Overlaw of the Banded Folkdoms

The Overlaw of the Banded Folkdoms (B. F. Overlaw or, in the tongue of its springing: Constitution of the United States) is the highest law of the Banded Folkdoms of America. The Overlaw was written in 1787 and set forth in 1788. It has been amended twenty-seven times, last in 1992. It is by now the oldest of all written overlaws.

Foreword
We the Folk of the Banded Folkdoms, for the end of shaping a more flawless Oneband, build up the Right, bulwark the frith of our homeland, furnish a shared guardianship, further the overall welfare, and make sound the blessings of freedom for ourselves and our offspring, do set forth and build up this Overlaw for the Banded Folkdoms of America.

First Cleaving
All lawmaking rights herein given shall be entrusted to an Althing of the Banded Folkdoms, which shall be made up of an Eldermoot and a House of Betokeners.

Second Cleaving
The House of Betokeners shall be made up of fellows chosen every second Year by the Folk of the sundry Folkdoms, and the Chusers in each Folkdoms shall have the fittings sought after in Chusers of the most manyfellowed branch of the Folkdom’s Lawmoot.

No man shall be a Betokener who shall not have reached the Age of twenty-five Years, and been seven Years a burroughman of the Banded Folkdoms, and who shall not, when chosen, be an Indweller of that Folkdom in which he shall be chosen.

Betokeners and forthright revefares shall be allotted among the sundry Folkdoms which may be within this Oneband, by weight of their sundry Tallies, which shall be found by casting together the whole Tally of free Men, with those bound to Besteading for a Time of Years, and leaving out Indians not begelded, with three fifths of all other men. The true tallying shall be made within three Years after the first Meeting of the Althing of the Banded Folkdoms, and within every follower Tide of ten Years, in such Manner as they shall by Law set forth. The Tally of Betokeners shall not rise beyond one for every thirty Thousdand, but each Folkdom shall have at Least on Betokener; and until such tallying shall be made, the Folkdom of New Hampshire shall be by right chuse three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode-Island and Boonpouring Farmsteads one, Connecticut five, New-York six, New Jersey four, Pennsylvania eight, Deleware one, Maryland six, Maidenland ten, North Carolina five, South Carolina five, and Georgia three.

When openings happen in the Betokening from any Folkdom, the Wardkeeping Elderdom thereof shall send forth Writs of Chusing to fill such Openings.

The House of Betokeners shall chuse their Speaker and other Ambighters, and it alone shall have the Right of Downthrowing.

Third Cleaving
The Eldermoot of the Banded Folkdoms shall be made up of two Elders from each Folkdom, chosen by the Lawmoot thereof, for six Years; and each Elder shall have one Yea or Nay.

As soon as they shall be brought together in Upshot of the first Chusing, they shall be sundered as evenly as may be into three Sets. The Seats of the Elders of the first Set shall open at the End of the second Year, of the second Set at the End of the fourth Year, and of the third Set at the End of the sixth Year, so that one third may be chosen every second Year; and if Openings happen by Stepping Down, or otherwise, within the Awaytime of the Lawmoot of any Folkdom, the Wardkeeper thereof may make unabiding Choices until the next Meeting of the Lawmoot, which shall then will such Openings.

No Man shall be an Elder who shall not have reached the Age of thirty Years, and been nine Years a Boroughman of the Banded Folkdoms, and who shall not, when chosen, be an Indweller of tat Folkdom for which he shall be chosen.

The Under-Foresitter of the Banded Folkdoms shall be Foresitter of the Eldermoot, but shall have no Yea or Nay, unless they be evenly sundered.

The Eldermoot shall chuse their other Ambighters, and also a Foresitter-for-a-time, in the wanting of Under-Foresitter, or when he shall take up the Ambight of Foresitter of the Banded Folkdoms.

The Eldermote alone shall have the Right to try all Downthrowings. When sitting for that End, they shall be on Oath or Ayeword. When the Foresitter of the Banded Folkdoms is tried, High Lawspeaker shall sit afore: and no Man shall be cast down without the Yeas of two thirds of the Fellows present.

Doom in Trials of downthrowing shall not go further than to putting out from Ambight, and unfitness to hold and wield any Ambight of uprightness, Trust or Gain under the Banded Folkdoms; but he who is cast down shall nevertheless be linkworthy and under threat of Beguiltment, Trial, Doom, and Bestrifing, by manner of Law.

