To this manor belong 4 men for all custom, and other 4 for soke only[252].
In a given case all these bonds may be united:—
There are 7 sokemen who are the Saint’s men with sake and soke and all custom[253].
Over this man the Saint has sake and soke and commendation with all custom[254].
Then if the man ‘withdraws,’ or gives or sells his land, we often read of the soke ‘remaining’; we sometimes read of the commendation, the custom, the service ‘remaining.’
These free men could sell or give their land, but the commendation and the soke and sake would remain to St Edmund[255].
These men could sell their land, but the soke would remain to the Saint and the service (servitium), whoever might be the buyer[256].
They could give and sell their land, but the soke and the commendation and the service would remain to the Saint[257].
But after all, these distinctions are not maintained with rigour, for the soke is sometimes spoken of as though it were a species of consuetudo. We have a tangled skein in our hands.
Commendation.