palam est, quod, sive is qui pinxit subripuit tabulas sive alius, competit domino tabularum furti actio.

Si quis a non domino, quem dominum esse crederet, bona 35 fide fundum emerit vel ex donatione aliave qua iusta causa aeque bona fide acceperit: naturali ratione placuit fructus quos percepit eius esse pro cultura et cura. et ideo si postea dominus supervenerit et fundum vindicet, de fructibus ab eo consumptis agere non potest. ei vero, qui sciens alienum fundum possederit, non idem concessum est. itaque cum fundo etiam

rule is stated by Paulus, 'sed necesse est ei rei (sc. tabulae) cedi, quod sine illa esse non potest;' but there is no doubt that the anomaly was supported by great weight of legal opinion. If the painter had possession of the tabula, the latter's former owner could bring only a utilis rei vindicatio, because in point of fact he was its owner no longer and even then, if the painter's possession was bona fide, the latter could meet him with the exceptio doli or plea of fraud, if he refused to pay the value of the painting, and could even exclude the action altogether by himself offering to pay the value of the board. The actio furti lay only against the thief.

§ 35. A fourth natural mode of acquisition is fructuum perceptio, as exemplified in those persons who derive their right to take fruits from the consent of the owner, especially the usufructuary and lessee (colonus, § 35 inf.). The rights of other persons to fruits were based on other titles. The dominus of a fruit-bearing object (e. g. land) is entitled to the fruits, while still unseparated, as part of the land itself: after separation, as a consequence of his property in the soil. The title, or rather the quality of the right, is not the same before and after separation for the fructus separati of an estate which a man has in bonis only belong to him ex iure Quiritium. The title of the emphyteuta (Excursus II at the end of this Book) was separation : 'sicut eius qui vectigalem fundum habet fructus fiunt simul atque solo separati sunt' Dig. 22. 1. 25. 1: the reason of his being differently treated from the lessee being the larger nature of his interest, evidenced also by his having a vindicatio utilis. The precise rights of the bona fide possessor (i.e. one who has obtained a res aliena by a iustus titulus from another whom he believed to have the right of alienation) are much disputed: but the better opinion seems to be that he became complete owner of all fruits whatsoever (though not of accessions) by the mere fact of separation Iulianus ait, fructuarii fructus tunc fieri, cum eos perceperit: bonae fidei possessoris mox cum a solo separati sunt' Dig. 7. 4. 13: cf. Dig. 22. 1. 25. I ; 41. 1. 48. If this be correct, the words quos percepit in this section must be read as if they were 'qui separati sunt.' If, however, the dominus was successful in a vindicatio against the bona fide possessor, the latter had to restore fructus extantes (i.e. separati but not comsumpti, Bk. iv. 17. 2 inf.), but for fructus consumpti, as is ob

36 fructus, licet consumpti sint, cogitur restituere. Is, ad quem usus fructus fundi pertinet, non aliter fructuum dominus efficitur, quam si eos ipse perceperit. et ideo licet maturis fructibus, nondum tamen perceptis decesserit, ad heredem eius. non pertinent, sed domino proprietatis adquiruntur. eadem 37 fere et de colono dicuntur. In pecudum fructu etiam fetus est, sicuti lac et pilus et lana : itaque agni et haedi et vituli et equuli statim naturali iure dominii sunt fructuarii. partus vero ancillae in fructu non est itaque ad dominum proprietatis pertinet absurdum enim videbatur hominem in fructu esse, cum omnes fructus rerum natura hominum gratia comparavit. served in the text, he was not answerable; under consumptio being included specification and alienation. Of accessions, as of the main object, he was bona fide possessor only: hence as the partus ancillae is not fructus (§ 37 inf.) it became the property of the ancilla's bona fide possessor only by usucapio. The mala fide possessor acquired no right to fruits in any way whatsoever, so that if the dominus established his title against him, he could be compelled to restore fructus extantes by vindicatio, and the value of fructus consumpti (from the very commencement of his possession) could be recovered from him by condictio, Dig. 13. 7. 22. 2, Cod. 4. 9. 3; 9. 32. 4.

§ 36. By perceptio, as indicating the moment of acquisition, is meant the actual taking of possession; 'percipere est in potestatem suam redigere,' or (as Paulus says in Dig. 6. 1. 78) 'colligere: fructum percipi... foeno caeso... uva adempta ... quamvis nondum vindemia coacta sit' Dig. 7. 4. 23, 'non si perfecti collecti, sed etiam coepti ita percipi, ut terra continere se fructus desierint' Dig. 6. 1. 78. Colonus here denotes the lessee of land, that of a house being called inquilinus: for another sense of the word see on Bk. i. 3. 5 supr. The difference between the colonus and the usufructuary marked by the word 'fere' seems to be that the right of the former devolved on his heirs.

