BOOK REVIEWS 445 plications, delays, and uncertainties inherent in the system." The only real difficvdty is in the natural inertia inherent in human nature, and in partic- vdar too often in the legal mind. To the "Discussion" is appended an interesting address by Dean Roscoe Pound of the Harvard Law School on "Judicial Organization." In 1906 Dean Pound first blazed the path which has been followed by law reformers ever since. Now, if ever, as peace again settles down upon the country, there is a duty and an opportimity to carry through a long needed legal house- cleaning. Austin W. Scott. Code Practice in New York. By H. Gerald Chapin, Professor of Law in Fordham University. New York: Baker, Voorhis and Company. 1918. pp. XXX, 530. The numerous and far-reaching amendments to the New York Code of Civil Procedure during the past decade have created an imperative need for a con- cise exposition of code practice as it is to-day in New York. More than fifteen years have passed since the publication of the last short treatise of New York practice — Miller's "Introduction to Practice" (1903), and over seventeen years since the publication of the only other works of a similarly brief character, — Disbrow's "Simimary of the Code," and Alden's "Handbook of the Code" — aU books essentially limited to the use of students. Professor Chapin's con- cise treatise, covering the subject down to October i, 19 18, is, therefore, most opportune. The volume is unique in code literature in that it is at once a compact and comprehensive handbook of civil procedure, so simplified in style and material that it is admirably fitted for the student's needs, and yet of such wide scope and thorough treatment that it meets the demand of the lawyer for a handy reference work on practice. The twenty chapters of the book, following a brief introduction sketching in merest outline the historical development of the code, cover the general field of civil procedure in New York. The logical arrangement suggests a threefold division: — first, the setting, — "The Courts and their Jurisdiction," "Judges, Attorneys, and Other Officers," "Actions and Proceedings," "The Parties;" second, the theme — the action carried from its commencement, through preparation for trial; the trial, and subsequent proceedings to ap- peal; and third, — a provost guard division, as it were, gathering in such straggling subjects as, the particular actions, state writs, special proceedings, and proceedings in the Surrogates' Court. There is a table of cases covering several pages and a good index. The style is direct, clear and forceful, well adapted to the simple presenta- tion of this highly technical subject. Professor Chapin is to be commended for his success in adhering closely to the wording of the code and yet producing a very readable book. The various code sections and the provisions of the Consolidated Laws bearing upon the particular topic under discussion are brought together, and the effect of the important decisions up)on the practice involved is stated in a few words, followed by the citation. The placing of all citations in parenthesis in the body of the text is quite in keeping with the character of the work as a resume of code practice. Documents and papers employed in the various stages of code procedure are illustrated under the appropriate subjects by well-drawn forms, several having been adapted from actual cases in which they had been passed upon by the courts. The chief criticism of Professor Chapin's book is that it is wholly neutral. It carries no message in favor of or against the present day practice under the New York Civil Code. Neither by foreword nor by footnote observations
