- £* - T H g «- 1 8 f <> R Y -m Book I.
only m*» « fm^U portion of their eftatfs* upon penfual lands & free &ecages j buf sxt-eiuted its influence though the whole jsircte of th? landed property among the Britons i% . The whole
- $tff lp of aWblute property, as I have already $viuce<k was formed
-merely of one fpecies of tenures, # ance a&ually military and ppfitively cenfuaL And this fpecies was naturaMy denominated among the BritowsGafael JUnead or the Family Eftato, Gafael or 'Qavel carrying exactly thc4ja*»e fij^ifcatioji in the Bririfhas Fyd . 9r Fyd, the addition of I£inead or Kind was aeceftary to reftjrain the genprai+ty of the exprefiioa^audto diftiwguiflj the legally hereditary dilate of the Uchelwyr from the legally undefcendible poiTeffion jjf the Fileip. And both together import precifely what Fo«i .fn4 p^ud %«ify at; prsfent, a fro? tenement and its appurte- nance* ^.nohje eftate and, the modal ckcumftances of it,"* Thensr we thres particular pjefcriptions of this Britjtfh inftitu- fion i and all appear pla*4y to have been intended as improve- fP£fit« upon the feudal fyftej»* The inheritance of the Britifh bai^a* the only freeholder in the kingdom was divided equally amoqg the ions* and indefeft of ions among the next heirs thpt were males S4 . This was calculated diraftly to multiply tfee member o£ the military tenants* and to provide againft de- feats in the, military fervices* The females of every degree* till the utter extin&ion of the males, were absolutely precluded fttupGLthe inheritance ". They were unable to perform, the mi* tytjjy ftfvices* and, were therefore efteemed unfit to. receive the giilitare tewwes, And^. what was very extraordinary in itfelf, feu£ Batmally resulted from the fame feudal principle of gavel- kind, ikql- diftin.^ioft was made in the line of the males betwixt the fpurions an>d the legitimate 5< V They were both qualified «q^lytp?^«t^ the fer vices of their father, and they were both. atfmittGd, squally to a fba*e in the patrimony**. But though the fee was divided, eqpally among the fens, and though the fpurious. (bared it equally with the legitimate^yet the eldeftyet the legi- . Ornate wasr confidered by the law as the aftual proprietor of the; whofo S V And under this ufcful reftri&ion* which continued: lilt fSjYewl hra^ches of the original family together, and kept them*
