第12章

IV. Their Feudal Rights.

These advantages are the remains of primitive sovereignty.

Let us follow him home to his own domain. A bishop， an abbé， a chapter of the clergy， an abbess， each has one like a lay seignior；for， in former times， the monastery and the church were small governments like the county and the duchy. -Intact on the other bank of the Rhine， almost ruined in France， the feudal structure everywhere discloses the same plan. In certain places， better protected or less attacked， it has preserved all its ancient externals. At Cahors， the bishop-count of the town had the right， on solemnly officiating， "to place his helmet， cuirass， gauntlets and sword on the altar."[20] At Besan？on， the archbishop-prince has six high officers， who owe him homage for their fiefs， and who attend at his coronation and at his obsequies. At Mende，[21] the bishop， seignior-suzerain for Gévaudan since the eleventh century， appoints "the courts， ordinary judges and judges of appeal， the commissaries and syndics of the country." He disposes of all the places， "municipal and judiciary." Entreated to appear in the assembly of the three orders of the province， he "replies that his place， his possessions and his rank exalting him above every individual in his diocese. He cannot sit under the presidency of any person； that， being seignior-suzerain of all estates and particularly of the baronies， he cannot give way to his vassals."In brief that he is king， or but little short of it， in his own province. At Remiremont， the noble chapter of canonesses has， "inferior， superior， and ordinary judicature in fifty-two bans of seigniories，" nominates seventy-five curacies and confers ten male canonships. It appoints the municipal officers of the town， and， besides these， three lower and higher courts， and everywhere the officials in the jurisdiction over woods and forests. Thirty-two bishops， without counting the chapters， are thus temporal seigniors， in whole or in part， of their episcopal town， sometimes of the surrounding district， and sometimes， like the bishop of St. Claude， of the entire country. Here the feudal tower has been preserved.

Elsewhere it is plastered over anew， and more particularly in the appanages. In these domains， comprising more than twelve of our departments， the princes of the blood appoint to all offices in the judiciary and to all clerical livings. Being substitutes of the king they enjoy his serviceable and honorary rights. They are almost delegated kings， and for life； for they not only receive all that the king would receive as seignior， but again a portion of that which he would receive as monarch. For example， the house of Orleans collects the excises，[22] that is to say the duty on liquors， on works in gold or silver， on manufactures of iron， on steel， on cards， on paper and starch， in short， on the entire sum-total of one of the most onerous indirect taxes. It is not surprising， if， having a nearly sovereign situation， they have a council， a chancellor， an organized debt， a court，[23] a domestic ceremonial system， and that the feudal edifice in their hands should put on the luxurious and formal trappings which it had assumed in the hands of the king.