234
THE SAXONS IN ENGLAND.
[book i.
stity, and the undoubted influence of alliances by
marriage ɪ, through which separate kindreds are
fused into one body, adopting common interests,
pursuing common objects, and recognizing in the
bond which unites its members, obligations which
are still exhibited in oriental countries, which we
trace throughout the middle ages of Europe, but
which are gradually vanishing under the conditions
of our modern mercantile society.
It lies in the very nature of things that among a
people animated with such principles as have now
been described, and so placed by circumstances on
tracts of land far more than sufficient for their sup-
port, the very earliest organization should be based
upon the family relations. Dwelling near to one an-
other, united by a community of interests and the
endearing ties of mutual relationship, or the scarcely
weaker bond of adoption,—strong as regards other
families in direct proportion to their union among
themselves,—the ma'g⅛ or family offer all the gua-
rantees in their own natural position which the pri-
mitive state can require. In the popular councils
the largest and most distinguished family has ne-
cessarily the greatest weight ; but association of
others, severally less powerful, is always capable of
counteracting danger which might arise in a free
state from the ambition of any of its portions. In
the absence of a central power,—or rather its di-
spersion through all the several members of the com-
ɪ A beautiful evidence of this lies in the epic name for woman ; in
Anglosaxon poetry she is called freo'5owebbe, the weaver of peace.
Beow. 1. 3880. Trav. S. 1. 11.
CS. IX.]
THE TITHING AND HUNDRED.
235
munity, the collection of revenue and the main-
tenance of the peace must be left to the heads of
the several fractions, whether villages (as in the
East), or families, which at one time are identical
with villages. The police therefore especially be-
longs to the family, and is by it exercised over all
the individuals that compose it ; hence also the
grave misconduct of the individual may justly have
the effect of destroying the social position of the
whole ma>glδ. In Beowulf, the warriors who de-
serted their prince in his utmost need, are sternly
told by his successor, that not only they, but their
whole mægburh will thenceforth have forfeited the
rights of citizenship,
folcrihtes sceal
■guère mærge
monna æghwylo
ɪdel hweorfan,
not, each of you individually, but each and every man
of your kin, cognation or mægseeaft, shall be de-
prived of his rights of citizenship : from which we
must infer that the misconduct of one person might
compromise his relatives, who are held responsible
for his actions 1. And this rule, coupled with the
fact of all serving together, under one selected from
among themselves, and each under the eye of his
nearest and dearest friends, supplied a military or-
ganization capable of enabling the barbarians to
cope with far more disciplined and scientific mili-
tary systems than their own ; serving to explain
ɪ Sea the remarkable passage cited at p. 188, note 1.