Mr. Bumpkin's Lawsuit: or How to Win Your Opponent's Case.
A Satirical Plea for Law Reform Harris, Richard [1833-1906]. Mr. Bumpkin's Lawsuit: Or How to Win Your Opponent's Case. London: Stevens and Sons, 1883. xvii, [3], 385 pp. Octavo (7-1/2" x 4-1/2"; 19.5 x 12 cm). Original pebbled cloth, gilt title to spine. Light rubbing, a few small stains to front board, spine ends and corners bumped and lightly worn, owner signature and bookplate of Ben A. Maslan to front pastedown, owner signature dated 1917 of Fred H. Peterson to title page, Peterson's property stamps to title page and rear free endpaper. Moderate toning to text, additional annotation to rear free endpaper and underlining to a few pages of text (likely by Peterson), interior otherwise clean. $150. * Harris was a Middle Templar and KC who wrote a number of popular and well-received legal works, most notably Hints on Advocacy (1880) which went through some 18 editions. The present work was intended "to bring the evils of our system before the Public in the story of Mr. Bumpkin. The solicitors, equally with their clients, as a body, would welcome a change which would enable actions to be carried to a legitimate conclusion instead of being stifled by the 'Priggs' and 'Locusts' who will crawl into an honorable profession. All respectable solicitors would be glad to see the powers of these unscrupulous gentlemen curtailed" (Preface). Harris hoped his book "might ultimately awaken in the public mind a desire for the long-needed reform of our legal procedure." Benjamin Abraham Maslan [1901-1979] and Fred H. Peterson [1860-1927] were both prominent attorneys in Seattle, Washington. Maslan was an important collector of Bibles; his collection of over 4,000 volumes is currently housed by the Ostrow Academic Library at American Jewish University.
Price: $150.00
Book number 81488