sition of the emperors, which often proved a very imperfect security, the laws which regulated the relative rights of individuals, and protected them from mutual wrong, were continually approaching perfection. This subject deserves a more thorough investigation than it has yet received. All legal relations were expressed with admirable skill and consistency in distinct definitions, and the whole system was developed from a few principles, which run through the whole, and the distinctness and simplicity of which are proved by the adoption of the Roman law among so many different nations. The process of developement was in so far historical, as it was always connected with an adherence to the old forms, but it was entirely philosophical and rational, as it always strove to find out the real principles of rights and obligations, and to make the formal law dependent upon them. After the age of the Antonines (from 180 A. D.), such a political confusion took place, that the scientific spirit was lost. The judicial system was now continued only by the imperial constitutions, which treated but rarely of private law, while they entered much and often into the subject of public relations. The opinions of the ancient jurisconsults of the better period were regarded almost as legal authorities, and, to remedy the difficulties arising from their different views, it was provided by Valentinian III (426 A. D.), that the majority of opinions should decide. The number of the constitutions became such, that collections of them were made, first by private persons (codex Gregorianus et Hermogenianus, about 365 A. D.), then an official one by Theodosius II (codex Theodosianus, 438 A. D.), in 16 books, of which the 11 last have been preserved entire; of the 5 first, however, only fragments are extant. The latter have been recently discovered at Turin by Peyron, and at Milan by Clossius. (See Hermes (a German periodical), xxv. 314.) There was also an abridgment of this code, made in 506, for the use of the Visigoths (the breviarium Alaricianum). Far the greater part of these decrees relates to the public law. (Jac. Godefroi wrote an excellent commentary on this code, which, together with the commentary, was published by Ritter, Leipsic, 1736.) Injurious consequences necessarily resulted from the cessation in the developement of the Roman law after the time of the Antonines. It may be seen, from the expressions of Justinian, into what subtilties, what verbal and formal niceties, the

lawyers had fallen in his time a state of things, in some respects, not unlike the present state of law in England, from similar reasons. The public administration, at least as far as regarded its external form, had been reduced into tolerable order since the time of Diocletian and Constantine. Theodosius II (408-450) had conceived the idea of arranging the immense mass of rules and authorities relating to the private law, but the difficulties, on examination, were considered too great, and no sovereign till Justinian (527-565) had the courage to meet them. He first ordered the imperial constitutions, which still remained in force, to be put into a new collection (codex Justinianus, commenced in 527), and decided, in and after the year 530, 50 legal questions, which had been, till then, left doubtful. At the same time, a systematic abridgment of the writings of the jurisconsults was made by 17 commissioners, embracing 50 books of digests or pandects, and an introduction to the study of jurisprudence was prepared (institutiones): both works were published Dec. 30, 533, and invested with legal authority. In the following year, a new collection of imperial decrees (codex repetitæ prælectionis), in 12 books, was published, and from that time another series of single decrees (13 edicts and 159 novella constitutiones), by which the Roman law may be considered as completed, because it was deprived of its capacity of further developement, and left to mankind as a rich but lifeless treasure. The opinions respecting this work of Justinian are very various. If we consider merely the practical utility of his labors, as regards his age and people, it will not be denied, that he conferred a great benefit on his subjects, and the changes themselves, which were made in the existing regulations, proceeded mostly from a sound view of the higher objects of the law. The abolition of antiquated and useless forms, the simplification of legal relations and legal processes, must be acknowledged to have been the principal objects of the changes made; and these changes were executed with judgment. If there are decrees of little value among them, these imperfections are not greater than we find in all ancient and modern codes. Justinian has been particularly blamed by modern jurisconsults for combining into one mass, into a kind of code, all the existing works on law, which were acknowledged as authorities. These critics would prefer to have the writings themselves rather than the ex

tracts, perhaps, in some cases, perverted from their original meaning. But it is very possible, that, if it had not been for the compilation of Justinian, no part of these writings would have been preserved; and it would seem that a beneficent providence sometimes allows large masses of historical knowledge to perish (as in the case of the Alexandrian collections), in order to compel mankind to revert to the resources of their own minds, and to lead them from knowledge to wisdom. However this may be, the undertaking of Justinian was demanded by the wants of his age; and it was better to satisfy such a demand, even at the expense of some imperfections, than to delay the necessary work under the pretext of educating competent men for the task, and making thorough inquiries; and all must admit the fruit of the labor to have been a treasure of legal wisdom for posterity. Our limits will not allow us to mention here the different editions, abridgments and translations of the work prepared for the Greek provinces (the Western provinces were soon lost forever). One Greek edition, of a much later date, was ordered by L. Basilius Macedo (867-886), and executed under his successor, Leo the Philosopher (886-912). This was called libri Basilicorum. Of the 60 books of which it consisted, we possess only a part; though, indeed, the greater part, published by C. Hann. Fabrot (Paris, 1647, 7 vols. fol.), and 4 books, which did not appear in this edition, were published by Reitz, in Meermann's Thesaurus Jur., vol. v. p. 1.

