A learned commendation of the politique lawes of Englande vvherin by moste pitthy reasons & euident demonstrations they are plainelye proued farre to excell aswell the ciuile lawes of the Empiere, as also all other lawes of the world, with a large discourse of the difference betwene the. ii. gouernements of kingdomes: whereof the one is onely regall, and the other consisteth of regall and polityque administration conioyned. written in latine aboue an hundred yeares past, by the learned and right honorable maister Fortescue knight ... And newly translated into Englishe by Robert Mulcaster.

¶Yet he rehearseth other case•• wherein the forsaid lawes differ. Cap. 46

THere bee yette diuers other cases, quod the Chaunceloure, wher∣in the lawes aforesayde do varye. As in that the Ciuile lawes do iudge o∣pen thefte to bee satisfied by the recompence of fo∣wer folde, & priuye thefte by the recompence of dou¦ble. Butte the lawes of

Englande suffer neither of those offences to be mo∣re fauorablye punished then wyth the offendours deathe, so that the value of the thynge stolen bee abo∣ue the value of twelue pē∣ce. Also a libertine that is to saye, a free man that sometyme was bonde, yf hee beecome vnkynde or churlishe, the Ciuile la∣wes reduce hym into hys former state of seruitude againe. But by the lawes of Englande he that is on¦ce made free, be hee grate or ingrate, is aiudged to enioye his freedome styll. There be other like cases allso not a fewe, whyche at thys tyme for breuities sake I ouerpasse. Neither in these twoo cases doe I dispute the excellencye of the foresayde lawes,

seeynge the qualities of thē requier no great sear∣che. And I doubte not but the quicknes of your witte is suche, y^t it can sufficiēt∣ly discusse the same.

TVnc Cācella∣ri{us}. Sūt et alij casus nōnulli ī qui¦bus differūt leges antedictae, Vt qⁱa le¦g{is} Ciuiles iudicāt furtū manifestū {per} reddiciōē quadru∣pli, et furtū nō ma¦nifestū, {per} dupli re¦cōpensationē ex∣piari. Sed leges

Angliae, neutrum facinorum illorū mitius quam com¦mittentis morte puniri permittunt dummodo ablati valor duodecim denariorū valorē excedat. Itē liber¦tinum ingratum leges ciuiles in pris¦tinā redigūt serui∣tutem: sed leges Angliae semel ma∣numissū, semper liberum iudicant gratum et ingra∣tum. Alij quoque sunt casus huiusce modi non pauci, quos iam studio breuitatis pretereo Et ne{que} in hijs du∣obus casibus pre∣dictarum legum prestancias ego iā describo, cum nō magū sit īdaginis

eorum qualitates nec diffido inge∣nij tui solerciam eas sufficiēter pos∣se rimari.