Scot And Lot
Scot and lot is a phrase common in the records of English, Welsh and Irish medieval boroughs, referring to local rights and obligations. The term ''scot'' comes from the Old English word ''sceat'', an ordinary coin in Anglo-Saxon times, equivalent to the later penny. In Anglo-Saxon times, a payment was levied locally to cover the cost of establishing drainage, and embankments, of low-lying land, and observing them to ensure they remain secure. This payment was typically a sceat, so the levy itself gradually came to be called ''sceat''. In burghs, ''sceat'' was levied to cover maintenance of the town walls and defences. In Norman times, under the influence of the word ''escot'', in Old French, the vowel changed, and the term became ''scot''. In 19th century Kent and Sussex, low-lying farmland was still being called scot-land. ''Scot'', though, gradually became a general term for local levies; a person who was not liable for the levy, but received its benefits, ''got off ' scot-free ...
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