CHAP. XL.: In what Manner the Judiciary Forms were borrowed from the Decretals.

But how comes it, some will say, that when the institutions were laid aside, the judicial forms of the canon law should be preferred to those of the Roman? It was because they had constantly before their eyes the ecclesiastic courts, which followed the forms of the canon law, and they knew of no court that followed those of the Roman law. Besides, the limits of the spiritual and temporal jurisdiction were at that

time very little understood; there were Beaumanoir, chap. 11. page 458. ^†815 people Widows, croises, &c. Beaumanoir, chap. 11. page 58. ^†816 who sued indifferently, and causes that were tried indifferently, in either court. It seems See the whole eleventh chapter of Beaumanoir. ^†817 as if the temporal jurisdiction reserved no other cases exclusively to itself than the judgment of feudal matters The spiritual tribunals had even laid hold of these, under the pretext of the oath, as may be seen by the famous Concordat between Philip Augustus, the clergy, and the barons, which is to be found in the ordinances of Lauriere. ^†818, and of such crimes committed by laymen as did not relate to religion. For Beaumanoir, chap. 11. page 60. ^†819 if on the account of conventions and contracts, they had occasion to sue in a temporal court, the parties might of their own accord, proceed before the spiritual tribunals; and as the latter had not a power to oblige the temporal court to execute the sentence, they commanded submission by means of excommunications. Under those circumstances, when they wanted to change the course of proceedings in the temporal court, they took that of the spiritual tribunals, because they knew it; but did not meddle with that of the Roman law, by reason, they were strangers to it: for in point of practice, people know only what is really practised.