by partition, they are no longer parceners, but tenants in ſeveralty; or if one parcener alienes her ſhare, though no partition be made, then are the lands no longer held in coparcenary, but in common[1].
Parceners are ſo called, ſaith Littleton[2], becauſe they may be conſtrained to make partition. And he mentions many methods of making it[3]; four of which are by conſent, and one by compulſion. The firſt is, where they agree to divide the lands into equal parts in ſeveralty, and that each ſhall have ſuch a determinate part. The ſecond is, when they agree to chuſe ſome friend to make partition for them, and then the lifters ſhall chuſe each of them her part according to ſeniority of age; or otherwiſe, as ſhall be agreed. But this privilege of ſeniority is then perſonal; for if the eldeſt ſiſter be dead, her iſſue ſhall not chuſe firſt, but the next ſiſter. But, if an advowſon deſcend in coparcenary, and the ſiſters cannot agree in the preſentation, the eldeſt and her iſſue, nay her huſband, or her aſſigns, ſhall preſent alone, before the younger[4]. And the reaſon given is that the former privilege, of priority in choice upon a diviſion, ariſes from an act of her own, the agreement to make partition; and therefore is merely perſonal: the latter, of preſenting to the living, ariſes from the act of the law, and is annexed not only to her perſon, but to her eſtate alſo. A third method of partition is, where the eldeſt divides, and then ſhe ſhall chuſe laſt; for the rule of law is, cujus eſt diviſio, alterius eſt electio. The fourth method is where the ſiſters agree to caſt lots for their ſhares. And theſe are the methods by conſent. That by compulſion is, where one or more ſue out a writ of partition againſt the others, whereupon the ſheriff ſhall go to the lands, and make partition thereof by the verdict of a jury there impanneled, and aſſign to each of the parceners her part in ſeveralty[5]. But there are ſome things which
