Source.—Thorpe, Ancient Laws and Institutes of England.

These are the dooms which Alfred the king chose, in order that no man should deem them otherwise than according to his will.

... “That which ye will that other men do not unto you, do ye not that to other men.” On this one doom let a man think that he judge every one righteously: he need heed no other doom-book. Let him remember that he adjudge to no man that which he would not that he should adjudge to him, if he sought judgment against him.

After this, then it happened that many nations received the faith of Christ; then were many synods assembled throughout all the earth, and also among the English race, after they had received the faith of Christ, synods of holy bishops, and also of other distinguished witan. They then ordained, for that mildness of heart which Christ had taught, that secular lords, with their leave, might without sin, take for almost every misdeed, for the first offence, the money-amends which they then ordained; except in cases of treason against a lord, to which they dared not assign any mildness of heart, because God Almighty adjudged none to them who despised him, nor did Christ the Son of God adjudge any to him who sold Him to death; and he commanded that a lord should be loved as one’s self. They then in many synods ordained amends for many human misdeeds: and in many synod-books they wrote, at one place one doom, at another another.

I, then, King Alfred, gathered these laws together and caused them to be written down, selecting many which pleased me from among those ordained by my predecessors. And many of those which I liked not I abrogated by the counsel of my witan, ordaining some different way for the future. For I did not dare to set down in writing many of my own suggestions, not knowing how they would be liked by those who should come after. But whenever I found in the laws passed in the days of my kinsman Ine, or of Offa, King of Mercia, or of Ethelbert, the first English convert to Christianity, anything that seemed to me to be most justly decided, such laws I gathered in and the others I left out.

I, then, Alfred, King of the West Saxons, showed these to all my witan, and they then said that it seemed good to them all to be holden.

12. If a man burn or hew another’s wood without leave, let him pay for every great tree with 5 shillings, and afterwards for each, let there be as many of them as may be, with 5 pence; and 30 shillings as fine.

20. If a man entrust property to another man’s monk, without leave of the monk’s lord, and it be lost from him, let him forfeit it who before owned it.

34. It is also directed to chapmen, that they bring the men whom they take up with them before the king’s reeve at the folk-moot, and let it be stated how many of them there are; and let them take such men with them as they may be able afterwards to present for justice at the folk-moot.

37. If a man from one hall-register wish to seek a lord in another hall-register, let him do it with the knowledge of the ealdorman whom he before followed in his shire. If he do it without his knowledge, let him who entertains him as his man pay 120 shillings as fine: let him, however, give half to the king in the shire where he before followed, half in that into which he comes.

38. If any man fight before the king’s ealdorman in the gemot, he shall pay his value and his fine as the law ordains for any assault that he may have committed, and in addition shall pay a fine of 120 shillings to the ealdorman.

40. For breaking into the king’s dwelling, 120 shillings; the archbishop’s, 90 shillings; any other bishop’s, and an ealdorman’s, 60 shillings; a twelve-hundred man’s, 30 shillings; a six-hundred man’s, 15 shillings. For breaking into a ceorl’s house, 5 shillings. If aught of this happen when the national army is out, or in Lent-fast, let the amends be twofold.

41. The man who has book-land, which his kindred left him, then ordain we that he must not give it from his kindred, if there be writing or witness that it was forbidden that he should do so by those men who at first acquired it, and by those who gave it to him; and then let that be declared in the presence of the king and of the bishop, before his kinsmen.

42. We also command that the man who knows his foe to be dwelling at home fight not before he demand right of him. If he have such power that he can beset his foe, and besiege him within, let him keep him within for 7 days, and attack him not, if he will remain within. And then, after 7 days, if he will surrender, and deliver up his weapons, let him be kept safe for 30 days, and let notice of him be given to his kinsmen and his friends. If, however, he flee to a church, then let it be according to the sanctity of the church; as we have before said above. But if he have not sufficient power to besiege him within, let him ride to the ealdorman, and beg aid of him. If he will not aid him, let him ride to the king before he fights. In like manner also, if a man come upon his foe, and he did not before know him to be settled in a house; if he be willing to deliver up his weapons, let him be kept for 30 days, and let notice of him be given to his friends; if he will not deliver up his weapons, then he may attack him. If he be willing to surrender, and to deliver up his weapons, and any one after that attack him, let him pay value and wound, such as he may cause, and fine, and let him have his power destroyed. We also declare that, with his lord a man may fight without incurring penalty, if any one attack the lord: thus may the lord fight for his man. After the same wise a man may fight with his born kinsman, if a man attack him wrongfully, except against his lord; that we do not allow.

43. To all free men let these days be given, but not to slaves and servile labourers, 12 days at Yule, and the day on which Christ overcame the devil, and the commemoration day of S. Gregory, and 7 days before Easter and 7 days after, and one day at S. Peter’s tide and S. Paul’s, and at harvest the whole week before S. Mary’s mass, and one day at the celebration of All Hallows, and the 4 Wednesdays in the 4 Ember weeks. To all slaves be given, to those to whom it may be most desirable to give, whatever any man shall give them in God’s name, or they at any of their moments may deserve.

49-60. [The wound-tariff.] Front tooth, 8 shillings; canine tooth, 4 shillings; grinder, 15 shillings; cleft chin-bone, 12 shillings. Thumb struck off, 30 shillings; thumb-nail, 5 shillings. Shooting-finger, 15 shillings; its nail, 4 shillings. Middlemost finger, 12 shillings; its nail, 2 shillings. Gold-finger, 17 shillings; its nail, 4 shillings. Little finger, 9 shillings; its nail, 1 shilling. [Note that 1 Kentish shilling equals 4 Wessex shillings.]