HOUSE, in point of law, is an Englishman's castle, though not a Scotehman's. In •other words, when a man shuts himself spin his own house, no bailiff can break open the •door to arrest him, or seize his goods for debt in England or Ireland, and no court can a bailiff such power; in Scotland, however, even a man's own house is no pro tection, for leave can be got from the court, often called on that account the queen's keys, which enables the messenger to break open the outer door and arrest. In England, therefore, if a person can manage to procure supplies from without, he can fortify him self against the enemy for any length of time; but though it is not competent for the bailiff to break open the outer door by force, yet every trick or stratagem is fair in 'order to effect a peaceable entry, and once in lie cannot be turned out. Where the party is charged with a criminal offense, a constable armed with a warrant, or in some cases without, is entitled to break into the house and arrest him, both in England and ;Scotland. A man is entitled also to defend his house against trespassers and thieves,
using no greater force than is necessary; and, if necessary in that sense, he may even kill the intruder, though very strong circumstances are required to justify this. He may also put spring-guns on the premises. In Scotland a peculiar name is given to the offense of feloniously assaulting a man in his own house, called haimsucken (q.v.), a name also used in the old law of England; and all offenses committed in a house are generally punished more severely. Housebreaking is a technical name in Scotland, but in England is a popular phrase, the legal terms being larceny or robbery in a dwelling house, or burglary, according to the circumstances.