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256 256 HARVARD LAW REVIEW. Handbook on the Law of Torts. By William B. Hale, LL. B. St. Paul: West Publishing Co. 1896. (Hornbook Series.) pp. xi, 636. This book as the author states in his Preface, is practically an abridg- ment of Mr. Jaggard's treatise on the Law of Torts, and was brought out to supply the demand for a single volume work along the lines of that treatise. Mr. Hale has been successful in preserving what was of value in the original, and no falling off is noted in what is new. In legal tone and theory, the book is enlightened and satisfactory. A possible criticism, in point of literary style, is that the text reads much like a systematic stringing together of the head-notes of cases, for which per- haps the many references printed at the bottom of each page are partly responsible. r. l. r. The Law of Charitable Uses, Trusts, and Donations, in New York. By Robert Ludlow Fowler. New York: Diossy Law Book Co. 1896. pp. xxvii, 215. The subject of this book is one of those minor topics of the law which are distinctly enough limited to admit of separate treatment, and impor- tant enough to deserve it. When only the law of a particular jurisdiction is treated, there may be room to deal with it thoroughly within a very moderate volume. Mr. Fowler has not only given what appears to be an accurate statement of the present New York law of charities, together with such practical matter as the common forms of charitable donations, but also an excellent historical explanation of the way in which the law came to its present state. The first chapter, on the early English law of charities, is surprisingly adequate for the writer's purposes, considering its brevity. The book is well printed, and properly indexed. r. g. The Elements of Jurisprudence. By Thomas Erskine Holland, D. C. L. Eighth Edition. New York : The Macmillan Co. 1896. pp. xxi, 404. It is little more than a year since the seventh edition of Mr. Holland's valuable book appeared. A demand sufficient to warrant eight editions in sixteen years shows how highly the work is esteemed. Besides care- fully revising the book throughout, the author has been able in this edition to make references to the new Civil Code for Germany that has recently become law. The sixth and seventh editions contained allusionsto the draft code only, in which material changes have been made. e. s. The American Digest. Annual. 1896. (Sept. i, 1895, to Aug. 31, 1896.) Prepared and Edited by the Editorial Staff of the National Reporter System. St. Paul: West Publishing Co. 1896. This year's Digest is even more bulky than any of its predecessors. It contains 6,344 columns, as against 5,447 in last year's. In convenience of arrangement it is all that could be desired.