“A Classic of High Character”

9. Abbott, Charles, Lord Tenterden [1762-1832]. [Shee, William, Editor]. A Treatise on the Law Relative to Merchant Ships and Seaman: In Five Parts: I. Of the Owners of Merchant Ships. II. Of the Persons Employed in the Navigation of Merchant Ships, and the Conveyance of Passengers Therein. III. Of Collision. IV. Of the Carriage of Goods in Merchant Ships. V. Of the Wages of Merchant Seamen. London: Saunders and Benning, 1844. lii, 664, cxcviii, 48 pp. Octavo (6" x 9"). Recent cloth, maroon leather spine label, endpapers renewed, internally clean. $450.
* Seventh edition of a work first published in 1807. Considered “a legal classic of high character” by Marvin, Abbott’s treatise was the first devoted exclusively to the law of shipping. James Kent used it in his Commentaries upon American Law; Joseph Story added notes to an American edition. Marvin, Legal Bibliography (1847) 47.

1868 Massachusetts Manual on Corporate Law

10. Batchelder, Samuel, Jr. A Manual of the Laws of Massachusetts in Relation to Manufacturing Corporations. Together with a Summary of the Laws Affecting Corporations Generally in this Commonwealth. Especially Those Organized for Business Purposes. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1868. xx, 268 pp. Octavo (4-3/4" x 7-1/2"). Contemporary law calf, red lettering piece. Rubbing and a few scuffs to edges and backstrip. Offsetting to margins of endleaves, interior otherwise clean. $150.
* First edition.

Bentham on Morals and Legislation

11. Bentham, Jeremy [1748-1832]. An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation. In Two Volumes. A New Edition, Corrected By The Author. London: W. Pickering, 1823. Two volumes. Engraved portait frontispiece. Octavo (5" x 8"). Contemporary calf, maroon lettering piece, speckled edges. Rubbing to joints and corners, some chipping to spine ends. Early bookseller tickets to front pastedowns. Light foxing to endleaves, interiors otherwise quite fresh. $750.
* First printing of this edition. The first edition was published in London, 1789. Later reprint by Clarendon Press in 1879 and Oxford in 1876 and 1907. This work “is the best written of all Bentham’s works and contains...the gist of the legal philosophy which he applied in detail in many other books and papers.”: Holdsworth, History of English Law XIII:49.

12. Benton, Thomas Hart [1782-1858]. Historical and Legal Examination of That Part of the Decision of the Supreme Court of the United States in the Dred Scott Case Which Declares the Unconstitutionality of the Missouri Compromise Act, and the Self-Extension of the Constitution to Territories, Carrying Slavery Along With It. New York: D. Appleton and Co., 1857. Reprint. Buffalo: William S. Hein & Co., 2003. 4, [3]-193 pp. Cloth. New. $58.
* A critical examination of the Dred Scott decision, along with an argument against the Missouri Compromise that asserts that slaves are not subject to federal legislation because they are property. One of the most important political figures in Antebellum America, Benton was a Missouri senator for thirty years. Generally proslavery, he opposed its extension during the 1840s because he believed it would inhibit national growth, threaten the Union and encourage the development of plantations at the expense of small freeholders.

Black’s Law Dictionary, Fifth Edition

13. Black, Henry Campbell. Black’s Law Dictionary: Definitions of the Terms and Phrases of American and English Jurisprudence, Ancient and Modern. Fifth Edition by the Publisher’s Editorial Staff. Contributing Authors Joseph Nolan and M.J. Connolly. St. Paul: West Publishing Co., 1979. xiv, 1,511 pp. Original gilt-stamped cloth, light shelfwear. $95.
* Includes a pronunciation guide, the text of the U.S. Constitution, a chronology of the U.S. Supreme Court, an organizational chart of the U.S. government and a table of British Regnal Years.

Black’s Law Dictionary, Fourth Edition

14. Black, Henry Campbell. Black’s Law Dictionary: Definitions of the Terms and Phrases of American and English Jurisprudence, Ancient and Modern. Fourth Edition by the Publisher’s Editorial Staff. St. Paul: West Publishing Co., 1951. xi, 1882 pp. Original gilt-stamped cloth, some shelfwear. A solid copy. $150.
* With a table of British Regnal Years and an index of abbreviations used by the profession.

Second Edition of Black’s Law Dictionary

15. Black, Henry Campbell. A Law Dictionary: Containing Definitions of the Terms and Phrases of American and English Jurisprudence, Ancient and Modern. And Including the Principal Terms of International, Constitutional, Ecclesiastical and Commercial Law, and Medical Jurisprudence, with a Collection of Legal Maxims, Numerous Select Titles from the Roman, Modern Civil, Scotch, French, Spanish, and Mexican Law, and Other Foreign Systems, and a Table of Abbreviations. St. Paul: West Publishing Company, 1910. 1314 pp. Contemporary buckram, red and black lettering pieces. Light wear and soiling, some chipping to edges of red lettering piece along joints. Early owner name to front pastedown, interior otherwise clean. A very good copy. $650. 
* The thoroughly revised second edition of Black’s classic dictionary incorporates several new definitions, additional case citations and many Latin and French terms overlooked in the first edition. Medical jurisprudence in particular is enriched, with new definitions for insanity and pathological and criminal insanity. The second edition is an essential complement to the first edition (1891) because it offers important insights into the rapid development of law at the turn of the century. It is also notable for its revamped system of arrangement, with all compound and descriptive terms subsumed under their related main entries.

First Edition of Blount’s Dictionary

16. Blount, Thomas [1618-1679]. Nomo Lexikon: A Law-Dictionary. Interpreting Such Difficult and Obscure Words and Terms, as are Found Either in Our Common or Statute, Ancient or Modern, Laws. With References to the Several Statutes, Records, Registers, Law-Books, Charters, Ancient Deeds, and Manuscripts, Wherein the Words are Used: And Etymologies, Where They Properly Occur. London: Printed by Tho. Newcomb for John Martin and Henry Herringman, 1670. Unpaginated. text printed in double columns. Folio (7-1/2" x 11-3/4"). Contemporary calf, raised bands, lettering piece. Moderate rubbing, a few minor stains and scuffs, wear to corners, chipping to spine ends, boards partially detached but secure. Lower portion of front free endpaper lacking, minor chips to bottom edges of two leaves, a few minor spark burns. Early owner initials to front free endpaper, light browning to outer margins of preliminaries and final leaves, light soiling and a few minor faint stains to title page, interior otherwise fresh. A copy with character. $2,000.
* First edition. Blount was a barrister and a member of the Inner Temple. Prohibited to practice at the Bar because he was a Catholic, Blount turned to legal scholarship and lexicography. Blount aimed to correct the defects he found in Cowell’s Interpreter (1607) and Rastell’s Termes de la Ley (1523). In his preface, he observed that Cowell “is sometimes too prolix in the derivation of a Word, setting down several Authors Opinions, without categorically determining which is the true”; Rastell “wrote so long hence, that his very Language and manner of expression was almost antiquated.” He hoped that by correcting these flaws he would create a dictionary useful to everyone in the profession from “the Coif to the puny-Clerk.” The Nomo-Lexikon is clearer and more detailed than its predecessors. It is also the first English-language dictionary with entries that include word etymologies and citations. An immediate success that quickly supplanted its predecessors, it was reissued in larger and revised editions throughout the eighteenth century.

