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basis of Irish judgments is lost. It is hoped that this
unfortunate tendency will be remedied in future. Other-
wise this volume has well maintained the high standard
of its predecessors.
British Government Today by Barry Jones; London,
Sweet and Maxwell, 1972; 8vo; pp. xv plus 236; £1.
This is one of the useful books that have appeared in
the series "Concise College Texts". The author is not
only a qualified barrister, but also headmaster of a
school in Bristol; he has a most felicitous style, and has
acquired the knack of imparting knowledge in an inter-
esting way. The usual subjects such as the Executive,
the Legislature and the Administration of Justice are
dealt with succinctly. The author is right in suggesting
that much of Criminal Law is obscure, confused and
uncertain and should be replaced by a Modern Crim-
inal Code. The author is against fusion of the legal
profession, and the main reason given is the fact that
a small Bar will develop a mutual confidence with the
Bench. The real weakness of the British Constitution is
that it is unwritten, and is consequently liable at will to
change by the Government of the day.
Gale (Charles James) The Law of Easements, fourteenth
edition by Spencer Maurice and Robert Wakefield;
London, Sweet and Maxwell; 8vo; pp. xliv plus 410; £9.
Since Gale published the first edition of his learned
work in 1839, there have been no less than ten different
editors in the different editions. In the .tenth edition
(1925), which contained 591 pages, Mr. W. J. Byrne
had not changed the alterations made by Mr. Carson in
1916. In the eleventh edition (1932), which contained
611 pages, Mr. Graham Glover had to contend with the
edition by Spencer Maurice and Robert Wakefield;
London, Sweet and Maxwell; 8vo; pp. xliv plus 410; £9.
Since Gale published the first edition of his learned
work in 1839, there have been no less than ten different
editors in the different editions. In the tenth edition
(1925), which contained 591 pages, Mr. W. J. Byrne
had not changed the alterations made by Mr. Carson in
1916. In the eleventh edition (1932), which contained
611 pages, Mr. Graham Glover had to contend with the
changes brought about by the English Property Statutes.
Mr. McMullen, in editing the twelfth edition in 1957,
which contained 589 pages, brought the case law up to
date. Mr. Bowles, in editing the thirteenth edition in
1959, which was reduced to 422 pages, wrote an inter-
esting preface, in which he listed the changes, such as
the discarding of the first chapters (170 pages), and its
replacement by new material (115 pages), the rewriting
of the chapters on Prescription and on Rights of Way,
and the omission of citations from the Civil Law. The
present editors in this edition have fortunately con-
tinued the lead given by Mr. Bowles, by omitting a
chapter on Nuisances, and the citation of lengthy judg-
ments has been pruned; furthermore they have included
a new chapter on Easements and Registered Land, and
yet succeeded in keeping the work within a reasonable
compass, which is in itself a remarkable achievement.
It is unfortunate that the editors appear to have omit-
ted vital Irish Cases, such as
Smyth v Dublin Theatre
Co.
(1936) IR 692, as to ancient lights,
McDonagh v
Mullholland
(1931) IR 110, and
Maude V Thornton
(1929) IR 454—as to ways of necessity. As these cases
are just as important as corresponding English cases, it
is surprising that they have not received the full exposi-
tion they deserve. Otherwise the standard which this
workh ad previously attained has been well maintained.
The printing and setting are as usual excellent.
Human Rights in the World by A. H. Robertson;
Manchester University Press, 1972; 8vo, pp. vii plus
280; £3.60.
Those of us who had the privilege of listening to Dr.
Robertson lecturing on human rights in our library a
few years ago will remember how, due to his erudition
and masterful exposition, he had demonstrated what a
master of his subject he was. We had already read with
interest his views about "Human Rights in Europe"
when it was first published in 1963, and now he has
extended his unrivalled knowledge to the world. Apart
from dealing with the Human Rights Universal Declar-
ation and the European Convention he has some new
material on the United Nations Covenant on Civil and
Political Rules, on the Inter-American Declaration of
Human Rights, on the permanent Arab Commission
and on the proposed African Commission on the same
subject; the full text of most of these are given. A
distinction is made between universal human rights, an
humanitarian law which relates to particular categories
like the sick, the wounded and prisoners of war. Those
who wish to specialise in this important subject, could
not do better than learn it from a master like Dr.
Robertson.
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