Thus the Roman law is one original and independent whole, embracing a period of 1300 years to the time of Justinian, and of 1850 years to that of the Basilica. It stands, in this respect, unique in history. Perhaps China, if, at some future period, we learn more of its history, may afford some institution of similar duration. Even the downfall of the Roman empire has not destroyed the Roman law, but, in some respects, has enlarged its dominion. It was in force, before the modern governments were established, throughout the Roman empire in Europe, and when the Goths, Franks, Lombards, Burgundians, and other Teutonic tribes, erected new empires, not only a large part of the public law of Rome was incorporated into the new constitutions, but the private law, also, continued to be acknowledged as valid among the old inhabitants. The new rulers took care that, besides their different ordinances for the weal of the Germanic tribes, abridgments and modifi

cations of the Roman law should be made, sometimes, it is true, rude and barbarous enough. Among these were the breviarium Alaricianum of the Visigoths, 506; the lex Romana of the Burgundians, or Papiani Responsa, between 517 and 534. For the Lombards, a rifacciamento of the Roman law was prepared in the 8th and 9th centuries, and thus, in the south of France and Italy, this law continued in authority uninterruptedly, as far as it was adapted to the new state of things. But this authority, of course, diminished in proportion as new forms of family relations and social connexions and new species and tenures of property sprang up, particularly under the feudal system, and in proportion as the internal disturbances in the different states unsettled the idea of law in general. But this idea was awakened again after the states had gained a degree of stability. People began to perceive that there was a nobler and firmer basis of right than mere power; national union gained consistency and true value by means of commerce and industry; the lower classes demanded the extension of their privileges; the increasing activity produced more solid distinctions than those of birth; the insufficiency of the old laws began to be felt, and the blessings of a scientific cultivation began to be diffused, borrowed, in a considerable degree, from the Arabians in Spain. In this state of things, men rose, in Upper Italy, in the 11th century, who freed the law-books of Justinian from the obscurity in which they had been buried till then, and by these means gave a new impulse to the science of law. Irnerius, towards the end of the 11th and in the 12th century, is mentioned as the first of them. All the nations on the European continent seized eagerly upon the treasure offered to them, after the model of which were now digested the papal decrees, the feudal law, and, at a later period, the Germanic laws. Thousands of scholars, from all parts of Europe, went to Bologna and other cities of Italy, to study law there. It was generally supposed, at first, that the Roman law was applicable to the whole of Christendom; but it was soon found out that there existed whole systems of laws and legal relations, with which the rules of the civil law would not harmonize; and the peculiarities in the organization of the tribunals of different countries were long an obstacle to the formal adoption of the civil law. This adoption, therefore, did not take place in the various countries at the same time,

nor to the same extent. In Italy and the south of France, it was introduced first and most completely; at a later period, and to a less degree, in the north of France (in the pays de droit coutumier), where it has never, in fact, been acknowledged as binding, but only as an authority in regard to general principles of natural law (raison écrite), and still retains this degree of influence, notwithstanding the establishment of the Code civil. In England, it never has been received in the ordinary civil courts (it is, to some extent, in Scotland), but the spiritual courts have always been guided by it. It is therefore in force in such cases as fall under the jurisdiction of these courts; e. g., such as relate to last wills. It is also in force in the admiralty courts, but in both with many modifications. In Germany, the idea that the emperors were the successors of the Roman sovereigns contributed much to obtain legal authority for the Roman law in that country; and this has been confirmed by several laws of the empire and of the different states composing it. But the native laws have every where prior authority, and the Roman law can only be applied in cases where these make no provision; but all those of its rules which relate to institutions confined to Rome have no force. It is not allowed, moreover, to be applied to cases growing out of modern institutions, such as fiefs, primogeniture, bills of exchange, nor in questions belonging to the public law. Many cases, therefore, can happen, in which there may be much doubt whether the Roman law is applicable or not. Prussia and Austria have codes; but in other German states, as in Saxony, there is a great confusion between the Roman and the native law. We have already observed that the effects of the Roman law never would cease, and its influence is perceivable in all the modern codes. We would not be understood as intimating an opinion that the Roman law supersedes the necessity of forming new codes. These are desirable in many nations, on many accounts, and, among others, because the Justinian code itself is not without obscurities, and the language in which it is written renders it inaccessible to the bulk of the people of every modern state; but the welfare of a citizen depends, in a great degree, upon correctly understanding his rights and obligations. Whether the principles of the Justinian code agree or not with those of the English law, it must be of great advantage to the common lawyer to study a digest which contains the record

ed wisdom of many centuries, and furnishes abundantly both examples and warnings. We would recommend to the reader an article on civil law in the American Jurist, No. III, July, 1829 (Boston).