Lutheran Treatise on Church Property, Tithes and Clergy

17. Bohmer, Justus Henning [1674-1749]. Ius Parochiale ad Fundamenta Genuina Revocatum a Spuriis Principiis Purgatum Atque Ita Adornatum ut Ius Ecclesiasticum Protestium Illustrare et Usum Modernum Libri Tertii Decretalium Quoad Praecipuas Materias Ostendere Queat Adiecto Indice Triplici et Supplemento Novo. Halle: Litteris & Impensis Orphanotrophei, 1738. [xxiv], 552, [56]. Frontispiece and free endpapers lacking. Quarto (6-1/2" x 8"). Contemporary vellum, attractive hand-lettered title to spine, gilt device to center of front and rear boards, green edges. Light soiling and a few minor stains. Title page with attractive large copperplate printer device printed in red and black, woodcut head-pieces, tail-pieces and decorated initials. Light browning, foxing, and dampstaining to a few leaves, interior otherwise fresh. Ex-library. Remains of shelf label to foot of spine, small owner stamps to front pastedown and title page. An appealing copy of an important work. $750.
* Fifth edition, corrected with additions. With indexes. Bohmer was perhaps the leading German authority of his age on ecclesiastical law and its history. He played a leading role in the adaptation of canon law for use in the Lutheran church and established sound theoretical foundations for Lutheran church law. First published in 1701, Ius Parochiale addresses issues relating to church property, tithes and clergy.

One of 200 Copies Printed

18. Carson, Hampton L. Samuel W. Pennypacker. An Address Delivered Before the Philobiblon Club October 26, 1910. Philadelphia: The Philobiblon Club, 1917. 44 pp. Frontispiece. Quarter cloth over paper boards, original leather spine label. Title page printed in red and black. Some shelfwear, internally clean. $45.
* Memorial address honoring the life of the renowned lawyer, judge, Pennsylvania governor, bibliophile and scholar.

Early Eighteenth Century English Guide to Land Holdings

19. [Carter, Samuel]. Lex Custumaria; or, a Treatise of Copy-hold Estates, in Respect of the Lord, Copy-holder. London: Printed by the Assigns of Richard and Edward Atkins, 1701. [xx], 392, [24] pp. Octavo (4-1/2" x 7-1/2"). Contemporary calf, raised bands. Worn, boards partially detached but holding, endpaper lacking. Foxed, occasional light dampstaining. Early signatures to title page, interior otherwise clean. $450.
* Updates Coke’s earlier work, the Compleate Copy-Holder (1630). Much land was held in copyhold tenure in the eighteenth century and this work served as a guide to lords and tenants alike. Contains numerous cases and precedents. Indexed.

Popular Nineteenth-Century Treatise on Family Law

20. Clancy, James. A Treatise on the Rights, Duties, and Liabilities of Husband and Wife at Law and in Equity. New York: Treadway & Bogert, 1828. xxiii, 684 pp. Includes one-page publisher catalogue. Octavo (5-1/2" x 9"). Recent period-style quarter calf over cloth, gilt-edged raised bands, endpapers renewed. Dampstaining to fore-edges of final few leaves, occasional light foxing, interior otherwise clean. A nice copy. $1,000.
* First American edition, from the third London edition, 1827, “with great additions.” This popular and useful work went through several London and American editions, and is instructive of the legal status of marriage at the time. Examines such topics as the equitable rights of both husband and wife in their legal relationship to each other, in terms of personal property, liability, debts, survivorship, suicide, inheritance, children, cohabitation, dower, arrest of a married woman and settlement.

 Review Copy of Darrow’s Autobiography

21. Darrow, Clarence [1857-1938]. The Story of My Life. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1932. viii, [1], 457 pp. Frontispiece. plates. Original printed wrappers with designs used in the first edition’s multi-color Art Deco dust jacket. Binding somewhat soiled and worn, some chipping to spine ends, colors toned. Paper label stating that this book is a review copy affixed to front cover. $450.
* Advance editorial copy. Distributed to commentators “with the understanding that reviews and newspaper articles concerning it [were] for release in the morning papers of February 5, which is the date it will be published.” The page following the appendix states: “Index to follow.”

 Early Codification of Westward Expansion

22. Deady, M.P., Compiler. The Organic and Other General Laws of Oregon Together with the National Constitutions and Other Public Acts and Statutes of the United States. 1845-1864. Portland: Henry L. Pittock, 1866. 1107, [1] pp. Octavo (6" x 9"). Contemporary law calf, red and black lettering pieces, blind-stamped fillets to boards. Light rubbing to binding, minor chipping to spine ends, front board partially detached but holding. Offsetting to margins of endleaves, interior otherwise clean and bright. $450.
* First edition. Important early codification of statutes enacted while over fifty thousand persons traveled the Oregon Trail. Oregon formed its first civil government and joined the Union as a free state in 1859. Includes statutes relating to domestic relations, elections, Negroes, municipal matters, corporations and codes of civil and criminal procedure.

The First Law Book Printed in Greece?

23. Dichegoron, Calogeron. Eghieirdion Perl Synallagmatikon Kai Diataktikon Grammation. E Anaptyxis Ton Peri Ayta Archon, Nomon Kai Kanonon. Athens: Tilolaou Tupogratias, 1841. 114 pp. Octavo (5" x 8"). Later tree calf, lettering piece, raised bands, gilt fillets to boards, gilt ornaments to spine, marbled edges and endpapers. Some wear to corners and joints, minor chipping to spine ends, front hinge cracked but secure, small bookseller ticket to rear pastedown. Occasional light foxing, interior otherwise clean. An attractive copy of a rare work. $2,500.
* A manual on contracts and salaries of scribes, with an explanation of the principles, uses and rules of the contributors of stocks, legislators and writers of forensic discourses. It also includes an appendix on the use of Greek merchandise. Printing in Athens commenced around 1825. Only twenty imprints were published before 1841, the date of this publication, and none of these are law books. Based on the available evidence it is quite possible that this manual was the first law book printed in Greece. It is certainly a rare book. According to the Gennadius Library of Athens, which does not own a copy, only one other copy is known to exist.

Documents of the Colonial American Slave Trade

24. Donnan, Elizabeth, Compiler. Documents Illustrative of the History of the Slave Trade to America. Washington, D.C.: Carnegie Institute, 1930-1935. Reprint. Buffalo: William S. Hein & Co., 2003. Four volumes. Cloth. New. $295.
* These volumes assemble some of the most unique and important documents dealing with the slave trade created between 1441 and the end of the eighteenth century. Donnan utilized printed and manuscript sources from the Royal African Company, the Colonial Office, Spanish archives and the narratives of African voyagers and traders.

25. Duggan, Charles. Twelfth-Century Decretal Collections and Their Importance in English History. [London]: The Athlone Press, 1963. xiv, 220 pp. Illustrated. Cloth, moderate shelfwear, internally clean. $95.

1866 Book That Discusses Slavery and The Civil War

26. Dye, John Smith. History of the Plots and Crimes of the Great Conspiracy to Overthrow Liberty in America. New York: Published by the Author, 1866. vi, 364, [4] pp. Woodcut plates. Octavo (6" x 9"). Cloth, decorative blind and gilt-stamping. Split near end of text block, one plate partially detached, interior otherwise clean and sound. $150.
* A history of the political crimes associated with slavery in America that discusses the Civil War and Lincoln’s assassination.

