Page:William Blackstone, Commentaries on the Laws of England (3rd ed, 1768, vol I).djvu/89

§. 3. authors, is the ame learned judge we have just mentioned, ir Edward Coke; who hath written four volumes of intitutes, as he is pleaed to call them, though they have little of the intitutional method to warrant uch a title. The firt volume is a very extenive comment upon a little excellent treatie of tenures, compiled by judge Littleton in the reign of Edward the fourth. This comment is a rich mine of valuable common law learning, collected and heaped together from the antient reports and year books, but greatly defective in method. The econd volume is a comment upon many old acts of parliament, without any ytematical order; the third a more methodical treatie of the pleas of the crown; and the fourth an account of the everal pecies of courts.

thus much for the firt ground and chief corner stone of the laws of England, which is, general immemorial cutom, or common law, from time to time declared in the deciions of the courts of jutice; which deciions are preerved among our public records, explained in our reports, and digeted for general ue in the authoritative writings of the venerable ages of the law.

Roman law, as practied in the times of it’s liberty, paid alo a great regard to cutom; but not o much as our law: it only then adopting it, when the written law was deficient. Though the reaons alleged in the diget will fully jutify our practice, in making it of equal authority with, when it is not contradicted by, the written law. “For ince, ays Julianus, the written law binds us for no other reaon but becaue it is approved by the judgment of the people, therefore thoe laws which the people have approved without writing ought alo to bind every body. For where is the difference, whether the people declare their aent to a law by uffrage, or by a uniform Rh