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THE CITY GOVERNMENT 99
porta, a market-place in low Latin. /orfa further refers more or less
distinctly to a place where certain dues were exacted, like the French
octrot at the gates of Paris. The king’s officer had to account for these
dues as the shire-reeve had to account for the royal revenue from a
county. We find him after the Conquest sitting, no doubt with the
king’s leave, as a judge or magistrate, and after a time he seems to
have held in his own person various offices of authority which, by
degrees, he delegated to others. Thus, when he had the name of mayor
conferred on him, he appointed two sheriffs to be under him. There
had frequently been two reeves, and sometimes even four, as in 1130.
This was, of course, to divide the responsibility. After the first mayor
came in there were al¬
ways two sheriffs, but no
more.
Here we must pause
a moment. We observe
that when the portreeve
became mayor and had
sheriffs under him he
only abdicated certain
duties but continued to
fulfil others— I mean
others which pertained
to his position as reeve.
I do not think the king
ever claimed the appoint¬
ment of these subordinate
sheriffs. In a county the
Queen appoints the high
sheriff but "not the