BONA WAVIATA, are goods stolen, and waived or thrown away by the thief in his flight, for fear of being apprehended. These are given to the king by the law, as a punishment upon the owner for not himself pursuing the felon, and taking away his goods from him. And therefore if the party robbed do his diligence immediately to follow and apprehend the thief (which is called making fresh suit), or do convict him afterwards, or procure evidence to convict him, he shall have his goods again. Waived goods do also not belong to the king till seized by somebody for his use; for if the party robbed can seize them first, though at the distance of 20 years, the king shall never have them. If the goods are hid by the thief, or left anywhere by him, so that he had them not about him when he fled, and therefore did not throw them away in his flight; these also are not bona waviata, but the owner may have them again when he pleases. The goods of a foreign merchant, though stolen and thrown away in flight, shall never be waifs: the reason whereof may be, not only for the encouragement of trade, but also because there is no willful default in the foreign merchant's not pursuing the thief, he being generally a stranger to our laws, our usages, and our language.