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renders his work invaluable to the profession. His annotations, as usual, display careful research, and add greatly to the value of these Reports. Instructor in Practical Court-Reporting. By H. W. Thorne, of the Fulton County, N. Y., Bar. 1892. The design of this little work by Mr. Thorne is to instruct the would-be court reporter in the applica tion of stenography to the recording of judicial pro ceedings, and to assist him to surmount the many obstacles which beset his path. Having been an of ficial court-stenographer, the author is enabled to treat his subject in the light of person d experience, and his many suggestions will prove of interest and value to reporters. Aside from the primary object for which the work is designed, it will be of value to the practising lawyer in pointing out the best method of getting satisfactory work out of the stenographer. Law students also will find that it depicts a true pic ture of life in the court-room. The mechanical part of the book is very attractive A Treatise on the Law of Insurance, Fire, Life, Accident, Marine, with a Selection of Lead ing Illustrative Cases, and an appendix of Statutes and Forms, by George Richards of the New York Bar, and lecturer on Insurance Law in the School of Law of Columbia College. Banks & Brothers, New York and Albany, 1892. Law sheep. $5.00, net. In this treatise, which is designed primarily for students, Mr. Richards happily combines the two prominent methods in use for teaching law; namely, the text-book and case systems The first part of the book consists of a general treatise on the law of In

surance, which is admirably arranged and accompa nied with numerous citations. The second part is made up of a selection of leading illustrative cases, which have been carefully compiled and edited with express reference to the corresponding chapters of the first part. We are glad to note a tendency on the part of our law teachers to avail themselves of the advantages of both of the two systems before referred to, and the student cannot fail to benefit largely by this liberal course. As the author well says, there are two things, all will agree, in re gard to which a law-student ought to make himself an adept before he can hope to become a successful practitioner, — he must be able, upon a given state ment of facts, to reach a correct legal conclusion, or else he cannot give good advice to his clients; and he must also be able to follow out a sound and logi cal course of reasoning to its legitimate result, or else he cannot win their cause before court or jury. For teaching these two lessons we think Mr. Richards has hit upon the proper method in this work. The prin ciples of the law are first instilled, and their applica tion then illustrated by leading cases. The book is one which should find favor with our law teachers, and we heartily commend it to their careful consider ation. Although so especially adapted to the stu dent's need, the treatise will nevertheless be found of much real assistance to the practising lawyer, fur nishing as it does a ready reference manual on all important points likely to arise in Insurance litigation. It is, we believe, the first text-book treating specifi cally of Standard Fire Policies, for the adoption of which several States have already passed statutes. The appendix, containing classified lists of refer ences to the numerous and varied statutes passed by the legislatures of all the States, by which the law of the insurance contract has been modified and governed, together w ith a specimen of each class, will meet an urgent need, long felt by insurance com panies and their legal advisers.