The church divided the country into parishes, having generally the same geographical boundaries as the township, though sometimes two townships made one parish. Gradually the term parish displaced, in most cases, the older term township. There are thus three names for the same area. Viewed as the territory of the original local government it is the Township; as the area of the lord's estate it is the Manor; as the area for the support of a church it is the Parish. Wherever the more highly organized borough, town, or city was established, it took the place of the township.

The Hundred. In very early times, probably before the English came into England, groups of neighboring townships were united into a larger district called a Hundred. It is not known certainly how the name hundred came to be used. It is supposed that the original hundreds were composed of the neighboring townships which furnished a hundred warriors for the army. As we know the word, it means simply a governmental district larger than a township and smaller than a county.) There was a Hundred Court, made up of the chief lords in the hundred, and the "four best men" and the reeve from each township and borough. The business of the court was chiefly judicial. Cases too difficult to be settled in town-meeting were carried to the hundred court. In course of time the hundred court absorbed most of the judicial business of the townmeeting. In later times, when the office of Justice of the Peace was fully developed, and the county and higher courts were established in England, the court of the hundred fell into disuse, and now the name is used to designate simply a district.

Kingdoms and Shires. When the English began to conquer the Britons they were not subject to the rule of kings. In time of war a leader was chosen from among the chiefs, and when the war was over he ceased to be ruler. But when in England a state of war came to be the common condition, the leader of the army became a permanent officer, and received the name of King. The country over which he ruled was a Kingdom. Various tribes of the English conquered different parts of England and founded little kingdoms. The petty kings fought against each other for supremacy, and finally all were subjected to one king. The little kingdoms then became parts of a united kingdom, and were called Shires, from a word meaning a share, or part. New shires were formed by subdivision, and from conquests of new territory, until at length England and Wales were made up of fifty shires, or counties.

The County Court. When the little kingdom became a shire, the government, which had been a king's government, became a shire government. The kings in England did not rule alone. Closely associated with them was a body of men called "The Wise." With these were often assembled in the petty kingdoms representative men from the hundreds and the townships. In the shire, instead of the king's court, there appeared a Shire Court, which was composed of the chief men from the hundreds, and four men and the reeve from each township in the shire. As the townsmen chose their own reeve in town-meeting, and the hundred court chose the hundred reeve, so in early times the shire court sometimes chose the shire reeve, or sheriff. But ordinarily the sheriff was selected by

the king. He was the chief officer of the shire, and usually presided over the county court. After the coming of the Normans, in 1066, the shire court underwent some changes, and its name was changed to County Court.

Business of the County Court. It will be observed that a full county court was composed of a large number of persons. To it came the chief men from each hundred, and five men from each borough, and five from each little township. The court met twice each year, and in it were transacted various kinds of business. The cases at law which were too difficult to be settled by the hundred court, were carried to the county court. Besides judicial business, the court was made an agency of the king for the collection of taxes, the publication and the execution of laws.

Origin of Parliament. After the coming of the Normans, that body of "wise men" who were always associated with the king in the government of England came to be called the King's Council. It was composed of all the great lords of the kingdom, and the bishops, who represented the church. In the earlier times, when the king and his council wished to secure funds to carry on the government, a message was sent to the sheriff of each county, who was directed to arrange with the members of the county court for the collection of the tax. Often the court, before agreeing to the king's tax, would insist upon the grant of some favor or privilege from the king. Later, instead of sending to the county court for the arrangement of the taxes, the king directed the sheriff of each county to have the court select two men to represent the shire in the king's

council, and it was usually added that two representatives be sent from certain boroughs and cities. The county members were lords of a lower rank than the other lords of the king's council; the borough members represented the tradespeople of the towns. At first they were all chosen in the county court, and they all sat with the older members of the king's council. But during the reign of Edward III. (1327–1377), the lesser lords from the counties and the members from towns. and cities formed a habit of meeting in a separate place, and the body was called the House of Commons. The older part of the council was then named the House of Lords, the bishops being the lords spiritual, and the others the lords temporal.

The Business of Parliament. The kings of England could never act alone. It was by joint action of king and council that laws were made and policies were agreed upon. The chief object of the king in adding to his council members from counties and towns was to secure taxes. As the members of the county court were accustomed to ask favors of the king before agreeing to a measure of taxation, so did the representatives chosen in county court when they voted taxes for the king in Parliament. A petition presented by the elected members, when granted by the king and the lords, and signed by the king, became a law. The House of Commons from the first has been the source of all bills for raising revenue. It gradually gained a share in the making of laws and in directing the affairs of the government.

Supremacy of Parliament. During the century in which colonies were founded in America, there was