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ROGER OF WENDOVER Flowers of history. The history of England from the descent of the saxons to A.D. 1235. vol.2
page 561
belong to their churches, and the earls, barons, knights, freemen, and farmers of our kingdom, have, for our assistance, made a grant to us of the fortieth part of all their moveable property as held by them on the day following St. Matthew's day in the sixteenth year of our reign, namely, of corn, ploughs, sheep, calves, pigs, studs of carriage and cart horses, and others employed on their manors, excepting the property, which the aforesaid archbishops, bishops, and other ecclesiastical persons hold from parochial and prebendal churches, as well as prebends, and the lands belonging or pertaining to prebends or parochial churches. It has been also provided by our liege subjects aforesaid in general, that the aforesaid fortieth part shall be assessed and collected as follows : namely, that four persons shall be chosen from the better and more skilful men of each town, together with the provosts of each of the towns, by whom on oath the fortieth part of all moveable property aforesaid shall he assessed and taxed on each and all in the presence of the knights-assessors deputed for the purpose ; and afterwards, on the oaths of two liege men of the same towns, the fortieth part of all moveable property, belonging to the aforesaid four men and provosts, shall be taxed and assessed ; and it shall be strictly and plainly enrolled in whose barony each town was cither partly or altogether. Anil after the fortieth part has been assized and committed to writing, the list of all particulars concerning each village and each county shall he delivered to the eeneschal of each of the barons, or to the attorney of such seneschal, or to the bailiff of the liberty, where any one may have liberty, namely, that the baron or lord of the liberty may have the power to collect the aforesaid fortieth part and to distrain for it ; but if he does not wish, or is not able to do so, the sheriffs shall make the said distraint, so that they shall receive nothing from it, but the whole of the said fortieth part shall be delivered to the aforesaid knights-assessors in the largest and most safe town of each of the counties. And from each town there shall be a chief account kept between the seneschal of the baron, or his attorney, or the seneschals of the lord of the liberty, and the aforesaid assessors. And the money shall be placed by the assessors in some safe place in the same town, so that they shall have tlieir seals, locks, and keys on the said money, and the sheriffs likewise shall put their 6eals, locks, and keys on it. And immediately after the fortieth part has been assessed, the assessors shall send their rolls for their whole circuit to the treasury ; and in like manner as soon as the aforesaid money is collected, they shall send tlieir rolls of their receipts to the treasury, and the aforesaid money shall he kept in the place where it has been deposited, until it is brought by our orders to the New Temple at London. And nothing shall he taken by way of the fortieth part from any man who is not possessed of moveable property to the value of forty pence at the least. And we
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