lect06-第8章

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Ceile　was　to　be　commiserated；　rather　because　he　had　derogated






from　his　rights　as　a　free　tribesman　of　the　same　blood　with　the






Chief；　than　because　he　had　exposed　himself　to　unbridled






oppression。　Besides　paying　dues　more　of　the　nature　of　modern






rent；　he　certainly　stood　under　that　unfortunate　liability　of






supplying　periodical　refection　for　his　Chief　and　his　followers。






But　not　only　was　the　Mount　of　his　dues　settled　by　the　law；　but






the　very　size　of　the　joints　and　the　quality　of　the　ale　with　which






he　regaled　his　Chief　were　minutely　and　expressly　regulated。　And；






if　one　provision　of　the　law　is　clearer　than　another；　it　is　that






the　normal　period　of　the　relation　of　tenancy　or　vassalage　was　not






one　year；　but　seven　years。　How；　then；　are　we　to　explain　this






discrepancy　？　Is　the　explanation　that　the　Brehon　theory　never　in






reality　quite　corresponded　with　the　facts　？　It　may　be　so　to　some






extent；　but　the　careful　student　of　the　Brehon　tracts　will　be






inclined　to　think　that　the　general　bias　of　their　writers　was






rather　towards　exaggeration　of　the　privileges　of　Chiefs　than






towards　Overstatement　of　the　immunities　of　tribesmen。　Is　it；　on






the　other　hand；　likely　that；　as　some　patriotic　Irishmen　have






asserted；　Spenser　and　Davis　were　under　the　influence　of　English






prejudice；　and　grossly　misrepresented　the　facts　of　Irish　life　in






their　day？　Plenty　of　prejudice　of　a　certain　kind　is　disclosed　by






their　writings；　and　I　doubt　not　that　they　were　capable　of






occasionally　misunderstanding　what　they　saw。　Nothing；　however；






which　they　have　written　suggests　that　they　were　likely　wilfully






to　misdescribe　facts　open　to　their　observation。　I　can　quite






conceive　that　some　things　in　the　relations　of　the　Chiefs　and






tenants　escaped　them；　possibly　a　good　deal　of　freely…given






loyalty　on　one　side；　and　of　kindliness　and　good　humoured






joviality　on　the　other。　But　that　the　Irish　Chief　had　in　their　day






the　power　or　right　which　they　attribute　to　him　cannot　seriously






be　questioned。






　　　　The　power　of　the　Irish　Chiefs　and　their　severity　to　their






tenants　in　the　sixteenth　century　being　admitted；　they　have　been






accounted　for；　as　I　before　stated；　by　supposing　that　the　Norman






nobles　who　became　gradually　clothed　with　Irish　chieftainships　






the　Fitzgeralds；　the　Burkes；　and　the　Barrys　　abused　an






authority　which　in　native　hands　would　have　been　subject　to






natural　limitations；　and　thus　set　an　evil　example　to　all　the






Chiefs　of　Ireland。　The　explanation　has　not　the　antecedent






improbability　which　it　might　seem　to　have　at　first　sight；　but　I






am　not　aware　that　there　is　positive　evidence　to　sustain　it。　I　owe






a　far　more　plausible　theory　of　the　cause　of　change　to　Dr






Sullivan；　who；　in　his　Introduction　（p。　cxxvi）；　has　suggested　that






it　was　determined　by　the　steady　multiplication　of　Fuidhir






tenants。　It　must　be　recollected　that　this　class　of　persons　would






not　be　protected　by　the　primitive　or　natural　institutions






springing　out　of　community　of　blood。　The　Fuidhir　was　not　a






tribesman　but　an　alien。　In　all　societies　cemented　together　by






kinship　the　position　of　the　person　who　has　lost　or　broken　the






bond　of　union　is　always　extraordinarily　miserable。　He　has　not






only　lost　his　natural　place　in　them；　but　they　have　no　room　for






him　anywhere　else。　The　wretchedness　of　the　outcast　in　India；






understood　as　the　man　who　has　lost　or　been　expelled　from　caste；






does　not　arise　from　his　having　been　degraded　from　a　higher　to　a






