Assart

or ESSART.

In English forest and ecclesiastical law. The offense of pulling up by the roots the woods that are thickets and coverts for the deer, and making them clear as arable land. Manw. For. Law, p. 2, e. 9, note 1; Cowell; 1 Crabb, Real Prop. pp. 486, 487, § 627. Written, in the law Latin, dssartum, in Bracton and Pleta, and essartum, in the Charta de Foresta and the Black Book of the Exchequer.

ESSART. A piece of forest land converted into arable land by grubbing up the trees and brushwood. New Diet.

To pull up by the roots; to clear land of trees, thickets, etc., and prepare it for, or reduce it to, tillage, v. Assartare.

In English law. The offense committed in the forest, by pulling up the trees by the roots that are thickets and coverts for deer, and making the ground plain as arable land. It differs from waste, in that waste is the cutting down of coverts which may grow again, whereas assart is the plucking them up by the roots and utterly destroying them, so that they can never afterward grow. This is not an offense if done with license to convert forest into tillage ground. Consult Manwood's Forest Laws, pt. 1, p. 171. Wharton.

£smt. [L. Jjat assartum, usartum, exartumJ\ In Enj^h forest law^ An offence committed m the forest, by pulling up by the roots the woods that are thickets and coverts for the deer, and making them plam, (that is, clear) as arable land. Manwood, p. 2, c. 9, n. 1. Termes de la ley. Cowell. 1 Crahb's Real Prop. 486, 487, 8 627. The land itself so assarted, that is, cleared and prepared for, or reduced to cultivation. Cowell. This word is written assert in the Charta de Foresta, (9 Hen. III. c. 4,) and in Manwood, with which the Latin assertare of the Register corresponds. Beg. Orig. 257. According to Spelman, essart may have been its ori^nal form. Its etymology is uncertain, ^imnwood supposes it to b§ from the French assartir, to make plain. Spelman, who writes the word assartum, derives it from the Fr. assarter, corresponding with the Latin interlucare, to thin woods by cuttbff trees at intervals, so as to admit the sun, {ita ut sol. interluceat); to cut down woods; to clear of thickets; to bring rough and uncultivated grounds into a proper state for cultivation. He also makes the word^ essartum to be derived from the Lat. exertum, pulled up by the roots; eradicated. Spelman, voc. Essartum. Mr. Somner thinks exartum to be a contraction of e:rara^ tum, ploufi^hed up, from exarare, to plough up, to which opinion Dufre^e also inclines. Cowell. To ASSART. \L. Lat assartare, assertare, exartare, sartare."] In forest law. To Sull up by the roots; to cut down and eraicate woods; to clear land of trees, thickets, &c., and prepare it for, or reduce it to till^e. Cowell. Spelman, voc. Essartum. 1 Crabb's Eeal Prop. 486, 487, § 627. See Assartare.