The British nation a history / by George MWrong . beingpowerless, the injured side seeks redress for itself, andwhat the great men do the lesser imitate with even morebrutal violence. Young men of good family, rivallingEobiu Hood, already considered a hero of romance, live byrobbery, discharged soldiers dothe same, and the right of sanc-tuary in churches is still abusedby lawless men as it was in aprevious age. Farmers find itnecessary to keep fierce dogs toprotect their houses. Burningsand riots are frequent. AVomen,already married or betrothed,are carried off and forced to gothrough the marr
The British nation a history / by George MWrong . beingpowerless, the injured side seeks redress for itself, andwhat the great men do the lesser imitate with even morebrutal violence. Young men of good family, rivallingEobiu Hood, already considered a hero of romance, live byrobbery, discharged soldiers dothe same, and the right of sanc-tuary in churches is still abusedby lawless men as it was in aprevious age. Farmers find itnecessary to keep fierce dogs toprotect their houses. Burningsand riots are frequent. AVomen,already married or betrothed,are carried off and forced to gothrough the marriage ceremonywith their captors. Childrenare kidnapped and held for ran-som. AVhat we know as lynch-ing is common. In the reignof Henry YI, before civil warbroke out, while one John Griceis entertaining some friends,armed men surround the houseand carry off Grice, his sOn, andhis servant, with the avowed in-tention of hanging them. Tlieycannot find a rope, so they kill their victims with everyconceivable barbarity. The crime appears to have re-. COMPLETE SriT OF iLATE Ab- MOUK, Fifteenth Century. 246 THE BRITISH NATION mained unnoticed, and two or three years later wo find oneSerjeant Paston, a lawyer of JSorwich, threatened withdeath and dismemberment like Grices if he shows toogreat zeal in a certain lawsuit. Paston does not appealto the king for protection, but to the great Duke of Xor-folk, and at last bargains with his enemies to abandontheir vengeance. Juries were often bribed, or, if disposed to do justice,were intimidated, as^was sometimes even the kings restraints Parliament, controlled by the very men re-of law made real sponsible for this lawlessness, was more dis-by Henry VII. pQged to arbitrate between the offenders thanto punish them. But Henry VII gave at last a real Court of Star Chamber hunted out offences with tyran-nical vigour and Parliament legislated against retainers andmaintenance, the latter being the system by which a greatman shi
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, bookidbritishnatio, bookyear1910
