defeat the wife's customary dower (a), she is to join in the surrender, and is previously to be questioned by the steward, apart from her husband, as to her voluntary consent to the proposed act, the same as on levying a fine of freehold lands prior to the act of 3rd and 4th W. 4. c. 74. (b). Arrears of rent. It would seem that a copyholder is not chargeable with any arrears of rent due before his admission, so that previous to the admittance of any new tenant, the steward should ascertain that no rent remains due (c). Admittances. If any persons attend to be admitted, the steward is to investigate their claims, with reference to the title, as it already appears upon the court rolls, or may be deduced by will, or intestacy, or otherwise, and to make a short minute of the circumstances, to enable him afterwards to draw out the admission in due form, and when the will or other document is very long, and it cannot be left with him, he will require to have a copy or full extract from it. Being satisfied of the claimant's right to admittance, the steward (he having hold of one end of the rod or other symbol, and the claimant holding the other) is to say: "The lord of this manor, by me his "steward, doth admit you tenant to the copyhold tenements holden of "this manor, of which A. B. lately died seised, [or which have been "surrendered to your use, at this court, by A. B.] [or which were sur"rendered by A. B., to your use, on the day of] And this "is to hold to you and your heirs, [or as the case may be] at the will "of the lord, by the accustomed fine, heriot, rents, and services; in "token whereof I deliver to you this rod, [or other symbol,]" and which the steward relinquishes into the hand of the new tenant. (a) Ante, pt. 1. p. 90. et seq. p. 163. (b) Ante, pt. 1. p. 159. et seq. Post p. (12). The 77th sect. of the above mentioned act, authorising married women to convey by deed, expressly excepts the case of a copyhold, where the wife, or she and her husband in her right, may be seised for an estate at law, and which prior to the act could have been passed by a surrender. By the 90th sect. a surrender either in or out of court by a husband and VOL. II. wife, of copyhold lands in which she R The preceding observations, although applicable only to copyholds of inheritance, will render it unnecessary to lay down any particular rules for the steward's guidance, when the copyholds are held for lives. The only material variation in those cases, is, that the copyholder for lives, when desirous of adding or exchanging a life, surrenders absolutely to the lord, for the existing life or lives, to the intent that he will re-grant for the old and new lives, and the steward signifies that the lord by his hands grants seisin accordingly. And when the reversionary cestui que vies have a legal interest, and there is no special custom authorising the first life to destroy the whole estate (a), they must join in the surrender. Fine. When the fine is certain, or the lord and tenant have agreed on the amount, it is then to be paid with the steward's fees, and also the court fees, (being usually a small payment to the bailiff, on every surrender and admittance ;) but if the fine be uncertain and no agreement has been made, the steward is to assess it, and appoint a day and place for the payment (b). Fealty. It was at this stage of the court business, that the oath of fealty, now usually, if not invariably, commuted by a small payment, and entered as respited, was administered (c). Surrender to will. When admittance has taken place, the copyholder should be advised, notwithstanding the provisions of the act of 55 G. 3. c. 192, to surrender his estate to the uses of his will (d), which is to be made in the manner already explained, the uses of the surrender being thus stated by the steward, viz. " to the use of such person or persons, for such estate or estates, intents and purposes, "as he (the copyholder) by his last will and testament in writing already made, or afterwards to be made, hath given, devised, directed, or appointed, or shall give, devise, direct or appoint the same." Precept to seise. If three proclamations have been made as to any copyhold tenement, or if the party intitled to admission has been served personally with notice to appear at the court, and the heir or other person so intitled should not attend and claim to be admitted, (a) Ante, pt. 1. pp. 33, 152. (c) Ante, pt. 1. p. the steward is to issue a precept to seise the same (a) in the form [C] (post. "Forms of Precepts, &c.") Customary Recoveries (b). When a copyholder, tenant in-tail, attends in court for the purpose of suffering a recovery, in order to acquire an absolute customary fee, the steward should first ascertain whether he has been admitted, and if not, he will admit him according to the form of the gift, that is, to hold to him and the heirs general or special of his body, as the case may be, to be holden, &c., and this on payment of the customary fine. The tenant in tail is then to surrender to the use of a tenant to the plaint, in fee, who must be admitted. The steward thereupon makes a minute of the following acts and proceedings, which are to be so entered upon an interrogatory address by the steward, to the demandant, tenant, &c., [as for instance, you C. complain against B. &c., and make protestation, &c. and you B. appear and answer to C. &c.] viz. Noticing that C. (the demandant) enters a plaint against B. (the tenant) of a plea of land of the aforesaid tenements, by the description of, &c. and makes protestation to prosecute his plaint in nature of a writ of entry, sur disseizin in the post at common law, and finds pledges to prosecute, viz. John Doe and Richard Roe.' That B. prays to answer without farther process, which is granted. 