were
added idolatry, heresy, schism, heinous crimes, leprosy, and insanity.
If either husband or wife were carried off into slavery, or otherwise
became unfree, or were made a prisoner of war, the other had a right
to remarry after a certain time.

To insure a decent interval between marriages, the law stipulated that
if a widow entered again into wedlock within a year after the death of
her former husband, she should sacrifice the _morgen gift_ and all the
property she had derived from him.

At first, the childless wife had no interest in her husband's
property; at his death, the duty of caring for her reverted to her
own family. If she had children, she was entitled to one-half of his
estate, but this was in the nature of a provision for the children.
But as society improved, the rights of widows came to be recognized.
Women had from the earliest times been permitted to hold and bequeath
property in their own right; the failure to recognize the widow's
interest in her deceased husband's estate arose from her being
regarded as having left her own family circle and identified herself
with that of her husband for his life only; therefore, at his death
she renewed her connection with her own family, who assumed the care
of her. In the case of her children, they, being of his flesh and
blood, had a natural interest in their father's property, while the
wife's relations with her husband were simply contractual. A more just
view prevailed in the time of Cnut, as is shown by one of his laws,
which provided that the widow not only had a right to her settled
property, but, whether she had children or not, was entitled to
one-third of whatever had been acquired jointly by her and her husband
during their married life, "excepting his clothes and his bed." This
law did not abrogate the provision already stated, that the widow
forfeited everything in case she married within a year.

About the time of Cnut's laws giving wider rights to wives in the
matter of property, there was passed a law that recognized the wife's
right to exclusive control of her personal effects. Wardrobes had
become much more extensive, and the law took the view that a woman had
a right to a chest or closet of her own, wherein to keep her clothing,
her jewelry and ornaments, and all the little articles dear to
feminine fancy and personal to their possessor. To this private
receptacle her husband could not have access without her leave. This
curious law, m