The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1851-10-03
THE REPUBLIC.
ENGLISH REPORTS IN LAW AND
Equity.

series Of La,O and Equity Reports.
TENHE want of some system by which the decisions
IL and Judicial opinions of the several Courts Of
Law and Equity in England can be more prompt
ly and cheapy furnished TO the legal profession in
this country, has long been seriously felt and ac
knowledged. To meet similar want IN England,
the "LaIo Journal Reports" and "1he Jtuist, "
which, together report decisions IN all ue Courts iIi
Lao and EqitifV, within few weeks after their
delivery, were commenced a number of years
since, and have met with the universal approba-
ton of the legal profession Their high cost, how
ever, has hitherto prevented their general circu-
lation in this country, and their merits yet
but little known among
The subscribers propose to republsh these re-
ports in full fast as they appear IN England and
can be received here. They will contain reports
of cases decided in the House of Lords, the Privy
Council the several Courts of Equity, the Court of
Queens Bench, the Court OF Common Pleas, the
Court of Exchequcr and Exchequer Chamber, the
Ecclesiastical and Admiralty Courts, the Court OF
Bankruptcy including also the Election cases. the
Crown Cases Reserved, and the Railway and Canal
Cases.
These reports will be published in numbers or
parts, commencing with the decisions of Michael
mas (November) term, 1850, and will be carefully
edited by member of the bar, with notes and re-
ferences to analogous American decisions
Each number will consist of over three hundred
pages closely printed octave, the best paper, and
in clear, fair type, and will contain table Of cases,
and full table of contents, thus forming com
pleto volume by itTuli, rs well part OF an en-
TIRE series. Every alternate or second Will
be PACED consccutvely from the number imme-
diately preceding and will contain table OF cases,
and of contents to both, and thus form complete
volume, ready for bnding of o1er siT hundred pages
In each volume the cases of the several courts will
be found arranged together, and in point of style
and typographical execution, this series Will be
fully equal to the best reports OF England or this
country.
lt designed to make this PERMANENT PUBLI-
CATION, and thus establish series of English
! Law and Equity Reports, which shall, in all
spects, be far in advance Of any other reprint of
English Reports in this country, and which shall
| furnish to the American lawyer the decisions Of
Westminster Hail. nearly tipo gears before they
could otervise be obtained and long before the pub
LEGATION of the contemporaneous decisions Of most
| OF our own tribunals.
The price of this publication will be y 10 for
twelve numbers, payable in advance, or for the six
Volumes handsomely and uniformly bound in law
sheep, 3 IL.
I F6e parts will be sold separately, ii desired at
s each.
Single volume, bound So 25.
Parts !. and H. stitched or Vol l., bound IN law
sheep, containing reports of one hundred and
eighty -eight cases, now ready for delivery.
The following among the opinions OF this
work expressed on the publication OF the first num-
Der
Letter from Hon. lIiard Fillmore, President Of the
United States.
WAsHINGToN, April - 1851.
JAMES BRowN, Esq: My DEAR SIR-Some days
SINCE 4 received, by the nanQ OF inc postmaster
General the first number of the English Reports
which you propose to repubish in this country,
comprising every case reported in England; and
now have your letter of the 9th instant, inquirng
my opinion of the enterprise.
While pursuing my profession, took deep in
terest in publications of this kind The able
judges who have adorned the judicial tribunals of
England, have shed lustre upon the Common
! Law, and illumined its proloundest depths | con-
slider no law library complete that does not contain
their principal reports in Law and Equity, and in
their Ecclesiastical Courts, and in Admiralty. For
some years had been in the habit of receiving
! these in % condensed" form. This condensation
however, consisted, not in abbrcviation of each
case, but a selection from the several cases, and
was often annoyed by finding reference to cases
! in the Digests which ! deemed very important,
! wholly omitted in the condensed reports" !
therefore hailed with great pleasure effort which
! was made some time since to rcpublsh the whole.
| Ii the English Reports entire, can be republished
with despatch III this country at price so low as
! to bring them within the reach of the members of
! the bar generally, conceive that it will confer
great benefit upon the profession and the Judiciary
and consequently upon the country at large. Know
ing your enterprise, anticipate your success, and
| can only express the hope that your reward may
be equal TO your merits. / am your obedient
servant, WILLARD FILLMORE.
From The Ne,c York Literary World
Messrs. Little & Brown, of Boston, whose law
books, i'll point of typographical execution, vic
with the best similar Issues of the English press,
to none in this country, have Just commenced the
publication of legal series, deserving the especial
attention of the profession throughout the country
The basis of this series, of which the first num-
Der is before us, are the Lam Jouxnal Reports and
the Jlrist, two English serials which communicate
10 the British Bar, within few weeks after their
delivery the prominent decisions of all the courts,
from the House Of Lords to the Court of Bankrupt
cy, and other tribunals of limited but practically
/ important jurisdiction. This excellent arrange
ment might be followed with great advantagei in this
! country, for the purpose OF obviating the delay
which necessarily attends the Issuing of the regu
lar volumes of reports OF particular courts and
are glad to see the enterprise of our legal pub
fishers awaiting themselves of it, to introduce the
English Reports promptly and regularly to the pro-
fession The authority OF Westminster Hall has lost
nothing of its sanction and the permanently high
character OF the English Judiciary gives to their
adudications continued weight and decisive in
nuence with our courts. Hitherto the difficulty has
been that the reported cases there have grown old
before they could be quoted and applied here, and
: there no way in which the current jurispru-
dence and adjudications Of the day in the English
courts could be made available by the American
bar, except at great expense and by continual vigil
lance. This difficulty Messrs. Little & Browns
Reports will remove; the cases decided in the
Queens Bench, the Common Pleas, and the Ex-
chequeS Chamber in January, will be ready for de-
livery here in April or May, long before adjudged
cases of the same date in courts appear in
the regular reports in which they perpctuated
Nearly Two years will thus be gained over the pre-
volume of authorized reports is published the
other side and " then been reprinted on this.
i One advantag. n the present series is, that the
decisions which IL gives those of courts in banc
the deliberate judgments of the bench, and the
less reliable decisions at Nisi Prtts, which, how
ever interesting in many instances, do not carry
with them the same authority and force.
The Reports edited by f. III. Bennett and
Chauncy Smith, esqs. of the Boston bar, and their
systematic arrangement and the with which
the notes, index, &c, are prepared, evidence the
thorough manner in which the proposed series will
be carried out.
In this connexion we take pleasure in advcrting
to Messrs. Little and Browns other legal publica
TONS among which are included many the mos
conspicuous and authoritative treatses of uris
prudence. Judge Storys works, for ming library
almost OF themselves, and familiar for their high
value and extensive reputation to American read
era in general, as well to the legal profession
have all issued from their press as have also the
several works of Professor Grcenlead. Two very
valuable and extensive annual publications arc asc
issued by them the United Suites Digest and the
Statutes at Large; the latter being the authorized
edition Of the Acts of Congress, got up in much
better etvlc both for reference and preseryation