This revenue of the king, which was formerly very considerable, is now by a customary indulgence almost reduced to nothing: for, at present, as soon as the new bishop is consecrated and confirmed, he usually receives the restitution of his temporalties quite entire, and untouched, from the king; and at the same time does homage to his sovereign: and then, and not sooner, he has a fee simple in his bishopric, and may maintain an action for the profits (ƒ).

II. The king is entitled to a corody, as the law calls it, out of every bishopric, that is, to send one of his chaplains to be maintained by the bishop, or to have a pension allowed him till the bishop promotes him to a benefice (g). This is also in the nature of an acknowledgment to the king, as founder of the see, since he had formerly the same corody or pension from every abbey or priory of royal foundation (2). It is, [*284] I *apprehend, now fallen into total disuse; though Sir Matthew Hale says (h), that it is due of common right (3), and that no prescription will discharge it.

III. The king also, as was formerly observed (i), is entitled to all the tithes arising in extraparochial places (k): though perhaps it may be doubted how far this article, as well as the last, can be properly reckoned a part of the king's own royal revenue; since a corody supports only his chaplains, and these extraparochial tithes are held under an implied trust, that the king will distribute them for the good of the clergy in general.

IV. The next branch consists in the first-fruits, and tenths, of all spiritual preferments in the kingdom; both of which I shall consider together. These were originally a part of the papal usurpations over the clergy of this kingdom; first introduced by Pandulph the pope's legate, during the reigns of King John and Henry the third, in the see of Norwich; and afterwards attempted to be made universal by the popes Clement V. and John XXII., about the beginning of the fourteenth century. The firstfruits, primitiæ, or annates, were the first year's whole profits of the spiritual preferment, according to a rate or valor made under the direction of Pope Innocent IV. by Walter bishop of Norwich in 38 Hen. III., and afterwards advanced in value by commission from Pope Nicholas III. A. D. 1292, 20 Edw. I. (1); which valuation of Pope Nicholas is still preserved in the exchequer (m). The tenths, or decima, were the tenth part of the annual profit of each living by the same valuation; which was also claimed by the holy sec, under no better pretence than a strange misapplication of that precept of the Levitical law, which directs (n), that the Levites "should offer the tenth part of their tithes as a heave-offer[*285] ing to the Lord, and give it to Aaron the high priest." But *this claim of the pope met with a vigorous resistance from the English

parliament; and a variety of acts were passed to prevent and restrain it, particularly the statute 6 Hen. IV. c. 1, which calls it a horrible mischief and damnable custom. But the popish clergy, blindly devoted to the will of a foreign master, still kept it on foot; sometimes more secretly, sometimes more openly and avowedly: so that in the reign of Henry VIII. it was computed, that in the compass of fifty years 800,000 ducats had been sent to Rome for first-fruits only. And, as the clergy expressed this willingness to contribute so much of their income to the head of the church, it was thought proper (when in the same reign the papal power was abolished, and the king was declared the head of the church of England,) to annex this revenue to the crown; which was done by statute 26 Hen. VIII. c. 3, (confirmed by statute 1 Eliz. c. 4,) and a new valor beneficiorum was then made, by which the clergy are at present rated (4).

By these last-mentioned statutes all vicarages under ten pounds a year, and all rectories under ten marks, are discharged from the payment of first-fruits; and if, in such livings as continue chargeable with this payment, the incumbent lives but half a year, he shall pay only one quarter of his first-fruits; if but one whole year, then half of them; if a year and a half, three quarters; and if two years, then the whole; and not otherwise (5). Likewise by the statute 27 Hen. VIII. c. 8, no tenths are to be paid for the first year, for then the first-fruits are due: and by other statutes of Queen Anne, in the fifth and sixth years of her reign, if a benefice be under fifty pounds per annum clear yearly value, it shall be discharged of the payment of first-fruits and tenths (6).

Thus the richer clergy, being, by the criminal bigotry of their popish predecessors, subjected at first to a foreign exaction, were afterwards, when that yoke was shaken off, liable to a like misapplication of their revenues, through the rapacious disposition of the then reigning monarch: till at length the piety of Queen Anne restored to the church what had been thus indirectly taken from it. This she did, not by re- [*286] mitting the tenths and first-fruits entirely; but, in a spirit of the truest equity, by applying these superfluities of the larger benefices to make up the deficiencies of the smaller. And to this end she granted her royal charter, which was confirmed by the statute 2 Ann. c. 11, whereby all the revenue of first-fruits and tenths is vested in trustees for ever, to form a perpetual fund for the augmentation of poor livings. This is usu ally called Queen Anne's bounty; which has been still farther regulated by subsequent statutes (o) (7).

(0) 5 Ann. c. 24. 6 Ann. c 27. 1 Geo. I. st. 2, c. 10. 3 Geo. I. c. 10.

(4) When the first-fruits and tenths were transferred to the crown of England, by 26 Hen. VIII. c. 3, at the same time it was enacted, that commissioners should be appointed in every diocese, who should certify the value of every ecclesiastical benefice and preferment in the respective dioceses; and according to this valuation, the first-fruits and tenths were to be collected and paid in future. This valor beneficiorum is what is commonly called the King's Books; a transcript of which is given in Ecton's Thesaurus, and Bacon's Liber Regis.

