133. Sed his quidem temporibus, sicut supra quoque indicavimus, omnes praescriptiones ab actore proficiscuntur. olim autem quaedam et pro reo opponebantur. qualis illa erat praescriptio: EA RES AGATUR: SI IN EA RE PRAEIUDICIUM HEREDITATI NON FIAT: quae nunc in speciem exceptionis deducta est, et locum habet cum petitor hereditatis alio genere iudicii praeiudicium hereditati faciat, velut cum res singulas petat; esset enim iniquum per unius partis petitionem maiori quaestioni de ipsa hereditate praeiudicari. quare etiam his temporibus ei, unde petitur, exceptio hanc in rem comparatur (134) Ab actore autem vel nunc praescriptiones quaedam speciales praeter eas quas supra enumeravimus adhibenda sunt si v. gr. dominus servi alicuius ex stipulatione eius agere velit, in qua et praesentes et futurae obligationes ex pacto insunt, forte si ita convenis

............

133. At the present day, as we have also stated above', all praescriptions proceed from the plaintiff, but in olden times some of them were set up by the defendant. Such was the praescription which ran thus: "Let this be the question tried : provided only that there be thereby no prior decision as to the inheritance:" but this is now thrown into the form of an exception, and is resorted to when the claimant of an inheritance takes in some other way proceedings which affect the question of inheritance, for instance, when he brings a suit for individual portions of it; for it would be unfair* [to allow the more important question as to the inheritance itself to be prejudged by the petitory suit for a particular part thereof." And therefore even now-a-days an exception is provided to this end for the benefit of him from whom the inheritance is claimed...... 134. On the plaintiff's side, too, there are even at the present day several special praescriptions employed in addition to those we have named above......thus when the owner of some slave is desirous of bringing an action upon the slave's stipulation, wherein are contained by virtue of an agreement payments both present and future, the

set, ut ex pecunia quae in stipulatum deducta est menstrua V HS. refunderentur: intentioni actoris loco demonstrationis ita praescribendum est: ea res agatur quod Chrysogonus Lucii Seii servus actor de Numerio Negidio tricies HS. stipulatus est convenitque inter eos, ut ex ea pecunia menstrua V HS. refunderentur cuius rei dies fuit. Deinde intentione formulae determinatur is cui dari oportet; et sane domino dari oportet quod servus stipulatur. at in praescriptione de pacto quaeritur quod secundum naturalem significationem verum esse debet. (135.) Quaecumque autem diximus de servis, eadem de ceteris quoque personis quae nostro iuri subiectae sunt dicta intelligemus. (136.) Item admonendi sumus, si cum ipso agamus qui incertum promiserit,

arrangement having been, for example, that out of the money forming the subject of the stipulation five sestertia should be repaid monthly; a praescription ought to be inserted prior to the plaintiff's intentio and in the place of a demonstratwo, to this effect: "Let this be the matter of suit, viz. that since the plaintiff, Chrysogonus, the slave of Lucius Titius, stipulated for 300 sestertia to be paid him by Numerius Negidius, and an agreement was entered into between them that out of that money five sestertia should be repaid monthly, which in talment is now due." Then in the intentio] of the formula the person is specified to whom the payment ought to be made and obviously it is the master to whom the subject of the slave's stipulation ought to be given. But it is in the praescription that the question as to the pact' is raised, which pact ought to be truly described according to its obvious sense. 135. All that we have said about slaves we shall understand to apply also to other persons who are subject to our authority. 136. We must also be reminded that if we sue the very person who has promised us a thing of un

1 Sc. the pact regarding the monthly payments. This was regarded as forming an element of the stipulation, as it was made at the same time, for "pacta incontinenti facta stipulationibus inesse creduntur.". D. 12. 1. 40.

2 This is Heffter's explanation of verum: see his note ad locum. In the praescription, therefore, what

really took place between the stipulating parties is to be described, and the name of the slave to be given. This transaction having been examined and its real nature established, the owner of the slave is thereupon in a position to claim the money as plaintiff, for as soon as his slave's claim has been made out, he has the benefit of it.

Praescriptions. Interdicts.

323

ita nobis formulam esse propositam, ut praescriptio inserta sit formulae loco demonstrationis, hoc modo: IUDEX ESTO. QUOD

AULUS AGERIUS DE NUMERIO NEGIDIO INCERTUM STIPULATUS EST, MODO CUIUS REI DIES FUIT, QUIDQUID OB EAM REM NUMERIUM NEGIDIUM AULO AGERIO DARE FACERE OPORTET et reliqua. (137.) Si cum sponsore aut fideiussore agatur, praescribi solet in persona quidem sponsoris hoc modo: EA RES AGATUR. QUOD AULUS AGERIUS DE LUCIO TITIO INCERTUM STIPULATUS EST, QUO NOMINE NUMERIUS NEGIDIUS SPONSOR EST, CUIUS REI DIES FUIT; in persona vero fideiussoris: EA RES AGATUR. QUOD NUMERIUS NEGIDIUS PRO LUCIO TITIO INCERTUM FIDE SUA ESSE IUSSIT, CUIUS RE/ DIES FUIT; deinde formula subicitur.

