Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol II).djvu/262

 246 But both thee pecies may well be comprehended under the firt denomination only; for he that is attainted uffers an extinction of his blood, as well as he that dies without relations. The inheritable quality is expunged in one intance, and expires in the other; or, as the doctrine of echeats is very fully expreed in Fleta, "dominus capitalis feodi loco haeredis habetur, quoties per defectum vel delictum extinguitur anguis tenentis."

therefore ariing merely upon the deficiency of the blood, whereby the decent is impeded, their doctrine will be better illutrated by conidering the everal caes wherein hereditary blood may be deficient, than by any other method whatoever.

1, 2, 3. firt three caes, wherein inheritable blood is wanting, may be collected from the rules of decent laid down and explained in the preceding chapter, and therefore will need very little illutration or comment. Firt, when the tenant dies without any relations on the part of any of his ancetors: econdly, when he dies without any relations on the part of thoe ancetors from whom his etate decended: thirdly, when he dies without any relations of the whole blood. In two of thee caes the blood of the firt purchaor is certainly, in the other it is probably, at an end; and therefore in all of them the law directs, that the land hall echeat to the lord of the fee: for the lord would be manifetly prejudiced, if, contrary to the inherent condition tacitly annexed to all feuds, any peron hould be uffered to ucceed to lands, who is not of the blood of the firt feudatory, to whom for his peronal merit the etate is uppoed to have been granted.

4., which hath not the hape of mankind, but in any part evidently bears the reemblance of the brute creation, hath no inheritable blood, and cannot be heir to any land, albeit it be brought forth in marriage: but, although it hath deformity Rh