> You seem to be saying that the legal unit is the clan, rather than
> the bloodline. If that is so, how can there be any legal disputes
> WITHIN a clan?
No, that 's precisely why there are *bloodlines*, which are families/domestic units/labour organisational units in economic and political competition with other bloodlines. A bloodline has a concrete identity, and concrete wealth. It has recognised leaders who will speak on its behalf.
A bloodline is the smallest unit in Heortling law, except in the instance of certain capital crimes.
If things go wrong within a clan, bloodlines can take other bloodlines to court.
King of Sartar says this about bloodlines:
"There can be no crimes against one's own kin of the bloodline. Bloodlines must maintain their own internal standards of behaviour and maintain obedience to the family well being. An individual who is not an outlaw is inseparable from his family. No laws govern the treatment of an individual by his kinsmen. Common sense and good will bend the actualities towards familial kindness, but it isn't laws which determine this behaviour.
"Bloodlines are responsible for their members. The group shares in the punishments incurred through the actions of its members. The group also shares in the rewards, such as judgments awarded to them.
So within a bloodline, there is no law, just good old-fashioned family values, aided by the occassional threat or public jibe. TR 26-27 explores this.
When two clans go to court, it is based on clan identity.
If Clan A takes Clan B to the law moot, it is theoretically clan to clan. However, if Clan B loses and it was Zelda's bloodline that caused the trouble, you can bet on it that when Clan B pays up, Zelda's bloodline will cough up most of it. But that's up to the clan chief.
>
> Surely, by definition, kin=members of bloodline?
Subsets.:) To be fair, 'kin' is a vague term ( a bit like 'family') and it is used in TR in different spots to refer to both bloodline and clan.
Since bloodlines split from time to time, your closest kin (say a brother) could possibly be in another bloodline.
Your clan *is*kin. That's why clan members don't intermarry. The clan owns the land. The clan has its own tattoo. The clan has its ritual and mythic secrets. The clan is the fundamental, enduring unit. see TR 22.
Typing quickly - hope this makes sense and is helpful
John
Aussie Zen: The Noble Eightfold Righteous Path
Right of way; right as rain; too right; dead right; about right; sitting right; bang to rights; and she'll be right.
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