spiciendo, in order, by a physical examination, to test the reality of Mrs. Rollwagen's pretensions. To this Mrs. Rollwagen objected, and the court decided that as the lady was not going to be hanged, and did not herself solicit the investigation, there was no power to compel her to submit to the wishes of her antagonists, and they must not try to anticipate the evidence, but must wait and see what time and the lady would bring forth. We hope at some future time to present to our readers the arguments on that motion, which constituted, we believe, the first instance of such an application in American jurisprudence. There is a tradition, which may not be unknown to some, that one of these thirty pieces of silver, enstamped as it were, with the superscription of this crime, has continued to circulate from that day to this. Wherever it has gone, into whosesoever hand it has come, whether high or low, rich or poor, old or young, bond or free, of whatever sex, color, or country the recipient may have been; by purchase or by gift, through charity or crime, howsoever or whensoever this piece of silver has come into the possession of any person, it has invariably brought with it a curse. And in this case, if by any possibility these sons could succeed, through this infamous scheme which they have presented here, in overturning this will, the money that would come to them indelibly stamped with their crime, would also prove a curse." CURRENT TOPICS. But aside from the human issue, there were questions enough to perplex the court. It was claimed that the testator was paralyzed, and a vast amount of medical learning was invoked on that question. The case reeks with big words. We wonder that some of them did not choke the doctors and stagger the stenographer. The paralysis was described, not as paraplegia, or paralysis of both sides, but as hemiplegia, or paralysis of one side. And not only was it In Judge Pierrepont's able oration at Yale college, claimed that the testator was affected by paralysis on he informed his audience that in the city of Amalfi, a one side, but also that he was affected by undue in-council of the Roman Catholic Church decreed, that fluence on one side. In short, that the will was a onesided affair. The case not being yet decided, it is impossible to tell how the court will side, and it would be improper for us to offer any suggestion on that point. We do hope, however, that he will give all the counsel liberal allowances. They have earned them and they expect them, and as it is not in proof that the testator ever did any thing for the profession in his life, it is eminently fit that he should be made to contribute to that object now that he is dead. We have said that counsel earned their money, and to prove it we give the peroration of Mr. Arnoux's address, which seems to us one of the finest passages in forensic literature. Doubtless Mr. Clinton must have said something very fine to call forth such an effort, but we have not the latter gentleman's address to quote from. Mr. Arnoux said: "Those silent hands, whose ceaseless revolutions mark the flight of time, admonish us that the hours of the day are fast departing. We have entered upon the eve of that sweetest, saddest day of all the year, which in the chronology of the christian calendar is celebrated as the anniversary of the crucifixion of our Lord, nineteen centuries ago. It was a deed so dread that nature inanimate could not behold the scene, but darkness and convulsive throes attested its abhorrence of that heinous crime. Whenever we ponder upon that awful tragedy, our thoughts instinctively recur to the story of that disciple, who had so long been trusted, who betrayed his Lord for thirty pieces of silver, and whose remorse for having betrayed innocent blood deprived his treachery of its anticipated compensation. The Jewish Sanhedrim refused to return this blood-money, which Judas cast before them, into the treasury, but purchased therewith a potter's field, and thus sent this money into circulation. no one who was engaged in the practice of law could enter the kingdom of heaven; and that "in the city of New Haven, Noah Webster taught the children of America by picture before they could read, and by fable at their first lisping, that the farmer was honest and that the lawyer was a rogue." Thereupon Judge Pierrepont entered into a serious and eloquent defense of our profession against ecclesiastical attacks. It was scarcely needed. It is a source of great delight to us as lawyers, to know, that the "lawyers" spoken of in the New Testament were not lawyers in the sense of the word as used at the present day, but were more nearly priests, the expounders of the church-law. So the legal gentleman who tempted our Saviour was a clergyman rather than a lawyer, and so those on whom our Saviour denounced "woe" were gentlemen of the ecclesiastical and not of the legal robe. We say this affords us delight, not at the unenviable position of those persons, but that the accusation should recoil like the boomerang on the noses of the class who utter it. As for Noah Webster, he was a good lexicographer, and a good enough man to write a child's spelling-book, but his ideas about lawyers were antiquated and smack of the Ark, like his christian name. We decidedly prefer Daniel of the same surname on this point. We think that a profession which Daniel Webster chose will be able to bear up under the implied censure