§ 37. The first lines of this section are taken substantially from Dig. 22. 1. 28. 1 (‘itaque agni et haedi et vituli statim pleno iure sunt bonae fidei possessoris et fructuarii '), and might, if the 'statim' were pressed, seem to contradict the rule that fruits become the property of the fructuary only by perceptio, at any rate as regards such fruits as the young of animals. The statim may be reconciled with that rule by taking it to mean either merely that usucapio is not necessary to perfect the fructuary's title, or that the requirements of perceptio are satisfied if the mother, at the time of the birth, is under his care and charge. Nor can pleno iure be pressed in relation to the bona fide possessor, owing to his obligation to restore fructus extantes.

For the question whether partus ancillae can be regarded as fructus cf. Cicero, de fin. 1. 4. 2, Dig. 7. 1. 68. pr., and 1.

Fructus naturales are distinguished from the so-called fructus civiles,

Sed si gregis usum fructum quis habeat, in locum demortuo- 38 rum capitum ex fetu fructuarius summittere debet, ut et Iuliano visum est, et in vinearum demortuarum vel arborum locum alias debet substituere. recte enim colere debet et quasi bonus pater familias uti debet.

Thesauros, quos quis in suo loco invenerit, divus Hadrianus 39 naturalem aequitatem secutus ei concessit qui invenerit. idemque statuit, si quis in sacro aut in religioso loco fortuito casu invenerit. at si quis in alieno loco non data ad hoc opera, sed fortuitu invenerit, dimidium domino soli concessit. et convenienter, si quis in Caesaris loco invenerit, dimidium inventoris, dimidium Caesaris esse statuit. cui conveniens est, ut, si quis in publico loco vel fiscali invenerit, dimidium ipsius esse, dimidium fisci vel civitatis.

Per traditionem quoque iure naturali res nobis adquiruntur : 40 nihil enim tam conveniens est naturali aequitati, quam voluntatem domini, volentis rem suam in alium transferre, ratam haberi. et ideo cuiuscumque generis sit corporalis res, tradi potest et a domino tradita alienatur. itaque stipendiaria quoque

by which is meant the return made for the use of a res aliena: 'praediorum urbanorum pensiones pro fructibus accipiuntur' Dig. 22. 1. 36, 'mercedes plane a colonis acceptae locô sunt fructuum: operae quoque servorum in eadem erunt causa, qua sunt pensiones; item vectura navium et iumentorum' Dig. 5. 3. 29, 6 usurae vicem fructuum obtinent' Dig. 22. I. 34.

§ 39. Thesaurus is defined as 'vetus quaedam depositio pecuniae, cuius non extat memoria, ut iam dominum non habeat, sic enim fit eius qui invenerit, quod non alterius sit: alioquin si quis aliquid vel lucri causa, vel metus, vel custodiae condiderit sub terra, non est thesaurus, cuius etiam furtum est' Dig. 41. 1. 31. 1. If A found a treasure on B's land otherwise than by accident it belonged altogether to B. It would seem that the English rule, which vests treasure-trove in the Crown (3 Inst. 132), was established also at Rome at some time after the legislation of Hadrian referred to in the text (for which cf. Spartianus, Hadr. 18); thus it is mentioned as a special act of grace on the part of the Emperor Alexander that he permitted thesaurus to be kept by the finder. Possibly it was the concealment of such discoveries which must have resulted from this privilege of the fiscus that led to Constantine's general enactment (Cod. Theod. 10. 18. 1) rewarding the finder with a half. Hadrian's rule was re-established by Leo, whose constitution passed into the legislation of Justinian, Cod. 10. 15.

§ 40. A fifth natural mode of acquisition is traditio, bare delivery

et tributaria praedia eodem modo alienantur. vocantur autem stipendiaria et tributaria praedia, quae in provinciis sunt, inter quae nec non Italica praedia ex nostra constitutione nulla without any prescribed form, which after Justinian's abolition of the distinction between Quiritarian and bonitarian ownership remained the universal mode of conveying property in res corporales. No mere mental act was sufficient for this purpose: there must be corporeal delivery: 'traditionibus et usucapionibus dominia rerum, non nudis pactis transferuntur' Cod. 2. 3. 30. The only exception to this rule in Roman law is societas omnium bonorum (for which see on Bk. iii. 25. pr. inf.), though iura in re aliena could be created by bare agreement, as in hypotheca, and perhaps in servitudes generally, see on Tit. 3. 4 inf. Traditio, however, by itself transferred only possession; the dominium of an object passed only if the transferor was owner (for which see inf.), and the delivery was accompanied by a iusta causa traditionis, i. e. the intention on the one hand to give, on the other to receive ownership: 'nunquam nuda traditio transfert dominium, sed ita, si venditio vel aliqua iusta causa praecesserit, propter quam traditio sequeretur' Dig. 41. 1. 31. Among such causae, besides venditio, dos, and donatio, which are mentioned in the text, may be enumerated solutio (payment), mutuum (loan), and permutatio (exchange). Though the causa usually existed contemporaneously with the delivery, it might arise subsequently, as in the cases mentioned in § 44 inf., in which the result of the traditio by itself was either mere detention (as in deposit), or civil possession (as in pignus and precarium); the causa superveniens converted this into dominium. Provided there was a sufficient causa, a mistake of the parties as to the real nature of the transaction did not prevent the property from passing: thus if A thinks he is paying B a debt, while the latter thinks he is making him a present, the property passes to B, and he becomes owner of the res tradita, for this was intended by both, though the transaction is neither gift nor payment, Dig. 41. 1. 36.