1889 Treatise on Family Law

27. Endlich, G.A. and Louis Richards. The Rights and Liabilities of Married Women, Concerning Property, Contracts and Torts, Under the Common and Statute Law of Pennsylvania. Philadelphia: T. & J.W. Johnson, 1889. xxxii, 493 pp. Octavo (6" x 9"). Recent period-style quarter-calf over cloth, lettering pieces, endpapers renewed. Browning to outer margins of preliminaries and final few leaves, interior otherwise fresh. An attractive copy. $350.
* “The purpose of this volume...is to present a view of the common and statute law of Pennsylvania, as it stands at this date, concerning the rights and liabilities of married women with respect to property, contracts and torts. (...) The discussion of rights under the intestate laws, of the law upon subjects purely of domestic relations, upon the contract of marriage, upon divorce, and upon the political rights and duties and criminal responsibilities of married women, has been excluded, except as attention thereto has been incidentally challenged.”: Preface, [iii]. 

Important Libel Case

28. Ferrall, S.A. The Question of Privilege Raised by the Decision in the Case of Stockdale v. Hansard. The Effect of Which Decision Is, That Although the Lords Control the Proceedings of the Exchequer Chamber; the Exchequer Chamber, the Proceedings of the Queen’s Bench; Yet That the Queen’s Bench May Control the Proceedings in the House of Commons! London: Manning and Smith, 1837. 56 pp. Octavo (5" x 8"). Contemporary three-quarter calf over marbled boards. Rubbing with wear to corners, joints and spine ends. Armorial bookplates and small binder ticket to front pastedown. Owner signatures and annotations to pastedowns, a few minor annotations to text. A good copy. $200.
* An important case centering on whether a printer of Parliamentary papers was protected from libel when printing official reports. Not in McCoy.

29. Frank, Jerome [1889-1957]. Law and the Modern Mind. With an Introduction by Judge Julian W. Mack. New York: Brentano’s Publishers, [1930]. xvii, 362 pp. Reprint. Birmingham: The Legal Classics Library, [1985]. Calf, decorative gilt stamping, raised bands, all edges gilt, marbled endpapers, ribbon marker. Fine. $95.
* Reprint of first edition. Frank’s famous work attempts to analyze the law from a psychoanalytical point of view. It “ranks with Holmes’ The Common Law, Cardozo’s The Nature of the Judicial Process and Thurman Arnold’s Symbols of Government in its influence on American legal thought.”: R.L.Y., American Bar Association Journal 35: 404-405 cited in Marke, A Catalogue of the Law Collection at New York University (1953) 906.

30. Green, A. Wigfall. The Inns of Court and Early English Drama. With a Preface by Roscoe Pound. [New York]: Benjamin Blom, [1965]. xii, 199 pp. Cloth very good in moderately worn dust jacket. Owner signature to front free endpaper, interior otherwise clean. $50.

Deeply Influential

31. Hamilton, Alexander, James Madison and John Jay. The Federalist, On The New Constitution, Written In The Year 1788, By Mr. Hamilton, Mr. Madison And Mr. Jay: The New Constitution, Written In The Year 1788, By Mr. Hamilton, Mr. Madison And Mr. Jay: With An Appendix, Containing The Letters Of Pacificus And Helvidius, On The Proclamation Of Neutrality Of 1793; Also, The Original Articles of Confederation, And The Constitution Of The United States, With The Amendments Made Thereto. A New Edition. The Numbers Written By Mr. Madison Corrected By Himself. Hallowell: Glazier & Co. 1826. 582 pp. Octavo (5-1/4" x 9"). Contemporary calf, rebacked. Ex-library. Index in fine hand laid in at rear. $650.
* The first edition printed in Maine. “Most famous and influential American political work” (Howes). Of the eighty-five essays, John Jay wrote numbers 1-5 and 54; Madison wrote numbers 10, 14, and 37-48; numbers 18-20 were written jointly; Hamilton wrote the remaining 50. Most of the individual essays appeared under the collective pseudonym “Publius” in New York newspapers and journals from October 27, 1787 to early June 1788. The M’Lean brothers collected and published the first 36 essays in March, 1788. They published the final 49 essays in Volume II in May, along with the text of the Constitution. Before newspaper publication, the last eight essays in Volume II were printed in book form. M’Lean published another edition in 1810 with corrections by Hamilton and Jay. This edition is essentially a reprint of the 1818 Gideon edition, which was the first to contain Madison’s notes and corrections. The essays were intended to encourage ratification of the proposed constitution by New York State, but were immediately recognized as the most compelling commentary on the most radical form of government the world had seen. Hamilton’s essays especially express a strong concern for the rights of property over the natural rights of “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness,” as outlined by Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence. These men saw a strong central government as essential to the maintenance of a stable economy. Their conservative views have had a lasting effect on U.S. Constitutional law.

32. Hartigan, Richard Shelley, Editor. Lieber’s Code and the Art of War. Chicago: Precedent, 1983. Reprint. New York: Legal Classics Library, 1995. vii, 157 pp. Calf, decorative gilt stamping, all edges gilt, ribbon marker, marbled endpapers. Fine. $95.
* Known officially as General Orders No. 100, Lieber’s 157-article Code for the Government of the Armies of the U.S. (1863) was the first of its kind. It remained in effect until World War II. This edition reprints this code along with Lieber’s “Guerrilla Parties Considered with Reference to the Laws and Usages of War,” an extensive introduction by Hartigan, selections from Lieber’s correspondence relating to the law of war and a thorough bibliography.

1806 New Hampshire Justice of the Peace Manual

33. [Hodgdon, Moses (1774-1840)]. The Complete Justice of the Peace Containing Extracts from Burn’s Justice, and Other Justiciary Productions. The Whole Altered and Made Conformable to the Laws and Manners of Administering Justice, Particularly in the State of New Hampshire, and Generally in the Other of the United States. Comprising the Practice, Authority, and Duty of Justices of the Peace, with Forms and Precedents Relating Thereto. Dover: Charles Peirce and Samuel Bragg, 1806. [viii], 431, 4 pp. Includes four-page publisher catalogue. Octavo (5" x 8"). Contemporary sheep, maroon lettering piece, gilt spine bands. Some rubbing, wear to corners, joints and spine ends, hinges cracked but secure. Small chips to two leaves with no loss to text. Occasional foxing, interior otherwise clean. A very attractive, well-preserved copy. $300.
* First edition. With forms. Also includes a table of fees and the text of “An Act for Regulating Fees” dated December 16, 1796. An early American printing of a classic JP manual.

34. Holt, J.C. Magna Carta and Medieval Government. London: The Hambledon Press, 1985. 316 pp. Original cloth very good in lightly worn dust jacket. $65.
* A collection of Holt’s writings on the period. Eight of these discuss different aspects of the “great charter” and form a supplement to his magisterial Magna Carta (1969). The other pieces look at King John, Anglo-Norman history and the origins of English constitutional history.