Fourth Cleaving
The Times, Steads, and Manner of holding Chusings for Elders and Betokeners, shall be set forth in each Folkdom by the Lawmoot thereof; but the Althing may at any time by Law make or makeover such Rules, save as to the Steads of chusing Elders.

The Althing shall gather together at least once in every Year, and such Meeting shall be on the first Monday in Yulemonth, unless they shall by Law choose some other Day.

Fifth Cleaving
Each House shall be Deemer of the Chusings, Backwrits and Fitness of its own Fellows, and the Most of each shall make a Wholegroup for their Dealings; but a smaller Tally may take leave from day to day, and may be given reveship to thrust the missing Fellows into the Meetings, in such Manner, and under such Fairstrifes as each House may set forth.

Each House may set the Rules of its Doings, bestrife its Fellows Behaviour unbecoming of them, and, with the Yeas of two thirds, cast out a Fellow.

Each House shall keep a Journal of its Doings, and from time to time send forth the same, save such Bits as may in their Deeming need Hiding; and the Yeas and Nays of the Fellows of either House on any happening shall, at the asking of one fifth of the Fellows there, be put into the Journal.

Neither House, within the Sitting of the Althing, shall, without Leave of the other, be gone for more than three days, nor to any other Stead than that in which the two Houses shall be sitting.

Sixth Cleaving
The Elders and Betokeners shall earn a Wage for their Besteadings, to be made sound by Law, and yielded out of the wealthhoard of the Banded Folkdoms. They shall in all Things, save Backstabbing, Felony, and Breach of the Frith, be free from Lawhalt throughout the time of their Hearkening at the Sitting of their own Houses, and in going to and coming back from the same; and for any Speech or Wordwrestle in either House, they shall be neither bidden nor searched in any other Stead.

No Elder or Betokener shall, within the Time for which he was Chosen, by named to any ethelish Ambight under the Reveship of the Banded Folkdoms, which shall have been set up, or the Gainings whereof shall have been swollen within such time; and no Man holding any Ambight under the Banded Folkdoms, shall be a Fellow of either House within his Staying in Ambight.

Seventh Cleaving
All Writs for raising Geld shall spring up in the House of Betokeners; but the Eldermoot may put forth or give leave to Amendings as on other Writs.

Every Write which shall have gained the Yea in the House of Betokeners and the Eldermoot shall, ere it become Law, be laid before the Foresitter of the Banded Folkdoms; If he think well of it, he shall underwrite it, but if not he shall send it back, with his Naysayings to that House in which is shall have sprung up, who shall pen in the Naysayings at large on their Journal, and proceed to again bethink it. If after such second Bethinking two thirds of that House shall say Yea to the Writ, it shall be sent, together with the Naysayings, to the other House, by which it shall likewise be again bethought, and if upheld by two thirds of that House, it shall become a Law. But in all such Things the Yeas and Nays of both Houses shall be reckoned, and the Names of the Men standing for and against the Writ shall be penned in on the Journal of their own Houses. If any Writ shall not be sent back by the Foresitter within ten Days (save Sundays) after it shall have been laid before him, the Same shall be a Law, in like Manner as if he had signed it, unless the Althing by their taking Leave forestall its Comeback, for then it shall not be a Law.

Every Behest, Setting, or Poll to which the Yea of the Eldermoot or House of Betokeners may be needful (save on a tussle over taking Leave) shall be laid before the Foresitter of the Banded Folkdoms, and before the Same shall gain Sway, shall be upheld by him, or being turn down by him, shall again be sent onward by two thirds of the Eldermoot and House of Betokeners, in the manner of the Rules and Bounds set forth for a Writ.

Eight Cleaving
The Althing shall have the Right to lay and gather Revefares, Must-yields, Put-upons, and Sharecuts, to pay the Owings and furnish the shared guardianship and overall welfare of the Banded Folkdoms, but all Must-yields, Put-upons and Sharecuts shall be samewise throughout the Banded Folkdoms;

To borrow Geld on the fastness of the Banded Folkdoms;

To oversee Trade with Outlands, and among the sundry Folkdoms, and with the Indian Thedes;

To set up a samewise Rule of Insplicing, and samewise Laws on the underwarp of Geldfounderings throughout the Banded Folkdoms;

To mint Geld, set forth the Worth thereof, and of outlandish fee, and fix the Likeholds of Weights and Reckonings;

To set out the Bestrifing of crookminting the Soundscores and running Mintgeld of the Banded Folkdoms.