CIVIL LIST; an expression which formerly was customary only in England, but at present prevails also in Germany and France. As used in England, it signifies the sum which is granted to every king, at the beginning of his reign, for the support of his court and household, of ambassadors, and of the civil government in general. It was once a principle in England, as in other Teutonic nations, that the monarch was to pay all the expenses of government, even including those of the army, from the possessions of the crown, the domains (in German, Fürstengüter), and that the subjects were not obliged to contribute any thing more than they voluntarily engaged to. From this principle, which is proved by the history of the origin of the domains, it appears, that the domains, in general, cannot be considered the private property of the ruling family. On the contrary, they are, in general, the property of the state, and have been given to the prince to defray the expenses of government. The crown lands of the Saxon kings were very considerable. After the Norman conquest, they were much increased by confiscation, but were soon diminished by grants. Under Henry VIII, they were again much increased by the secularization of the convents (there existed, at that time, in England, 27 mitred abbots; there were also 2 priories, besides numerous other convents); but the greater part of the possessions of the religious orders was squandered by this prince. William III thought it necessary to strengthen his government by liberally rewarding his most faithful adherents, for which reason he made grants of the crown lands with such profusion that, under the government of his successor (in 1702), a law was passed, prohibiting the alienation of the domains. There exist, therefore, few crown lands in England, at present, and the income from them goes into the public treasury. Formerly, there were only certain annual contributions granted to the king for the support of the government. Under Charles II, the amount of the grant was first settled (£1,200,000). Under James II, this was increased to £1,900,000. The revenue from Scotland was not comprised in this sum. After the revolution of 1688, William's love of war being known and dreaded by his people, no appropriation

was made him for military expenses, and he received for defraying the expenses of the household, and the branches of the civil service immediately under the royal control, the sum of £700,000, and, at a later period, £800,000. This was called the civil list. Under queen Anne,. the civil list amounted only to £691,000; under George I, at first, to £750,000, but was increased to £850,000. George II had £800,000. George III resigned all the hereditary crown taxes and revenues, appropriated to defray the expenses of the civil list, for the sum of £800,000, which, in 1777, was increased to £900,000, and at last, in 1812, to £1,028,000. Besides these grants, the debts of the civil list have been paid several times by parliament. From 1760 to 1784, they amounted to nearly £22,000,000. To the present king, the first session of parliament granted £850,000 for Great Britain, and £207,000 for Ireland. With this sum, the expenses of the household, for which £250,000 are assigned, of the ministers, the ambassadors, the justices of the high courts, &c., are paid, and £60,000 of it are appropriated for the king's privy purse. The royal princes, besides, receive incomes from the state. The sum allotted to the king himself would seem very small, if he had not, besides, revenues which amount (probably without including the revenue from Germany, formerly estimated at £100,000) to £300,000.-In France, during the revolution, certain sums were assigned for the support of the king and his family, which civil list differed from the English in so far as all the real expenses of government were separated from it. For the king, according to the law of Nov. 8,1814, 25,000,000 livres (£1,041,000) were set apart, and for the princes and the To these grants princesses, 8,000,000. are to be added the royal palaces in Paris (the Louvre and the Tuileries), the castles and domains at Versailles, Marly, St. Cloud, Meudon, Rambouillet, Compiegne, St. Germain-en-Laye, Fontainebleau, &c., with all the valuables and works of art appertaining to them; likewise the manufactories of Sevres, Gobelins, La Savonnerie and Beauvais, which were declared inalienable possessions of the crown (dotation de la couronne). The enjoyment of these estates and manufactories belongs to the monarch, without being subject to taxes or any public burdens, and the administration of them belongs to the minister of the household. Distinct from the crown domains are the domains of the state (domaine de l'état), and the private

possessions of the king (domaine privé du roi), which the king acquires like any other individual, pays taxes on, and can dispose of in his last will. If he, however, omits to do so, all his private property falls to the domaine de l'état. Also, all the private property which the king possessed before his accession to the throne, falls, at the moment of his accession, to the domaine de l'état.-In Prussia, the official statement of all the revenues and expenses to supply the ordinary wants of the state in 1821, does not mention the civil list. The expenses which fall under this head are defrayed by the domains, since a part of them, amounting to 2,500,000 Prussian dollars, has been added to the property of the crown. But the greater part of the domains, amounting to 5,600,000 Prussian dollars income annually, has been assigned to meet the public expenses. (Bosse, Darstellung des staatswirthschaftlichen Zu standes in den deutschen Bundesstaaten, 1820, p. 505.)-In Bavaria, the domains have been mostly sold and added to the public treasury, which furnishes to the king and his court 2,745,000 florins annually. The same plan has been followed in Würtemberg and Baden. In both states, the civil lists, according to the narrower sense in which this phrase is understood in France, amounts to nearly 1,200,000 florins, which, in Würtemberg, is increased by 200,000 florins incoine from the court domains. If we compare these sums with the amount of the finances of the different countries, we find that in