of Noah and his spelling book. The semi-centennial celebration of the Yale Law school, on Wednesday week, was a notable affair. Ex-President Woolsey delivered an historical address, and the Hon. Edwards Pierrepont an oration. Chief Justice Waite presided. In the course of his address Dr. Woolsey gave some interesting facts concerning the Litchfield law school, one of the first and largest law schools in the country. It was opened by Tappan Reeve in 1784. Among its graduates are included fifteen United States Senators, five Cabinet officers, ten Governors of States, fifty members of Congress, forty judges of the highest State courts, and ten judges of the Supreme Court of the United States. Dr. Woolsey closed with the following description of a law school, which we fear is ideal: "Let the school no longer be regarded as simply the place for training men to plead causes, to give advice to clients, but let it be regarded as the place where all sound learning in respect to the foundations of justice, the history of law, the doctrine of government- to all those branches of knowledge which the most finished statesman and legislator ought to know. First of all, I would have the training essential to the lawyer by profession as complete and thorough as possible. Let that still be the main thing and let the examinations, together with appropriate theses, be a proof that every graduate has fairly earned his degree. But with this let there be coupled opportunities for those who wish teachers, in studying the constitution and political history of the country. Let the law of nations, the doctrines of finance, taxation and rights, the relation of politics and morals, be taught. Let there be opportunity for the study of English institutions, even far back into the middle ages. Let the library be increased. Can it be doubted that such an institution as I have sketched would be of vast service, that its influences would reach the halls of Congress, and that it might become a fountain of light through the whole land? May the study of law keep pace with the advances made in the practical sciences. I desire to see all the sciences flourish side by side, the moral as well as material. Only so can the best interests of society and the individual man be promoted, and a harmony be maintained in human culture." Judge Pierrepont's oration was an able and scholarly effort. He, very naturally considering the occasion, laid great stress upon the teachings of the law school in the education of lawyers, and gave it as his opinion that young men cannot learn law by simply reading it or working in an office, but that the highest legal education could only be acquired in the school. This might be true were the law schools like that outlined by Dr. Woolsey, but unfortunately they are not. Law schools are certainly valuable in their way but they never can fully equip a young man for the practice of the law. The "Office" has its part in the training, and while it may not be so high in character, it is none the less important. So long as statutes exist making young men lawyers as a matter of course, who have attended a certain time at a law school, without regard to the question whether they have "fairly earned their degrees," the law schools are not likely to reach their highest usefulness. One of the most important, if not the most important, acts of the last Congress was the adoption of the Revision of the United States Statutes. The most potent obstacle to the codification of the laws of any State is in securing the final sanction of the legislative body to the work as it comes from the hands of the codifiers. Usually, every legislator, wise or otherwise, has his own theories on one subject or another embraced in the work, and does his best to have his theories incorporated in it. He wants to discuss and amend and patch the work when propounded, as he discusses and amends and patches other bills. In the forcible language of Mr. Fitz-James Stephens, "a popular assembly might as well try to paint a picture." Fortunately, the United States Revision did not encounter that difficulty. After it was reported by the commission it was referred to the Congressional Committee on the Revision of the Laws, and was by them and by Mr. Thomas J. Durant, of Washington, who was employed by the committee, subjected to a careful review. After coming from the hands of the committee the revision was patiently gone over in both Houses, and was finally adopted about two weeks before the adjournment. This revision contains the Statute Law of the United States down to the present year, and embraces within the limits of two volumes the contents of seventeen bulky octavo volumes. The first commission for the revision of the laws was appointed in 1866, and consisted of Caleb Cushing, William Johnson, of Ohio, and Charles P. James, of the District of Columbia. Little progress was made by these gentlemen, and, after the expiration of the three years for which they were appointed, they retired. In May, 1870, Congress passed an act reviving the Commission, and Benjamin Vaughn Abbott, Charles P. James and V. M. Barringer were appointed the commissioners. Under the management of these gentlemen the work has been carefully, ably and promptly done. NOTES OF CASES. In Pierce v. Dyer, 109 Mass. 374, was decided an interesting question, as to the rights and obligations of the several owners of distinct parts of a building. The action was in