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BOOK OF CONSTITUTIONS 57 seized may be made the subject of legal contest and handed over to our servants (pueri nostri) who collect fines in the districts SO that they may be guarded with zeal and diligence by them. For we have noticed often and clearly that under the pretext of this law horses of various persons have been harmed rather than protected . OF KILLINGAGENTS OF THE KING AS WELL AS OF PRIVATE PERSONS . 1. However often cases of this kind come up in which the provisions of preceding constitutions have not clearly decreed what rules of procedure should be followed, it is necessary that an instruction be added to the laws indicating the means of ending the case, so that the judges of the various localities may fittingly terminate the suits, and so that delays due to ignorance may be eliminated. Therefore we order that if any native free Burgundian or Roman who has clearly not been driven by necessity has killed an agent (steward) of our property, he shall be compelled to pay one hundred fifty solidi. 2. If he has killed the agent (steward) of another's property, let him pay one hundred solidi in composition for the crime. 3. Indeed if a slave of anyone without his master's knowledge kills an agent of our property or an agent of any other, just as it is established in other cases, let the slave be given over to death. 4. But if he has committed the crime of murder with his master's 2 In the note to preface, 5, and that to Title XXXVIII, we have noted the existence of a number of royal officials termed variously as proceres, optimutes , comites, c&rii, domestici, mujores domus regiae, cancekrii, notarii , and $ices militantes. There was another oup of officials, possibly of inferior status, known as the wittiscal.or, as reklrred to in t h i s law, nostri.The wittiscalci (or the pwri nostd) were cons icuous among the royal servants since they acted as tax collectors for the mu&a. The word wittiscalo ma be derived from witte, expressing the idea of a fine or penalty (mulcta) an8sca~k(Germ. schlk) which seems to mean a boy or ilave. hi. comound indicates the meaning of a servant of the treasury (mulcta). Cf. gavoud-oghlou, op. cit., I, 134-35, 445. Also d.LXXVI. 58 THE BURGUNDIAN CODE knowledge, let the slave die after he has been presented to the judge. Furthermore, let his master be compelled to pay the entire wergeld of the man killed, and in addition let him be compelled to pay a fine of twelve solidi. 5. Also if anyone who has been injured by blows or wounds kills one of our agents (stewards) or the agent (steward) of a private individual, and this is clearly proved, let that form of satisfaction be observed which earlier statutes have ordered. 1. Although these things have been observed from of old among our people, that a father should divide his property equally by law among his sons, nevertheless we have ordered in a law established now for a long time that this practice be observed, and we have added this useful counsel to fathers that a father should have freedom to do what he wishes with that which belongs to his own portion. But because in a recent controversy it became clear that a certain Athila had passed over the provisions of the old enactments and displayed insubordination to these most useful precepts of law and had not given his son the portion due to him but had transferred his property to other persons through illegal written title since he had wished nothing therefrom to belong to his son, and that no one may follow a bad example in this manner, we order that what he has done contrary to law shall have no legal force, and we add that all his property shall be possessed by his son. It is also the purpose of our judgment to cut off the disobedience of the transgressor, so that the justice of the general precept will be inscribed in the laws and retained. On this account we have ordered in matters of this sort that the law be observed which was promulgated long ago to the effect that any man who will not hand over portions of his property legally belonging to his sons may do nothing adverse or prejudicial to them in writing, and if he does so, it shall...
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