[Rarebooks] A Selection of Lawbook Exchange Titles

[The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd.]

Friday, February 06, 2004, 5:00 PM:

The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd. is pleased to offer the following items.
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1.              A Profound Influence in the American Colonies
[Care, Henry (1646-1688)]. English Liberties, Or, The Free-Born
Subject's Inheritance, Containing I. Magna Charta, The Petition of
Right, The Habeas Corpus Acts; And Divers Other Most Useful Statutes:
With Large Comments Upon Each of Them. II. The Proceedings in Apppeals
of Murther; the Work and Power of Parliaments; The Qualifications
Necessary for Such as Should be Chosen to That Great Trust. Plain
Directions For All Persons Concerned in Ecclesiastical Courts; And How
to Prevent or Take Off the Writ De Excommunicato Capiendo, As Also the
Oath and Duty of Grand and Petty Juries. III. All the Laws Against
Conventicles and Protestant Dissenters with Notes, and Directions Both
to Constables and Others Concern'd, Thereupon; And an Abstract of All
the Laws Against Papists. London: Printed by George Larkin, 1682. [x],
228 pp. 12mo. (3-1/4" x 5-1/2"). Nineteenth-century calf, blind frames
to boards, gilt double fillets to spine, marbled edges. Light rubbing,
some wear to board edges, joints and corners, chipping to head of
spine, front hinge just starting. Offsetting to endleaves, negligible
worm holes to title page and a few following leaves with no loss to
text, interior otherwise fresh. $1,500.
* First published around 1680, this assertion of English civil and
religious rights had a profound influence in the American colonies.
(It was one of the first legal books published in America). Jefferson
owned two English editions. George Mason used it when drafting
Virginia's Declaration of Rights (1776). It may have influenced
Jefferson, who owned two copies, when he wrote the Declaration of
Independence and the Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom. Its
influence is also evident in the Bill of Rights. OCLC locates seven
copies of this edition. Sowerby, Catalogue of the Library of Thomas
Jefferson 2702, 2703. Wing, Short-Title Catalogue of Books Printed in
England, Scotland, Ireland, Wales and British America C517.
(Inventory # 40571)

2.              First Edition of Cunningham's Dictionary
Cunningham, T[imothy] [1718?-1789]. A New and Complete Law-Dictionary,
Or, General Abridgment of the Law: On a More Extensive Plan Than Any
Law-Dictionary Hitherto Published: Containing not only the Explanation
of the Terms, But Also the Law itself, Both with Regard to Theory and
Practice. Very Useful to Barristers, Justices of the Peace, Attornies,
Solicitors, &c. London: Printed by the Law-Printers to the King's Most
Excellent Majesty, 1764-1765. Unpaged. text printed in double columns.
Folio (9-1/4" x 14"). Contemporary calf, blind frames to boards,
raised bands, red and green lettering pieces. A few scuffs to boards,
wear to corners and spine ends, Volume I joints cracked but secure,
Volume II joints just starting at ends, hinges cracked. Early owner
signature to front pastedowns. Minor clean tears to four leaves mended
with archival tape. Light foxing in places, interior otherwise notably
clean and bright. A handsome set. $3,000.
* First edition. Along with those of Jacob and Marriot, this was one
of the most popular comprehensive English dictionaries of the period.
According to Hicks, it was "The first...which aimed at completeness as
regards legal terms." Like Jacob, Cunningham aimed to give a complete
account of the law. The result is a work that is also an abridgment
that includes summaries of cases and precedents in equity and
statutes. Hicks notes that this edition was issued in parts. OCLC
locates 16 copies. Hicks, Materials and Methods of Legal Research
(3rd. rev. ed.) 247. Catalogue of the Library of the Harvard Law
School (1909) I:497. Sweet & Maxwell, A Legal Bibliography of the
British Commonwealth of Nations I:8 (22). Marvin, Legal Bibliography
(1847) 245. Holdsworth, A History of English Law XII:177.
(Inventory # 40576)

