238 TiMEHRI. 



said that the standard of editorial excellence is high. 

 Thus, the Appendix to the fifth volume contains three 

 documents, one of them being a Placard of the States of 

 Holland extending over 15 pages, which had already 

 been printed in the Appendix to the first volume, and 

 the same Appendix contains no less than four Ordin- 

 ances which had been omitted from their proper places. 

 In the Address to the subscribers previous compilations 

 of the laws are criticized for their want of accuracy, and 

 it is declared that the work aims at a high standard of 

 merit in this respe6t. It can hardly be said that the 

 attainment is equal to the promise. It will be found on 

 examination that some ena6tments which are in force 

 have been omitted, and indeed there is, in the Address 

 already referred to, a frank declaration — which can 

 hardly fail to arouse the astonishment of a constitutional 

 lawyer — that an Ordinance passed by the Governor and 

 Court of Policy was " purposely left out on the ground 

 that it was plainly unconstitutional." 



But, with all its shortcomings, it may be readily ad- 

 mitted that the Government and people of this Colony 

 are under a considerable debt of gratitude to the editor 

 and publisher of M'Dermott'S edition of the laws. It 

 is a handy and useful compilation, and, in the absence 

 of an authorized edition, it is the colle6lion which is 

 generally referred to in the Courts of Justice, in public 

 and private offices, and by private individuals. 



It is not necessary to make here more than a brief 

 reference to some serviceable colleftions of the statute 

 laws relating to special subjefts, such as, (i) A Handy 

 Book of Village Law, by J. Brumell, late Sheriff of 

 Demerara, published in 1873 at The Royal Gazette 