Slander Trials of Important English Political Satirist

35. [Hone, William (1780-1842)]. The Three Trials of William Hone, for Publishing Three Parodies; viz. The Late John Wilke’s Catechism, The Political Litany, and The Sinecurist’s Creed; on Three Ex-Officio Informations, at Guildhall, London, during Three Successive Days, December 18, 19 & 20, 1817; before Three Special Juries.... London: William Hone, 1818. iv, [3]-48; [3]-45, [5], [5]-44 pp. Octavo 95" x 8"). Contemporary three-quarter calf over marbled boards, gilt ornaments to spine, speckled edges. Some rubbing with wear to board edges, joints and corners. Bookplate to front pastedown. Small portion at bottom of preface excised, not affecting text. Occasional light foxing, interior otherwise clean. $250.
* William Hone was a popular and influential political satirist, pamphleteer, publisher and bookseller in early nineteenth century London. His deep commitment to radical political reform brought him to court three times. He was acquitted in each case and achieved fame as a public hero and champion of freedom of the press.

36. Hozumi, Baron Nobushige. Ancestor Worship and Japanese Law. Tokyo: The Hokuseido Press, 1943. xxxi, 205 pp. Frontispiece. Illustrations. Cloth very good in moderately worn dust jacket. $75.
* Seventh edition, revised by Shigeto Hozumi.

37. Hurst, James Willard. Justice Holmes on Legal History. New York: The MacMillan Company, [1964]. xix, 171 pp. Cloth very good in moderately worn and stained dust jacket. $45.

38. [Jennings, W. Ivor, Editor]. Modern Theories of Law. London: Oxford University Press, 1933. vi, 229. Cloth very good in worn dust jacket. Split between title page and following leaf. Early owner annotation to front free endpaper, interior otherwise clean. A solid copy. $65.
* Texts of public lectures delivered at the London School of Economics in 1932 by A.L. Goodhart, A. Meyendorf, Morris Ginsberg, Harold J. Laski, W. Ivor Jennings, Maurice Sheldon Amos, Hirsch Lauterpacht, B.A. Wortley, William A. Robson and C.A.W. Manning.

Limited Edition Reprint of Jones on Evidence

39. Jones, Burr W. Law of Evidence in Civil Cases. San Francisco: Bancroft-Whitney Co., 1896. Reprint. Buffalo: William S. Hein & Co., 2003. Three volumes. Cloth. New. $165.
* A special reprint edition limited to 100 sets. Jones on Evidence is one of the classics in the field. An anonymous early reviewer was correct when he predicted that it would be “speedily appreciated and used by the profession and students as well.”: Harvard Law Review 10:319.

A Useful Supplement to Blackstone

40. Jones, J. W. A Translation of All the Greek, Latin, Italian, and French Quotations Which Occur in Blackstone’s Commentaries on the Laws of England and Also in the Notes of Various Editions. Philadelphia: T. & J. W. Johnson & Co., 1905. 129 pp. Cloth, moderate shelfwear, internally clean. $150.

41. [Justinian (483-565 CE)]. Les Cinquante Livres du Digeste ou des Pandectes de l’Empereur Justinien, Traduits en Francais par feu M. Hulot et M. Berthelot. Sur un Exemplaire des Pandectes Florentines, Confere avec L’Edition Originale de Contius, Celle de Denis Godefroy par Elzevirs et plusiers autres. Metz: Behmer et Lamort, 1805-1804. Five volumes. Quarto (8" x 10"). Contemporary sheep, raised bands, lettering pieces, gilt ornaments to spines, edges rouged. Moderate shelfwear, some chipping to spine ends. Minor worming to margins of Volume One with no loss to text. Offsetting to margins of endleaves, occasional foxing, interior otherwise clean. $500.
* French translation of the fifty books of Justinian’s Digest, one of the four components of the Corpus Juris Civilis.

Attractive 1516 Edition of Justinian’s Institutiones

42. [Justinian ]. [Accorso, Francisco (c.1182-c.1260), Editor]. Instituta Novissime Aptissinisque Figuris Exculta Adiunctisque Pluribus in Margine Additionibus: Quas in Aliis Hactenus Impressis Minime Reperies. Venice: Luc’Antonio Giunta, 1516. 215 ff. With 22 text woodcuts, decorated initials and a full-page geneological table. Octavo (4" x 6"). Printed in red and black in two columns with surrounding commentary. Contemporary lightly rubbed polished calf with raised bands, elaborate blind stamping and rules to boards, small chip to foot of spine, two small worm holes to binding. Underlining and brief annotations in early hand to first few leaves, text otherwise remarkably clean and bright. An attractive copy. $4,500.
* With index. A charming early edition of Justinian’s Institutes by Accorso (Accursius), a Professor of Law at Bologna and a leading figure in the revival of classical jurisprudence. Accorso examined every extant note and commentary when he prepared his epochal edition of Justinian’s Institutes, Digest and Code. This massive effort eliminated much of the obscurity and contradiction introduced by earlier writers. His edition, which superseded all previous attempts, was often cited as the Glossa Ordinaria or Magistralis. It remained definitive until its 1583 revision by Denis Godefroy. Scarce. OCLC locates one copy. Brunet, Manuel du Libraire et de L’Amateur de Livres III: 612. Not in Graesse, Adams or NCC.

1620 Edition of Justinian’s Code and Novels

43. [Justinian] [Godefroy, Denis (1549-1622), Editor]. Codicis Justiniani D.N. Sacratissimi Principis PP. AVG. Repetitae Praelectionis, Libri XII. Summaries Dionysii Gothofredi IC. Illustrati. Postrema Editio Prioribus Accuratior & Emendatior.
[With]
Authenticae, Seu Novellae Constitutiones D.N. Justiniana Sacratissimi Principis Quibus Leonis, & Aliorum Quorundam Imperatorum Additae. Geneva: Johannem Vignon. 1620. [xiii], 735 [columns]; [viii], 526 [columns]. Two volumes in one, each with title page. Quarto (7-1/4" x 9-1/2") Contemporary quarter vellum over paper-covered boards, blacked edges, faint hand-lettered title to spine. Some rubbing with wear to corners, minor chipping to head of spine, front free endpaper lacking. Attractive woodcut title pages with architectural borders, woodcut head-pieces, tail-pieces and decorated initials. Front hinge cracked but secure, small worm hole to margins of first few leaves with no loss to text. Light foxing, interior otherwise clean. $750.
* The body of writings known as the Corpus Juris Civilis was commissioned by the Emperor Justinian in 530 CE. Compiled in three years under the direction of Tribonium, it was both a critical restatement of earlier law and jurisprudential writings and a complete collection of recent legislation. It is divided into four books, the Institutes, Digest, Code and Novels. The Code contains the laws in force during Justinian’s reign. The Novels is an edition of laws decreed by Justinian. Its subsequent influence on European jurisprudence is difficult to underestimate.

Keble’s Statutes at Large, 1640-1676.

44. Keble, Joseph [1632-1710], Compiler. The Statutes at Large in Paragraphs, From M.DC.XL. Until This Time, Carefully Examined by the Rolls of Parliament; Together With the Titles of Such Statutes as Are Expired, Repealed, Altered, or Out of Use. To Which is Added a New Table To the Whole Statutes, and a Catalogue of the Several Heads. London: Printed by the Assigns of John Bill and Christopher Barker, 1676. [iv], 368, [171] pp. Folio (9-1/2" x 15"). Contemporary calf, raised bands, blind-stamped frame to boards. Some rubbing, wear to corners, chipping to spine ends, boards partially detached but secure. Woodcut Royal arms to title page, attractive woodcut head-pieces, tail-pieces and decorated initials. Minor worming to margins of title page and text, annotations to a few leaves in early hand. Occasional early spark burns, interior otherwise fresh. A good copy. $1,000. 
* First edition. With a topical index of all statutes from Magna Charta to 1676. This volume is a companion to Keble’s The Statutes at Large in Paragraphs, From Magna Charta Until This Time (1681). Like its predecessor, the statutes in this volume include marginal references to reports and other legal works. Expired, repealed, altered and obsolete statutes are also included.

