New-York tribune., 1896-11-19
NEW PUBLICATIONS.
rupEr ,,IMELY LAW POOKS.

THHEE -lMELI LAW '
vokTSTARy s. FOR ThF Hsady snS1
Win TsrmS Maii0eR BY Ren,a%n en%er XnSs Many ~ ~
h11E, POOR INSANITY AND STATE CHAIR.
TIES Laws With Forms and Anneintions' %ipI sI9 ny
Robert % &c C CUMMING GENDER Ina rraf Abany an
LAW AND PRACTICE IN JUSTICES s,o CO.. on rs iT y
With Forms BY Patrick c; Dusah "o p'' ~
ll20. Matthew Bender Albany
All three of the above named books lately iSsued
g., %,s,,hsw penaer the Albany aw-book publisher
rover only New-York law on the SUBJECTS ha'ne'
Rut they are none the less timely ara each mas
special value for NewYoIk lawyers NO o'n'' wo' NJ
covering the same subjects have peeh 'S9ueu lol
several years. while recent statutory chahseS nav
materially affected the law relating 10 each OF 'he
subjects mentioned. -,
Al no time in the last twenty years has the active
law practitioner had frequent occasion to ADVISE
his clients bot? of the debtor ana creui'oi 0ias''
upon the law relating TO this subject as ne mas S"'e
the summer of 1898. carefully prepared WORN priis
ing all decisions and amendments OF me statues
down IN date WAS really needed. and this has been
euppljed by Mr. IIeadley. The present general as
signment law of this State. enacted IN le anu a"''
frequently amended. is now recognized as pe'ns ''
satisfactory substitute for a general DdnNruP'''
law in great commercial centres as can be io""u
anywhere in the United States. II has. o' course
,,s weaknesses: and the general sentiment among
those members OF the bar VINO have had the pro"'e'
experience in the handling of insoVen' estates
strongly favors the bankruptcy act tha' mas "eV"
before recent sessions OF Congress. as aordne the
best protection 10 creditors generally against Tauu-
ulent failures. well as serving best 'he Interests
~ the honest insolvent debtor. But until such a
bankruptcy law be passed New-Yorks assign
ment law will fairly serve the local needs OF Inc
commercial world.
Mr. Headley's work analyzes the nature Of the
trust created by the deed of assignment Tor 'he
benefit of creditors and of the rights and oohsh-
fions OF the assignee. The character ana extent
Of the estate and property that pass TO such as
signee as the courts have adjudicated these queS-
tons have received careful attention from 'l'e
author as well as the acts of the assignor that
xviu invalidate an assignment. The forms drawn
by Mr. McClung and appended TO this treatise VIII
be Of practical aid to every lawyer VINO is acuhg
as attorney for such assignee.
Poor law and the Insanity law of the state
IS rendered necessary by the enactment ny the
last Legislature. under these names OF the statues
drawn by the Commissioners OF Revision. which
are intended TO codfy all the previously existms
luxs on the subject That il to say taking as
basis the Poor law as forth In the Revised
Statutes Of 1923. the Commissioners have united 1t
with all subsequent statutory notifications INTO
consistent and logically arranged law. Something
more than this was done. as Is almost always
necessarily the In the codifcation of statutes
extending many years. Particularly must
this be true In an instance where public senti-
ment has made great advances respecting the sub
feet In hand. To treat paupers and insane per
sons who to-day are public charge In exactly
the same manner and under the same regulations
as obtained seventy even fifty years ago would
be distinct step backward in the history of civil
ization and any codifcation of the Poor laws that
failed to recognize the advanced ideas of the pres
ent day on the subject would he fatally detective
Experts have declared the work of the Statutory
Revision Commission In respec; TO the Poor law and
Insanity law TO be satisfactorily performed, and the
necessities Of the to be well met
The work Of Messrs. Cumming and Gilbert has
been to annotate these statutes with all the New
York decisions applicable TO the respective sec
tions 10 supplement this with a collection Of other
laws OF a kindred nature. also annotated, and 10
add a full set Of forms for the use Of public officers
and others. seeking to enforce them. The col
lection Of all these statutes in form for con-
venient reference is itself valuable. Coupled with
the carefully prepared annotations and forms. II
becomes a work ndispens abe for the use Of those
interested In the execution of the New-York char
ity laws
Mr. Dugan has compiled large book on the Law
and Practice for Justices OF the Peace and Police
Justices In the State of New-York II is Of COM
parativsly little value to the legal practitioner In
the large cities. but in the smaller places and in
rural localities il ought to prove an extremely con-
venent volume. The justices courts referred 10
are especially the poor mans courts" They are
the places where the great Of legal contro-
the country usually disposed Of. They seldom
involve on the part of the sitting magistrate any
profound knowledge of the law great experience
in legal practice. But II is necessary that such
Justices should be well Informed respecting the legal
procedure In the before them and the simple
legal principles statutory directions governing
them While the amounts involved in the ndi-
vidual is necessarily small. IL II almost
essential 10 the fair and proper administration
OF law In the State that they should be correctly
decided 1t is that law in the higher courts should
be we'll administered And this Is particularly true
Of the criminal side Of these courts
All the law that II is necessary magistrate pre-
siding in such Justices court or the lawyers prac-
tisng before him should know is embodied In this
book by Mr.. Dugan. He has arranged separately
the portions relating to the civil law and practice
from those relating to the criminal law and prac-
tice. The notes of cases under various sections
supply digest of the law all subjects likely
come before Justice of the Peace for decision.
The author has also written chapter under the
head OF Contracts and another with the title of
''Chattel Mortgages that are worthy OF
ambitious work. We do not remember to have seen
any recent digest Of the common law these sub
Jects. as enunciated by the courts Of New-York
State. that was so concise clear and at the
time so complete as this. These chapters and the
full table of forms drafted by Mr. Dugan would
alone Justify the publication of the book. But II
seems to be unnecessarily swollen In size by In
Guiding within its the entire text of the
Penal Code. AS there many editions Of that
statute book published separately more convenient
for reference there does TO be good reason
for adding 800 to this volume by inserting i.
here.