tort and the plaintiff alleged that he and the defendant were owners of a dwellinghouse, each owning a part; that there was no partition-wall between the said parts or tenements, and that the defendant had wrongfully suffered his part to get out of repair to the injury of the plaintiff. The defendant demurred and the court sustained the demurrer - holding on the authority of Peyton v. London, 9 B. & C. 725, that the obligation of the defendant to repair could not be inferred, and that without such obligation an action could not be maintained for mere refusal and neglect. It is intimated, however, that the action might have been sustained had the injury resulted from positive misfeasance. This case resembles Ottumwa Lodge v. Lewis, 34 Iowa, 67; 11 Am. Rep. 135, which we have heretofore noticed. In that case the plaintiff owned the upper story of a building and the defendant the lower story, and it was held that the latter could not be compelled to contribute toward a repair of the roof. The Court of Appeals of Virginia decided in Ould v. City of Richmond, 1 Am. L. T. R. (N. S.) 241, that a city ordinance providing that lawyers, among others, should pay a certain sum as a tax was not unconstitutional. The charter of the city authorized the city to "raise annually by taxes and assessments such sums of money, etc., in such manner as they shall deem expedient in accordance with the laws of the State and of the United States." The court said, that as a lawyer obtained his license from the State, it was not within the province of a municipal corporation to grant it or to take it away, yet that it was as fair a subject for municipal taxation as any property to which a man had a vested right. THE NEW BANKRUPT ACT. The following is a copy of the Bankruptcy amendment act passed at the last session of congress: AN ACT To amend and supplement an act entitled "An act to establish a uniform system of bankruptcy throughout the United States," approved March second, eighteen hundred and sixty-seven, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America, in Congress assembled, That the act entitled "An act to establish a uniform system of bankruptcy throughout the United States," approved March second, eighteen hundred and sixty-seven, be and the same is hereby amended and - supplemented as follows: That the court may, in its discretion, on sufficient cause shown, and upon notice and hearing, direct the receiver or assignee to take possession of the property, and carry on the business of the debtor, or any part thereof, under the direction of the court, when, in its judgment, the interest of the estate as well as of the creditors will be promoted thereby, but not for a period exceeding nine months from the time the debtor shall have been declared a bankrupt: Provided, that such order shall not be made until the court shall be satisfied that it is approved by a majority in value of the creditors. SECT. 2. That section one of said act be, and it is hereby amended by adding thereto the following words: "Provided, that the court having charge of the estate of any bankrupt may direct that any of the legal assets or debts of the bankrupt, as contradistinguished from equitable demands, shall, when such debt does not exceed five hundred dollars, be collected in the courts of the State where such bankrupt resides, having jurisdiction of claims of such nature and amount.' SECT. 3. That section two of said act be, and it hereby is, amended by striking out, in line ten, the words "the same," and inserting the word "any;" and by adding next after the words "adverse interest," in line twelve, the words "or owing any debt to such bankrupt." SECT. 4. That unless otherwise ordered by the court, the assignee shall sell the property of the bankrupt, whether real or personal, at public auction, in such parts or parcels and at such times and places as shall be best calculated to produce the greatest amount with the least expense. All notices of public sales under this act by any assignee or officer of the court shall be published once a week for three consecutive weeks in the newspaper or newspapers, to be designated by the judge, which, in his opinion, shall be best calculated to give general notice of the sale. And the court, on the application of any party in interest, shall have complete supervisory power over such sales, including the power to set aside the same and order a resale, so that the property sold shall realize the largest sum. And the court may, in its discretion, order any real estate of the bankrupt, or any part thereof, to be sold for one-fourth cash at the time of sale, and the residue within eighteen months, in such installments as the court may direct, bearing interest at the rate of seven per centum per annum, and secured by proper mortgage or lien upon the property so sold. And it shall be the duty of every assignee to keep a regular account of all moneys received or expended by him as such assignee, to which account every creditor shall, at reasonable times, have free access. If any assignee shall fail or neglect to well and faithfully discharge his duties in the sale or disposition of property as above contemplated, it shall be the duty of the court to remove such assignee, and he shall forfeit all fees and emoluments to which he might be entitled in connection with such sale. And if any assignee shall, in any manner, in violation of his duty aforesaid, unfairly or wrongfully