If the defendant did not appear, he or she could immediately be distrained for the debt and costs.
Sometimes clashes occurred when the lord distrained his tenants' beasts, to put pressure on debtors for example, or in lieu of other outstanding payments.
These codes, which control the activities of bailiffs, will include the goods which can be distrained.
You can only distrain on certain specified chattels which happen to be in the dwelling-house at that particular moment.
In the event of non-payment of rent, the landlord has to decide whether he will seek an ejectment order or distrain on the furniture.
But he said something about a man who had been fined and if there was nobody to pay his goods could be distrained upon.
At the present time if a local authority wishes to distrain for rent it has to go before a magistrate and get a distress warrant.
It is true that the magistrates have the power to distrain, but they never do it.
