was legal at the time the constitution was adopted. The constitution intends a body of twelve men. As juries of six were legal in justice's court when the constitution was adopted, our Supreme Court has decided that they are still so under this provision.

Meet witnesses face to face: This prevents the taking of depositions, that is, the sworn statements of persons not present at the trial, from being used against an accused, and is an important right. One accused of a felony, which is any crime usually punished by imprisonment in the state's prison, is entitled to have his witnesses subpoenaed and to have the assistance of an attorney at the expense of the county in which he is prosecuted, if he is unable to pay for them himself.

Imprisonment for debt was common in England up to a comparatively recent date. This clause does not prevent imprisonment for a limited time for wrongs done or liabilities incurred which do not arise out of contract.

CHAPTER III.

PROPERTY AND THE FORMS OF OWNERSHIP AND THE RIGHTS AND REMEDIES OF CO-OWNERS.

Property consists of anything that may be the subject of ownership. By property in common parlance is understood any tangible thing which has value. Under the law invisible things and rights may be property; the term refers as much to the use of a thing as to the thing itself. Strictly speaking, property consists in the exclusive right to use, have dominion over and dispose of any object, thing or right, or any interest therein, to the exclusion of the rest of mankind. Blackstone says that it consists of the free use, enjoyment and disposition of all of one's acquisitions, without any control or diminution, save only by the laws of the land. Property, commercially considered, is valuable in proportion to the value of the use to which it can be put, and therefore when the use of a person's property is interfered with or diminished, his property has been taken. A condition attached to the sale of property that it shall not be used, for instance, would be void as against public policy, because the value of the thing sold consists in its use, and the condition would be repugnant to the sale itself. The right to use a piece of property for a right of way, a debt due one, is property; also a patent, or copyright, or even a possibility of getting property. Thus, if A makes provision in his will that B shall have a certain piece of real estate on condition that B arrives at the age of eighty years, B's possibility of getting the property by living to the required age, is a valuable right, and therefore property. In Wisconsin it is declared by statute that property "includes real and personal property".

What is not property.-As the term property implies dominion, or power over, it follows that anything man has not dominion over, is not property. Light and air, the water

in the soil, in rivers and lakes, wild animals, fish in public waters, are not property. Undomesticated animals, in a state of nature, are not the property of the person who owns the soil on which they may be. Whenever any of these objects are reduced to dominion, however, they become property. A man may shoot a deer, catch a fish, pump water into a tank, and thus make that property which was not such before. There is no property in human beings since slavery has been abolished. During slavery times some of the Southern states provided that slaves should pass to the heirs of their owner in the same manner that real estate descended, while others provided that they should pass as personal property is distributed.

Absolute or qualified interest.-A person may own property either absolutely or qualifiedly. If no other person is interested in it, he is the absolute owner. A qualified interest may be of a great many varieties. Thus, a man may hold property as an agent, a bailee, a tenant, or he may hold it on certain conditions, or may acquire an interest in it on certain conditions.

Kinds of property.-There are two kinds of property: real and personal. The general distinction is that real property is permanent, fixed and immovable, while personal property is movable. This distinction will not always hold good in law, however. All real estate is comprehended under the legal terms of land, tenements and hereditaments. A tenement is anything which can be holden, that is, which can be held by tenure. Hereditament is any property which can be inherited; it may be tangible, such as a house and lot, or intangible, as a right of way or permanent rent payable out of real estate. The Wisconsin statutes provide that "the word 'land' or 'lands' and the words 'real estate' and 'real property' shall be construed to include lands, tenements and hereditaments and all rights thereto and interests therein." (See also the chapter on Real Property.)

Personal property consists of things which are temporary and movable and do not by law descend to the heir of the owner. By statute in Wisconsin the words "personal property" include "money, goods, chattels, things in action, and evidences of debt." Real estate may become personal property, and vice versa. A man may cut down the timber on his land, thus making it personal property, or he may

construct a fence of boards and make them real estate. The character and form of property, while usually decisive of its classification, does not necessarily determine it. The purpose for which property is used, the manner of its annexation, and above all, the relation existing between the parties who raise the question, determine the nature of the property. If a person were to erect a frame building on a lot owned by himself, for instance, the building would become real estate; if he were to lease the lot for a term of years from another, and put up the same building, in the absence of any agreement between the parties, the building would remain the personal property of the person erecting it, and would be removable at the expiration of his lease. Manure on a farm is considered real estate; in a livery stable it would be considered personal property.

The question, whether property is real or personal is often important. Its main importance lies in this: Real estate on the death of the owner descends to his heirs, in the absence of a will disposing of it; that is, immediately upon the death of the owner, by operation of law, and without any act on the part of the heir, it becomes his property. Personal property after death goes to an administrator or executor, who is a person appointed by the court to take charge of it, and it is then distributed by the court to the persons entitled to it under the laws of distribution. Some times the laws governing descent and distribution are not the same, and it then becomes important to determine the character of the property so as to determine the application of the law. The question is also liable to arise in the sale of real estate, when the seller claims the right to take certain property from the premises sold as personalty, while the buyer claims such property as part of the realty. It may also arise between landlord and tenant in regard to fixtures. See the chapters on Landlord and Tenant and Real Property in this book.

Kinds of personal property. - Personal property is divided into two main classes, called chattels real and chattels personal. Chattels personal are again divided into corporeal and incorporeal.

A chattel real is an interest growing out of lands, such as a lease for a certain term of years, but is considered personal property by law. Very little property falls under this

head. Chattels personal are those things and rights which are capable of attending their owner, and come within the usual definition of personal property.

Corporeal personal property is such as is tangible, that is, such as may be seen. The following are of this class: Lumber, animals, furniture, books, clothing, jewelry, money, etc.

Incorporeal personal property is not tangible, and consists of any valuable right which one may enforce. To this class belong accounts, the right to a patent or copyright, the right to the proceeds of a note or check, the right to demand money due on an account, the right to sue for personal injuries or damage to property, etc.

Note: Personal property is some times spoken of as divided into choses in action and choses in possession. By a chose in action is meant the right to the possession of personal property or the right to recover damages. A chose in possession denotes personal property in actual possession.

Methods of aquisition.-Property may be acquired in various ways. The most usual way is by contract, gift or inheritance. Property may also be acquired by taking it when it is without an owner, or by natural increase. Property may also be transferred from one person to another by operation of law, other than by descent, such as by a sale for taxes, forfeiture, judgment, and marriage at common law.

How property may be held.-In respect to the number and connection of owners, property may be held in one of five ways: 1) ownership in severalty; 2) in joint tenancy; 3) by tenancy in common; 4) by tenancy by the entirety, and 5) in partnership. Usually the first three are given as a classification, and that classification is also adopted by statute in Wisconsin, but the classification as above given exists independently of statute.

Ownership in severalty is ownership by a single individual and is the common form of ownership.

Ownership in joint tenancy exists when two or more persons acquire property in equal shares by purchase from the same source at the same time. A joint estate cannot be acquired by descent, as the law makes heirs tenants in common. A joint estate cannot be created without the four following requisites, which are characteristic of it: There must be unity of interest, that is, all the tenants must have