duced, to the symbol attached to the registered document under which the title is derived.

Provision to be made for the separation of titles by a power to index under another symbol any document affecting part only of property, the title to which is indexed under an existing symbol, or a partial interest in property is held under a registered title. An entry of the transfer to another symbol to be made under the original symbol.'

It will be observed that this plan attaches the index at once to the title, which would appear to be the direct and natural, though not the obvious, course. The exception in the first paragraph relates to instruments which cannot be attached to any particular districts, as they may embrace property, the local situation of which may be unascertained, and to certain agreements and leases, which may be properly excepted from registration, from the tenuity of the interests involved, or from their temporary duration. It will probably be considered, that the court-rolls form a sufficient registration of legal assurances of copyholds. It is proposed that wills and conveyances to and by assignees of bankrupts and insolvent-debtors shall be indexed by alphabetical lists of names. This, indeed, seems the only species of index which can be resorted to in such cases. Conveyances by devisees are to be indexed either under the symbol of the prior title, or under a new symbol, at the option of the grantee: in case a new symbol be adopted, reciprocal references are to be made from the old and new symbols. These references, however, are not to be essential to the validity of the registration, which is not to be affected by any mistakes or omissions. The references are made directory only in order to diminish the risk of failure in the registration,—a risk which is obviously increased by multiplying the essential requisites to a valid registration. The chasm which an omission to make the reference would occasion, is proposed to be supplied by a reference (which is to be essential) from the index of wills to the symbols under which the titles derived from each will are indexed,—the will itself being, in the first instance, found by means of the alphabetical list of testators. Similar provisions are to be made with respect to conveyances by assignecs of bankrupts and insolvent-debtors. Conveyances by heirs-at-law are to be indexed under the old symbol, or if under a new symbol, reciprocal references to connect the old and the new titles are made essential to the registration. Or (the commissioners suggest) a claim of descent by heirs-at-law may be entered in books kept for that purpose, from which entries references shall be made to the symbols under which conveyances

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by them are indexed. It is assumed that parties searching have informed themselves, aliunde, who the heir is, and his claim of descent may be found by means of an alphabetical list of names. Power is to be given to index assignments of charges made by will under new symbols. In such cases, references are to be made to the new symbol from the index of wills. It is obvious that the property affected by these charges (and there are other instruments to which the same remark will apply) may not be known, and therefore such assignments are to be registered in a department not connected with the division into districts. Thus every document placed on the index for a district will form the root of a new title, which will continue to be indexed under that symbol, till transferred to another under the provisions authorising such transfers.

The commencement of the registered title is proposed to be indicated and connected with the prior title, by means of an alphabetical list of the grantors in the deed with which each registered title commences. It is proposed, that on sale of part of an estate indexed under a symbol, the vendor shall have the right to require the conveyance to be indexed under a new symbol, and a specification of the parcels sold to be entered under the old symbol. This will be of great practical convenience-in saving the necessity of examining the conveyance of the part sold off on a subsequent sale of the remaining part of the estate, and a provision, having the same object, is proposed to be applied to cases of conveyance of partial interests. The following statement of the operation of the system is from the commissioners' outline.

After the establishment of the register, the investigation of the title will commence with a search of the alphabetical index of the names of grantors, in order to ascertain that no document affecting the title has been registered, or to obtain a reference to the symbol under which the first registered document is placed; and when required by the facts subsequent to the commencement of the register, and before a reference to the index of the names of grantors in a registered document, recourse will be had to the alphabetical indexes of wills and claims of descent; and the alphabetical indexes of conveyances to the assignees of bankrupts and of insolvent debtors, will be resorted to where such a precaution is deemed necessary. As to the subsequent title, no searches, involving risk of failure, either by the solicitor or the officer of the register, will be necessary, except as to wills and conveyances to the assignees of bankrupts or insolvent debtors, which, comparatively, will occasion little difficulty. The searches of the alphabetical indexes, or the symbol attached to the titledeeds, will lead to the proper head in the index for the district, or (in cases of title created by will) to the head under which a charge registered in the general department is indexed.'

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What we have stated will give an intelligible view of the subject, and indeed comprehends all that is essential. The commissioners, however, propose that the officers of the registers, after the requisites to a valid registration have been complied with, shall make entries in the index (in columns allotted for that purpose) of several additional particulars, relating to the instruments which are registered. They also propose to provide for the case (which, we agree with them, must be of rare occurrence) of a total want of documentary evidence, and ignorance of title, by means of such a directory to symbols in books kept for making entries of such particulars, as may enable the officers of the register to search for the symbol attached to any property, the title of which is required to be investigated.

