BLADA. In old English law. Growing crops of grain of any kind. Spelman. All manner of annual grain. Cowell. Harvested grain. Bract. 217b; Reg. Orig. 94b, 95.
BLADARIUS. In old English law. A corn-monger; meal-man or corn-chandler; a bladier, or engrosser of corn or grain. Blount.
BLANC SEIGN. In Louisiana, a paper signed at the bottom by him who intends to bind himself, give acquittance, or compromise, at the discretion of the person whom he instrusts with such blanc seign, giving him power to fill it with what he may think proper, according to agreement. Musson v. U. S. Bank, 6 Mart. O. S. (La.) 718.
BLANCH HOLDING. An ancient tenure of the law of Scotland, the duty payable being trifling, as a penny or a pepper-corn, etc., if required; similar to free and common socage.
BLANCHE FIRME. White rent; a rent reserved, payable in silver.
BLANCUS. In old law and practice. White; plain; smooth; blank.
BLANK. A space left unfilled in a written document, in which one or more words or marks are to be inserted to complete the sense. Angle v. Insurance Co., 92 U. S. 337, 23 L. Ed. 556.
Also a skeleton or printed form for any legal document, in which the necessary and invariable words are printed in their proper order, with blank spaces left for the insertion of such names, dates, figures, additional clauses, etc., as may be necessary to adapt the instrument to the particular case and to the design of the party using it.
—Blank acceptance. An acceptance of a bill of exchange written on the paper before the bill is made, and delivered by the acceptor.—Blank bar. Also called the "common bar." The name of a plea in bar which in an action of trespass is put in to oblige the plaintiff to assign the certain place where tine trespass was committed. It was most in practice in the common bench. See Cro. Jac. 594.—Blank bonds. Scotch securities, in which the creditor's name was left blank, and which passed by mere delivery, the bearer being at liberty to put in his name and sue for payment. Declared void by Act 1696, c. 25.—Blank indorsement. The indorsement of a bill of exchange or promissory note, by merely writing the name of the indorser without mentioning any person to whom the bill or note is to be paid; called "blank," because a blank or space is left over it for the insertion of the name of the indorsee, or of any subsequent holder. Otherwise called an indorsement "in blank." 3 Kent, Comm. 89; Story, Prom. Notes, § 138.
BLANKET POLICY. In the law at fire insurance. A policy which contemplates that the risk is shifting, fluctuating, or varying, and is applied to a class of property, rather than to any particular article or thing. 1 Wood, Ins. § 40. See Insurance Co. v. Baltimore Warehouse Co., 93 U. S. 541, 23 L. Ed. 868; Insurance Co. v. Landau, 62 N. J. Eq. 73, 49 Atl. 738.
BLANKS. A kind of white money, (value 8d.,) coined by Henry V. in those parts of France which were then subject to England; forbidden to be current in that realm by 2 Hen. VI. c. 9. Wharton.
BLASARIUS. An incendiary.
BLASPHEMY. In English law. Blasphemy is the offense of speaking matter relating to God, Jesus Christ, the Bible, or the Book of Common Prayer, intended to wound the feelings of mankind or to excite contempt and hatred against the church by law established, or to promote immorality. Sweet.
In American law. Any oral or written reproach maliciously cast upon God, His name, attributes, or religion. Com. v. Kneeland, 20 Pick. (Mass.) 213; Young v. State, 10 Lea (Tenn.) 165; Com. v. Spratt, 14 Phila. (Pa.) 365; People v. Ruggles, 8 Johns. (N. Y.) 290, 5 Am. Dec. 335; Updegraph v. Com., 11 Serg. & R. (Pa.) 406; 2 Bish. Cr. Law. § 76; Pen. Code Dak. § 31.
In general, blasphemy may be described as consisting in speaking evil of the Deity with an impious purpose to derogate from the divine majesty, and to alienate the minds of others from the love and reverence of God. It is purposely using words concerning God calculated and designed to impair and destroy the reverence, respect, and confidence due to Him as the intelligent creator, governor, and judge of the world. It embraces the idea of detraction, when used towards the Supreme Being, as "calumny" usually carries the same idea when applied to an individual. It is a willful and malicious attempt to lessen men's reverence of God by denying His existence, or His attributes as an intelligent creator, governor, and judge of men, and to prevent their having confidence in Him as such. Com. v. Kneeland, 20 Pick. (Mass.) 211, 212.
The use of this word is, in modern law exclusively confined to sacred subjects; but blasphemia and blasphemare were anciently used to signify the reviling by one person of another. Nov. 77, c. 1, § 1; Spelman.
BLEES. In old English law. Grain; particularly corn.
BLENCH, BLENCH HOLDING. See Blanch Holding.
BLENDED FUND. In England, where a testator directs his real and personal estate to be sold, and disposes of the proceeds as forming one aggregate, this is called a "blended fund."
BLIND. One who is deprived of the sense or faculty of sight. See Pol. Code Cal. 1903, § 2241.
BLINKS. In old English law. Boughs broken down from trees and thrown in a way where deer are likely to pass. Jacob.
