MAXIMS OF THE LAW. 185 



be annulled and revoked by their letters patents when they 

 came to the same years; but this act in the first of K. 14 El. Dy. 

 Ed. VI. who was then between the years of ten and eleven, 313&amp;gt; 

 cap. 11, was repealed, and a new law surrogate in place P.Comm.563. 

 thereof, wherein a more reasonable liberty was given; and 

 wherein, though other laws are made revocable according 

 to the provision of the former law with some new form 

 prescribed, yet that very law of revocation, together with 

 pardons, is made irrevocable and perpetual, so that there is 

 a direct contrariety between these two laws ; for if the 

 former stands, which maketh all latter laws during the 

 minority of kings revocable without exception of any law 

 whatsoever, then that very law of repeal is concluded in 

 the generality, and so itself made revocable : on the other 

 side, that law making no doubt of the absolute repeal 

 of the first law, though itself were made during the mi 

 nority, which was the very case of the former law in the 

 new provision which it maketh, hath a precise exception, 

 that the law of repeal shall not be repealed. 



But the law is, that the first law by the impertinency of 

 it was void ab initio et ipso facto without repeal, as if a law 

 were made, that no new statute should be made during 

 seven years, and the same statute be repealed within the 

 seven years, if the first statute should be good, then the 

 repeal could not be made thereof within that time ; for the 

 law of repeal were a new law, and that were disabled by 

 the former law ; therefore it is void in itself, and the rule 

 holds, perpetua lex est, nullam legem humanam ac positivam 

 perpetuam esse ; et dausula qua abrogationem exdudit initio 

 non valet. 



Neither is the difference of the civil law so reasonable 

 as colourable, for they distinguish and say that a deroga 

 tory clause is good to disable any latter act, except you 

 revoke the same clause before you proceed to establish any 

 later disposition or declaration ; for they say, that dausula 

 derogatoria ad alias sequentesvoluntatesposita in testamento, 

 (viz. si testator dicat quod si contigerit eum facer e aliud tes- 

 tamentum non vult iliud valere) operatur quod sequens dis- 

 positio ab ipsa dausula reguletur, et per consequens quod 

 sequens dispositio duretur sine voluntate, et sic quod non sit 

 attendendum. The sense is, that where a former will is 

 made, and after a later will, the reason why, without an 

 express revocation of the former will, it is by implication 

 revoked, is because of the repugnancy between the dispo 

 sition of the former and the later. 



