The Legal Worlcl

The International Law Conference _ The International Law Association held its twenty-sixth conference in London, Aug. l—5. Questions of vital im rtance to the legal profession both here an abroad were discussed, and there was an attendance of some two hundred delegates, of whom forty came from Amerim. Although a variet of subjects were considered, ssibly the rec most important were ivorce, Unification of the Law of Bills of Exchange, and Workrnen's Compensation. J. Arthur Banatt of the United States and English Supreme Court bars offered a very full report on divorce, and Prof. F. P. Walton, Dean of

the Faculty of Law of McGill University, Montreal, took part in the discussion of this t olg‘he ic. re rt of the committee dealing with B_lll5 of

xchange was presented by Mr. Jus

tice Phillimore, who stated that the rules

roposed were not meant to be exhaustive, t merely to do away with unnecessary formalities. The rules were adopted, and will be laid before the International Con

ference of Government Representatives upon Bills of Exchange, which will meet next year. Unammity upon a large number of important ints, among leaders of the Anglo-Saxon and ntinental systems of jurisprudence, has been attained in these rules. A vpaper was read by Sir John Gray Hill on orkmen's Compensation (see . 595, 814910), in which he pointed out the di erences

between the laws of different countries on this subject. Arthur Williams of New York also discussed this subject.

The Declaration of London was dealt with by the Rt. Hon. Arthur Cohen, K. C. (see p. 598, supra), Sir John Macdonell (ibid, Supra), and Dr. Th. Baty. Mr. Justice Philli more expressed himself as utter y opposed to ratifying a treaty permittin the destruction of neutral prizes, which he t ought would be a backward step. The general feeling of the. Conference seemed opposed to the ratifi cation of the Declaration as a whole. Professor C. Noble Gregory of Iowa, dealing rticularly with the question of Continuous oyage, a ed that the doctrine first evolved b t e American Prize Courts during the Civil ar had since won the approval and acceptance of the great European Powers, and must be regarded as part of the law of nations at least in respect of contraband, and that the United States should not permit the abrogation of any part of it. _ The Americans who took a prominent part In the deliberations included Ce has Brainerd of New York, Former Justice enry Billings Brown, Prof. C. Noble Gre cry of Iowa Umversit, Austin Grifiiths of attle, Consul

General ohn L. Griffiths, Arthur K. Kuhn of

New York, Everett P. Wheeler of New York, Arthur Williams of New York, and Justice G. M. Sharp of Baltimore. ' Lord Alverstone, Lord Chief Justice of England, Lord Justice Kennedy, and Justices Walton and Phillimore presided alternately. Maitre Clunet, a leader of the Paris bar, was

elected President for the ensuing year.

Miscellaneous A bill drafted by Harry Eugene Kell of the Denver bar, designed to stop the “t ird de rec" abuse, has been enacted by the Co orado Legislature. The author of the Act would like to see it enacted by the various state le 'slatures, and will present a similar bill to ongress at its next session. A splendid statue of the late Thomas B. Reed, Speaker of the National House of Representatives, designed by Burr C. Miller, was unveiled with impressive ceremonies in Portland, Me., on August 31. The principal oration, delivered by Congressman

Samuel

W. McCall, LL.D., of Massachusetts, was admirable as a historical review of Mr. Reed's career and first-hand characterization of the man in both his public and private life. The United States Civil Service Commission announces an examination on October 19-20, 1910, to secure eligibles from which to make

certification to fill vacancies in the sition of land law clerk in the Forest Service, De partment of Agriculture, at entrance salaries ranging from $900 to $1,600 per annum, and in the positions of register and receiver's clerk in local land offices under the Depart ment of the Interior, at an entrance salary of $900 per annum, with possibility of promo tion. The able address of Col. John W. Hinsdale, which he delivered as incoming president of the North Carolina Bar Association last June, largely dealt with the disadvantages of trial by jury in civil actions. He favored giving judges the right to express an opinion upon the facts in proper cases, where there is no conflict in the evidence, and he would abolish the unanimity rule. He was convinced that while the organic law of North Carolina would not be changed in this generation so as to abolish juries in civil actions, the day would come when a better mode of trying such actions would be adopted. Samuel Davis of the Boston bar is strongly in favor of the federal regulation of insurance companies. In a recent newspaper article he says: “The opponents of federal supervision