Compilation of Early Norwegian Laws

45. Larson, Laurence. The Earliest Norwegian Laws: Being the Gulathing Law and the Frostathing Law. Translated from the Old Norwegian. New York: Columbia University Press, 1935. ix, 451 pp. Cloth, some shelfwear. Owner bookplate to front pastedown, internally clean. $125.
* “The oldest Norwegian laws, those of Gula and Frosta, go back to a time when the culture of the Middle Ages was still a somewhat novel experience in Northern Europe. Though the copies that have survived seem to date from the twelfth century and later, the codes must, in considerable part, have taken form in the eleventh century, or as early as the first generation of the Christian age. Heathendom had by that time been outlawed, but one seems justified in believing that the cult of strength and valor was for some time yet a force that had to be taken into account; for the principles that governed in the heathen age retained much of their ancient vigor, and the old civilization, rooted, as it was, in the soil itself, was able in large measure to maintain both life and validity.”: Foreword, vii.

Uncommon 1775 Italian Treatise on Feudal Law

46. Maglianus, Franciscus Antonius and Francisco Antonio Magliano [d. 1785]. Praelectiones in Duos Libros Feudalium. Consuetudinum, Moribus, & Monumentis Illustratos. His Accedunt. Prima Dissertatio de Fructibus Feudi. Secunda de Meliorationibus Feudi, Titulus de Regulis Juris, Titulus de Verborum Significatione. Naples: Superiorum Facultate, 1775.[ii], 440, vii pp. Quarto (7" x 9"). Recent period-style quarter calf over speckled paper boards, speckled edges, endpapers renewed, early owner bookplate to verso of title page. Chips to fore-edges of title page and a few other leaves with no loss to text, occasional light foxing, text otherwise clean and bright. A nice copy. $500.
* A comprehensive treatise on feudal law, with a dictionary of relevant terms. Uncommon in the trade. OCLC locates three copies. Not in the British Museum Catalogue, Brunet or Graesse.

47. Mahan, A[lfred] T[hayer] [1840-1914]. Armaments and Arbitration or The Place of Force in the International Relations of States. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1912. Reprint. [Delran: Legal Classics Library, 2000]. [xii], 260 pp. Calf, decorative gilt stamping, raised bands, all edges gilt, marbled endpapers, ribbon marker. New. $95.
* A collection of influential essays, some originally published in The North American Review from 1911 to 1912, that examine issues regarding the use of force and the use of law in international disputes. An expert in naval affairs who taught at the Naval War College, Mahan is best known for his landmark study The Influence of Sea Power in History (1890).

48. McFarland, Carl. Judicial Control of the Federal Trade Commission and the Interstate Commerce Commission, 1920-1930: A Comparative Study in the Relations of Courts to Administrative Commissions. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1933. vii, 214 pp. Original cloth, gilt spine and top edge. Some staining to foot of boards, interior bright and clean. $65.
* “[T]he book is valuable in revealing the hitherto unfortunate judicial handling of the trade commission; in puncturing the doctrinal justification for that handling and in bringing to the fore some at least of the questions involved in judicial review. (...) The book marks the position of things just before the opening of the New Deal.”: Robert L. Hale, Columbia University Review 34: 580-583 cited in Marke, A Catalogue of the Law Collection at New York University (1953) 343.

A Collection of English Royal Wills

49. [Nichols, J(ohn), Editor]. A Collection of All the Wills, Now Known to Be Extant, of the Kings and Queens of England, Princes and Princesses of Wales, and Every Branch of the Blood Royal, From the Reign of William the Conqueror, to That of Henry the Seventh Exclusive: With Explanatory Notes and a Glossary. London: J. Nichols, 1780. x, 434 pp. Quarto (7-1/2" x 9"). Contemporary speckled calf, rebacked retaining original lettering piece, raised bands, hinges reinforced. Moderate rubbing with some wear to corners and joints, some staining to boards. Two early armorial bookplates to front pastedown, later institutional library bookplate to rear free endpaper. Annotations in light pencil scattered throughout text, interior otherwise clean and fresh. $400.
* “This series of miscellaneous and different wills presents us with many curious particulars. We learn from them more of the manners and private life of our illustrious ancestors, some new facts in their public history, and several new descents in their pedigrees. The prospect of death sets their lives in a new point of light.”: Preface, v. The wills are printed in their original language (some in law French). Most of these include a brief introduction, annotations and postscripts in English.

Addresses the Union of Scotland and England

50. [Nicolson, William (Lord Bishop of Carlisle) (1665-1727)]. Leges Marchiarum, or Border-Laws: Containing Several Original Articles and Treaties, Made and Agreed upon by the Commissioners of the Respective Kings of England and Scotland, for the Better Preservation of Peace and Commerce upon the Marches of Both Kingdoms: From the Reign of Henry III. to the Union of the Two Crowns, in K. James I. With a Preface, and an Appendix of Charters and Records, Relating to the Said Treaties. London: Tim. Goodwin, 1705. lvi, 388, [4] pp. Includes four-page publisher catalogue. 12mo. (4-1/2" x 7"). Contemporary calf, gilt spine, edges rouged. Moderate rubbing, wear to corners, board edges joints and spine ends. Later bookplates to front pastedown. Occasional light foxing, interior otherwise clean. $450.
* First edition. This essay on the manifold issues regarding the union of Scotland and England was published two years before the Act of Union.

51. Norton, James Sager. Addresses and Fragments in Prose and Verse. With an Introduction by Edward G. Mason. Chicago: A.C. McLurg and Company, 1896. Octavo (5" x 8"). xiii, 247 pp. Frontispiece. Octavo (5" x 8"). Contemporary blue half-morocco over marbled boards, raised bands, gilt. Marbled endpapers. A very nice copy. $125.
* A graduate of Columbia Law School in 1867, this book collects most of his public addresses, for which he was noted.

Scarce Complete British Edition of the Nuremburg Trials

52. [Nuremberg Trial]. The Trial of German Major War Criminals: Proceedings of the International Military Tribunal Sitting at Nuremberg Germany. London: His Majesty’s Stationary Office, 1946-1950. Complete in 27 books with index, agreement, indictment, judgment, speeches of the prosecutors and speeches of the chief prosecutors. Original wrappers, moderate shelfwear, soiling and dampspotting to some bindings, interiors clean and bright. Set housed in attractive recent cloth slipcases. $2,500.
* First British edition. Because this report was issued over a period of four years, it is difficult to find a complete set intact. Held at Nuremberg in 1945 and 1946, this famous tribunal indicted several Nazi leaders for war crimes. Twelve defendants were sentenced to death, three to life imprisonment and four to twenty-year prison terms. Three were acquitted. The tribunal was significant because it affirmed the principle that both individuals and states could be held accountable for war crimes. The actual text of the proceedings contains a wealth of information on the crimes of the Nazi leadership, as well as insight into the political and social background that facilitated the Nazi takeover of power.