As we think that the inconveniences and positive evils resulting from the want of a register can hardly be overrated, and reflect no small discredit on the internal polity of the country, we congratulate these commissioners on the great advance they have made in overcoming the difficulties of the subject. We are sensible of the difficulties which still await them in following out the details of the measure, and we are aware of the many important questions they will have to discuss as to its effects. But we mean to follow their example in confining ourselves, for the present, to the plan of the register. No doubt, more mature reflection may lead to alterations and improvements in some of the proposals we have been detailing; but we can scarcely doubt that the leading principles of the plan are correct, and that it may be put in practice with incalculable advantage to the community. To conclude, we observe with pleasure, that though the commissioners propose that there shall be one general register for England and Wales in London, and that the deeds shall be registered at length, the principle of the plan is quite compatible with an alteration in both particulars, and will apply equally well if it should be ultimately determined to have a local register for each county, and to memorialise deeds instead of registering them at length. As a proposal for registry will certainly meet with opposition, we hope that the favourers of the general measure will not put its success in jeopardy by being too tenacious on points of comparatively little importance.

ART.

ART. VIII.-1. First Report made to His Majesty by the Commissioners appointed to inquire into the Practice and Proceedings of the Superior Courts of Common Law. Ordered by the House of Commons to be printed 20th Feb. 1829.

2. Reports from the three Select Committees on the Administration of Justice in Wales, with Appendices. Ordered by the House of Commons to be printed, 4th July, 1817, 13th July, 1820, 14th June, 1821.

3. Letter to the Right Hon. John, Baron Lyndhurst, Lord High Chancellor of England, on the Administration of Justice in Wales. By John Frederick, Earl Cawdor. Edinburgh, 1828.

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NE of the measures consequent upon Mr. Brougham's speech in the House of Commons, on the 7th of February, 1828, consisted in the issuing of a Commission, on the 16th of May following, to five individuals, all eminent in common-law practice, and some of them the most acute and intelligent advocates of their day, authorizing them to inquire into the system of proceedings in the common-law courts, with a view to their improvement. The massive volume now before us is the First Report, from this Commission, presented to the House of Commons on the 18th of February, 1829. It appears to us to be worthy of the individuals whose names are appended to ithighly creditable to their industry and research, as well as to their acuteness and legal knowledge, and well calculated (though we are far from agreeing in all its conclusions and propositions) to effect salutary amendments in some important commonlaw proceedings, and to promote, at least, a complete understanding and appreciation of the merits and defects of all those proceedings which are handled. The commissioners have divided their comprehensive inquiry into twelve heads :-1. The dispatch of business in the Courts at Westminster, those of the Counties Palatine, and of Wales. 2. 'Process,'-or the forms and procedure in use in commencing actions, including the proceeding of arrest for debt. 3. The pleadings,' or entries on record of the technical statements of each party in the suit. 4. Proceedings on issues of law, that is, on the argument and adjudication of questions of law solemnly referred to the judges for decision. 5. Proceedings on issues in fact, that is, issues triable by juries, including the multifold matters of evidence, oral and documentary, proceedings at Nisi Prius trials, and motions for new trials. 6. Judgment. 7. Proceedings before courts of error. 8. Executions, whether against the person or the property of the defendant. 9. Costs. 10. Fees of office. 11. Arbitrations. 12. Miscellaneous matters relative to practice and proceedings.

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The present Report treats only of the two first heads; and the commissioners (though deprived of the most eminent of their body, by his most deserved elevation to the bench) are proceeding steadily in the investigation of the other subjects. Some persons, unacquainted with the nature and difficulties of the task, may perhaps express surprise at no more having been yet accomplished by the commission; we will say for ourselves, that when we consider the extreme complication and difficulty of the subjects of inquiry, the necessity for long and tedious examinations and re-examinations of a multitude of practitioners, the laborious thought and reiterated consideration necessary to arrange the materials acquired, and to deduce from them just conclusions as to the advantages and defects of the proceedings investigated,-to arrive precisely at the true causes of embarrassment and difficulty,—and to frame and adapt to these remedies at once adequate and harmless, we are quite astonished that, in the short space of nine or ten months, the commissioners could have advanced so far in so perplexing a task, consistently with the pressing calls of professional practice.

The commissioners, before entering upon the investigation of the forms of Civil Procedure, with a view to their simplification, have wisely, in the outset of their inquiry, taken into consideration the actual arrears of business in the common-law courts, the quantum of judicial labour at present struggling to dispose of them, the practicability of rendering this labour more efficient by a better direction of its force, and the expediency of increasing it by the addition of new judges. To reform effectually the judicial forms and technical proceedings, in all points in which they are capable of improvement, must be a work of some duration. But in the mean time it is of the utmost importance that, if the bench requires reinforcement by creation of new judges, these hands should be sent into the vineyard immediately; and that, if causes can be more speedily despatched by any improved distribution of judicial time, and any better arrangement of business, these changes should be made at once, since the making of them requires no delay. Though we have no doubt that an increase in the number of judges must form a main feature in any such plans, we think it equally clear that much requires to be done in addition to that measure that the labour of the existing judges is very far from being turned to the greatest effect; that four, at least, of them (those of the Exchequer) cannot be said to labour at all (unless at the severe task of killing time); that four others are only moderately employed ;-while the truly arduous exertions of the four judges of the King's Bench might produce considerably more advantage to the public, by an improved arrangement of the business which they despatch.

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