sell or dispose of, or in any manner fraudulently or corruptly combine, conspire, or agree with any person or persons, with intent to unfairly or wrongfully sell or dispose of the property committed to his charge, he shall, upon proof thereof, be removed, and forfeit all fees or other compensation for any and all services in connection with such bankrupt's estate, and, upon conviction thereof before any court of competent jurisdiction, shall be liable to a fine of not more than ten thousand dollars, or imprisonment in the penitentiary for a term of not exceeding two years, or both fine and imprisonment, at the discretion of the court. And any person so combining, conspiring, or agreeing with such assignee for the purpose aforesaid shall, upon conviction, be liable to a like punishment. That the assignee shall report, under oath, to the court at least as often as once in three months, the condition of the estate in his charge, and the state of his accounts in detail, and at all other times when the court, on motion or otherwise, shall so order. And on any settlement of the accounts of any assignee, he shall be required to account for all interest, benefit or advantage received, or in any manner agreed to be received, directly or indirectly, from the use, disposal, or proceeds of the bankrupt's estate. And he shall be required, upon such settlement, to make and file in court an affidavit declaring, according to the truth, whether he has or has not, as the case may be, received, or is or is not, as the case may be, to receive, directly or indirectly, any interest, benefit, or advantage from the use or deposit of such funds; and such assignee may be examined orally upon the same subject, and if he shall willfully swear falsely, either in such affidavit or examination, or to his report provided for in this section, he shall be deemed to be guilty of perjury, and, on conviction thereof, be punished by imprisonment in the penitentiary not less than one and not more than five years. SECT. 5. That section eleven of said act be amended by striking out the words "as the warrant specifies" where they first occur, and inserting the words "as the marshal shall select, not exceeding two; " and inserting after the word "specifies," where it last occurs, the words "But whenever the creditors of the bankrupt are so numerous as to make any notice now required by law to them, by mail or otherwise, a great and disproportionate expense to the estate, the court may, in lieu thereof, in its discretion, order such notice to be given by publication in a newspaper or newspapers, to all such creditors whose claims, as reported, do not exceed the sums, respectively, of fifty dollars." SECT. 6. That the first clause of section twenty of said act be amended by adding, at the end thereof, the words "or in cases of compulsory bankruptcy after the act of bankruptcy upon or in respect of which the adjudication shall be made, and with a view of making such set-off." SECT. 7. That section twenty-one of said act be amended by inserting the following words in line six, immediately after "thereby: ""But a creditor proving his debt or claim shall not be held to have waived his right of action or suit against the bankrupt where a discharge has been refused or the proceedings have been determined without a discharge." SECT. 8. That the following words shall be added to section twenty-six of said act: "That in all causes and trials arising or ordered under this act, the alleged bankrupt, and any party thereto, shall be a competent witness." SECT. 9. That in cases of compulsory or involuntary bankruptcy, the provisions of said act, and any amendment thereof, or of any supplement thereto, requiring the payment of any proportion of the debts of the bankrupt, or the assent of any portion of his creditors, as a condition of his discharge from his debts, shall not apply; but he may, if otherwise entitled thereto, be discharged by the court in the same manner and with the same effect as if he had paid such per centum of his debts, or as if the required proportion of his creditors had assented thereto. And in cases of voluntary bankruptcy, no discharge shall be granted to a debtor whose assets shall not be equal to thirty per centum of the claims proved against his estate, upon which he shall be liable as principal debtor, without the assent of at least one-fourth of his creditors in number and one-third in value; and the provision in section thirtythree of said act of March second, eighteen hundred and sixty-seven, requiring fifty per centum of such assets, is hereby repealed. SECT. 10. That in cases of involuntary or compulsory bankruptcy, the period of four months mentioned in section thirty-five of the act to which this is an amendment is hereby changed to two months; but this provision shall not take effect until two months after the passage of this act. And in the cases aforesaid, the period of six months mentioned in said section thirtyfive is hereby changed to three months; but this provision shall not take effect until three months after the passage of this act. SECT. 11. That section thirty-five of said act be, and the same is hereby amended as follows: First, after the word "and," in line eleven, insert the word "knowing;" secondly, after the word "attachment," in the same line, insert the words "sequestration, seizure;" thirdly, after the word "and," in line twenty, insert the word "knowing." And nothing