English Pamphlets on Napoleon, Legal Matters and Other Subjects

53. [Pamphlets]. Historic Doubts Relative to Napoleon Buonaparte. Fourth Edition. London: B. Fellowes, 1831. iv, [5-55] pp.
[Bound with]
Advice to a Young Reviewer, with a Specimen of the Art. London: M.A. Nattali, 1828. 24 pp.
[Bound with]
Benson, Christopher. The Israelites Asking a King. A Sermon Preached in the Temple Church, on Sunday, November 18th, 1832. London: Baldwin and Cradock, 1832. 32 pp.
[Bound with]
A Letter to the Inhabitants of Winchester, by Wm. Bingham Baring, Esq. on the Subject of His Conduct as a Magistrate in the Arrest of Mr. and Mrs. Deacle; with Copies of the Depositions and Affidavits Referred to Therein. London: Whittaker and Co., 1831. 55 pp.
[Bound with]
Miller, John. On the Administration of Justice in the British Colonies in the East-Indies. London: Parbury, Allen, and Co., 1828. 150 pp.
[Bound with]
Nassau, Wm., Senior. A Letter to Lord Howick, on a Legal Provision for the Irish Poor; Commutation of Tithes, and a Provision for the Irish Roman Catholic Clergy. Third Edition. London: John Murray, 1832. xvii, [3]-104 pp.
[Bound with]
Charge Delivered to the Grand Jury of the County of the City of Bristol by the Right Honorable Sir Nicolas Conyngham Tindal.... N.p.: n.p., 1832. 14 pp. [Bound with]
Trial of Maj.-G. Sir Robert-Thomas Wilson, Captain J.H. Hutchinson, and M. Bruce, Esq.: Before the Court of Assizes, at Paris [April 22, 1816]. [Paris]: M. Nouzou, n.d. 112 pp.
Octavo (5" x 8"). contemporary half-calf over marbled boards, raised bands. Rubbing with wear to corners, joints and board edges. Minor chipping to spine ends. Early owner signatures to front pastedown a first pages of a few pamphlets, brief annotations to On the Administration of Justice. Occasional light foxing, interior otherwise clean. A unique compilation. $650.

Landmark Textbook on Contracts

54. Parsons, Theophilus [1797-1882]. The Law of Contracts. With additions by William V. Kellen. Boston: Little, Brown, and Company, 1883. Three volumes. Octavo (6" x 9"). Contemporary law calf, red and black spine labels. Some rubbing with wear to corners, joints and spine ends. Internally clean. A very good set. $350.
* Seventh edition. One of the three main divisions of American contract law, Parsons was indebted to Langdell and later edited by Williston. The first edition of this landmark textbook was published in 1853 and 1855. The final edition, the ninth, was published in 1904.

Records of the Maine Constitutional Convention of 1918

55. [Perley, Jeremiah.] The Debates and Journal of the Constitutional Convention of the State of Maine 1918-’20 and Amendments subsequently made to the Constitution. [Contains] The Debates, Resolutions, and Other Proceedings, of the Convention of Delegates, Assembled At Portland on the 11th, and Continued Until the 29th Day of October, 1819, For the Purpose of Forming a Constitution for the State of Maine. To Which is Prefixed the Constitution. Taken in Convention. Portland: A. Shirly, 1820.
[Bound with]
Journal of the Constitutional Convention of the District of Maine with the Articles of Separation and Governor Brooks’ Proclamation Prefixed. 1819-’20. Augusta: Maine Farmers’ Almanac, 1894. xl,iv,[5]-436,135, 12, 120 pp. Octavo (6" x 9"). Contemporary law calf, red and black lettering pieces. “1” in ink at head of spine. Rubbing with wear to corners, joints and backstrip. Owners stamp and signature to front free endpaper. A good copy. $250.
* The Constitution of Maine was designed so well that no material changes were made for seventy-five years, and the story of its making is told in this record. Perley’s report of the debates of the Constitutional Convention of Maine, originally published in 1820 were here later reprinted along with the journal of the convention in order to enhance the information found in the official journal. They provide the nearly verbatim remarks and speeches of the members. The last edition of the journal was published in 1856, and had been scarce and desirable during its absence before the its appearance in this edition. This edition includes biographical sketches of the delegates, and is well-indexed. Following the publication of the Debates, Perley wrote The Maine Justice, The Maine Civil Officer and The Maine Town Officer.

On the Corruption of Judges

56. [Philo-Dicaios (Pseudonym)]. Triumphs of Justice over Unjust Judges. Exhibiting I. The Names and Crimes of Four and Forty Judges, Hanged in One Year, in England, as Murderers, for Their Corrupt Judgments. II. The Case of Lord Chief Justice Tresillian....III. The Crimes of Empson and Dudley.... IV. the Proceedings of the Ship-Money-Judges.... V. Divers Other Precedents.... VI. The Judges Oath.... VII. The Case of William Penn.... London: For J.J. Franklin, [1817]. Octavo (5" x 8"). [iv], 36 pp. with blanks bound in at rear. Later quarter calf over cloth. Spine rubbed. Occasional foxing and soiling, interior otherwise clean. $250.
* A curious account, reprinted from the first edition (1681) to “instruct the world, that the Corruption of Judges often creates Crimes and Misery amongst the People.” The publisher was the grand nephew of Benjamin Franklin. 

Pufendorf’s Magnum Opus

57. Pufendorf, Samuel [1632-1694]. De Jure Naturae et Gentium. Libro Octo. Editio Ultima, Auctior Multo, et Emendatior. Amsterdam: Apud Andream ab Hoogenhuysen, 1688. [viii], 928, [8] pp. Quarto (6-1/2" x 8-1/2"). Title-page printed red and black with woodcut printer’s device. Contemporary vellum, raised bands, attractive blind-stamped arabesques and rules to boards. Rear pastedown lacking, one leaf detached and torn. Occasional light foxing, interior otherwise clean. Appealing. $1,250.
* Early edition, enlarged and corrected. Pufendorf’s magnum opus presents a system of public, private, and international jurisprudence based on natural law. First published in 1672, De Jure Naturae offers an exposition not so much of the rules of international law (indeed, the section devoted to international law is small), but rather rules of the law of nature. In contrast to Hobbes, Pufendorf argued that the state of nature was one of peace rather than conflict, and he promoted the idea that international law was not confined to Christendom. The subsequent influence of this work was great and lasting.

1824 New Hampshire JP Manual

58. Richardson, William Merchant. The New-Hampshire Justice of the Peace. Concord: Isaac Hill, 1824. xi, [13]-320 pp. 12mo. (4" x 6-1/2"). Contemporary sheep, lettering piece. Rubbed, corners bumped, binding slightly stained. A few leaves dog-eared. Occasional light foxing, interior otherwise clean. A good copy. $125.
* First edition. Richardson was also the compiler of early volumes of New Hampshire Reports. 

Selden on the Jewish Laws of Inheritance

59. Selden, John [1584-1654]. De Svccessionbvs ad Leges Ebraeorum in Bona Defvnctorvm, Liber Singularis: in Pontificatvm, Libri Duo. Leiden: Ex Officina Elseviriorum, 1638. [lx], 428 [i.e. 528] pp. 12mo. (3" x 5"). Contemporary vellum, hand-lettered title to spine, front joint cracked but secure, front free endpaper renewed. Title page printed in red and black. Woodcut Elzevier Minerva device, attractive woodcut head-pieces, tail-pieces and decorated initials. Some early underscoring, interior otherwise clean and bright. An uncommon title in the trade. $750.
* Second edition, augmented and corrected. An exposition of rabbinical law and laws of inheritance by a commentator whose “familiarity with rabbinical literature was such as has been acquired by few non-Israelite scholars; and many details of oriental civilization and antiquities were certainly brought to the knowledge of Europeans for the first time in them.”: Dictionary of National Biography XVII:1157.

