nvestigation　of　manorial　records。　With　one　class　of　such　documents　we　have　had　already　to　deal；　namely　with　the　rolls　of　manorial　courts；　which　form　as　it　were　the　stepping…stone　between　local　arrangements　and　the　general　theories　of　Common　Law。　So…called　manorial　'extents'　and　royal　inquisitions　based　on　them　lead　us　one　step　further；　they　were　intended　to　describe　the　matter…of…fact　conditions　of　actual　life；　the　distribution　of　holdings；　the　amount　and　nature　of　services；　the　personal　divisions　of　the　peasantry；　their　evidence　is　not　open　to　the　objection　of　having　been　artificially　treated　for　legal　purposes。　Treatises　on　farming　and　instructions　to　manorial　officers　reflect　the　economic　side　of　the　system；　and　an　enormous　number　of　accounts　of　expenditure　and　receipts　would　enable　the　modern　searcher；　if　so　minded；　to　enter　even　into　the　detail　of　agricultural　management。（1*）　We　need　not　undertake　this　last　inquiry；　but　some　comparison　between　the　views　of　lawyers　and　the　actual　facts　of　manorial　administration　must　be　attempted。　Writers　on　Common　Law　invite　one　to　the　task　by　recognising　a　great　variety　of　local　customs；　Bracton；　for　instance；　mentioning　two　notable　deviations　from　general　rules　in　the　department　of　law　under　discussion。　In　Cornwall　the　children　of　a　villain　and　of　a　free　woman　were　not　all　unfree；　but　some　followed　the　father　and　others　the　mother。（2*）　In　Herefordshire　the　master　was　not　bound　to　produce　his　serfs　to　answer　criminal　charges。（3*）　If　such　customs　were　sufficiently　strong　to　counteract　the　influence　of　general　rules　of　Common　Law；　the　vitality　of　local　distinctions　was　even　more　felt　in　those　cases　where　they　had　no　rules　to　break　through；　It　may　be　even　asked　at　the　very　outset　of　the　inquiry　whether　there　is　not　a　danger　of　our　being　distracted　by　endless　details。　I　hope　that　the　following　pages　will　show　how　the　varieties　naturally　fall　into　certain　classes　and　converge　towards　a　few　definite　positions；　which　appear　the　more　important　as　they　were　not　produced　by　artificial　arrangement　from　above。　We　must　be　careful　however；　and　distinguish　between　isolated　facts　and　widely…spread　conditions。　Another　possible　objection　to　the　method　of　our　study　may　be　also　noticed　here；　as　it　is　connected　with　the　same　difficulty。　Suppose　we　get　in　one　case　the　explanation　of　a　custom　or　institution　which　recurs　in　many　other　cases；　are　we　entitled　to　generalise　our　explanation？　This　seems　methodically　sound　as　long　as　the　contrary　cannot　be　established；　for　the　plain　reason　that　the　variety　of　local　facts　is　a　variety　of　combinations　and　of　effects；　not　of　constitutive　elements　and　of　causes。　The　agents　of　development　are　not　many；　though　their　joint　work　shades　off　into　a　great　number　of　variations。　We　may　be　pretty　sure　that　a　result　repeated　several　times　has　been　effected　by　the　same　factors　in　the　same　way；　and　if　in　some　instances　these　factors　appear　manifestly；　there　is　every　reason　to　suppose　them　to　have　existed　in　all　the　cases。　Such　reflections　are　never　convincing　by　themselves；　however；　and　the　best　thing　to　test　them　will　be　to　proceed　from　these　broad　statements　to　an　inquiry　into　the　particulars　of　the　case。　　　　　The　study　of　manorial　evidence　must　start　from　a　discussion　as　to　terminology。　The　names　of　the　peasantry　will　show　the　natural　subdivisions　of　the　class。　If　we　look　only　to　the　unfree　villagers；　we　shall　notice　that　all　the　varieties　of　denomination　can　easily　be　arranged　into　four　classes：　one　of　these　classes　has　in　view　social　standing；　another　economic　condition；　a　third　starts　from　a　difference　of　services；　and　a　fourth　from　a　difference　of　holdings。　The　line　may　not　be　drawn　sharply　between　the　several　divisions；　but　the　general　contrast　cannot　be　mistaken。　　　　　The　term　of　most　common　occurrence　is；　of　course；　villanus。　Although　its　etymology　points　primarily　to　the　place　of　dwelling；　and　indirectly　to　specific　occupations；　it　is　chiefly　used　during　the　feudal　period　to　denote　servitude。　It　takes　in　both　the　man　who　is　personally　unfree　and　stands　in　complete　subjection　to　the　lord；　and　the　free　person　settled　on　servile　land。　Both　classes　mentioned　and　distinguished　by　Bracton　are　covered　by　it。　The　common　opposition　is　between　villanus　and　libere　tenens；　not　between　villanus　and　liber　homo。　It　is　not　difficult　to　explain　such　a　phraseology　in　books　compiled　either　in　the　immediate　interest　of　the　lords　or　under　their　indirect　influence；　but　it　must　have　necessarily　led　to　encroachments　and　disputes：　it　has　even　become　a　snare　for　later　investigators；　who　have　sometimes　been　led　to　consider　as　one　compact　mass　a　population　consisting　of　two　different　classes；　each　with　a　separate　history　of　its　own。　