To set up Mail Houses and mail Roads;

To further the Forthstride of Worldken and the handy Crafts, by making sound for bounded Times to Writers and Firstwrights the one-off Right to their sundry Writings and Findings;

To frame Hoves beneath the Most High Hove;

To mark out and bestrife Raidthefts and Felonies done on the high Seas, and Sins against the Law of Thedes;

To cry out ‘War!’, give Writs of Mark and Backstriking, and make Rules over Takings on Land and Water;

The raise and furnish Landfyrds, but no Outdealing of Geld to that End shall be for a longer Time than two Yearl

To furnish and work upkeep on a Strikefleet;

To make Rules for the Reveship and Oversight of the land and sea warmights;

To furnish for the calling forth of the Fyrk to wardkeep the Laws of the Oneband, put down uprisings and drive off landraids;

To furnish for the Outlaying, Weaponing, and Oversight of the Fyrd, and for holding reveship over such a share of them as may be beworked in the Besteading of the Banded Folkdoms, keep back to the sundry Folkdoms, the Naming of the Leadmen, and the Craft of drilling the Fyrd in line with the means set forth by the Althing;

To wield full Lawcraft in all Things whatsoever, over such Shire (not groing beyond ten Miles fourside), as may, by upgiving of some Folkdoms, and the uptaking of the Althing, become the Seat of the Reveship of the Banded Folkdoms, and to wield like Reveship over all Steads bought by the Yea of the Lawmoot of the Folkdom in which the Same shall be, for the raising up of Strongholds, Storage-houses, Weaponstocks, dock-Yards, and other needful Buildings;–

To make all Laws which shall be needful and fitting for bringing into Wardkeep the foregoing Rights, and all other Rights entrusted by this Overlaw in the Reveship of the Banded Folkdoms, or in any Stewardship or Ambighter thereof;

Ninth Cleaving
The wandering or inbringing of such Men as any of the Folkdoms now being shall think right to let in, shall not be forbidden by the Althing ere the Year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a Fare or Must-yield may be put upon such inbringing, not going beyond ten dollars for each Man.

The Right of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be put on hold, unless when in Times of Uprising or Landraid the shared frith may need it.

No Writ of Foredoom or after-the-deed Law shall be made.

No Headfare, or other forthright Revefare, shall be laid, unless done in Evenness with the Tallying before bade to be taken.

No Revefare or Must-yield shall be laid on Things carried out from any Folkdom.

No Forechoice shall be given by any Rule of Trade or Begelding to the Docks of one Folkdom over those of another: nor shall ships bounds to, or from, one Folkdom, be made to come into, clear, or give up Must-yields in another.

No Geld shall be drawn from the Wealthhoard, but as the Upshot of Outdealings made by Law; and a steady Bewriting and Reckoning of the Backwrits and Yieldings of all folkish Geld shall be sent forth from time to time.

No Highness-Name shall be given by the Banded Folkdoms: And no Man holding any Ambight of Gain or Trust under them, shall, without the Yea of the Althing, take any Gift, Gaining, Ambight, or Highness-Name, of any kind whatever, from any King, Atheling, or outlandish Rike.

Tenth Cleaving
No Folkdom shall go into any Dealing, Tie, or Rikeband; give Writs of Mark and Backstriking; mint Geld; send forth Writs of Fastness; make any Thing but gold and silver mintage a Handaway in the filling of Bonds; make any Writ of Foredoom, after-the-deed Law, or Law forestalling the heading of Bonds.

No Folkdom shall, without the Yea of the Althing, lay any Put-upon or Must-yield on Intrades of Outtrades, save what may be wholly needful for wardkeeping its inlooking Laws: and the net Gain of all Put-upons and  Must-yields, laid by any Folkdom on Intrades of Outtrades.

No Folkdom shall, without the Yea of the Althing, lay any Must-yield of Tonnage, keep Warriors, or Ships of War in time of Frith, go into any behight or fellowship with another Folkdom, or with an outlandish Rike, or make war, unless truly landraided, or in a plight so near-at-hand as to not brook any holdup.