Parallel Translation of Selden’s Ad Fletam Dissertatio

60. Selden, John. Ogg, David, Translator and Editor. Ad Fletam Dissertatio: Reprinted from the Edition of 1647 with Parallel Translation Introduction and Notes. Cambridge: At the University Press, 1925. lxvi, 204 pp. Cloth, minor shelfwear, deckle edges. Ex-library, bookplate and bookseller’s label to front pastedown. Inscribed by author on first free endpaper. A very good copy. $125.
* From the series Cambridge Studies in English Legal History, this translation with notes by David Ogg, Fellow and Tutor of New College, Oxford. Enhanced by his notes and descriptive headings. Holdsworth comments that this work “gives us an account of some of the earlier writers in English law, and of aspects of English legal history from the earliest times to Edward I’s reign.”: Holdsworth, History of English Law cited in Marke, Catalogue of the Law Collection at New York University 36.

Earliest Work Devoted to the Theory of Conveyancing

61. Sheppard, William [fl. 1660]. The Touchstone of Common Assurances: or, A Plain and Familiar Treatise, Opening the Learning of the Common Assurances, or, Conveyances of the Kingdom. London: D. Lee, D. Pakeman, and Gabriel Bedell, 1651. [vi], 529, [5] pp. Quarto (6-1/2" X 8-1/2"). Contemporary calf, blind-stamped frame to boards. Some rubbing, wear to corners, edges and joints, upper portion of backstrip lacking. Title-page and first few leaves frayed at edges, a few gatherings beginning to work loose. Cropping to top margin affecting some words of headlines. Minor worming to margins with no loss to text. A few notes in an early hand, interior otherwise clean. $450.
* Third edition. The Touchstone is the earliest work devoted to the theory of conveyancing. Each chapter opens with a definition of a type of conveyance followed by an outline of the rules, principles and legal maxims that govern it. Sheppard’s comments are supported by textual authorities and case examples and he includes variations, specific conditions and limitations. Sheppard’s claim of authorship has been point of controversy since the eighteenth century. Many scholars, including the editor of this edition, believe that the Touchstone was written as a manuscript for personal use by Sir John Dodderidge, a judge during the reign of Charles I. According to this theory, Sheppard purchased the manuscript at auction, then edited it for publication. Whether the author was Sheppard or Dodderidge, the treatise was an immediate success when it was published in 1648. It has been esteemed highly ever since. Kent stated that for “the soundness of its propositions, its succinct method and its excellent arrangement, this book is not surpassed by any book on the law” (cited in Sweet & Maxwell). Marvin, writing in 1847, adds: “The Touchstone is one of the most esteemed of the old treatises, a copious fountain of the law, relating to the transfer of real property, and is still vital and authoritative” (Marvin). And Holdsworth, writing in 1925, observes that it “is still regarded as a high authority on this subject.” Sweet & Maxwell, A Legal Bibliography of the British Commonwealth of Nations I:487(71). Holdsworth, Sources and Literature of English Law 124.

Nineteenth-Century Guide to Mercantile Law

62. Smith, John William. A Compendium of Mercantile Law. A New Edition by James P. Holcombe and William Y. Gholson. New York: Appleton & Company, 1850. [3]-719 pp. Octavo (6" x 9"). Contemporary law calf, rebacked retaining original black lettering piece. Some rubbing and a few scuffs to boards and backstrip, small chip to head of spine. Front hinge cracked but secure, occasional foxing. Early owner signature to front free endpaper, early notes in pencil to endleaves and text. $150.
* Enlarged and revised from the last English edition, 1848, to which it is starred. Section titles: Of Mercantile Persons, Of Mercantile property, Of Mercantile Contracts, Of Mercantile Remedies.

On Shaftesbury and The Right to a Grand Jury

63. Somers, John, Baron [1651-1716]. The Security of Englishmen’s Lives, or the Trust, Power and Duty of the Grand Juries of England. Explained, According to the Fundamentals of the English Government, and the Declarations of the Same, Made in Parliament by Many Statutes. London: J. Almon, 1771. 103, [1] pp. Octavo (5" x 8"). Modern quarter calf over cloth. A very small tear in title page not affecting text. A good copy in an attractive binding. $400.
* Sixth edition of a work first published in 1681. Somers’ vindication of the right of the grand jury to reject the bill of indictment against Lord Shaftsbury.

Attractive Limited Edition on Early Maritime Insurance and Law in Venice

64. Stefani, Giuseppe. Insurance in Venice from the Origins to the End of the Serenissima. [Translated from the Italian by Arturo Dawson Amoruso]. Trieste: Assicurazioni Generali di Trieste e Venezia, 1958. Color frontispiece, numerous full-page and fold-out illustrations, many in color. Two volumes. Cloth, lettering pieces, attractive devices to front boards. Internally pristine. A very good copy of a title scarce in the trade. $300.
* First edition in English. More than a history of insurance in Venice, this lavish work, which was produced by an Italian bank, offers a detailed history of the maritime economy of Venice from the Medieval period to the nineteenth century. Early maritime law is treated at length. A recent review observed that “For over a century now, Italian banks and other credit institutions have, chiefly for reasons of prestige subsidized the publication of books [such as this one]... Being essentially privately printed, most of these books never entered the mainstream of the publishing world: no entries in standard bibliographies... no ISBN numbers or CIP date revealed their existence... Far from being coffee-table books, these publications constitute a very large and multi-faceted body of historical, scientific, and literary scholarship of a high level, presented in handsome typographical format, that has remained largely unknown and inaccessible to the ‘outside world’.”: Bernard M. Rosenthal, review of La Banca e Il Libro in Papers of the Bibliographic Society of America 87/I (March 1993).

Attractive Edition of Story’s Commentaries

65. Story, Joseph [1779-1845]. [Bennett, E.H., Editor]. Commentaries on the Constitution of the United States: With a Preliminary Review of the Constitutional History of the Colonies and States, Before the Adoption of the Constitution. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1858. Two volumes. Octavo (5-1/2" x 9"). Recent period-style quarter calf over cloth, gilt-edged raised bands, endpapers renewed. Minor chipping to edges of title pages and a few leaves. Early institution stamp to title pages, interiors otherwise clean and bright. An attractive set. $2,000.
* Third edition. First published in 1833, this work is probably the most important work written on the American Constitution. Though overshadowed by Marshall on the U.S. Supreme Court, Story had no peer as a teacher or writer. Comparing the Commentaries to The Federalist, James Kent observed that Story’s treatise was “written in the same free and liberal spirit, with equal exactness and soundness of doctrine, and with great beauty and eloquence of composition. Whoever seeks for a complete history and exposition of this branch of our jurisprudence, will have recourse to the above work, which is written with great candor, and characterized by extended research, and a careful examination of the vital principles upon which our government reposes” (cited in Marvin, Legal Bibliography [1847] 669-670).

