edition, therefore, the latest act of Affembly bears date the 26th of December, 1794. In the prefent edition, the latest statute paffed upon February 2d, 1802. This makes a difference of more than feven years; and these feven years appear to have been distinguished beyond every former period of the hiftory of the commonwealth, by the multitude and importance of the laws which in that time were paffed. To give a complete idea of this fact, we have only to obferve, that the edition of Mr. Davis contained one hundred and eightyone ftatutes; and that the prefent contains THREE HUNDRED AND THIRTEEN. Of thefe, one hundred and thirty-two additional ftatutes, one hundred and twenty-fix were paffed within those seven years. They compofe, therefore, in point of number, more than two-fifths of the whole collection. The other fix laws, which make up the total additional number of one hundred and thirty-two, had been paffed long before the publication of the former edition of "The Revised Code." Some of them are of very confiderable length. They were felected, and inferted by the special advice and defire of Governor Monroe. He was one of the gentlemen who had been appointed revife the former edition; and it was his opinion that these fix acts of Affenbly had been improperly omitted.

Excufive of the index, the title page and preface, the prefent volume contains for hundred and fifty-four pages. Of thefe, the additional laws fill an hundred an twenty-four pages, which is not much less than a third part of the whole text. It is not neceffary to say how much more convenient this concife and perfpicuous arrangement must be, than to have the trouble of wandering through feven fojo pamphlets, in queft of a statute.

Thefe details, without any comment of ours, abundantly prove, had, indeed, other evidence been waiting, the propriety and neceffity for a fecond edition of this book. It is now, ao, condenfed into a much more manageable fize than it formerly affumed. No gentleman's pocket can, at leaft, in the prefent age, contain a folio volume and much lefs would it contain the enormous appendage of feven folio pamphlets. In riding ten, or fifteen miles to a county

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court-house, a gentleman does not always think it worth while to take a portmanteau along with him; nor, indeed, is every portmanteau large enough to contain fuch maffes of print and paper. Upon this account, the prefent edition has been reduced to an octavo fize, and printed as closely as poffible. Hence, a lawyer, when he fets out for the county court-house, will no longer be obliged to leave his eight folios behind him, and, amidst a croud of competitors, to solicit the unfortunate clerk of the court to let him have a fight of the Revised Code. He can now put his hand into his pocket, and take out a genteel, portable, octavo volume, which comprehends his former library, difencumbered of all its rubbish. The type, on which the present edition is printed, is either the same, or almost exactly the fame with that of the last, and most esteemed London edition of Coke upon Littleton. This circumftance is mentioned here, because a complaint had been made, in one of the Richmond newspapers, by fome nameless writer, that the type was too fmall. You cannot, at the fame time, enjoy the cool, bracing breeze of winter, and the verdant vegetation of fummer. You cannot, in the fame book, unite the advantages of a folio, and of an octavo. If this edition had been printed upon a type as large as that of Mr. Davis, it must have been one-third part dearer than it is; for the volume, including the new index, and the bottom notes, pofitively contains one third part more of matter than the former edition. The price, to fubfcribers, muft have been raised to nine dollars; and to non-fubfcribers, to twelve dollars. Very few purchasers will regret that the publication can be had at a price fo much more reasonable.

The former edition laboured under more than one material defect. It was often impoffible to tell at what time a ftatute had originally paffed. Put the cafe, that a deed was to be contefted, which bore date in 1760. It is clear that this tranfaction could not be affected by laws made pofterior to its date. It bcame a question how long the law had exifted, or, when a predeceffor to it, or to fome part of it, had been paffed in, perhaps, a different form. For inftance, of chapter CXXVII. a confiderable part appears to have been enacted at different periods; one part in 1786, others in 1791. In the old edition of the Revised Code, the law is dated December 26th, 1792.

The bottom notes of the new edition give notice, that various parts of it were in force before, although the whole had been covered by the fubfequent ftatute of 1792. The fame notes give intimation, that this law has been amended by another, of December, 1801. Again, chapter CXXVIII bears date the 26th of December, 1792, But we learn that the firft claufe of the ftatute exifted in 1762, that is to fay, thirty years before. The fecond claufe, which is far the longeft in the act, had been taken from a former ftatute, dated October, 1776. From not knowing how far back the force of thefe laws extended, the court was often caft into irretrievable confufion. To difcover how far back a ftatute extended, was often a work of great time and difficulty; and perhaps the requifite apparatus of old laws could not always be had. Gentlemen of the bar affure us, that the bottom notes, which are to be found at the foot of almost every fingle page of this edition, are, themselves alone, fairly worth the whole price of the book. We have neither received, nor afked permiffion to publish the name of the fuppofed author of these notes. is, however, a gentleman whofe name has long been familiar to every lawyer in Virginia. He has long filled more than one interefting department in the fyftem, and the fcience of jurifprudence. In point of legal knowledge and abilities, his reputation is inferior to none,

He

All the gentlemen of the law, with one voice, complained of the imperfection of the former index. A new one has been entirely wrote over again, and at a very confiderable expence, for the prefent edition. In the former, there were, under the letter A, only twenty-six different heads. In this edition, there are forty-nine. In the former, letter S contained only twenty five heads. This has forty-seven. Thefe particulars are mentioned, to fhew the fuperior perfpicuity and completeness of the prefent index; and how greatly it must facilitate an accurate examination of the contents of the volume. The index contains seventy-two pages. The text of the laws, exclufive of the preface and title page, certains as above mentioned, four hundred and fifty-four; fo that there is one page of index for about every fix pages of text. A larger number of references would have been useless, and have ferved rather

embarrass, than affift, the reader. This laborious part of the work was

drawn up by Mr. James Rind, who had been employed as an affiftant, by the fupervisors of the former edition. We have every reafon to think that his performance will give entire fatisfaction.

This volume, the index excepted, was completely printed off feveral months ago. But it was impoffible to deliver the book till this time, because the bad ftate of Mr. Rind's health did not permit him to furnish the index fooner. This apology will, no doubt, be confidered as fufficient for a long delay of publication, which it was impoffible for the editors to prevent.

It would be the fummit of frivolity to expatiate upon the importance of a work like this; because it is plain, that every family in the commonwealth, fhould, if poffible, poffefs a copy of it. To judges, magiftrates and lawyers, it is indifpenfably neceffary; and every private gentleman, who wishes to underftand either his own rights, or thofe of his neighbours, ought to be converfant with its contents.

RICHMOND, APRIL 1st, 1803