Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol II).djvu/389

 Ch. 23.

HE lat method of conveying real property, is by devie, or dipoition contained in a man's lat will and tetament. And, in conidering this ubject, I hall not at preent enquire into the nature of wills and tetaments, which are more properly the intruments to convey peronal etates; but only into the original and antiquity of deviing real etates by will, and the contruction of the everal tatutes upon which that power is now founded.

eems ufficiently clear, that, before the conquet, lands were deviable by will. But, upon the introduction of the military tenures, the retraint of deviing lands naturally took place, as a branch of the feodal doctrine of non-alienation without the conent of the lord. And ome have quetioned, whether this retraint (which we may trace even from the antient Germans ) was not founded upon truer principles of policy, than the power of wantonly diinheriting the heir by will, and transferring the etate, through the dotage or caprice of the ancetor, from thoe of his blood to utter trangers. For this, it is alleged, maintained the ballance of property, and prevented one man from growing too big or powerful for his neighbours; ince it rarely happens,, Rh