(5) The archbishops and bishops have four years allowed for the payment, and shall pay one quarter every year, if they live so long upon the bishopric; but other dignitaries in VOL. I.

the church pay theirs in the same manner as rectors and vicars.

(6) After Queen Anne had appropriated the revenue arising from the payment of first-fruits and tenths to the augmentation of small livings, it was considered a proper extension of this principle to exempt the smaller livings from the incumbrance of those demands; and, for that end, the bishops of every diocese were directed to inquire and certify into the exchequer what livings did not exceed 50l. a year according to the improved value at that time: and it was further provided, that such livings should be discharged form those dues in fu. ture.

(7) These trustees were erected into a corporation, and have authority to make rules and 32

V. The next branch of the king's ordinary revenue (which, as well as the subsequent branches, is of a lay or temporal nature,) consists in the rents and profits of the demesne lands of the crown. These demesne lands

terræ dominicales regis, being either the share reserved to the crown at the original distribution of landed property, or such as came to it afterwards by forfeitures or other means, were anciently very large and extensive; comprising divers manors, honors, and lordships: the tenants of which had very peculiar privileges, as will be shewn in the second book of these commentaries, when we speak of the tenure in ancient demesne At present they are contracted within a very narrow compass, having been almost entirely granted away to private subjects. This has occasioned the parliament frequently to interpose; and, particularly, after King William III. had greatly impoverished the crown, an act passed (p), whereby all future grants or leases from the crown for any longer term than thirty-one years, or three lives, are declared to be void; except with regard to houses, which may be granted for fifty years. And no reversionary lease can be made, so as to exceed, together with the estate in being, the same term of three lives, or thirty-one years: that is, where there is a subsisting lease, of which there are twenty years still to come, the king cannot grant a

(p) 1 Ann. st. 1, c. 7.

orders for the distribution of this fund. The principal rules they have established are, that the sum to be allowed for each augmentation, shall be 2001. to be laid out in land, which shall be annexed for ever to the living; and they shall make this donation, first, to all livings not exceeding 101. a year; then to all livings not above 201.; and so in order, whilst any remain under 50l. a year. But when any private benefactor will advance 2001., the trustees will give another 2001. for the advancement of any living not above 45l. a year, though it should not belong to that class of livings which are then augmenting, 2 Burn. Ec. L. 260.

Though this was a splendid instance of royal munificence, yet its operation is slow and inconsiderable; for the number of livings certified to be under 501. a year, was no less than 5597, of which 2538 did not exceed 201. a year each, and 1933 between 30l. and 501. a year, and the rest between 201. and 301.; so that there were 5597 benefices in this country, which had less than 231. a year each, upon an average. Dr. Burn calculates that from the fund alone, it will require 339 years from the year 1714, when it commenced, before all these livings can be raised to 50l. And if private benefactors should contribute half as much as the fund, (which is very improbable,) it will require 226 years. But even taking this supposition to have been true ever since the establishment, it will follow, that the wretched pittance from each of 5597 livings, both from the royal bounty and private benefaction, cannot, upon an average, have yet been augment ed 91. a year. 2 Burn. E. L. 268. Dr. Burn, in this calculation, computes the clear amount of the bounty to make fifty-five augmentations daily, that is, at 11,000l. a year; but Sir John Sinclair, Hist. Rev. 3 part, 198, says that "this branch of the revenue amounted to about 14,000l. per annum; and on the 1st of January, 1735, the governors of that charity pos

sessed, besides from savings and private benefactions, the sum of 152,500l. of old South Sca annuities, and 48571. of cash, in the hands of their treasurer: the state of that fund has of late years been carefully concealed; but it probably yields, at present, from forty to fifty thousand pounds per annum." This conjecture must certainly be very wide of the truth of the case; for the source of this fund is fixed and permanent, except the variation depending upon the contingency of vacancies, which will be more or fewer in different years. And what object can the commissioners have in the accumulation of this fund? For that accumu lation can only arise by depriving the poor clergy of the assistance which was intended them, and to enrich the successor at the expense of the wretched incumbent of the present day. The condition of the poor clergy in this country certainly requires some further national provision. Neither learning, religion, nor good morals, can secure poverty from contempt in the minds of the vulgar. The immense inequality in the revenues of the ministers of the gospel, not always resulting from piety and merit, naturally excite discontent and prejudices against the present establishment of the church. If the whole of the profits and emoluments of every benefice for one year were appropriated to this purpose, an effect would be produced in twenty or thirty years, which will require 300 by the present plan. This was what was originally under stood by the first-fruits, and what actually, within the last 300 years, was paid and carri ed out of the kingdom to support the supersti tion and folly of popery. If upon any promo tion to a benefice it was provided that there should be no vacancy or cession of former preferment till the end of the year, who could complain? It would certainly soon yield a supply which would communicate both comfort and respectability to the indigent clergy.