writing of the right of another to production of documents and an undertaking for their safe custody may be substituted for the covenant to that effect (s. 9). Certain cumbrous expressions formerly of frequent occurrence in deeds, such as the repetition of "survivors and survivor," "heirs executors administrators and assigns," the joint account clause, may be considerably shortened or altogether omitted (ss. 10, 11, 38, 58, 59, 60, 61). 3. In every mortgage made by deed, powers of selling, of insuring, of appointing a receiver and of cutting timber are given to the mortgagee by the Act (ss. 19-24), or a short statutory mortgage out of the third schedule may be used in simple cases, which will save the mortgagor the expense of a longer document, and will refer the mortgagee to the Act for his rights and remedies instead of to his deed (s. 26). 4. Powers for securing rent-charges are given to persons entitled to them (s. 44). 5. Powers are given of appointing new trustees (s. 31), and trustees are to have certain powers such as of giving receipts, compounding debts, maintaining infants and managing their estates (ss. 36, 37, 42, 43). 6. The law has been amended or altered in the following particulars:-The right of a lessor to forfeit a lease on breach of covenant is, with certain exceptions, restricted by requiring notice to be given to the lessee, who within a reasonable time may remedy the breach or make compensation (s. 14). A mortgagor may require the mortgagee to transfer the mortgage to a third person instead of reconveying it (s. 15, Conv. Act 1882, s. 12). Consolidation of mortgages will not be permitted (s. 17), except where provision is expressly made by one of the deeds against this section. A mortgagor or mortgagee while in possession may grant leases of the mortgaged land (s. 18). Trust and mortgage estates on death will devolve to the personal representatives notwithstanding any testamentary disposition (s. 30). 7. Certain rather arbitrary powers are confided to the discretion of the Court, such as the power of discharging incumbrances behind the back of the incumbrancer on a sale of land (s. 5), and of dispensing with the restraint on anticipation by a married woman (s. 39). Such are the more important provisions of this Act. In the precedents contained in the first part of this book it has so far as possible been made use of throughout. Where it appears doubtful whether the Act is applicable or satisfactory, attention has been called in a note, and reasons given with directions how the Act may be adopted if those reasons should seem insufficient. The Act also indirectly attempts to introduce certain changes of minor importance into the language of deeds. Thus instead of "grant" and "heirs," words of long established use and well known meaning, "convey" and "in fee simple" are suggested as alternative expressions. These latter are not enjoined, they are not even recommended by the Act; the one is introduced in the third and fourth schedules, the other is offered as a sufficient substitute by section 51. Such changes have not, it is believed, met with the approbation of the profession, and for the reasons given at pages 295, 296, they have not been incorporated into this book. If it should at first sight seem that a needless tautology has been suffered to remain in the habendum of deeds by the retention of the full expression "to have and to hold," the reason is one which will commend itself to all whose business it is frequently to read and decipher deeds engrossed in the usual way on parchment. The first passage to which recourse is had to discover the nature of the document is the habendum, and the advantage to the reader of having those words written large as a sign-post for his guidance ought not too readily to be renounced for the sake of ideal simplicity. The Conveyancing Act 1882 chiefly consists of clauses struck out from the bill of 1881 by the select committee. It provides that searches in the Central Office of the Supreme Court of Judicature shall be made by the officers instead of by the person requiring the search to be made (s. 2) it defines the law relating to notice (s. 3). For the rest it contains certain modifications or amendments to the Act of 1881, the necessity for which had already been shown to exist (ss. 11, 12). A few entirely novel forms have been introduced by these two Conveyancing Acts, such as an enlargement of a long term into a fee simple (Act of 1881, s. 65, Act of 1882, s. 11), an appointment of a separate set of trustees (Act of 1882, s. 5). Special precedents for these have been inserted in Part I. The Settled Land Act 1882 is to the conveyancer of equal importance with the Conveyancing Acts, to the land owner of even greater importance. It is an Act for facilitating sales, leases, and other dispositions of settled land, and for promoting the execution of improvements thereon. The manner in which its object is to be attained is very simple. It provides