Definition of "tithingman"

tithingman

noun
plural tithingmen
1. (law, historical) The chief of a tithing.
  Quotations
  [...] We that are wisely mounted higherThan constables, in curule wit,When on tribunal bench we sit,Like speculators, should foresee,From Pharos of authority,Portended mischiefs farther thanLow proletarian tything-men [...]
  1663, Samuel Butler, Hudibras, part 1, canto 1
2. (obsolete) A ruler or leader of ten men; a decurion.
3. (UK, law) A peace officer; an underconstable.
4. (US, Maryland and New England dialect, historical) A parish officer elected annually to preserve good order in the church during divine service, to make complaint of any disorderly conduct, and to enforce the observance of the Sabbath.
5. A tithe proctor: a collector of tithes.