as anciently a deed which, requiring a counterpart, was engrossed twice on the same piece of parchment counterwise, leaving a space between, in which was written CHIROGRAPH, and through the middle of which the parchment was cut, sometimes straight, sometimes indentedly, and a moiety given to each of the parties. This was afterwards called dividenda and chartae divisa, and was the same with what we now call charter-party. The first use of these chirographs in England was in the time of Henry III.