in said section thirty-five shall be construed to invalidate any loan of actual value, or the security therefor, made in good faith upon a security taken in good faith on the occasion of the making of such loan. SECT. 12. That section thirty-nine of said act of March second, eighteen hundred and sixty-seven, be amended so as to read as follows: "SECT. 39. That any person residing, and owing debts, as aforesaid, who, after the passage of this act, shall depart from the State, District, or Territory of which he is an inhabitant, with intent to defraud his creditors; or, being absent, shall, with such intent, remain absent; or shall conceal himself to avoid the service of legal process in any action for the recovery of a debt or demand provable under this act; or shall conceal or remove any of his property to avoid its being attached, taken or sequestered on legal process; or shall make any assignment, gift, sale, conveyance or transfer of his estate, property, rights, or credits, either within the United States or elsewhere, with intent to delay, defraud or hinder his creditors: or who has been arrested and held in custody under or by virtue of mesne process or execution, issued out of any court of the United States or of any State, District, or Territory within which such debtor resides or has property, founded upon a demand in its nature provable against a bankrupt's estate under this act, and for a sum exceeding one hundred dollars, and such process is remaining in force and not discharged by payment, or in any other manner provided by the law of the United States or of such State, District, or Territory, applicable thereto, for a period of twenty days, or has been actually imprisoned for more than twenty days in a civil action founded on contract for the sum of one hundred dollars or upward; or who, being bankrupt or insolvent, or in contemplation of bankruptcy or insolvency, shall make any payment, gift, grant, sale, conveyance or transfer of money or other property, estate, rights, or credits, or confess judgment, or give any warrant to confess judgment, or procure his property to be taken on legal process, with intent to give a preference to one or more of his creditors, or to any person or persons who are or may be liable for him as endorsers, bail, sureties, or otherwise, or with the intent, by such disposition of his property, to defeat or delay the operation of this act; or who, being a bank, a banker, broker, merchant, trader, manufacturer, or miner, has fraudulently stopped payment; or who, being a banker, broker, merchant, trader, manufacturer, or miner, has stopped or suspended and not resumed payment, within a period of forty days, of his commercial paper (made or passed in the course of his business as such, or who, being a bank or banker, shall fail for forty days to pay any depositor upon demand of payment lawfully made), shall be deemed to have committed an act of bankruptcy, and, subject to the conditions hereinafter prescribed, shall be adjudged a bankrupt on the petition of one or more of his creditors, who shall constitute one-fourth thereof, at least, in number, and the aggregate of whose debts provable under this act amounts to at least one-third of the debts so provable: Provided, That such petition is brought within six months after such act of bankruptcy shall have been committed. And the provisions of this section shall apply to all cases of compulsory or involuntary bankruptcy commenced since the first day of December, eighteen hundred and seventy-three, as well as those commenced hereafter. And in all cases commenced since the first day of December, eighteen hundred and seventy-three, and prior to the passage of this act, as well as those commenced hereafter, the court shall, if such allegation as to the number or amount of petitioning creditors be denied by the debtor, by a statement in writing to that effect, require him to file in court forthwith a full list of his creditors, with their places of residence and the sums due them respectively, and shall ascertain, upon reasonable notice to the creditors, whether one-fourth in number and one-third in amount thereof, as aforesaid, have petitioned that the debtor be adjudged a bankrupt. But if such debtor shall, on the filing of the petition, admit in writing that the requisite number and amount of creditors have petitioned, the court, if satisfied that the omission was made in good faith, shall so adjudge; which judgment shall be final, and the matter proceed without further steps on that subject. And if it shall appear that such number and amount have not so petitioned, the court shall grant reasonable time, not exceeding, in cases heretofore commenced, twenty days, and, in cases hereafter commenced, ten days, within which other creditors may join in such petition. And if, at the expiration of such time so limited, the number and amount shall comply with the requirements of this section, the matter of bankruptcy may proceed; but if, at the expiration of such limited time, such number and amount shall not answer the requirements of this section, the proceedings shall be dismissed, and in cases hereafter commenced, with costs; and if such person shall be adjudged a bankrupt, the assignee may recover back the money or property so paid, conveyed, sold, assigned, or transferred contrary to this act: Provided, That the person receiving such payment or conveyance had reasonable cause to believe