the spirit of laws-第143章

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he　law　was　followed；　without　adhering　to　the　law　itself。

Besides；　as　France　was　divided　into　a　number　of　petty　lordships；　which　acknowledged　rather　a　feudal　than　a　political　dependence；　it　was　very　difficult　for　only　one　law　to　be　authorised。　And；　indeed；　it　would　be　impossible　to　see　it　observed。　The　custom　no　longer　prevailed　of　sending　extraordinary　officers＇55＇　into　the　provinces　to　inspect　the　administration　of　justice　and　political　affairs；　it　appears；　even　by　the　charters；　that　when　new　fiefs　were　established　our　kings　divested　themselves　of　the　right　of　sending　those　officers。　Thus；　when　almost　everything　had　become　a　fief；　these　officers　could　not　be　employed；　there　was　no　longer　a　common　law　because　no　one　could　enforce　the　observance　of　it。

The　Salic；　Burgundian；　and　Visigoth　laws　were；　therefore；　extremely　neglected　at　the　end　of　the　second　race；　and　at　the　beginning　of　the　third；　they　were　scarcely　ever　mentioned。

Under　the　first　and　second　race；　the　nation　was　often　assembled；　that　is；　the　lords　and　bishops；　the　commons　were　not　yet　thought　of。　In　these　assemblies；　attempts　were　made　to　regulate　the　clergy；　a　body　which　formed　itself；　if　I　may　so　speak；　under　the　conquerors；　and　established　its　privileges。　The　laws　made　in　these　assemblies　are　what　we　call　the　Capitularies。　Hence　four　things　ensued：　the　feudal　laws　were　established　and　a　great　part　of　the　church　revenues　was　administered　by　those　laws；　the　clergy　effected　a　wider　separation；　and　neglected　those　decrees　of　reformation　where　they　themselves　were　not　the　only　reformers；＇56＇　a　collection　was　made　of　the　canons　of　councils　and　of　the　decretals　of　popes；＇57＇　and　these　the　clergy　received；　as　coming　from　a　purer　source。　Ever　since　the　erection　of　the　grand　fiefs；　our　kings；　as　we　have　already　observed；　had　no　longer　any　deputies　in　the　provinces　to　enforce　the　observance　of　their　laws；　and　hence　it　is　that；　under　the　third　race；　we　find　no　more　mention　made　of　Capitularies。

10。　The　same　Subject　continued。　Several　capitularies　were　added　to　the　law　of　the　Lombards；　as　well　as　to　the　Salic　and　Bavarian　laws。　The　reason　of　this　has　been　a　matter　of　inquiry；　but　it　must　be　sought　for　in　the　thing　itself。　There　were　several　sorts　of　capitularies。　Some　had　relation　to　political　government；　others　to　economical；　most　of　them　to　ecclesiastical　polity；　and　some　few　to　civil　government。　Those　of　the　last　species　were　added　to　the　civil　law；　that　is；　to　the　personal　laws　of　each　nation；　for　which　reason　it　is　said　in　the　Capitularies　that　there　is　nothing　stipulated　therein　contrary　to　the　Roman　law。＇58＇　In　effect；　those　capitularies　regarding　economical；　ecclesiastical；　or　political　government　had　no　relation　to　that　law；　and　those　concerning　civil　government　had　reference　only　to　the　laws　of　the　barbarous　people；　which　were　explained；　amended；　enlarged；　or　abridged。　But　the　adding　of　these　capitularies　to　the　personal　laws　occasioned；　I　imagine；　the　neglect　of　the　very　body　of　the　Capitularies　themselves；　in　times　of　ignorance；　the　abridgment　of　a　work　often　causes　the　loss　of　the　work　itself。

11。　Other　Causes　of　the　Disuse　of　the　Codes　of　Barbarian　Laws；　as　well　as　of　the　Roman　Law；　and　of　the　Capitularies。　When　the　German　nations　subdued　the　Roman　empire；　they　learned　the　use　of　writing；　and；　in　imitation　of　the　Romans；　they　wrote　down　their　own　usages；　and　digested　them　into　codes。＇59＇　The　unhappy　reigns　which　followed　that　of　Charlemagne；　the　invasions　of　the　Normans　and　the　civil　wars；　plunged　the　conquering　nations　again　into　the　darkness　out　of　which　they　had　emerged；　so　that　reading　and　writing　were　quite　neglected。　Hence　it　is；　that　in　France　and　Germany　the　written　laws　of　the　Barbarians；　as　well　as　the　Roman　law　and　the　Capitularies　fell　into　oblivion。　The　use　of　writing　was　better　preserved　in　Italy；　where　reigned　the　Popes　and　the　Greek　Emperors；　and　where　there　were　flourishing　cities；　which　enjoyed　almost　the　only　commerce　in　those　days。　To　this　neighbourhood　of　Italy　it　was　owing　that　the　Roman　law　was　preserved　in　the　provinces　of　Gaul；　formerly　subject　to　the　Goths　and　Burgundians；　and　so　much　the　more；　as　this　law　was　there　a　territorial　institution；　and　a　kind　of　privilege。　It　is　probable　that　the　disuse　of　the　Visigoth　laws　in　Spain　proceeded　from　the　want　of　writing；　and　by　the　loss　of　so　many　laws；　customs　were　everywhere　established。