W.W. Story on Contracts

66. Story, William W[etmore] [1819-1895]. A Treatise on the Law of Contracts Not Under Seal. Boston: Charles C. Little and James Brown, 1847. lxxiii, [1], 900 pp. Octavo (5-1/2" x 9"). Contemporary calf, red lettering piece. Rubbing and scuffing, front hinge cracked but secure, internally clean. An attractive copy in a contemporary binding. $500.
* Second edition. The son of Joseph Story, William was “an amateur of the various arts...combin[ing] the exacting duties of a law practice and the preparation of volumes in the field of jurisprudence with painting, modeling, and music, to which he devoted himself in his spare time.... Among his legal publications were two textbooks which long maintained their place as standards (including Contracts).”: Dictionary of American Biography IX:109.

67. Thomson, Richard. An Historical Essay on the Magna Charta of King John: to which are added, the Great Charter in Latin and English, the charters of liberties and confirmations, granted by Henry III and Edward I, the original Charter of the forests, and various authentic instruments connected with them: Explanatory Notes on their Several Privileges; A Descriptive Account of the Principal Originals and Editions Extant, Both in Print and Manuscript; and Other Illustrations, Derived from the Most Interesting and Authentic Sources. London: John Major and Robert Jennings, 1829. xxxii, 612 pp. Reprinted Birmingham: The Legal Classics Library, 1982. Gilt stamped cloth, gilt edges, raised bands. Marbled endpapers, ribbon marker. Slight chip to head of spine. Very good. $100.
* “Contains the text of John’s charter, with a translation; also translations of the articles of the barons, the forest charter, and the confirmations of Henry III. And Edward I.; with elaborate notes, based largely on Coke’s Second Institute. This is one of the ‘standard’ works on the Great Charter.” Gross, The Sources and Literature of English History from the Earliest Times to about 1485 2019. Each page is bordered with an elaborate “embellishment.”

68. [Trial]. [Soviet Union]. People’s Commissariat of Justice of the U.S.S.R. Report of Court Proceedings. The Case of the Trotskyite-Zinovievite Terrorist Centre Heard Before the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of the U.S.S.R. Moscow, August 19-24, 1936 In re G.E. Zinoviev, L.B. Kamenev, G.E. Evdokimov, I.N. Smirnov, I.P. Bakayev, V.A. Ter-Vaganyan, S.V. Mrachkovsky, E.A. Dreitzer, E.S. Holtzman, I.I. Reingold, R.V. Pickel, V.P. Olberg, K.B. Berman-Yurin, Fritz David (I.I. Kruglyansky), M. Lurge and N. Lurge Charged Under Articles 58-8, 19 and 58-8, 58-11 of the Criminal Code of the R.S.F.S.R. Moscow: Published by the People’s Commissariat of Justice of the U.S.S.R., 1936. 180 pp. Printed wrappers, moderate shelfwear and soiling, internally clean. $60.

1795 Naval Court-Martial69. [Trial]. The Trial at Large of Capt. A.J. Pye Molloy, Commander of the Caesar Man of War, and the Following Charges, viz. 1st. that Capt. Molloy, of His Majesty’s Ship the Caesar, Did Not, on the 29th of May, 1794, Cross the Enemy’s Line, in Obedience to the Signal of the Admiral. 2d. That, on the 1st of June Following, He Had Not Used His Utmost Endeavours to Close with and Defeat the Enemy. Held on Board the Glory Man of War, Portsmouth Harbour, Tuesday, April 28, 1795, Until the Close, May 15, 1795. London: John Bell, 1795. 58 pp. with blanks bound at rear. Octavo (5" x 8"). Modern half-calf over marbled boards. Ex-library (no markings save a blind stamp to one leaf). A few inked flourishes on half-title and margins, otherwise a good copy in a handsome binding. $250.
* Although Molloy was found guilty at his court-martial and dismissed from his ship, he was treated with leniency because of his prior unimpeachable service.

First Popular Collection of Celebrated Trials

70. [Trials]. [Borrow, George H., Editor]. Celebrated Trials and Remarkable Cases of Criminal Jurisprudence from the Earliest Records to the Year 1825. London: Printed for Knight & Lacey, 1825. Six volumes. 35 copperplates, four folding. Octavo (4-5/8" x 7-3/4"). Contemporary three-quarter calf over marbled boards, rebacked retaining backstrips with lettering pieces and gilt ornaments. All edges gilt, marbled endpapers. Some chipping to lettering pieces, top edge of one folding plate frayed with some loss to image. Occasional light foxing, interiors otherwise fresh. $2,000.
* First edition. The first English popular collection of its kind, Celebrated Trials contains over four hundred important state and criminal trials from the 1400s to 1825. This fascinating compendium also includes notable trials from France, Sweden, Denmark and the United States adapted from Causes Celebres and other sources. In the preface, Borrow criticizes the earlier Newgate Calendars for being too sympathetic to their subjects and the State Trials for being intolerably dull. Neither claim can be made about this work. In addition to its animated language and draconian leanings, Celebrated Trials is enlivened by its numerous engravings of courtroom scenes and executions.

71. Vining, Joseph. From Newton’s Sleep. Princeton: Princeton University Press, [1995]. xvii, 398 pp. Cloth very good in lightly worn dust jacket. $25.
* Drawing on the techniques of recent literary criticism, this fascinating work interprets law as a unique form of thought that is inseparably connected to everything in the world that contributes to human identity.

72. Wheeler, John [fl. 1601-1608]. A Treatise of Commerce. Edited With an Introduction and Notes by George Burton Hotchkiss. New York: The New York University Press, 1931. xi, 484 pp. Cloth, light shelfwear, internally clean. $65.
* From a signed edition limited to 400 copies, this number 129. Published in 1601, this treatise is an unabashed piece of propaganda on behalf of the Merchant Adventurers of England, a private profit-making commercial corporation. It is also the earliest important example of corporate publicity. Moreover, it offers a detailed picture of business organizations and methods during the Elizabethan era and a few glimpses of such personalities as Burghley, Cecil (the younger) and Queen Elizabeth. This facsimile of the first edition is preceded by an extensive introduction.

1759 Satire on an Ancient Women’s Government

73. [Women]. Een Liefhebber der Vrouwen. Corpus Juris Foeminini: Of Wetboek der Vrouwen, Handelende van den Oorspronk der Vrouweregeering Onder den Keizer Heliogobalus: Derzelver Plechtige Oprechting, en Daar by Gebruykte Ceremonien, Hofhouding en Lyfwacht der Vorstinne Samis; en Beschryving van het Nieuwe Vrouwe-Capitool te rome; Van de Voortgang, Bloey, Veranderingen en Ondergang dier Vrouwe-Regeering: Van Derzelver Wetten en Rechtplegingen; &c. Alkmaar: Jacob Maagh, 1759. [xxxiv], 228, [4] pp. Octavo (4-1/2" x 6-1/2"). Contemporary three-quarter sheep over marbled boards, raised bands, gilt title and ornaments to spine, deckle edges. Rubbed, moderate wear to edges and corners, fading to spine, bubbling to boards, front pastedowns loose, splits between a few gatherings. Attractive woodcut decorated initials and tail pieces, interior notably fresh. A nice copy of a scarce work. $2,000.
* An anonymous satire (by “a loving supporter of women”) of a women’s government in third-century Rome during the reign of Emperor Heliogobalus based loosely on the Corpus Juris Civilis. OCLC locates one copy of a German edition published in 1720.

Revised: