Ryder Street, St. James, Feb. 11. 1850.
Mr. Halliwell gives the words _haver_ and _havering_, in the same
sense as _havior_. Are not these words identical with _aver, averium_,
in the sense of cattle, tame beasts? _Averium_, from the old French,
_aveir_, i.e. _avoir_, originally meant any personal property; but
like _catalla_, chattels, it came to signify more particularly the
most important part of a peasant's possessions--namely, his live
stock. Thus, in the laws of William the Conqueror (Thorpe's _Ancient
Laws_, vol. ii. p. 469.), we find:--
"Si præpositus hundredi equos aut boves aut oves aut porcos
vel cujuscumque generis averia vagancia restare fecerit," &c.
The word may naturally enough have been applied to deer reduced to the
state of tame and domesticated cattle.