that the debtor was insolvent, and knew that a fraud on this act was intended; and such person, if a creditor, shall not, in cases of actual fraud on his part, be allowed to prove for more than a moiety of his debt; and this limitation on the proof of debts shall apply to cases of voluntary as well as involuntary bankruptcy; and the petition of creditors under this section may be sufficiently verified by the oaths of the first five signers thereof, if so many there be. And if any of said first five signers shall not reside in the district in which such petition is to be filed, the same may be signed and verified by the oath or oaths of the attorney or attorneys, agent or agents, of such signers. And in computing the number of creditors, as aforesaid, who shall join in such petition, creditors whose respective debts do not exceed two hundred and fifty dollars shall not be reckoned. But if there be no creditors whose debts exceed said sum of two hundred and fifty dollars, or if the requisite number of creditors holding debts exceeding two hundred and fifty dollars fail to sign the petition, the creditors having debts of a less amount shall be reckoned for the purposes aforesaid." SECT. 13. That section forty of said act be amended by adding at the end thereof the following words: “And if, on the return-day of the order to show cause as aforesaid, the court shall be satisfied that the requirement of section thirty-nine of said act as to the number and amount of petitioning creditors has been complied with, or if, within the time provided for in section thirty-nine of this act, creditors sufficient in number and amount shall sign such petition so as to make a total of one-fourth in number of the creditors and onethird in the amount of the provable debts against the bankrupt, as provided in said section, the court shall so adjudge, which judgment shall be final; otherwise it shall dismiss the proceedings, and in cases hereafter commenced with costs." SECT. 14. That section forty-one of said act be amended as follows: After the word “bankruptcy,” in line eight, strike out all of said section and insert the words, “Or, at the election of the debtor, the court may, in its discretion, award a venire facias to the marshal of the district, returnable within ten days before him for the trial of the facts set forth in the petition, at which time the trial shall be had, unless adjourned for cause. And unless, upon such hearing or trial, it shall appear to the satisfaction of said court, or of the jury, as the case may be, that the facts set forth in said petition are true, or if it shall appear that the debtor has paid and satisfied all liens upon his property, in case the existence of such liens was the sole ground of the proceeding, the proceeding shall be dismissed, and the respondent shall recover costs; and all proceedings in bankruptcy may be discontinued on reasonable notice and hearing, with the approval of the court, and upon the assent, in writing, of such debtor, and not less than one-half of his creditors in number and amount; or in case all the creditors and such debtor assent thereto, such discontinuance shall be ordered and entered; and all parties shall be remitted, in either case, to the same rights and duties existing at the date of the filing of the petition for bankruptcy, except so far as such estate shall have been already administered and disposed of. And the court shall have power to make all needful orders and decrees to carry the foregoing provision into effect." SECT. 15. That section eleven of said act be amended by inserting the words "and valuation" after the word "inventory" in the twenty-first line; and that section forty-two of said act be amended by inserting the words "and valuation" after the word "inventory" in the fifteenth line. SECT. 16. That section forty-nine of said act be amended by striking out, after the word "the," in line five, the words "Supreme Courts," and inserting in lieu thereof "District Courts;" and in line six after the word "States," inserting the words "subject to the general superintendence and jurisdiction conferred upon Circuit Courts by section two of said act." SECT. 17. That the following provisions be added to section forty-three of said act: That in all cases of bankruptcy now pending, or to be hereafter pending, by or against any person, whether an adjudication in bankruptcy shall have been had or not, the creditors of such alleged bankrupt may at a meeting called under the direction of the court, and upon not less than ten days' notice to each known creditor of the time, place and purpose of such meeting, such notice to be personal or otherwise, as the court may direct, resolve that a composition proposed by the debtor shall be accepted in satisfaction of the debts due to them from the debtor. And such resolution shall, to be operative, have been passed by a majority in number and threefourths in value of the creditors of the debtor assembled at such meeting either in person or by proxy, and shall be confirmed by the signatures thereto of the debtor and two-thirds in number and one-half in value of all the creditors of the debtor. And in calculating a majority for the purposes of a composition under this section, creditors whose debts amount to sums not exceeding fifty dollars shall be reckoned in the majority in value, but not in the majority in number; and the value of the debts of secured creditors above the |