that the tenant for life, as being the person most immediately interested in the proper management and improvement of the estate shall have the powers of dealing with the settled land which have hitherto usually been given to the trustees by the settlement. Under the Act the tenant for life, without the consent of the trustees, will be able to turn the land (with the exception of the principal mansion house and park) into money, to turn the money back again into land, or to invest it in securities; with the consent of the trustees, or under an order of the Court, he will be able to sell the mansion house and park, and to apply capital money arising under the Act in the execution of improvements upon the land. Only, in the interests of those who come after, and in order that property which has been acquired by the labour or merits of ancestors, and handed down through generations may not be dissipated by the extravagance of one, the Act takes care that the tenant for life after using or misusing the family estates, after selling, buying, leasing, building, mining, shall on his death leave the corpus of the property, in whatever shape it may then exist, for those to whom the settlement has given it. The provisions of the Settled Land Act 1882 may be arranged under the following headings: powers are to be 1. Powers are given to the tenant for life to effect sales, enfranchisements, exchanges, and partitions of the settled land (s. 3). The manner in which these exercised is worked out by the Thus, to take the case of a sale, tenant for life must give one month's notice of his intention to each of the trustees of the settlement and to their solicitor, if known; under s. 31 he can enter into the contract for sale, which under s. 4 may be for a sale in one lot or in several lots and by auction or private contract, but under the same section it must be for the best price that can reasonably be obtained under s. 17 he can sell the surface or minerals apart; but under s. 15 he cannot sell the principal mansion house or park, except with the consent of the trustees or under an order of the Court. Under s. 20 he can complete the sale by a conveyance, which will be effectual to pass the land conveyed discharged from all the limitations of the settlement, but subject to all interests prior to the settlement, and to other interests excepted in subs. 2. Under s. 22 the purchase-money must be paid either to the trustees of the settlement, who under s. 39 must not be less than two for the purpose of receiving it, and who under s. 40 can give an effectual receipt; or under s. 22 it may be paid into Court. Under s. 21 the money can be applied in the purchase of land, or in any other mode authorised by that section. A similar course, so far as the above-mentioned sections are applicable, will have to be pursued on any other dealing with the settled land under the powers given by this Act. Further, by s. 18 the tenant for life may raise money for enfranchisement or for equality of exchange or partition by mortgaging the settled land, and by s. 5 on a sale, exchange, or partition of part of the settled land he may, with the consent of the incumbrancer transfer the incumbrance to any other part of the land in exoneration of the part sold, or given in exchange, or on partition. 2. The tenant for life may, under s. 6, lease the settled land, in the case of a building lease for ninety-nine years, in the case of a mining lease for sixty years, in the case of any other lease for twenty-one years. The sections next following contain the conditions and regulations under which such leases are to be made. 3. Special provisions are made by ss. 25-30 for enabling the tenant for life to apply capital money in the execution of improvements upon the settled land. The list of improvements permitted is very comprehensive, but in order that money may not be wastefully or improperly expended on useless or only temporary improvements, the Act provides by s. 26 that the scheme of improvements must be approved by the trustees or by the Court, and a certificate from the Land Commissioners or from a competent engineer or surveyor or an order of the Court must be obtained before the money can be so applied. 4. Other sections of the Act complete the details by which its machinery is to be set going and is to work easily. They provide for the protection of persons dealing with the tenant for life (s. 54), for the appointment of trustees (s. 38), for the settlement of difficult questions or differences between the tenant for life and the trustees by reference to the Court (s. 44). Section 48 provides for the constitution of the Land Commissioners. Sections 5. The remaining sections extend the provisions of the Act so as to include every possible case. 50-56 deal with attempts to evade its provisions; s. 58 gives to a number of other limited owners therein defined the powers of a tenant for life; ss. 59-62 provide for the exercise of the powers by |