INTRODUCTION TO THE SECOND VOLUME.

THE present volume contains the Statutes and parts of Statutes in force from the 1st year of William and Mary, A.D. 1688, to the 10th of George the Third, A.D. 1770. It shows the effect of repeals to the session of 1870 (33 & 34 Vict.) inclusive.

This portion of the work is based on the edition of the Record Commission, known as The Statutes of the Realm, so far as that edition extends, namely to the end of the reign of Anne. The Statutes subsequent to that date are printed from the Queen's Printers' folio copies, the numbering of chapters and sections and the marginal notes (subject to some corrections) having been supplied, when wanting in those copies, from Ruffhead's Edition. The matters so supplied are enclosed in brackets.

In dealing with the enactments comprised in this volume, the same general rules and arrangements have been pursued as are described in the Introduction to the first volume.

The principle of the edition is to print all Acts and parts of Acts, except those of a local, personal, or private nature, not actually repealed: but to this rule the Editor has been authorised to make a partial exception, by omitting certain enactments which have been virtually repealed by the effect of subsequent legislation, and which have been proposed for actual repeal by Bills introduced into Parliament, with a view to the expurgation of the Statute Law, in the present Session. These enactments are described in the third column of the Chronological Table prefixed to this volume as "Virtually repealed." (But see Appendix.)

In the case of Acts passed subsequently to the Union with Scotland, which either wholly or in part have been repealed as to England, but are considered to be still in force as to Scotland, notes are appended, indicating the extent of the repeal.

A division of the labour of expurgating and editing the Statutes having been found necessary to accelerate the completion of the work, the expurgation has been continued by Mr. A. J. Wood, and the duty of editing the present and subsequent volumes has been assigned to Mr. G. K. Rickards, who has been assisted in the preparation of this volume by Mr. P. Vernon Smith and Mr. W. L. Selfe, of the Chancery Bar.

June 1871.

TABLE OF VARIANCES BETWEEN THE STATUTES OF THE REALM AND RUFFHEAD'S EDITION,

FOR SO MUCH OF THE PERIOD COMPRISED IN THIS VOLUME,

AS IS INCLUDED IN

THE STATUTES OF THE REALM; NAMELY, DOWN TO THE END OF THE REIGN

OF QUEEN ANNE.