A guide to surveyors of the high-ways shewing the office and duty of such surveyors, with several cases and resolutions in law relating to the same : collected and gathered out of publick acts of Parliament now in force, and out of the year-books, and other books of the municipal laws of this kingdom : with an abridgment of the statute of 22 H. 8 Chap. 5 for the repairing of bridges, with cases relating thereunto : and likewise a summary of the statutes made for paving, cleansing, &c., streets, lanes, &c., in London and other towns and places, and an abstract of statutes made for the repairs of high-ways and bridges in particular places, methodiz'd into short chapters for the ready finding out any matter contain'd in the book / by G. Meriton, Gent.

CHAP. XVI. An Abstract of the Statutes made for repairing Huntington-Lane near the City of Chester, the common High-way called the Cawsey lying in the Counties of Dorset and So∣merset, between the Towns of Shafts∣bury and Sherborne, and for amend∣ing the High-ways within five Miles of the City of Oxford.

BY the Statute of 37 H. 8. Hun∣tington-Lane near the City of Chester, being in length two miles, and an half, or thereabouts, is to be repaired from time to time by one that shall dwell in the said Lane, who shall have Grass, Pasture or Feeding for five Kine, or five other kind of Beasts or Head of Cattel, in and up∣on the said High-way, and upon the sides of the same, from Bothil to Butterback-Bridge, Sir William Stan∣ley and Sir Hugh Calverly and their Heirs Males being of full Age (and in default of them) the Mayor and Aldermen of Chester shall appoint the said Party, and remove him if he be

negligent in repairing any part of the said Way.

By the Statute of the first of Queen Mary, The common High-way called the Cawsey, paved with Stone in the Counties of Dorset and Somerset be∣tween the Towns of Shaftsbury and Sherborne, being about twelve miles in length, shall be repaired and amend∣ed by the Owners, Tenants, Farmers and Inhabitants of the Mannors, Lands, Tenements and Parishes lying nigh to the said Cawsey on either side thereof, and by the Inhabitants of the Towns of Shaftsbury and Sherborne, and by the Owners, Tenants and Farmers of Mannors, Lands, Tenements and He∣reditaments, and by the Inhabitants of, and within the Forest of Gilling∣ham, and Liberties of Gillingham and Alcetter, and the Hundreds of Red∣lane and Sherborne in the County of Dorset, and of the Hundred of Hor∣thorne in the County of Somerset, and the Justices of Peace of the said Coun∣ties at their Quarter-Sessions, or other∣wise, may call before them, or four of them at the least (two to be of the Quorum) so many of the Persons bound to repair and amend the said Cawsey as they think fit, and to make

Orders and Assessments from time to time towards the repair thereof, and may set Fines on Defaulters, and make Orders for levying by distress the said Assessments and Fines, and for a yearly Account to be made of the same to whom they appoint; and the said Orders to be entred and inrolled of Record by the Clerks of the Peace of the said two Counties in the Rolls of the Sessions; and all Pains and Penalties to go towards the amend∣ment of the said Cawsey; and if the Justices refuse to put this Act in ex∣ecution, then upon request of the Lord Chancellor of England, or Lord Keeper of the Great Seal shall make a Commission to certain discreet Persons to put this Act in execution, who shall have the same Power and Authority as is given to the Justices of Peace by this Act.

It is enacted by the Statute of 18 El. That every Person and Persons resi∣dent, dwelling or inhabiting within five miles of the City of Oxford, and having in his Occupation, to the use of himself or any other, a Yard-Land or more▪ in Tillage, Pasture or other Ground, or using a Draught, Plow or Wain at their own proper Costs

and Charges, for every such Yard-Land is to send one Wain, Draught or Cart furnished after the Custom of the Country, with Necessaries conve∣nient, and two able Men for amend∣ing, repairing and upbuilding of de∣cayed Bridges, Ways and Passages with∣in a mile of the said City, and every other Housholder, Cottager or La∣bourer within the said Circuit (being no hired Servant) must go themselves, or send a sufficient Labourer to the repairing the same, and all to be at the command of certain Supervisors to be appointed by the Vice-Chancellor and Mayor, with other Justices of the University and City, and do their Carriages and Labours by the space of six days, between the Feast of St. John Baptist and the Feast of All-Saints, upon twelve days warning given or sent in writing to the Vice-Chancellor and Mayor, or either of them, to the Constable or other Officer of the Place that ought to serve, and every Person making default, doth for every days default, or any part thereof for∣feit five shillings, to be levied and im∣ployed for the amendment of the said Bridges and Cawseys, and the Persons making default, and making no rea∣sonable

composition for the same, then the Vice-Chancellor and the Mayor, or other their Officers to distrain, and keep and detain the distress till the Forfeitures and Charges of keeping the distress be paid: But by the Statute of 35 Eliz. this last Article was altered, and it is provided that no Person or Housholder living within five miles of Oxford, and not having in possession a Yard-Land, shall be chargeable with any thing towards the amending the said Bridges and High-ways; and that such as have a Yard-Land or more in possession, lying within the said com∣pass, shall pay yearly the Sum of four pence for every Yard-Land before the Feast of Pentecost, to the Vice-Chan∣cellor and Mayor, or their Deputy or Deputies towards the amending of the said Bridges and High-ways, and no other Penalty, with like Remedy by distress for the same, being due and not paid, as is limited and appointed by the other Statute of 18 Eliz. chap. 20.

Note, That Virgata Terrae, or a Yard-Land, called by the Saxons Gird∣land, and now the G. is turned to Y. is in some Countries ten Acres, in some fifteen, in some twenty, in some

twenty four, in some thirty, and in others forty Acres, and so doth not contain any certain quantity of Land, but is various according to the Cu∣stom of the place where it lies.

Notes

• 37 H. 8 ch. 3. High-ways Rast. 2. Stat. at large printed 1587. f. 1011. Keb. St. f. 606.
• 1 M. Sess. 3. ch. 5. St. a•• large print∣ed 1587. f. 230, 231. Shirbone Rast. 1. Keb. St. f. 716.
• Who chargable to the repairs.
• Justices of Peace ••o make Orders and set Fines.
• Pains and Penal∣ties how to be bestowed.
• 18 Eliz▪ chap. 20. Bridges Rast. 4. St. at large printed 1587. f. 619, 620▪ Keb. St. f. 863, 864
• 35 El. ch. 7. Keb St. f. 913. sect. ••••.
• Every Yard-Land to pay four pence, and none else chargeable.
• Co. Lit. f. 5. a. 69. a. Terms of the Law and Blounts Law Dict. verb. Yard-Land, and Lamb. Exposition of Words.