According to the general rule that no one can give a better title than he has himself, the owner alone could usually transfer dominium : 'traditio nihil amplius transferre debet, vel potest, ad eum qui accepit, quam est apud eum qui tradit: si igitur quis dominium in fundo habuit, id tradendo transfert, si non habuit, ad eum, qui accipit, nihil transfert' Dig. 41. 1. 20. pr. Some apparent exceptions to this are explained by the transferor's being actually (§ 42 inf.) or constructively the owner's agent (e. g. his tutor, curator, or pledgee); a real exception is found in the sale of res alienae by the fiscus (Tit. 6. 14 inf.), and possibly in Cod. 1. 2. 23. I. In some cases even the owner could not convey, either because he was incapable of performing legal acts (Handlungsunfähigkeit), or because he was by law prohibited from the management of his own property (e. g. prodigi), or because his alienation was nullified by positive enactment, Tit. 8 inf.

'Stipendiaria (praedia) sunt ea, quae in provinciis sunt quae propriae populi Romani esse intelleguntur : tributaria sunt ea quae propriae

differentia est. Sed si quidem ex causa donationis aut dotis 41 aut qualibet alia ex causa tradantur, sine dubio transferuntur: venditae vero et traditae non aliter emptori adquiruntur, quam si is venditori pretium solverit vel alio modo ei satisfecerit, veluti expromissore aut pignore dato. quod cavetur quidem etiam lege duodecim tabularum tamen recte dicitur et iure gentium, id est iure naturali, id effici. sed si is qui vendidit fidem emptoris secutus fuerit, dicendum est statim rem emptoris fieri. Nihil autem interest, utrum ipse dominus tradat 42 alicui rem, an voluntate eius alius. Qua ratione, si cui libera 43 negotiorum administratio a domino permissa fuerit isque ex his negotiis rem vendiderit et tradiderit, facit eam accipientis. Interdum etiam sine traditione nuda voluntas sufficit 44 domini ad rem transferendam, veluti si rem, quam tibi aliquis commodavit aut locavit aut apud te deposuit, vendiderit tibi aut donaverit. quamvis enim ex ea causa tibi eam non tradiderit, eo tamen ipso, quod patitur tuam esse, statim adqui

Caesaris esse creduntur' Gaius ii. 21. Italian soil was a res mancipi, and therefore could not be conveyed by traditio. The distinction of tributary and stipendiary provinces was merely nominal in Gaius' time, and ceased entirely about the end of the second century; see Mr. Poste's note on the passage of Gaius just cited.

§ 41. The rule of the Twelve Tables here referred to, by which traditio 'ex causa venditionis' operated a transfer of property only after the price had been paid (cf. Varro, de re rust. 2. 2. 6, Quintil. decl. 336), or security or credit given (cf. Dig. 18. 1. 19), seems to have originally related to the mancipation form of sale only, and to have been extended subsequently to sales generally. Some commentators account for it by considerations of the incompleteness of the old Roman law of contract : some suppose it to have been derived from Greece; others find in it a rule of construction only, the intention to transfer ownership being presumed to be absent unless one of the three specified conditions is satisfied. The last two lines of the section must not be taken to mean that if the vendor gives credit the property immediately passes to the vendee without traditio: from the expression 'venditae res et traditae' supr. it is clear that vendidit here means vendidit et tradidit. For the expromissor (surety) see Bk. iii. 20 inf; for pignus, Excursus II, at the end of this Book.

§ 43. From a comparison of Dig. 3. 3. 58 with ib. 63 it would seem that an agent entrusted with a libera administratio had wider powers than one whose authority was undefined.

§ 44. Cf. Dig. 41. 1. 9. 5; ib. 21. 1; 41. 2. 3. 3. 'Solo animo non posse nos adquirere possessionem, si non antecedat naturalis possessio.'