IDIOTS, in law. An idiot is a fool or madman from his nativity, and one who never has any lucid intervals. The king has the protection of him and his estate, during his life, without rendering any ac count;because it cannot be presumed that he will ever be capable of' taking care of himself or his affairs. By the old common law, there is a writ de ideota inquirendo, di rected to the sheriff, to inquire, by a jury, whether the party be an idiot or not; and if they find him a perfect idiot, the profits of his lands, and the custody of his per son, belong to the king, according to the statute i7 Edward II. c. 9, by which it is enacted that the king shall have the cus tody of the lands of natural fools, taking the profits of them without waste or de struction, and shall find them necessaries, of whose fee soever the land shall be holden. And; after the death of such idiots, he shall render it to the right heir, so that such idiots shall not aliene, nor their heirs be disinherited. But it seldom happens that a jury finds a man an idiot from his nativity ; but only non cornpos inentit, from some particular time ; which has an operation very different in point of law :for, in this case, he comes under the denomination of a lunatic ; in which respect the king shall not have the pro. fits of his lands, but is accountable for the same to the lunatic, when he comes to his right mind, or otherwise to his executors or administrators. The king, as parent park', has the protection of all his sub jects; and in a more peculiar manner he is to take care of all those, who, by rea son of their imbecility and want of under standing, are incapable of taking care of themselves. But though a lunatic is by comission to be under the care of the public, and such committee is to be ap pointed for him by the Lord Chancellor, whose acts are subject to the correction and control of the Court of Chancery ; yet such an one, whether so appointed, or whether he of his own head take upon him the care and management of the estate of a lunatic, is but in nature of a bailiff or trustee for him, and account able to him, his executors, or adminis trators. And as the committees of a lu
natic have no interest, but an estate dur ing pleasure, it has been ruled, that they cannot make leases, nor any ways encum ber the lunatic's estate, without a special order from the Court of Chancery, where the profits are not sufficient to maintain the lunatic. In case of a lunatic's recove ry, he must petition the Chancellor to su persede the commission ; upon the hear ing of which the lunatic must attend in person, that he may be inspected by the Chancellor. It is also usual for the physi cian to attend, and to make an affidavit that the lunatic is perfectly recovered. An idiot, or person non compos, may in herit, because the law, in compassion to their natural infirmities, presumes them capable of property. An idiot, or per son of non sane memory, may purchase, because it is intended for their benefit, and, if after recovery of their memory they agree thereto, they cannot avoid it; but if they die during their lunacy, their heirs may avoid it ; for they shall not be subject to the contracts of persons who wanted capacity to contract : so, if, after their memory recovered, the lunatic, or person non compos, die, without agreement to the purchase, their heirs may avoid it. If an ideot or lunatic marry, and die, his wife shall be endowed ; for this works no forfeiture, and the king has only custody of the inheritance in one case, and the power of providing for him and his family in the other ; but in both cases the free hold and inheritance is in the idiot or lu natic; afid therefore if lands descend to an idiot or lunatic after marriage, and the king, on office found, takes those lands in to his custody, or grants them over to another as committee in the usual man ner, yet the husband shall be tenant by the courtesy, or the wife endowed, since their title does not begin to any purpose till the death of the husband or wife, when the king's title is at end.