Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol II).djvu/128

 116 like, without being impeached, or called to account, for the ame. 2. That the wife of the tenant in tail hall have her dower, or thirds, of the etate-tail. 3. That the huband of a female tenant in tail may be tenant by the curtey of the etate-tail. 4. That an etate-tail may be barred, or detroyed, by a fine, by a common recovery, or by lineal warranty decending with aets to the heir. All which will hereafter be explained at large.

much for the nature of etates-tail: the etablihment of which family law (as it is properly tiled by Pigott ) occaioned infinite difficulties and diputes. Children grew diobedient when they knew they could not be et aide: farmers were outed of their leaes made by tenants in tail; for, if uch leaes had been valid, then under colour of long leaes the iue might have been virtually diinherited: creditors were defrauded of their debts; for, if tenant in tail could have charged his etate with their payment, he might alo have defeated his iue, by mortgaging it for as much as it was worth: innumerable latent entails were produced to deprive purchaers of the lands they had fairly bought; of uits in conequence of which our antient books are full: and treaons were encouraged; as etates-tail were not liable to forfeiture, longer than for the tenant's life. So that they were jutly branded, as the fource of new conventions, and michiefs unknown to the common law; and almot univerally conidered as the common grievance of the realm. But, as the nobility were always fond of this tatute, becaue it preerved their family etates from forfeiture, there was little hopes of procuring a repeal by the legilature; and therefore, by the connivance of an adive and politic prince, a method was devied to evade it.

two hundred years intervened between the making of the tatute de donis, and the application of common recoveries to this intent, in the twelfth year of Edward IV: which were then openly declared by the judges to be a ufficient bar of an Rh