III. Concerning the Penalty for Removing a Man from a Church by Force.
Where anyone removes his slave or a debtor from a church, or the altar where he sought sanctuary, without the consent of a priest, or of some other ecclesiastic who has charge of said church; as soon as the fact has been brought to the notice of the judge, if he is a person of high rank, said offender shall be compelled to pay a hundred solidi to the church which sustained the injury. A person of inferior station shall pay thirty solidi, and if he should not have the means to do so, he shall be arrested by the judge, and receive a hundred lashes in public. The master shall then regain possession of his slave, and the debtor shall be surrendered to his creditor.
IV. A Debtor, or a Criminal, Cannot be Forcibly Removed from a Church, and must Pay such Debts, or Penalties, as are Due.
No one shall presume to seize a person who seeks sanctuary in a church, or at its doors; but he may petition a priest or a deacon to restore said person to him; and if a debtor or a criminal takes refuge there, and he should not be liable to the penalty of death, the ecclesiastic in charge of the church may interpose his good offices, and request that said party be pardoned or discharged. If a debtor should take refuge in a church, the church shall have no right to protect him, but the priest or deacon must surrender him, without delay, with the admonition that his creditor shall neither injure nor bind him who claimed the right of asylum; and the creditor must state, in the presence of said priest or deacon, within what time he shall expect the payment of the debt. Because the intervention of the church may be invoked for purposes of mercy, is no reason why persons should be deprived of their property. The laws relating to homicides and other malefactors are set forth under their respective titles.
BOOK X.
CONCERNING PARTITION, LIMITATION, AND BOUNDARIES.
TITLE I. CONCERNING PARTITION, AND LANDS CONVEYED BY CONTRACT.
| I. | A Partition Once Made, shall Remain Forever in Force. |
| II. | No Partition Made Between Brothers shall be Revoked, Even if it was not Made in Writing, but Only in the Presence of a Competent Witness. |
| III. | Where a Partition is Made Among Many Persons by the Majority, and those Entitled to the Larger Share, it shall not be Changed by any Act of the Minority. |
| IV. | One Heir shall have the Right to Act for all the Others, either as Plaintiff or Defendant. |
| V. | Where Anyone Violates a Contract Establishing a Partition, and Seizes a Portion of the Property. |
| VI. | Where an Heir Plants a Vineyard, or Erects a House, on Land Belonging to his Co-Heirs. |
| VII. | Where one Person Plants a Vineyard on the Land of Another, to which he has no Title. |
| VIII. | Concerning the Division of Lands Made Between Goths and Romans. |
| IX. | Concerning Forests Still Undivided Among Goths and Romans. |
| X. | Whatever Acts a Slave may Perform, without the Order of his Master, shall be Void, except when Otherwise Provided by Law. |
| XI. | Whoever Enters upon Land, under a Lease, must Comply with his Contract. |
| XII. | Where Lands are Leased, by a Written Contract, for a Term of Years. |
| XIII. | Where he who Rents Land under Contract, Cultivates a Greater Area than he has a Right to do, under the Conditions of the Same. |
| XIV. | Where a Dispute Arises Between Landlord and Tenant, Concerning Arable Lands, or Forests, which are Leased. |
| XV. | Both Tenants must Pay the Rent for Land which has been Sublet. |
| XVI. | Where Goths have Appropriated any of the Third Part of Land Belonging to Romans, they shall Restore the Entire Amount to the Romans, under Order of Court. |
| XVII. | Concerning the Partition of Property Among the Blood-Relatives of Slaves, and the Distribution of their Personal Estates. |
| XVIII. | All Personal Property shall be Classed under One Title. |
| XIX. | Where a Contract is not Complied with, according to its Terms. |
I. A Partition Once Made, shall Remain Forever in Force.
A just partition once made, shall always remain in force, and, for no reason, shall it ever be altered thereafter.
II. No Partition made Between Brothers shall be Revoked, Even if it was not Made in Writing, but Only in the Presence of a Competent Witness.