6 That thereupon C. in person demands the tenements of B. as his right, &c. and of which he was seised in fee, &c. in time of peace, &c. by taking the profits or esplees, &c. and into which B. hath not entry, but after the disseisin of Hugh Hunt within 30 years last past (c). That B. in person defends his right, and vouches to warrant A. (the tenant in tail) who enters into the warranty. That thereupon C. demands the tenements of A., and saith that he was seised, &c. and into which, &c. (a) Ante, pt. 1. p. 351-2; but it would seem that a written precept to seise is not absolutely necessary. Ante, pt. 1. p. 355. (b) I think it proper to re-insert these instructions in the present edition, al though by the act of 3d and 4th W. 4. That A. defends his right, and vouches to warrant D. (the common vouchee) who enters into the warranty. That C. then demands the tenements of D., and saith that he was seised, &c. and into which, &c. That D. defends his right, and denies that Hugh Hunt did so disseise C., and puts himself on the homage. That C. craves leave to imparle to a certain hour, which is granted, and the same hour given to D. (a). That at the said hour C. attends, but D. though called [which is done by the bailiff's standing at the door of the court, and requiring that D. will come into court, and answer to C. on his plea of land, according to his defence, and is a form only, as D. purposely absents himself during the rest of the preceedings] cometh not, and that upon his contempt and default, the court adjudge that C. do recover his seisin against B., and that B. have of the customary lands of A. within the manor, &c. (b) to the value, &c. and that 4. have of the like customary lands of D. to the value, &c. and the said D. in mercy, &c. That C. prays the lord's precept to the bailiff, (W. Y.) to deliver him seisin, which is granted returnable forthwith. [And here the precept in the form [D.] (c) is signed by the steward and given to the bailiff, who retires with C. to sign the return indorsed upon it.] That W. Y. and C. again attend, the former certifying that he had executed the precept and caused seisin to be delivered to the latter. That C. prays admission, [and here C. is to be admitted accordingly, to hold in fee.] Lastly. C. the demandant and A. the tenant are to surrender, and also release (d), the premises and all their estate, &c. to the use of A. in fee, [or as he may desire,] and the steward will then admit A. accordingly (e). (a) Unless other business requires attention, this is mere form, as the next minute may be fixed. (b) Ante, pt. 1. p. 81. (c) Post. "Forms of Precepts, &c." (d) See Scroggs, 310, 484, 492 [4th edit.] Cro. Eliz. 391. Pigott on Recoveries, p. 103. A MS. note in my copy of Pigott, citing Greenwood's Jurisd. of Courts, 455, and Scroggs, 288, suggests the expediency of taking a surrender and release, as no warranty can be annexed to the estate of a copyholder. And although it is certainly better to conform to this practice, yet I cannot think that it is essential. Ante pt. 1. pp. 59, 60. (e) When the recovery is suffered by attorney, which may be done even by a feme covert, by virtue of the act of 47 G. 3. s. 2. c. 8., [but see n. (b), ante, Surrender to bar an estate-tail under 3rd & 4th W. 4. c. 74. By the operation of this statute a different course is prescribed to the steward when a copyholder, subsequently to the 31st of December, 1833, attends in court for the purpose of barring an estate-tail, and of acquiring an absolute or base customary fee. If the party should not have been already admitted, either separately, or by the previous admission of the particular tenant, under the rule of law, that an admission of a tenant for years or for life is the admission of all in remainder, he is, of course, first to be admitted tenant of the estate in tail, and then, under the 15th, 40th, and 50th sections of the above mentioned act (a), he must surrender to the use of himself in fee, or to any such particular uses as he may desire (b). Should the party be tenant in tail in remainder, he is to be informed by the steward that a surrender by him alone, would only create a base fee, though under the 19th section of the above act he might afterwards, with the concurrence of the particular tenant, intitled for a term of years determinable on a life or lives, or any greater estate, as protector of the settlement under the 34th section of the act (c), or p. (9),] the steward must notice that the tenant in tail appears and answers, vouches, &c. by such a person his attorney, duly constituted by a certain power, &c.; and which letter of attorney is to be inrolled at the end of the proceedings of the day. (a) The 16th section enacts that the power of disposition shall not be exercised by women tenants in tail ex provisione viri under 11 Hen. 7. c. 20. except with the assent required by that act. And the 18th section has provided, that the power shall not extend to cases where the reversion is in the Crown; or to tenants in tail after possibility of issue extinct. And the 20th section prohibits the issue of tenants in tail from barring their expectancies. (b) By the 50th section a disposition by a tenant in tail, whose estate shall be an estate at law, must be by surrender, but a disposition by a tenant in tail, whose estate shall be merely an estate in equity, may be either by a surrender, or by deed, as provided for by the 53rd section, and by which equitable tenants in tail of copyhold lands are authorised to dispose of such lands by deed, and the deed is not required to be inrolled otherwise than by entry on the court rolls [see sect. 54]. The 53rd section also requires that if there shall be a protector, he shall consent to such disposition by a distinct deed, to be entered on the court rolls, and the lord or steward to indorse or sign a memorandum thereon, testifying the entry thereof on the rolls. And it also provides that every disposition by deed by an equitable tenant in tail of copyholds, shall be void against any person claiming the lands for valuable consideration under any subsequent assurance, duly entered on the court roll, unless such deed of disposition be entered thereon before the entry of such subsequent assurance. (c) The consent of the protector to |