132 The Life of William, Duke of Newcastle 



LIV 



That it would be very advantageous for subjects, and not 

 in the least prejudicial to the sovereign, to have a general 

 register in every county, for the entry of all manner of deeds, 

 and conveyance of land between party and party, and offices 

 of record ; for by this means, whosoever buys, would see 

 clearly what interest and title there is in any land he intends 

 to purchase, whereby he shall be assured that the sale made 

 to him is good and firm, and prevent many lawsuits touching 

 the title of his purchase *. 



LV 



That there should be a limitation for lawsuits ; and that 

 the longest suits should not last above two terms, at length 

 not above a year ; which would certainly be a great benefit 

 to the subjects in general, though not to lawyers ; and though 

 some politicians object, that the more the people is busy 

 about their private affairs, the less time have they to make 

 disturbance in the public ; yet this is but a weak argument, 

 since lawsuits are as apt to breed factions, as anything else ; 

 for they bring people into poverty, that they know not how 

 to live, which must of necessity breed discontent, and put them 

 upon ill designs. 



LVI 



That power, for the most part, does more than wisdom ; 

 for fools, with power, seem wise ; whereas wise men, without 

 power, seem fools ; and this is the reason that the world takes 

 power for wisdom, and the want of power for foolishness. 



LVII 



That a valiant man will not refuse an honourable duel ; 

 nor a wise man fight upon a fool's quarrel. 



1 This idea of the desirability of a public register for the transfer of land was very 

 frequently put forward in the seventeenth century. The Harleian Miscellany contains 

 Reasons and Proposals for a Registry of all Deeds or Encumbrances to be had in every County, 

 etc., by Nicholas Philpot, 1671. There is also a tract in the same collection against 

 such registers by William Pierrepont. It is one of the proposals made in the pamphlet 

 entitled The Grand Concern of England Explained, 1673. Yarranton brings forward 

 the same plan in England's Improvement by Sea and Land, 1677. Sir William Petty, 

 in his Political Arithmetic, and Sir Robert Moray, also argued in favour of a system of 

 registers. 



