If the mortgagor is not seised in fee, but has only a limited interest in land, as a lease for years, the mortgagor, by taking an assignment of the lease, becomes liable for the rent, and to the covenants contain ed in the lease, though he has never taken possession of the premises included in it. The same ride was for a time held to apply to an equitable mortgagee by de posit of title-deeds ; but in a very recent case it has been decided that the equitable mortgagee is not liable to such covenants (Moore v. Cheat, 8 Sim., SOS) : and so the matter stands at present.
The preceding remarks apply to mort gages of land only, in which there are many peculiarities which arise from the condition of legal ownership of land in this country. But other kinds of property may be mortgaged, such as chattels per sonal, a life-interest in a sum of money, or a policy of insurance, or a ship, or shares in a ship. The subject of pawning or pledging of goods is treated under PLEDGE, and also the rules of the Roman law as to Hypotheca and Pignus. The i equitable lien on laud, which is classed among mortgages by some writers, is briefly noticed under LIE111; and mort of ships under SHIP.
The English law of mortgage has been chiefly formed by the decisions of courts of equity, and it now forms a very im portant and often complicated part of the law of property and contracts. As it is a matter of general interest that every rea sonable facility should be given to the ' sale of property, so it is equally a matter of general interest that the means of borrow ing money upon the security of property should be rendered easy, and the rules of law relating thereto as clear and certain as the nature of the transaction will allow.
The borrowing and lending of money upon good security is one of the most direct means of rendering capital productive. Those who lend receive the value of their money in the shape of interest, and those who borrow are enabled to employ their industry, fixed or moveable capital and skill, more effectually than they could without this aid. Though the amount of mortgage transactions is very great, they might be still further increased if those who are the cultivators of land had such an interest in it as would enable them, either alone or in conjunction with their landlords, to borrow money for the im provement of land. But this cannot be done prudently either on the part of the lender or the borrower, so long as farms are let on the present terms. The good introduction of a ood system of increased would certainly be followed by in application of capital to land, which in many cases can only be done by borrow ing on the security of the land. [Lassa.] There is an act 3 & 4 Viet c. 55 (altered and amended by 8 & 9 Vict. c. 56), which is "to enable the owners of settled estates to defray the expense of draining the same by way of mortgage." These acts apply to England and Ireland.