Tithing

In English law. Formerly, a district containing ten men, with their families. In each tithing there was a tithingman, whose duty it was to keep the peace, as a constable now is bound to do. St. Armand, in his Historical Essay on the Legislative Power of England (page 70), expresses an opinion that the tithing was composed not of ten common families, but of ten families of lords of a manor.

In English Law. A group of ten, twelve or more persons, under the superintendence of a tithingman, mutually responsible for one another’s misdeeds. In some places the roll is the tithing. This system is called the Frithborh or Frankpledge. 1 Holdsw. Hist. E. L. 8.

In Saxon law. The number or company of ten freeholders, with their families, who dwelt together and were sureties for the good behavior of each other.

An old Saxon division of a hundred, composed of ten felaiees, borghs, frank-pledges, lies, who were mutually responsible for one pledge.. The tithing-man, or head-borow, had somewhat the duties of a constable. l^tulus est justa causa possidendi id quod Title is the just cause of possessing what is

One of the civil divisions of England, being a portion of that greater division called a hundred. It was so called because ten freeholders with their families composed one. It is said that they were all knit together in one society, and bound to the king for the peaceable behavior of each other. In each of these societies there was one chief or principal person, who, from his office, was called teothing-man, now tithing-man. Brown. Tithing-man. During the Saxon times, the officer wlio was appointed to preside over tithings and to examine and determine all causes of small importance between the inhabitants of adjacent tithings was so called. In the present day, however, tithing-men are a kind of constables, elected by parishes, and sworn in their offices in the court-leet, and sometimes by justices of the peace, &c. Brown.