A Collection of All Such Acts of the General Assembly of Virginia, of a Public and Permanent Nature, as are Now in Force: to Which are Prefixed the Declaration of Rights, and Constitution, or Form of Government

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by General Assembly of Virginia

Acts of the General Assembly of Virginia (1803)
CollectionOfAllSuchActsOfTheGeneralAssemblyOfVirginia1803 TitlePage.jpg

Title page from A Collection of All Such Acts of the General Assembly of Virginia, of a Public and Permanent Nature, George Wythe Collection, Wolf Law Library, College of William & Mary.

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Published Richmond: Printed by S. Pleasants, Jun. and H. Pace
Date 1803
Edition {{{edition}}}
Language English
Volumes {{{set}}} volume set
Pages v, 454, 72
Desc. 4to (26 cm.)
Location Shelf G-3
  [[Shelf {{{shelf2}}}]]

Published in 1803 and authorized by a 1792 act of the General Assembly, A Collection of All Such Acts of the General Assembly of Virginia built upon the 1794 edition.[1] The latter had become "extremely scarce" and although it cost eight dollars when it was published, had become "almost impossible to obtain . . . at any price whatever."[2] Aside from being rare, the 1794 edition had also become obsolete; many of the laws contained within it had been revised and repealed.[3] This meant that the practicing lawyer needed to have the yearly-published folios containing amendments to the 1794 edition in order to know the law.[4] The 1803 edition was published partially in the interest of preventing practitioners from having to carry a "portmanteau large enough to contain such masses of print and paper."[5] In order to prevent the scarcity that occurred for the 1794 edition, the legislature passed an act ensuring a large print run.[6]

The 1803 edition contains seven additional years, covering the period 1782-1802. Important for George Wythe, the Collection contains laws setting the salary of the judge of the High Court of Chancery at $1,556.67.[7] In 1802, this amount was reduced to $1,500 when the legislature dissolved the High Court of Chancery and created the Superior Courts of Chancery.[8] In addition, the Collection includes acts for regulating the militia, inspecting food, inspecting tobacco, and establishing public schools.[9]

The Collection also deals with slavery and freed slaves. One act required a yearly tax to be paid on slaves of 44 cents for every hundred dollars in value.[10] Another act outlined proceedings for persons believed to be illegally detained in slavery.[11] Overall, the laws contained in the Collection reveal the increasing importance of the Virginia General Assembly in the early years of statehood.

Evidence for Inclusion in Wythe's Library

The Brown Bibliography[12] suggests Wythe owned this compilation based on the mandate that the chancery judge would receive a copy. This may have been one of the items to which Thomas Jefferson referred in his inventory of Wythe's Library as "Laws of Virga. various edns." Jefferson kept Wythe's copies of Virginia laws, and may have sold some or all of them to the Library of Congress in 1815. He did sell a copy of the 1803 Collection, and the volume still exists. Unfortunately, it includes no inscription or other markings linking it to Wythe.[13] The Wolf Law Library moved a copy from its general rare books collection to the George Wythe Collection.

Signature of Gawin L. Corbin, front free endpaper.

Description of the Wolf Law Library's copy

Bound in contemporary calf. Spine features double-ruled compartments and a red morocco label with gilt lettering and decorative bands. Signed "Gawin L Corbin" on the free endpaper. Erata leaf pasted to verso of cover dated February 8th, 1803 signed by James Rind and Geo. Wm. Smith.

Images of the library's copy of this book are available on Flickr. View the record for this book in William & Mary's online catalog.

See also

References

  1. ↑ A Collection of All Such Acts of the General Assembly of Virginia, of a Public and Permanent Nature, as are Now in Force: to Which are Prefixed the Declaration of Rights, and Constitution, or Form of Government (Richmond: Samuel Pleasants, Jr. & Henry Pace, 1803), i.
  2. ↑ Ibid.
  3. ↑ Ibid.
  4. ↑ Ibid.
  5. ↑ Ibid., ii-iii
  6. ↑ Ibid., 430.
  7. ↑ Ibid., 353.
  8. ↑ Ibid., 428-429.
  9. ↑ Ibid., 331, 352, 365, 354.
  10. ↑ Ibid., 395.
  11. ↑ Ibid., 346.
  12. ↑ Bennie Brown, "The Library of George Wythe of Williamsburg and Richmond," (unpublished manuscript, May, 201, rev. May 2014) Microsoft Word file. Earlier edition available at: https://digitalarchive.wm.edu/handle/10288/13433.
  13. ↑ E. Millicent Sowerby, Catalogue of the Library of Thomas Jefferson, (Washington, D.C.: The Library of Congress, 1952-1959), 2:263-264 [no.1868].
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