138. Superest ut de interdictis dispiciamus. (139.) Certis igitur ex causis Praetor aut Proconsul principaliter auctoritatem suam finiendis controversiis interponit. quod tum maxime facit,

certain value, our formula is so set forth that in it a prescription takes the place of the demonstratio, thus: "Let there be a judex. Inasmuch as Aulus Agerius stipulated for something uncertain from Numerius Negidius; whatever in respect thereof, but only in respect of that part which is already due, Numerius Negidius ought to give or do to Aulus Agerius, &c." 137. If an action be brought against a sponsor or fidejussor', there is usually in the case of a sponsor a praescription in this form: "Let this be the subject of the action. Inasmuch as Aulus Agerius stipulated for something uncertain from Lucius Titius, in respect whereof Numerius Negidius was sponsor; whatever amount be now due, &c. ;" and in the case of a fidejussor: "Let this be the subject of the action. Inasmuch as Numerius Negidius became fidejussor for Lucius Titius; whatever amount be now due, &c." Then follows the formula.

138. We now have to discuss the subject of interdicts. 139. In certain cases then the Praetor or Proconsul interposes his authority at the outset to bring disputes to a conclusion: and this he does more particularly in suits about

11. 115.

324

Interdicts and Decrees.

cum de possessione aut quasi possessione inter aliquos contenditur. et in summa aut iubet aliquid fieri, aut fieri prohibet. formulae autem verborum et conceptiones quibus in ea re utitur interdicta decretave vocantur. (140.) Vocantur autem decreta cum fieri aliquid iubet, velut cum praecipit, ut aliquid exhibeatur aut restituatur: interdicta vero cum prohibet fieri, velut cum praecipit: ne sine vitio possidenti vis fiat, neve in loco sacro aliquid fiat. unde omnia interdicta aut restitutoria aut exhibitoria aut prohibitoria vocantur. (141.) Nec tamen cum quid iusserit fieri aut fieri prohibuerit, statim peractum est negotium, sed ad iudicem recuperatoresve itur, et ibi editis formulis quaeritur, an aliquid adversus Praetoris edictum factum sit, vel an factum non sit quod is fieri iusserit.

possession or quasi-possession', summarily ordering something to be done or forbidding it to be done. The forms of words which he employs for this purpose we call interdicts or decrees. 140. They are called decrees when he orders something to be done, as when he directs that a thing shall be produced in court or be delivered up. They are called interdicts when he prohibits a thing being done, for instance, when he directs "that no violence be done to one who is in possession innocently, or that something be not done on sacred ground." Hence all interdicts are named either restitutory, exhibitory, or prohibitory. 141. The matter is not,

however, at once concluded when the Praetor has commanded or forbidden the doing of something, but the parties go before a judex or before recuperatores, and there, upon the issuing of formulae, investigation is made whether anything has been done contrary to the Praetor's edict or whether

1 For quasi possession see Savig. ny, On Possession (Perry's translation), pp. 130-134.

2 Sine vitio neque vi, neque clam, neque precario. See Savigny, On Poss., pp. 66, 355.

3 Interdict is here used as a general term, including decrees also, for exhibitory and restitutory orders are plainly of the latter character. So also Justinian says in Inst. IV. 15. 1, sub finem.

That is to say, against the cdic

tum perpetuum, or annual edict, published by every Praetor on commencing his duties. Therefore no one was guilty of acting contrary to an interdict unless that interdict was in accordance with the terms of the annual edict, and this is the meaning of D. 50. 17. 102. pr. The interdict was issued on an ex parte statement, and therefore there was a possibility that the Praetor had been misled by false representations as to the facts of the case.

Classification of Interdicts.

325

et modo cum poena agitur, modo sine poena: cum poena, velut cum per sponsionem agitur; sine poena, velut cum arbiter petitur. et quidem ex prohibitoriis interdictis semper per sponsionem agi solet, ex restitutoriis vero vel exhibitoriis modo per sponsionem, modo per formulam agitur quae arbitrária

vocatur.

142. Principalis igitur divisio in eo est, quod aut prohibitoria sunt interdicta, aut restitutoria, aut exhibitoria. (143.) Sequens in eo est divisio, quod vel adipiscendae possessionis causa comparata sunt, vel retinendae, vel reciperandae.

144. Adipiscendae possessionis causa interdictum accommodatur bonorum possessori, cuius principium est QUORUM BONORUM: eiusque vis et potestas haec est, ut quod quisque ex his bonis quorum possessio alicui data est pro herede aut pro possessore possideret, id ei cui bonorum possessio data est restituatur. pro herede autem possidere videtur tam is qui heres

anything has not been done which he ordered to be done. And sometimes a penalty accompanies the action, sometimes it does not there is a penalty attached, for instance, when the proceedings are by sponsio; there is no penalty, for instance, when an arbiter' is demanded. In prohibitory interdicts the course of proceeding is always by sponsio, in restitutory or exhibitory interdicts sometimes by sponsio, sometimes by the formula called arbitraria.

142. Of interdicts then the primary division is that they are either prohibitory, restitutory, or exhibitory. 143. There is another division based on the fact that they are provided either for the purpose of obtaining, retaining, or recovering possession.

66

144. An interdict for the purpose of obtaining possession, the first words of which are Quorum bonorum," is provided for the bonorum possessor: its force and effect being that whatever anyone possesses pro herede or pro possessore out of the goods of which the possession has been given to another, is to be delivered up to that person to whom the possession of the goods has been given. Now not only the heir, but also

1 Cf. Cic. pro Tull. 53 and Justinian, Inst. IV. 6. 31, with Sandars's notes upon the passage.

2 III. 34. The words of the interdict are given in full in D. 43. 2. I. pr.