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A romantic story entitled / am the King1 deals with an incident of the Crusades in the Holy Land. Richard, Cceur de Lion, is beset by Saracens and in danger of being captured, when Godfrey de Bersac, a knight of gigantic stature, calls out, "I am the King," and is taken prisoner in place of Richard. In consequence of this courageous act, he is allowed to bear on his armor the lions of England, with the motto, "Je suis le Roi." Around this incident is woven a pretty romance of love, which though not running smooth, at last ends in the happy reuniting of the lovers after many dangers and vicissitudes. The scenes of the earlier and latter parts of the story are laid in England, and the author shows a very good knowledge of the life, customs and manners of the period. The book is well worth reading. The cover design is a good one of the crusader knight in red and brown, black and gold. Mr. Parker's latest novel, The Battle of the Strong* is an interesting and effective story. The scene is laid in the Isle of Jersey and France, at the time of the French Revolution and the plot turns upon the secret marriage of a Jersey peasant girl and an officer in the British Navy. The heroine is a most lovable creation and the other characters in the story are strongly drawn. The book is one from which the reader will derive much pleasure. 11 AM the King. Being an account of some happenings in the Life of Godfrey de Bersac, Crusader Knight. By Sheppard Stevens. Little, Brown & Co., Boston, 1898. Cloth. $1.25. 2 The Battle of the Strong. A romance of two King doms. By Gilbert Parker. Houghton, Mifflin & Co., Boston and New York, 1898. Cloth, fi.50.

NEW LAW-BOOKS.

Forms of Pleading in actions for legal or equi table relief. Prepared with especial reference to the Codes of Procedure of the various states, and adapted to the present practice in many Common Law States. By Austin Abbott, LL.D. Completed for publication after his decease, by Carlos C. Alden of the New York Bar. Baker, Voorhis & Co., New York, 1898. Vol. I. Law sheep. $6.50 net. (Vol. II. com pleting the work is in active preparation and will be issued as early as possible in 1899.) This work, the result of the labor of many years on the part of the late Dr. Abbott, will be gladly welcomed by the legal profession. It is, as the pub lishers claim, the most comprehensive and complete collection of Forms of Pleading ever published. The precedents presented have been carefully revised and are accompanied by notes and sustaining authorities. One volume only is as yet completed, but it will be

followed by a second early in the coming year. However, as each form is complete in itself, the volumes are entirely independent of each other. Volume I contains Formal Parts of Pleadings, Allega tions of Official or Representative Capacity, etc., and Complaints in Common Law Actions. Volume II will complete the Complaints, including Statutory and Equitable Actions, and will also contain Answers, Demurrers, and Replies. The work bears witness to a most careful and exhaustive research on the part of the distinguished author, and will for years to come, hold a high place in the esteem of the profession. A Selection of Cases on the Law of Contracts. By William A. Keener, Kent Professor of Law and Dean of the Faculty of Law in Co lumbia University. Baker, Voorhis & Co., New York, 1898. Two volumes. Cloth. $12.00. This in an admirable collection of cases develop ing the fundamental principles governing the law of contracts, both simple and those under seal. The work is especially adapted to the law student's needs, and was prepared by the author, primarily, for the students of Columbia College. He has therefore omitted cases relating to the Statute of Frauds, the Statute of Limitations and the Jurisdiction of Equity over Contracts. The cases are ranged under heads : Formation of Contracts, Operation of Contracts, and Discharge of Contracts. The selections cover al most every conceivable point liable to arise in this branch of the law, and the volume is a valuable text-book for the practising lawyer as well as for the student. Professor Keener's name alone is a guar anty of the exhaustive character of the work. Selected Cases on the Law of Property in Land. Edited by William A. Finch, Professor of Law in Cornell University College of Law. Baker, Voorhis & Co., New York, 1898. Cloth. $6.00.

This volume contains an excellent selection of cases covering all topics taught in our law schools in the course on " Real Property." To the student it will prove of incalculable assistance, enabling him to obtain with comparative ease a clear and thorough understanding of the principles governing the law of property in land. Professor Finch has shown admir able judgment in his selection of cases, and his work should find favor with our law schools. The American State Reports, Vol. 62, contain ing the cases of general value and authority decided in the courts of last resort of the sev eral states. Selected, reported, and annotated by A. C. Freeman. Bancroft-Whitney Co., San Francisco, 1898. Law sheep, $4.00.