3.               With An Interesting Inheritance Case
Fearne, Charles [1742-1794]. [Shadwell, Thomas Mitchell, Editor]. The
Posthumous Works, Consisting of a Reading On the Statute of
Inrollments, Arguments in the Singular Case of General Stanwix, and a
Collection of Cases and Opinions. London: Printed by A. Strahan, 1797.
ix, [15], 468, [12] pp. Octavo (5" x 8-1/2"). Contemporary three-
quarter vellum over marbled boards, lettering piece to spine. Some
rubbing with minor wear to board edges, light soiling to spine, small
chip to lettering piece, corners bumped. Annotations to one page,
clean tear to a leaf with no loss to text. Occasional light foxing,
interior otherwise fresh. $500.
* Fearne wrote an influential treatise on contingent remainders that
was praised by Kent and Marvin. The present work was collected from
his manuscripts by one of his pupils. Along with cases and opinions,
it contains the reading of the Statute of Inrollments delivered in
1778 in Lyons Inn and the interesting case of General Stanwix.
"Stanwix and his daughter had perished in the same shipwreck, and the
question, as between their representatives, was whether either could
be presumed to be the survivor; the case was compromised; but Fearne
for his own amusement composed these two arguments for the two
claimants.": Butler, preface to the seventh edition of Contingent
Remainders cited in Holdsworth, History of English Law XII:374. OCLC
locates 45 copies. Sweet & Maxwell, A Legal Bibliography of the
British Commonwealth of Nations I:338 (22).
(Inventory # 40575)

4.             Fourth Edition of Jacob's Great Dictionary
Jacob, Giles [1686-1744]. A New Law-Dictionary: Containing, The
Interpretation and Definition of Words and Terms Used in the Law; and
Also the Whole Law, and the Practice Thereof, Under All the Heads and
Titles of the Same. Together With Such Informations Relating Thereto,
as Explain the History and Antiquity of the Law, and Our Manners,
Customs, and Original Government. Collected and Abstracted From All
Dictionaries, Abridgments, Institutes, Reports, Year-Books, Charters,
Registers, Chronicles, and Histories, Published to This Time. And
Fitted for the Use of Barristers, Students, and Practisers of the Law,
Members of Parliament, and Other Gentlemen, Justices of Peace,
Clergymen, &c. Corrected, With Farther Large Additions, and the Law-
Proceedings Done Into Eglish. To Which is Annexed, a Table of
References to All the Arguments and Resolutions of the Lord Chief
Justice Holt; In the Several Volumes of the Reports. London: Printed
by E. and R. Nutt, and R. Gosling, 1739. Unpaginated. Main text
printed in double columns. Folio (8-1/4" x 13-1/2"). Contemporary
calf, blind frames to boards, raised bands, lettering piece. Some
rubbing with wear to board edges, corners and spine ends, a few chips
to boards, joints and hinges cracked but secure. Minor worming to
margins of a few leaves with no loss to text, interior notably clean
and bright. $1,250.
* Fourth edition. As Cowley has pointed out, A New Law-Dictionary was
both Jacob's masterpiece and "an entirely new departure in legal
literature" that provided a model for several subsequent efforts. In
contrast to earlier works, each entry summarizes all of the laws
relating to the subject and offers extensive interpretive commentary.
Obsolete terms are omitted. It was recognized almost immediately that
Jacob created a highly useful legal encyclopedia that was more
detailed and concise than any other abridgment of the period. An
extremely popular work that went through twelve editions between 1729
and 1800, it offers unparalleled insights into Anglo-American law
during the eighteenth century. OCLC locates 23 copies of this edition.
Cowley, A Bibliography of Abridgements, Digests, Dictionaries and
Indexes to the Year 1800 234. Catalogue of the Library of the Harvard
Law School (1909) I:1036. Sweet & Maxwell, A Legal Bibliography of the
British Commonwealth of Nations I:9 (33).
(Inventory # 40588)

5.            Appealing 1731 English Manuscript on Precedents
[Manuscript]. Hay, Alexander. [Manuscript of Legal Precedents, London,
1731]. [viii], 267 pp. Octavo (4" x 6"). Contemporary paneled calf,
rebacked in period style with raised bands and lettering piece. Some
rubbing to boards, corners bumped and slightly worn, marbled
endpapers. Later bookplate to front pastedown. Text written in small
fine hand. "Alex: Hay" to head of first page and both sides of final
leaf, "1731" to verso. Small tear and browning to first leaf, interior
otherwise fresh. A unique item. $2,000.
* With eight-page index with 119 entries. It has the following
heading: "The Index of Styles of the writer and others contain'd in
this book showing what page each style is to be found. In which they
are to be sought Alphabetically." As one would suspect, the "others"
are not identified. Topics include assignation of land, loan right,
bonds of relief and marriage contracts. An interesting feature is the
group of texts in Latin, which seem to be examples from Roman canon
law. This fascinating item deserves further research.
(Inventory # 40572)

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Michael von der Linn
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