lower　social　standing；　but　from　his　having　no　standing　whatever；






there　being　no　other　order　of　society　open　to　receive　him　when　he






has　descended　from　his　own。　It　was　true　that　the　Fuidhir；　though






he　had　lost　the　manifold　protection　of　his　family　and　tribe；　was






not　actually　exposed　to　violent　wrong。　From　that　he　was　protected






by　the　new　Chief　to　whom　he　had　attached　himself；　but　between　him






and　this　Chief　there　was　nothing。　The　principle　would　always　be






that　he　was　at　the　mercy　of　the　Chief。　At　the　utmost；　some　usages






favourable　to　him　might　establish　themselves　through　lapse　of






time；　but　they　would　have　none　of　the　obligatory　force　belonging






to　the　rules　which　defined　the　rights　of　the　Chief　in　respect　of






his　Saer…stock　and　Daerstock　tenants。　We　can　see　that　several　of






the　duties　corresponding　to　these　rights　were　of　a　kind　to　invite






abuse；　much　more　certainly　would　obligations　analogous　to　them；






but　wholly　imposed　by　the　pleasure　of　the　Chief；　become　cruelly






oppressive。　The　'refections'　of　the　Brehon　law　would；　by　a






miserable　degradation；　become　（to　borrow　the　language　of　Spenser






and　Davis）　coin　and　livery；　cuttings；　cosherings；　and　spendings；






in　the　case　of　the　Fuidhirs。　Meanwhile　there　were　causes　at　work；






powerfully　and　for　long　periods　of　time；　to　increase　the　numbers






of　this　class。　Even　those　Irishmen　who　believe　that　in　the






distant　past　there　was　once　a　tolerably　well…ordered　Ireland






admit　that　for　many　centuries　their　country　was　racked　with






perpetual　disturbance。　Danish　piracies；　intestine　feuds；






Anglo…Norman　attempts　at　conquest　never　consistently　carried　out






or　thoroughly　completed；　the　very　existence　of　the　Pale；　and






above　all　the　policy　directed　from　it　of　playing　off　against　one






another　the　Chiefs　beyond　its　borders；　are　allowed　by　all　to　have






distracted　the　island　with　civil　war；　how　ever　the　responsibility






for　it　is　to　be　apportioned。　But　the　process　is　one　which　must






have　broken　up　tribes　far　and　wide；　and　broken　tribes　imply　a






multitude　of　broken　men。　Even　in　brief　intervals　of　peace　the






violent　habits　produced　by　constant　disorder　would　bring　about






the　frequent　expulsion　by　families　of　members　for　whom　they






refused　to　remain　responsible；　and　in　the　commoner　eventuality　of






war　whole　fragments　would　be　from　time　to　time　torn　away　from






tribes　and　their　atoms　scattered　in　every　part　of　Ireland。　it　is






therefore；　a　conjecture　possessing　a　very　high　degree　of






plausibility；　that　the　tenantry　of　the　Irish　Chiefs　whose






sufferings　provoked　the　indignation　of　Spenser　and　Davis






consisted　largely　of　Fuidhirs。






　　　　The　explanation　may；　however；　be　carried　beyond　this　point。






You　will　bear　in　mind　the　passage　quoted　by　me　from　Hunter's






'Orissa；'　which　shows　how　a　tenantry　enjoying　hereditary　rights






is　injured；　even　under　a　Government　which　sternly　compels　peace






and　order；　by　a　large　immigration　of　cultivators　dependent　on　the






landlord　or　Zemnindar。　They　narrow　the　available　waste　land　by






their　appropriations；　and；　though　they　do　not　compete　directly






for　the　anciently　cultivated　land　with　the　tenants　enjoying






hereditary　rights；　they　greatly　raise　in　the　long　run　the






standard　of　rent；　at　the　same　time　that　they　arm　the　landlord






with　those　powers　of　exacting　it　which　in　ancient　Ireland






consisted　in　the　strong　hand　of　the　Chief　himself；　and　which






consist；　in　modern　India；　in　the　money　which　puts　in　motion　the






arm　of　the　law。　I　have　no　doubt　whatever　that　a　great






multiplication　of　Fuidhir　tenants　would　always　seriously　alt