Difference between revisions of "General Abridgment of Law and Equity"

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A General Abridgment of Law and Equity: Alphabetically Digested Under Proper Titles with Notes and References to the Whole.

by Charles Viner

A General Abridgment of Law and Equity
Title page from A General Abridgment of Law and Equity, volume three, George Wythe Collection, Wolf Law Library, College of William & Mary.
Author	Charles Viner
Editor	{{{editor}}}
Translator	{{{trans}}}
Published	Aldershot: Printed for the Author, by Agreement with the Law-Patentees
Date	1741-53
Edition	First
Language	English
Volumes	23 volume set
Pages	{{{pages}}}
Desc.	34 cm.
Location	[[Shelf {{{shelf}}}]]
	[[Shelf {{{shelf2}}}]]

Charles Viner (bap.1678 d.1756) studied at Hart Hall, Oxford, but never completed his studies.^[1] He gained admission to the Middle Temple in 1700.^[2] Although never called to bar, he kept chambers at the King’s Bench Walk, Temple.^[3] There he gave occasional legal advice. ^[4] In his free time he enjoyed researching the literature of the law.^[5] Therefore, it should be of little surprise that his Abridgment began as more of a hobby than a source of income. He based his work on Rolle’s Abridgment, but thought of it as more of a supplement to the uncompleted D’Anvers’s Abridgement.^[6] Thus, he started his work where D’Anvers left off: at the letter “F.” .^[7]

Viner’s work took over half a century, resulting in twenty-three volumes.^[8] Not only were the words his own, but he personally directed the manufacture of the paper that went into each volume.^[9] Realizing the deficiencies in existing abridgements, he decided to complete the rest of the alphabet after finishing “F” through “Z.”^[10] Unsurprisingly, his independence angered established publishers and booksellers alike. ^[11]

Viner’s work was monumental, but a bit disorganized.^[12] Completed in 1753, its twenty-three volumes contained a nearly complete composition of the legal materials available at the time.^[13] However, with each volume containing approximately 550 pages, the material could be difficult to find.^[14] It was not until 1758 that Robert Kelham’s index provided the key to finding material quickly and accurately.^[15] Because of its utility, the index became so important to accessing the work that the second edition of Viner’s abridgment included it as a twenty-fourth volume. George Wythe owned the first edition of the work and, although Kelham's index was available to him, it is uncertain whether he owned a copy. ^[16]

Viner’s final legacy, aside from his comprehensive work, came from his generosity to the University of Oxford.^[17] Upon his death in 1756, he donated almost his entire estate to support the study of the common law. ^[18] It was his intention that others build upon the subject of his life’s work.^[19] The first to hold this endowed professorship was Sir William Blackstone, a man who did just that. ^[20]

Viner’s Abridgment is the most expansive common law work created by a single person.^[21] Treatment of his work has varied in the 250 years since its creation. According to Chief Justice Story, “It is a cumbersome compilation, by no means accurate or complete in its citations, and difficult to use.” ^[22] Others are more favorable: “When a question of Evidence. . . arises, fail not to search the. . . last edition of Viner’s Abridgment”^[23] Regardless of these opinions, it was an influential work, cited by courts long after the author’s death.^[24]

Evidence for Inclusion in Wythe's Library

Wythe definitely owned this title—a copy at the Library of Congress includes his bookplate in each volume.^[25] It is also listed in the Jefferson Inventory of Wythe's Library as Viner’s abr. F. to Y. inclus. 10.v. fol. under "[Commo]n law" in the section of books kept by Thomas Jefferson. Two of the Wythe Collection sources (Brown's Bibliography^[26] and George Wythe's Library^[27] on LibraryThing) include "Viner's Abridgment."

Description of the Wolf Law Library's copy

Set includes Robert Kelham's An Alphabetical Index to All the Abridgments of Law and Equity: and to Several Books of the Crown law, Conveyancing, and Practice, with Their Divisions and Subdivisions; Chiefly Calculated to Facilitate the References to the General Abridgment of Law and Equity, by Charles Viner, Esq (London, In the Savoy: Printed by Henry Lintot ... for the author, and sold by J. Worrall, 1758).

View this book in William & Mary's online catalog.

External Links

Google Books

References

1. ↑ David Ibbetson, “Viner, Charles (bap. 1678, d. 1756)”, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (Oxford University Press, 2004- ), accessed November 21, 2013.
2. ↑ Ibid.
3. ↑ Ibid.
4. ↑ Ibid.
5. ↑ Ibid.
6. ↑ Percy H. Winfield, The Chief Sources of English Legal History (Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1925),244.
7. ↑ Ibid.
8. ↑ Ibid.
9. ↑ Ibid.
10. ↑ Ibid.
11. ↑ Ibid.
12. ↑ Ibid.
13. ↑ Ibid.
14. ↑ Ibid.
15. ↑ Ibid.
16. ↑ Ibid.
17. ↑ David Ibbetson, [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/28317 “Viner, Charles.”
18. ↑ Ibid.
19. ↑ Ibid.
20. ↑ Ibid.
21. ↑ J. G. Marvin, Legal Bibliography or a Thesaurus of American, English, Irish, and Scotch Law Books (Philadelphia: T. & J. W. Johnson, Law Booksellers, 1847) 711.
22. ↑ Ibid.
23. ↑ Ibid. 712
24. ↑ Percy H. Winfield, The Chief Sources of English Legal History, 245.
25. ↑ E. Millicent Sowerby, Catalogue of the Library of Thomas Jefferson, 2nd ed. (Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia, 1983), 2:222 [no.1791].
26. ↑ Bennie Brown, "The Library of George Wythe of Williamsburg and Richmond," (unpublished manuscript, May, 2012) Microsoft Word file. Earlier edition available at: https://digitalarchive.wm.edu/handle/10288/13433
27. ↑ LibraryThing, s. v. "Member: George Wythe," accessed on June 28, 2013, http://www.librarything.com/profile/GeorgeWythe