licipcrs. And lie wlui was suninioned, it he recognizes ir as proper tor himselt ro do so, shall absolve himselt with oaths gi\en tor him Iw eighteen oathhelpers. 4. It indeed it is such a ease that the eomposition is tort\ -ti\ e solidi or moreii}i to the amount ot the wergeld (</^//<7/iAv;;)-he who summoned himto court shall otter oath with twelve oathhelpers; and he who was summoned to courr, it he knows that it is proper tor him to do so, can ahsoKe himselt with oaths giv en h\ twentv-tlv e oathhelpers. |4. It indeed it is such a case that the composition is tortv-tive solidi or more-uji to the amount ot the wergeld (i^/iZ/cz/c/cwi-he who summoned |the others] to court shall otter oath with twelve; and he who was summoned, it he knows that he is innocent, shall absolve himselt with oaths gi\ en bv twentv-ti\ e. V But it a man has summoned someone to court in a suit involv ing a judgement that is the amount ot the wergeld {Icinh-in), he who summoned him should otter oath ( vitiriJo nr n'cJmlo itiriirv) with twelv e; and it he jwho was summoned] neglects to come to court or does nor want to place his hand in the caiddron, he Ivvho summoned] shoidd heat up the cauldron after lourteen dav s. What is hc'rc at issue is the summoning to court of one member of the king's retinue b\ another, as appears from7^.1. Reliance for proof is placet! aho\e all on oaths and oath-helpers, not upon the ordeal. More than that, the implication of the te.\t is that the ordeal was used onh in the most serious cases. Again, the question must he, if the ordeal unfailingK gat e the right (Outcome, win’ was it used (nd\’ for the most serious situations.- C'ertainh’, a person who was proven innocent In the ordeal would suffer pain, hut still The answer to mv questions is that from the outset there was no total reliance on div ine interv ention in the ordeal. We are once again faced with a last resort, The Last Best Cdiance. A severe social prohlem exists. It ought to he solved hv law, hut the law cannot rationallv give an answer in a direct manner. Recourse is had nt extremis to an apparentlv' irrational mode of proof. Once again 1 am nor sugg29 In some circumstances a person sentenced to the ordeal could redeemhis hand: Pactus Legis Salicae 53. 137
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