Marriage by the morall law of God vindicated against all ceremonial laws of popes and bishops destructive to filiation aliment and succession and the government of familyes and kingdoms

Of the Law of Intails on Marriage, and the mischiefs insuing by them.

It is before shewen how mischievously the true Heirs are dis-inheri∣ted, and destroyed by Intails to two Bodies, and by Littleton, Coke, and the Bishops fictions on the same, who in despight of Truth, Religion, Sence and Reason, God and Nature, will have the Adulterous issue of the Woman preferred before the true and lawful Children of the Man, in Succession to the Man's inheritance. I shall likewise here touch some other few, but fatal mischiefs, which the Chains and Fetters of Estates by

Intails to two Bodies on Marriages, whether these Intails are made by the Pontificial or Temporal Laws, do cause: for it is to be noted, that the Laws of Theodora and the Popes, which Enact, That no Children shall be capable of Succession to the Father, but where the Father and Mother were contracted by a Priest in a Temple, is an Intailing of the Inheritance of the Man to the Heirs of the Body of the Woman, and an excluding of the Heirs of the Man, if she prove adulterous. So there cannot pro∣perly be said to be any Fee-simple in England; for Fee-simple it self, is by the Popish Law Intailed to the Heirs of the Body of the Woman be∣gotten, beget them who will; and the Priest who would not therefore be married himself to a Wife (lest she should put a cheat on him, and bring forth a y••ung Lay-man) but take a Curtezan, put cunningly the Fee-simple cheat on the simple Lay-man, and his Fils de prestre too, by ma∣king a Law, That none should be his Heirs, unless begotten on the Body of such Woman as he should give him in a Temple: So Littleton in his Chapter of Fee-simple, and his Commentator on him, understood not the words, his Heirs; for every Fee-simple where a Woman is married by a Priest in a Temple, is to go to her Heirs of her Body begotten, and not to his, and let her have as many Heirs as she will, begotten by the Adul∣terer, the Husband's Land shall go to her Heirs, but let the Husband, who is perhaps turned off by the Wife, get as many as he will by another Wo∣man, none of those shall be his Heirs. For which reason, in favour of the true and natural Children, and that the Father might have power by Act executed in his Life-time to provide for his own, especially where he found his Wives Adulterous, as Britton fol. 122. saith, That the Forms of Deeds of Feoffment, were afterwards made to him, his Heirs and Assigns; and the word Assigns added in favour of the true and natural Children; which word Assigns, gave the Lay-men power of cutting off the Fee-sim∣ple Intails, being the cheat imposed on them by the Popish Priest, and to Assign, Dispose, and Alien the same, as well Extra familiam as Intra, which it seems before, without the word Assigns they could not do. But it was not long after, when the subtle Popish Priest, who knew he could Reign not but by the Woman, got a Latin Statute to be made, West∣minster 2 cap. 1. whereby he struck out the word Assigns, and took clean away the power of Men to Assign, Alien, and Dispose of their own Lands; and whereas the Intail of Fee-simple was only implicit, he then by express words Intails it to Heirs begotten of the Body of the Woman, whereby the adulterous might succeed as well as, and before the Lawful, if they came first; which Intails likewise were after carried into Scotland; for so says Craig. Feud. fo. 70. Ab Anglis ad nos defluxisse puto And fo. 59. he saith, Neque enim tale Feudum ad collaterales extenditur, in••ò quod majus est, si Maevio & Semproniae conjugibus concedatur Feudum, & baredibus in∣ter ipsos procreandis, & nulli ex eo matrimonio supersint; Et Maevius ex alia

conjuge liberos susceperit, hi in feudo non succedant. This digression hath been made, to shew that the Original of Intails to more Bodies than one on marriage, came from the old Pagan Priests, and now revived by Popes, to be a skreen to Adulteries and Adulterous Successions, and thereby their power over the Women, without which no Sacerdotal Empire can sub∣sist. I shall now proceed to shew the other mischiefs insuing from Intails, besides the Patronage of Adulteries.

First therefore, Intails on Marriages destroy Patriarchy, and introduce into Families Hierarchy, Gynarchy, and Paedarchy. That Patriarchy was the first form of Government instituted in Families by God and Nature, I think none will contend; the Ancient Writers and Poets are full of it, especially in their Celebrations of the Primaevous happiness of the Golden Age, and old Homer begins,

Nec fora consiliis fervent, nec judice; tantum Antra colunt umbrosa altis in montibus Aedes, Quis{que} suas regit uxorem Natos{que}—

Courts grew not hot with Judge or Lawyer then, But each Man without strife, In Mountain high rul'd, or in shady Den, His Children, House, and Wife.

