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vi PREFACE. obligations, and without which many books of a local character would not have been included. While petty jealousies and differences of opinion prevail among members of other Professions, those of the Law are happily united, and make it a common cause to assist each other in advancing their common studies, and pursuits, and the instances are extremely rare where this reciprocal feeling does not exist.

Through the politeness of the Honourable Edward Everett, President of Harvard University, and of Dr. Harris, Librarian of the same, the free use of the College Library of this venerable seat of learning has been granted to me, and I should do injustice to my feelings, did I not here acknowledge the indispensable aid derived by this favour. The very liberal manner in which the use of books is granted at this University, the admirable order and condition in which they are kept, and the conveniences for consulting them, are worthy of imitation, and will be fully appreciated by those who have had occasion to make researches at other Libraries, where quite a different regime prevails. To J. W. Wallace, Esq., I am also indebted for some notes and references, and for access to the Library of the Law Association of Philadelphia, of which this gentleman is Librarian. The alphabetical arrangement of Authors, though not in accordance with several standard Continental Bibliographical Treatises, was supposed to be more convenient for consultation, than a classification of them under subjects; therefore the former plan has been pursued as to the body of this work, and the latter as to the Index. By adopting this mode, a good many repetitions of Titles are avoided, though not all, for anonymous works