A Century of Law Reform. Lectures by W. Blake Odgers,
LL D., and Others. (Macmillan and Co. 5s.)— These twelve lectures were delivered at the request of the Council of Legal Education. (Dr. Blake Odgers is responsible for three, Mr. A. Underhill for two, Sir H. Poland and Messrs. j. P. Bate, A. T. Carter, Augustine Birrell, A. H. Ruegg, Montague Lush, and T. B. Napier for one each.) Every one has a general idea that the law, both as to its provisions and its processes, has been greatly improved during the last hundred years, but every one, sup- posing, that is, he has not specially studied the subject, will be surprised to see how great this improvement has been. The changes in the criminal law are, perhaps, the most striking. It is difficult to realise the old state of things, when, for instance, a person accused of felony was not allowed to be defended by counsel. The help of an advocate he might have, but he was compelled to make his own defence. The improvements in equity are less easily seen, but they are not substantially less. Here, too, there has been a salutary multiplication of Judges. The Lord Chancellor and the Master of the Rolls had the whole work between them. Mr. Bissell had the " Chancery " subject allotted to him, and of course made good use of it. But all the lectures are well suited to their purpose. The one which will probably leave the reader the least satisfied is the last, on "The History of Joint-Stock and Limited Liability Companies." But this is no fault of the lecturer ; it is that the law remains unsatisfactory. Of course there is the radical difficulty of protecting the foolish investor from his own folly. Something, however, could surely be done in deterring the unscrupulous valuer. The most outrageous frauds—the word is not too strong—are certified by expert authority. The expert,. in fact, as he now exists, is a public danger. What could be more scandalous than the license which be takes with perfect impunity to back up the interests of his dent?
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