Here Patriarchy was in its Throne, and the Moon and Stars all bowed to the Sun, till the Priests of Priapus and Venus, as before touched; and for the fore-mentioned ends of satisfying their own Lust, Covetousness, and Ambition first prohibited all Marriage except by a Priest in a Tem∣ple, then Intailing all Estates to the Heirs, Lawfully begotten of the Body of the Woman married by the Priest, and the Priest to be Judge both of the marriage, and the Lawful begetting; by this the Priest introduced Hierarchy, and got a greater Dominion over the Woman and the Chil∣dren, than the Husband or Father, for he was not to be judge whether the Wife or Children were his, but the Priest: and now the Bishop by his Certificate, and likewise hereby the Priest became Judge of the Alimony and Maintenance, and gave what he pleased to the Wife and her Chil∣dren, in regard the Father had no power of Alienation, by reason of the Pontificial Intail to the Heirs of the Woman; and thereby the Hierarchy of the Priest, the Gynarchy of the Wife, and Paedarchy of the Sons, ne∣cessarily arising from such principles, turned the poor Patriarch out of Doors, and took his Goods, when, and as they pleased.

2. The Intail deprives the Father of power to provide for his youn∣ger Children, but after his death the Sons are thereby left desperate, and betake themselves to the High-way, and the Daughters to be prostitutes,

to the dishonour and destruction of themselves and Families.

3. Intails as they defraud the Children of the natural debts of Ali∣ment due from their Parents, so they defraud Creditors of the valuable debts due to them from their Debtors.

4. They put the Subjects to infinite trouble, vexations, and charges, for Fines, Recoveries, Licenses of Alienation, to cut them off Bills of Discoveries, and hazard and danger, they being many times erroneous, and the Intails secret, and thereby not only all the cost and labour lost, but likewise the whole Purchase-money disbursed bona fide, by a Lawful Purchasor.

5. They are the chief occasions pretended of private Acts of Parlia∣ment, whereby, contrary to all justice, the Lawful rights of Persons and Families are taken from them, and they undone, without Summons, or Hearing, or notice to make their claims; whereas by the just and honou∣rable practice of the Kingdom of Scotland, they use to make Subsequent Acts of Salvo jure cujuslibet, whereby the rights of all Persons are pre∣served and restored, against all private Acts precedent, as appears by the Acts of Parliament Car. 1. p. 1. Act 31. & p. 2. Act 70. & p. 3. Act 42. & Car. 2. p. 2. Act 29. & 2 Sess. Car. 2. p. 2. Act 52. & Sess. 3. Car. 2. Act 30. &c.

6. To mention a word more, how much the taking away of the Fa∣ther's power of free disposing, and Alienation of their Estates, by Intails, or any other irrevocable settlements on Children, brings into Families the unexperienced Pride of Paedarchy, whereby Children undo both their Parents and themselves (by depriving of their Parents of the means of their Education in the true Religion, and in Lawful Callings and Profes∣sions, the Parents having no other Bridle on them, to restrain them from vicious courses, but to give them hopes and fears of increasing or lessen∣ing their Portions, according to their demerits) may appear, Bodin 25. where he saith, It was obtained of Constantine, that the propriety of the Mother's Inheritance should be in the Children, and the Father should have only the usu-fruct. This was fair, that the Inheritance which came by the Mother, the Father should not have power to Alien from her Children. But after it was obtained of Theodosius the younger, That the propriety of all manner of Goods in general, however they came by them, should be to the Sons, the use only to the Fathers; so that they could not any∣wise Alienate the propriety, nor dispose thereof, though for the benefit of their Children, yea with us, he saith, not so much as the bare use of such Goods is left to the Father, which hath so puffed up the hearts of Chil∣dren, as that they oftentimes command their Parents, by necessity con∣strained to obey them, or to dye for hunger.

Notes

• Law of In∣tails cau∣seth Adul∣teries, and disinherits true Heirs.
• No Fee-simple in England.
• Littleton deceived in Fee-simple.
• The word Assigns gave pow∣er to cut off Fee-simple In∣tails.
• Intails a Skreen to Adulte∣ries.
• Intails de∣stroy Pa∣triarchy, and intro∣duce Hie∣rarchy, Gynarchy, Paedarchy.
• Intails d••••fraud ci∣vil and natural Debts.
• Intails cause the abuse of private Acts of Parliament
• Acts of Sal∣vo jure cu∣juslibet in Scotland.
• Children command Parents by Intails.