Personal　laws　fell　to　the　ground。　Compositions；　and　what　they　call　Freda；＇60＇　were　regulated　more　by　custom　than　by　the　text　of　these　laws。　Thus；　as　in　the　establishment　of　the　monarchy；　they　had　passed　from　German　customs　to　written　laws；　some　ages　after；　they　came　back　from　written　laws　to　unwritten　customs。

12。　Of　local　Customs。　Revolution　of　the　Laws　of　barbarous　Nations；　as　well　as　of　the　Roman　Law。　By　several　memorials　it　appears；　that　there　were　local　customs；　as　early　as　the　first　and　second　race。　We　find　mention　made　of　the　〃custom　of　the　place；〃＇61＇　of　the　〃ancient　usage；〃＇62＇　of　〃custom；〃＇63＇　of　〃laws；〃＇64＇　and　of　〃customs。〃　It　has　been　the　opinion　of　some　authors　that　what　went　by　the　name　of　customs　were　the　laws　of　the　barbarous　nations；　and　what　had　the　appellation　of　law　were　the　Roman　institutes。　This　cannot　possibly　be。　King　Pepin　ordained＇65＇　that　wherever　there　should　happen　to　be　no　law；　custom　should　be　complied　with；　but　that　it　should　never　be　preferred　to　the　law。　Now；　to　pretend　that　the　Roman　law　was　preferred　to　the　codes　of　the　laws　of　the　Barbarians　is　subverting　all　memorials　of　antiquity；　and　especially　those　codes　of　Barbarian　laws；　which　constantly　affirm　the　contrary。

So　far　were　the　laws　of　the　barbarous　nations　from　being　those　customs；　that　it　was　these　very　laws；　as　personal　institutions；　which　introduced　them。　The　Salic　law；　for　instance；　was　a　personal　law；　but　generally；　or　almost　generally；　in　places　inhabited　by　the　Salian　Franks；　this　Salic　law；　how　personal　soever；　became；　in　respect　to　those　Salian　Franks；　a　territorial　institution；　and　was　personal　only　in　regard　to　those　Franks　who　lived　elsewhere。　Now　if　several　Burgundians；　Alemans；　or　even　Romans　should　happen　to　have　frequent　disputes；　in　a　place　where　the　Salic　law　was　territorial；　they　must　have　been　determined　by　the　laws　of　those　people；　and　a　great　number　of　decisions　agreeable　to　some　of　those　laws　must　have　introduced　new　customs　into　the　country。　This　explains　the　constitution　of　Pepin。　It　was　natural　that　those　customs　should　affect　even　the　Franks　who　lived　on　the　spot；　in　cases　not　decided　by　the　Salic　law；　but　it　was　not　natural　that　they　should　prevail　over　the　Salic　law　itself。

Thus　there　were　in　each　place　an　established　law　and　received　customs　which　served　as　a　supplement　to　that　law　when　they　did　not　contradict　it。

They　might　even　happen　to　supply　a　law　that　was　in　no　way　territorial；　and　to　continue　the　same　example；　if　a　Burgundian　was　judged　by　the　law　of　his　own　nation；　in　a　place　where　the　Salic　law　was　territorial；　and　the　case　happened　not　to　be　explicitly　mentioned　in　the　very　text　of　this　law；　there　is　no　manner　of　doubt　but　that　judgment　would　have　been　passed　upon　him　according　to　the　custom　of　the　place。

In　the　reign　of　King　Pepin；　the　customs　then　established　had　not　the　same　force　as　the　laws；　but　it　was　not　long　before　the　laws　gave　way　to　the　customs。　And　as　new　regulations　are　generally　remedies　that　imply　a　present　evil；　it　may　well　be　imagined　that　as　early　as　Pepin's　time；　they　began　to　prefer　the　customs　to　the　established　laws。

What　has　been　said　sufficiently　explains　the　manner　in　which　the　Roman　law　began　so　very　early　to　become　territorial；　as　may　be　seen　in　the　edict　of　Pistes；　and　how　the　Gothic　law　continued　still　in　force；　as　appears　by　the　synod　of　Troyes　above…mentioned。＇66＇　The　Roman　had　become　the　general　personal　law；　and　the　Gothic　the　particular　personal　law；　consequently　the　Roman　law　was　territorial。　But　how　came　it；　some　will　ask；　that　the　personal　laws　of　the　Barbarians　fell　everywhere　into　disuse；　while　the　Roman　law　was　continued　as　a　territorial　institution　in　the　Visigoth　and　Burgundian　provinces？　I　answer　that　even　the　Roman　law　had　very　nearly　the　same　fate　as　the　other　personal　institutions；　otherwise　we　would　still