not to be infringed on. As for the
laity, the tenants-in-chief were to pay only fixed reliefs when they
entered on their estates. Heirs under age were to be the king's wards,
but the king was to treat them fairly, and do nothing to injure their
land whilst it was in his hands. The king might continue to find
husbands for heiresses and wives for heirs, but only amongst those of
their own class. The tenants-in-chief again were bound to pay aids to
the king when he needed ransom from imprisonment, or money to enable
him to bear the expenses of knighting his eldest son or of marrying
his eldest daughter. For all other purposes the king could only demand
supplies from his tenants-in-chief with the consent of the Common
Council of the realm. As only the tenants-in-chief were concerned,
this Common Council was the Great Council of tenants-in-chief, such as
had met under the Norman and Angevin kings. A fresh attempt, however,
was made to induce the smaller tenants-in-chief to attend, in addition
to the bishops, abbots, and barons, by a direction that whilst these
were to be summoned personally, the sheriffs should in each county
issue a general summons to the smaller tenants-in-chief. Though the
sub-tenants had no part in the Common Council of the realm, they were
relieved by a direction that they should pay no more aids to their
lords than their lords paid to the king, and by a general declaration
that all that had been granted to their lords by the king should be
allowed by their lords to them. The Londoners and other townsmen had
their privileges assured to them; and all freemen were secured against
heavy and irregular penalties if they committed an offence.

(_b_) _Its Securities._--Such were the provisions of this truly
national act, which Englishmen were for ages engaged in maintaining
and developing. The immediate question was how to secure what had been
gained. The first thing necessary for this purpose was to make the
courts of law the arbitrators between the king and his subjects. In a
series of articles it was declared that the sworn testimony of a man's
peers should be used whenever fines or penalties were imposed, and
this insistence on the employment of the jury system as it then
existed was emphasised by the strong words to which John placed his
seal: "No freeman may be taken, or imprisoned, or disseised, or
outlawed, or banished, or in any way destroyed, nor will we go against
him, or send against him, except by