The　Latin　'rusticus'　is　applied　in　the　same　general　way。　lt　is　less　technical　however；　and　occurs　chiefly　in　annals　anD　other　literary　productions；　for　which　it　was　better　suited　by　its　classical　Derivation。　But　when　it　is　used　in　opposition　to　other　terms；　it　stands　exactly　as　villanus。　that　is　to　say；　it　is　contrasted　with　libere　tenens。（4*）　　　　　The　fundamental　distinction　of　personal　status　has　left　some　traces　in　terminology。　The　Hundred　Rolls；　especially　the　Warwickshire　one；（5*）　mention　servi　very　often。　Sometimes　the　word　is　used　exactly　as　villanus　would　be。（6*）　Tenere　in　servitute　and　tenere　in　villenagio　are　equivalent。（7*）　But　other　instances　show　that　servus　has　also　a　special　meaning。　Cases　where　it　occurs　in　an　'extent'　immediately　after　villanus；　and　possibly　in　opposition　to　it；　are　not　decisive。（8*）　They　may　be　explained　by　the　fact　that　the　persons　engaged　in　drawing　up　a　custumal；　jotted　down　denominations　of　the　peasantry　without　comparing　them　carefully　with　what　preceded。　A　marginal　note　servi　would　not　be　necessarily　opposed　to　a　villani　following　it；　it　may　only　be　a　different　name　for　the　same　thing。　And　it　may　be　noted　that　in　the　Hundred　Rolls　these　names　very　often　stand　in　the　margin；　and　not　in　the　text。　But　such　an　explanation　would　be　out　of　place　when　both　expressions　are　used　in　the　same　sentence。　The　description　of　Ipsden　in　Oxfordshire　has　the　following　passage：　item　dietus　R。　de　N。　hanet　de　proparte　sua　septem　servos　villanos。　（Rot。　Hundr。　ii。　781；　b：　cf。　775；　b；　Servi　Custumarii。）　It　is　clear　that　it　was　intended；　not　only　to　describe　the　general　condition　of　the　peasantry；　but　to　define　more　particularly　their　status。　This　observation　and　the　general　meaning　of　the　word　will　lead　us　to　believe　that　in　many　cases　when　it　is　used　by　itself；　it　implies　personal　subjection。　　　　　The　term　nativus　has　a　similar　sense。　But　the　relation　between　it　and　villanus　is　not　constant；　sometimes　this　latter　marks　the　genus；　while　the　former　applies　to　a　species；　but　sometimes　they　are　used　interchangeably；（9*）　and　the　feminine　for　villain　is　nieve　（nativa）。　But　while　villanus　is　made　to　appear　both　in　a　wide　and　in　a　restricted　sense；　and　for　this　reason　cannot　be　used　as　a　special　qualification；　nativus　has　only　the　restricted　sense　suggesting　status。（10*）　In　connection　with　other　denominations　nativus　is　used　for　the　personally　unfree。（11*）　When　we　find　nativus　domini；　the　personal　relation　to　the　lord　is　especially　noticed。（12*）　The　sense　being　such；　no　wonder　that　the　nature　of　the　tenure　is　sometimes　described　in　addition。（13*）　Of　course；　the　primary　meaning　is；　that　a　person　has　been　born　in　the　power　of　the　lord；　and　in　this　sense　it　is　opposed　to　the　stranger　　forinsecus；　extraneus。（14*）　In　this　sense　again　the　Domesday　of　St。　Paul's　speaks　of　'nativi　a　principio'　in　Navestock。（15*）　But　the　fact　of　being　born　to　the　condition　supposes　personal　subjection；　and　this　explains　why　nativi　are　sometimes　mentioned　in　contrast　with　freemen；（16*）　without　any　regard　being　paid　to　the　question　of　tenure。　Natives；　or　villains　born；　had　their　pedigrees　as　well　as　the　most　noble　among　the　peers。　Such　pedigrees　were　drawn　up　to　prevent　any　fraudulent　assertion　as　to　freedom；　and　to　guide　the　lord　in　case　he　wanted　to　use　the　native's　kin　in　prosecution　of　an　action　de　nativo　habendo。　One　such　pedigree　preserved　in　the　Record　Office　is　especially　interesting；　because　it　starts　from　some　stranger；　extraneus；（17*）　who　came　into　the　manor　as　a　freeman；　and　whose　progeny　lapses　into　personal　villainage；　apparently　it　is　a　case　of　villainage　by　prescription。　　　　　The　other　subdivision　of　the　class…freemen　holding　unfree　land（18*）　　has　no　special　denomination。　This　deprives　us　of　a　very　important　clue　as　to　the　composition　of　the　peasantry；　but　we　may　gather　from　the　fact　how　very　near　both　divisions　must　have　stood　to　each　other　in　actual　life。　The　free　man　holding　in　villainage　had　the　right　to　go　away；　while　the　native　was　legally　bound　to　the　lord；　but　it　was　difficult　for　the　one　to　leave　land　and　homestead；　and　it　was　not　impossible　for　the　other　to　fly　from　them；　if　he　were　ill…treated　by　his　lord　or　the　steward。　Even　the　fundamental　distinction　could　not　be　drawn　very　sharply　in　the　practice　of　daily　life；　and　in　every　other　respect；　as　to　services；　mode　of　holding；　etc。；　there　was　no　distinction。　No　wonder　that　the　common　term　villanus　is　used　quite　broadly；　and　aims　at　the　tenure　more　than　at　personal　status。　　　　　Terms　which　have　in　view　the　general　economic　condition　o