lect03-第7章

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but　in　fact　large　portions　of　it　have　been　permanently






appropriated　to　minor　bodies　of　tribesmen。　A　part　is　allotted　in






a　special　way　to　the　Chief　as　appurtenant　to　his　office；　and






depends　from　Chief　to　Chief　according　to　a　special　rule　of






succession。　Other　portions　are　occupied　by　fragments　of　the






tribe；　some　of　which　are　under　minor　chiefs　or　'flaiths；'　while






others；　though　not　strictly　ruled　by　a　chief；　have　somebody　of　a






noble　class　to　act　as　their　representative。　All　the






unappropriated　tribe…lands　are　in　a　more　especial　way　the






property　of　the　tribe　as　a　whole；　and　no　portion　can






theoretically　be　subjected　to　more　than　a　temporary　occupation。






Such　occupations　are；　however；　frequent；　and　among　the　holders　of






tribe…land；　on　these　terms；　are　groups　of　men　calling　themselves






tribesmen；　but　being　in　reality　associations　formed　by　contract；






chiefly　for　the　purpose　of　pasturing　cattle。　Much　of　the　common






tribe…land　is　not　occupied　at　all；　but　constitutes；　to　use　the






English　expression；　the　'waste'　of　the　tribe。　Still　this　waste　is






constantly　brought　under　tillage　or　permanent　pasture　by






settlements　of　tribesmen；　and　upon　it　cultivators　of　servile






status　are　permitted　to　squat；　particularly　towards　the　border。






It　is　the　part　of　the　territory　over　which　the　authority　of　the






Chief　tends　steadily　to　increase；　and　here　it　is　that　he　settles






his　'fuidhir；'　or　stranger…tenants；　a　very　important　class　　the






outlaws　and　'broken'　men　from　other　tribes　who　come　to　him　for






protection；　and　who　are　only　connected　with　their　new　tribe　by






their　dependence　on　its　chief；　and　through　the　responsibility






which　he　incurs　for　them。






　　　　There　is　probably　great　uniformity　in　the　composition　of　the






various　groups　occupying；　permanently　or　temporary；　the　tribal






territory。　Each　seems　to　be　more　or　less　a　miniature　of　the　large






tribe　which　includes　them　all。　Each　probably　contains　freemen　and






slaves；　or　at　all　events　men　varying　materially　in　personal






status；　yet　each　calls　itself　in　some　sense　a　family。　Each　very






possibly　has　its　appropriated　land　and　its　waste；　and　conducts






tillage　and　grazing　on　the　same　principles。　Each　is　either　under






a　Chief　who　really　represents　the　common　ancestor　of　all　the　free






kinsmen；　or　under　somebody　who　has　undertaken　the






responsibilities　devolving　according　to　primitive　social　idea






upon　the　natural　head　of　the　kindred。　In　enquiries　of　the　class






upon　which　we　are　engaged　the　important　fact　which　I　stated　here






three　years　ago　should　always　be　borne　in　mind。　When　the　first






English　emigrants　settled　in　New　England　they　distributed






themselves　in　village　communities；　so　difficult　is　it　to　strike






out　new　paths　of　social　life　and　new　routes　of　social　habit。　It






is　all　but　certain　that；　in　such　a　society　as　that　of　which　we






are　speaking；　one　single　model　of　social　organisation　and　social






practice　would　prevail；　and　none　but　slight　or　insensible






departures　from　it　would　be　practicable　or　conceivable。






　　　　But　still　the　society　thus　formed　is　not　altogether






stationary。　The　temporary　occupation　of　the　common　tribe…land






tends　to　become　permanent；　either　through　the　tacit　sufferance　or






the　active　consent　of　the　tribesmen。　Particular　families　manage






to　elude　the　theoretically　periodical　re…division　of　the　common






patrimony　of　the　group；　others　obtain　allotments　with　its　consent






as　the　reward　of　service　or　the　appanage　of　office；　and　there　is






a　constant　transfer　of　lands　to　the　Church；　and　an　intimate






intermixture　of　tribal　rights　with　ecclesiastical　rights。　The






establishment　of　Property　in　Severalty　is　doubtless　retarded　both






by　the　abundance　of　land　and　by　the　very　law　under　which；　to






repeat　the　metaphor　of　the　Indian　poetess；　the　tribal　society　has






crystallised；　since　each　family　which　has　appropriated　a　portion






of　tribe…land　tends　always　to　expand　into　an　extensive　assemblage






of　tribesmen　having　equal　rights。　But　still　there　is　a






co…operation　of　causes　always　tending　to　result　in　Several






Property；　and　the　Brehon　law　shows　that　by　the　time　it　was　put






into　shape　they　had　largely　taken　effect。　As　might　be　expected；






the　severance　of　land　from　the　common　territory　appears　to　have






been　most　complete　in　the　case　of　Chiefs；　many　of　whom　have　large






private　estates　held　under　ordinary　tenure　in　addition　to　the






demesne　specially　attached　to　their　signory。






　　　　Such　is　the　picture　of　Irish　tribal　organisation　in　relation






to　the　land　which　I　have　been　able　to　present　to　my　own　mind。　All






such　descriptions　must　be　received　with　reserve：　among　other






reasons；　because　even　the　evidence　obtainable　from　the　law…tracts






is　still　incomplete。　But　if　the　account　is　in　any　degree　correct；






all　who　have　attended　to　this　class　of　subjects　will　observe　at






once　that　the　elements　of　what　we　are　accustomed　to　consider　the






specially　Germanic　land　system　are　present　in　the　territorial






arrangements　of　the　Irish　tribe。　Doubtless　there　are　material






distinctions。　Kinship　as　yet；　rather　than　landed　right；　knits　the






members　of　the　Irish　groups　together。　The　Chief　is　as　yet　a　very






different　personage　from　the　Lord　of　the　Manor。　And　there　are　no






signs　as　yet　even　of　the　beginnings　of　great　towns　and　cities。






Still　the　assertion；　which　is　the　text　of　Dr　Sullivan's　treatise；






may　be　hazarded　without　rashness；　that　everything　in　the　Germanic






has　at　least　its　embryo　in　the　Celtic　land　system。　The　study　of






the　Brehon　law　leads　to　the　same　conclusion　pointed　at　by　so　many






branches　of　modern　research。　It　conveys　a　stronger　impression






than　ever　of　a　wide　separation　between　the　Aryan　race　and　races






of　other　stocks；　but　it　suggests　that　many；　perhaps　most；　of　the






differences　in　kind　alleged　to　exist　between　Aryan　sub…races　are






really　differences　merely　in　degree　of　development。　It　is　to　be






hoped　that　contemporary　thought　will　before　long　make　an　effort






to　emancipate　itself　from　those　habits　of　levity　in　adopting






theories　of　race　which　it　seems　to　have　contracted。　Many　of　these






theories　appear　to　have　little　merit　except　the　facility　which






they　give　for　building　on　them　inferences　tremendously　out　of






proportion　to　the　mental　labour　which　they　cost　the　builder。