of the revenue of the country is expended for the ruling house, and the proportion is still greater in the case of the smaller governments. It is worth while to com pare these sums with the modest salaries of the American cabinet, and the revenue of the Union. In some small governments, the principle of despotism has gone so far as to assign to the court and the ruling family the income of all the domains, and to throw the whole public debt on the country.

CIVILIZATION is one of those comprehensive words which are most used and least understood. Most people take their own time, and, very often, their own country, as the standard whereby they judge the civilization of other ages and

other countries. Whether our age has reached a higher point of civilization than any preceding one, is, of course, a matter of very great doubt, but there is no doubt that it makes louder claims to superiority in this respect than any previous period. Such pretensions are generally the consequence of ignorance of other times and their productions. It is certainly a circumstance worthy of some consideration, that persons whose talents and acquire ments have enabled them to take wide and penetrating views of the past and present, have shown the least disposition to echo the cry of the march of intellect. The different opinions respecting civilization may be comprised under a few heads: -1. Some people believe in the possibility of constant advancement, and the ultimate attainment of perfect civilization, a consequence of which will be perfect happiness. 2. Others believe that every nation, which arrives at a marked intellectual developement, goes through certain stages of civilization, and, after reaching the highest point which it is capable of attaining, declines; that, moreover, the march of improvement in different nations shows itself in different ways, e. g., by the progress of the fine arts and philosophy among the Greeks, by the advancement of the natural sciences and the construction of great works of architecture among the Egyptians, by the developement of the law among the Romans, &c. 3. Some believe in a general progress of the intellect to a certain point, after which an equally general decline commences, thus making the race subject to the same laws as the individual. 4. Some persons cannot discover any regularity in the march of civilization.-However these different opinions may appear, when measured by metaphysical theories, the second seems to be most conformable to history, with this qualification, however, that the increasing communication between nations has subjected many to similar influences, so that the opinion is applicable, at present, rather to families of nations than to single ones. Another subject, on which much difference of opinion exists, 18, respecting the place where civilization originated. It is usually said, in Asia: some inquirers, however, make Ethiopia its first seat, in support of which opinion, various passages are cited from the Greek writers. Little doubt seems to exist, that the Greeks received their civilization from Egypt. Mr. Alexander Everett, in his work on America, goes so far as to maintain that it ap

pears, from the historical sources we possess, that civilization commenced with the blacks; that "the blameless Ethiopians" of Homer were considered, by the Greeks, as superior beings to themselves; and that the Egyptians, before they became mingled with white races, were people of color, or Negroes an opinion which the learned gentleman has recently advanced again in a public lecture. Ă further and highly important question respecting civilization, is, How far was it aided or produced by Christianity? Some persons contend that all the civilization which we enjoy is owing to Christianity, even our progress in science, &c. Others assert the contrary, and say that history shows that Christianity has hardly ever taken the lead in promoting civilization, which, in every stage of its progress since the birth of Christ, has been urged on by other causes, as the revival of learning, promoted by the conquest of Constantinople, the propagation of democratic notions by the disbelieving philosophers of France, &c., and that Christianity rather accommodated itself to the effects produced by these causes. A third class believe that Christianity had a great influence on civilization in former ages, but that its influence in this respect has become less, as that of science has become stronger. (See Perfectibility.)

CIVITA, in geography, the Latin civitas, truncated in the Italian way, appears in many names of cities, as Cività Lavinia.

CIVITÀ VECCHIA (anciently, Centum Cella); a seaport of the popedom, in the patrimony of St. Peter, 27 miles N. W. Rome; lon. 11° 45′ E.; lat. 42° 5′ N.; population, 7,111. The port was enlarged and rendered commodious by Trajan. It is one of the best in the papal dominions, and next to Ancona in commercial importance. Here are about 6000 galley-slaves. It is the capital of the delegation Cività Vecchia.

CLAIRFAIT. (See Clerfait.)

CLAIRON, Claire-Josephe-Hippolyte-Legris de la Tude; a celebrated French actress. She evinced, when very young, a predilection for the stage, and, adopting the theatrical profession, soon became the first tragic performer of her age and country. Garrick, when he visited Paris, became acquainted with her, and afterwards testified the highest admiration of her talents. She long remained without a rival, and, having retired from the stage, died at an advanced age, in 1803. She published Mémoires et Réflexions sur la Déclamation Theatrale.