevolence of many lords of manors having, time out of mind, permitted their villeins and their children to enjoy their poeions without interruption, in a regular coure of decent, the common law, of which cutom is the life, now gave them title to precribe againt their lords; and, on performance of the ame ervices, to hold their lands, in pight of any determination of the lord's will. For, though in general they are till aid to hold their etates at the will of the lord, yet it is uch a will as is agreeable to the cutom of the manor; which cutoms are preerved and evidenced by the rolls of the everal courts baron in which they are entered, or kept on foot by the contant immemorial uage of the everal manors in which the lands lie. And, as uch tenants had nothing to hew for their etates but thee cutoms, and admiions in puruance of them, entered on thoe rolls, or the copies of uch entries witneed by the teward, they now began to be called tenants by copy of court roll, and their tenure itelf a copyhold.

copyhold tenures, as ir Edward Coke oberves, although very meanly decended, yet come of an antient houe; for, from what has been premied it appears, that copyholders are in truth no other but villeins, who, by a long eries of immemorial encroachments on the lord, have at lat etablihed a cutomary right to thoe etates, which before were held abolutely at the lord's will. Which affords a very ubtantial reaon for the great variety Rh