thirlage
Definitions
from The Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- noun In Scots law, a species of servitude, formerly very common in Scotland, and also prevalent in England, by which the proprietors or other possessors of lands were bound to carry the grain produced on the lands to a particular mill to be ground, to which mill the lands were said to be thirled or astricted, and also to pay a certain proportion of the grain, varying in different cases, as a remuneration for the grinding, and for the expense of the erection and maintenance of the mill. Also called sequel.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English
- noun The right which the owner of a mill possesses, by contract or law, to compel the tenants of a certain district, or of his sucken, to bring all their grain to his mill for grinding.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
- noun (Scots) The right of the owner of a mill to compel tenants to bring all their grain to that mill for milling.
Examples
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Those of the Sucken, or enthralled ground, were liable in penalties, if, deviating from this thirlage, (or thraldom,) they carried their grain to another mill.
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We have no turbary, or any other easement; but, to compensate us, we have thirlage, outsucken multures, insucken multures, and dry multures; as also we have a soumin and roumin, as any one who has been so fortunate as to hear Mr Outram's pathetic lyric on that interesting right of pasturage will remember, in conjunction with pleasing associations.
Note
The word 'thirlage' is related to 'thrall'.
