Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1873-10-10
English Legislation.

The London Statistical Society has published
work on the statistics Of Legislation in Eng
land, by which II appears that Parliament, in
the six hundred and thirty seven years between
1895 and 1873, passed upward OF eighteen thou.
sand public acts. These laws Gil thirty sir hou-
sand quarto page, beside two thousand addition
al octave ones. At the time when Blackstone
aourished, about a century ago, Parliament was
enacting an average Of one hundred and twen-
ty new statutes per year. The necessity for
understanding the effect OF every one of these
as soon as approved by the king, and OF watch.
ing each new ono to s0e how much Of existing
law and accumulated knowledge ii unsettled,
accounts fully for the terrible intricacy, the
prolonged aud exhaus;in9 toll, and the wenri.
spme slowness Of professional advancement, Of
which Blackstone and many other writer's have
complained. 1t explains the popular impres-
sion in that country that law is a system Of CHI
canery-a net in which rogues catch honest
men. The Law in fact became an occult science
TO the people being understood only by the
more studiSus and adroit OF the legal profession
land the doctrine set up by the courts that a
man is bound to know the law, became simply
a cruel compusiou whereby man was made
H. pay heavy fees to lawyers for information inso-
much that those gentlemen gained almost as
high position and influence among the wealthy
as the Jewish physicians held some centuries
earlier. The state OF things developed during
Gorge the Thirds reign-within the sixty years
included by which scrcn thousand too hundred
statutes were enacted-has continued till fv,
years since when, public endurance having
been exhausted, the number passed began stead
lily IN diminish, and one OF them provided for
statute Law Revision, similar to the Revised
Statutes Of New York. Under this act toe
thomsan6 Of those laws have been stricken from
the books; and the pregnant suggestion Of the
great historian Buckle, that the bsst Legislation
consists in repeating former Legislation, has be
gun to be put in practice.
Iu this country we bid fair to repeat and ever
TO exceed the experience Of the mother country
At the late session Of the New York Legislator,
nearly tcs housdnd bills were introduced,
large share Of which were passed. We hav,
in the United States over forty legislatures
each of which grinds out yearly its grist Of laws
many whereof are made without careful eonsid
eEAtlOn anu even WltuOut knowledge OF tue SuO
jects to which they apply. OF course smonl
the hundreds Of acts thus invested with the fore
Of law. it is easy for designing men to eli
through many which enure to the benefit o
these advocates at the expense Of others. Mean
while the mass Of American legislation is be
coming so vast that the legal profession bid
fair to become the aristocracy which Tocqus
vile thought It must; for ii grows mere an
more dangerous for any man to undertake 81
important business transaction without payiu
counsel for telling how to do it safely. Wors
+ than this, the intricacy Of the web which
yearly weaving, makes possible to him who Ut
derstands its nature all sorts Of trickery and d.
ception and the experience Of the Erie Raj
; road and other great interests have shewu thu
:he knowledge Of the means 10 rob honest an
nnsuspecting people under color OF law IS Il
! sale by men who claim to be respectable. I'll
time will come when an immense number Of OF
! laws will be totally abolished, as they relate
: matters not proper subjects for legislation b
!, il that day does not come soon we may look {
4 growing corruption, tyranny and demoralzh hti'
: as the sure fruit Of the opportunities whit
oyer egislation gives.-N Y. Iiercanf1e JOurnc