2 £Q
Delegation
of liberty
may be re-
ftri&ed to a
particular
time, or to fe-
veral different
fpecified
periods of
time:
“ hands” are capable of both a rejlrihlive and an extenjive conftrudtion
and hence may imply three divorces, as well as one ; an intention to
that effedt therefore holds good, fince that is one of the fenfes in which
the words maybe taken: contrary to the expreffion conlidered in the
preceding fedtion, to wit, “ choofel” that being incapable o f bearing
an extenfive conftrudtion, as was there demonflrated.
If a man lay to his wife “ your bufinefs is in your own hands.
“ this day, and after to-morrow,” the night is not included:_and if
the woman reject the liberty thus given to her for this day, it is, with
refpedt to this day, annulled; but it ftill remains to her for the day
after the morrow, becaufe the hulband has exprefsly fpecified two
particular periods, with the intervention, o f a fimilar period, to which,
the liberty does not extend, (to wit, to-morrow;) and hence it appears
that thofe are two diftindt liberties, and the rejection of One doés-
not amount to a rejedtion of the other.— Ziffer i,ays that'both amount :
only to a Angle liberty, this being analogous to a cafe where a^mau
fays to his. wife you are-divorced this day and the day after to-mor-
“ row,” which implies one divorce only, and not two, (on the idea
o f one taking place this day, and the other the day after the morrow;)
and hence, in like manner, one liberty only is implied:— But to this-
it may be replied that divorce is not of a nature to admit reftridtion to
any particular time, whereas liberty is capable of fuch reftridtion;; and
hence that which regards-the JirJi period mentioned is reftridted to
that period, and that which, regards jthe fecand period commences
de nova.
If a man fay to his-wife “ your bufinefs is: in your owm hands to-
“ day and to-morrow,” the night is comprehended in i t : and, if the
woman Ihould rejedt the liberty on the inftant, it is totally annulled,
and does not return on the morrow, (according to the Zahir Rawa-
y e t,) as this amounts only, to one liberty, becaufe that between' thé
5 ' two
two periods fpecified no fimilar period intervenes to which the liberty
does not extend.
O b j e c t i o n .— Although a period fimilar to the two fpecified
does not intervene, yet' night ’Ujeryenes,’ from which it would
follow that the liberty given for to-day and to-morrow is not a Angle
liberty.
R e p l y .— T w o diftindt liberties are not occafioned by this circum-
ftance, becaufe the intervention o f night, although it may interrupt
or fufpend a matter, does not divide or terminate it, as in a public
court, for inftance, which may, on account o f the night coming on,
be adjourned, without any a'dtual breach in the feries of its proceedings;
thus it is the fame as if the man were to fay “ your bufinefs is in your
“ own hands for two days,” in which cafe a fingle liberty'only is un-
derftood.
I t is recorded, from Aboo Haneefa, that although the woman
fhould rejedt the liberty on the inftant, yet it ftill remains with her
for the following day, as fhe is not empowered to rejedt it, (that is to
fay, fhe cannot refufe her affent to receiving it,) it becoming efta-
blifhed in 'her upon the hulband faying “ your bufinefs is in your own
“ hands,” independent of her content; (as, in the diredt execution of
divorce, for inftance, where, i f the hulband were to fay “ you are
“ divorced,” divorce takes place independent of the content of the
wife;) atid'fuch being the cafe, liberty remains ftill with her for the
morrow, when fhe may lawfully make ufe of it by chufing divorce.
The ground upon which the Zahir Rawdyet proceeds, is that as, if
file Were to choofe divorce as this day, no liberty remains with
her for to-morrow, lb if file rejedt the liberty this day, no right
of choice remains with her for to-morrow, becaufe a perfon who
has a choice of two things is not authorized to ehoofe more than one
of them.
and it is not
annulled by
the wife’s rejection
of it
until the time
or times mentioned
be fully
expired.
K k 2 I t