Drafts of letters and opinions of the Lord Advocate from 1807 to 1809.

Manuscript legal commonplace book compiled between the Hilary term 1683 and September 1684, with additions up to c 1698, and a printed index added in 1680, entitled A brief method of the law. Being an exact alphabetical disposition of all the heads necessary for a perfect common-place useful to all students and professors of the law. A pencilled note on the first leaf suggests that the manuscript was 'probably the property of Mr Serjeant Baynes - if not made by him', on the basis of a letter, wanting, addressed to Baynes and dated 1 Jan 1706. It could not, in fact, have been compiled by John Baynes, serjeant-at-law of the Inner Temple, but could perhaps have been the work of his father of the same name and inn of court.

Manuscript legal commonplace book compiled c 1708 as an index to cases, with headings arranged alphabetically. Probably compiled by Henry Jacomb of the Inner Temple, whose name is inscribed on the first leaf.

Letters and papers relating to Robert Shedden & Sons, merchants of London, 1794-1823, produced by E.M. Archibald in the case of Sheddon v Patrick, concerning the legitimacy of William Patrick Ralston Shedden. The papers comprise:
Letters, written by Robert Shedden and Sons, London, to William Shedden, New York, introducing merchants travelling to North America needing credit and assistance. The merchants were agents of Boyce Benfield & Co. (12 Mar 1793 and 15 Mar 1794); J.J. Breene (4 Aug 1795); Guerlain & Co (25 Jan and 25 Jun 1794; John MacKenzie (5 Aug 1798); Mr. Piercy (18 Jun 1795); Nathaniel Robbins (12 Mar 1795); Robert Shedden Junior (5 Jun 1798) and Bruce Wilson (2 Jan 1794). The letters introducing the agents of Boyce Benfield & Co. mention trading activities in the Mediterranean. These letters are fastened together and numbered, and also include a receipt for £1659 paid by William Shedden to Elizabeth Paltry Mallet on 22 Aug 1794.
Other documents comprise an authorised copy, made 21 Mar 1797, of an indenture of bargain and sale of 2 Mar 1796, by which David Wilson, a farmer of Harlem, New York, and Margaret his wife, sold to Mary Ker, wife of George Ker, for a consideration of £1800, a dwelling house and land in the seventh ward of Harlem, New York; a letter written from Robert Shedden in New York to James Farquhar, enclosing a printed bond of 26 Jun 1799; a letter written on 31 Dec 1823 by Robert Shedden (of 35 Gower St, London) to William Patrick Ralston Shedden 'at Dr Patrick's, 4th Street, Edinburgh'; and a synopsis of the Shedden papers in the hand of Mrs D. Goldsmith.
All the above, with the exception of the last item, feature annotations in the hand of E.M. Archibald which note that they were produced as exhibits and referred to in the deposition of William Patrick Ralston Shedden.

Manuscript volume containing an historical treatise on the office of Admiral and the jurisdiction of the Admiralty entitled 'Mare Clausam', [1700], and an abridgement in English of fifteen chapters of Mare Clausam (1635) by John Selden, [1635]; details of proceedings of the Court of King's Bench in the case of William Shaw versus Catherine Weigh, 1728; a transcript of the judgements of Sir George Treby, Chief Justice of Common Pleas, and Sir John Holt, Chief Justice of the King's Bench, in the case of Joseph Hardy (the 'Bankers Case'), 1696.

Brief for the trial of John Hatch and David Boyce, dealers in foreign and British spirits at Averstoake in the county of Southampton, [1723], headed 'For the Attorney General...Information for the 10s. per gallon penalty for not keeping British spirits seperate [sic] from foreign brandy', and endorsed with the signatures of Sir Thomas Pengelly, Chief Baron of the Exchequer, and J. White, solicitor, and with the words 'To attend Mr. Justice [Alexander] Denton upon the point reserved. Ellis Solicitor for the Excise. For Sir Thomas Pengelly'. The dealers had been accused of mixing foreign and British spirits to avoid the customs: '...the said dealers kept in their warehouses and storehouses great numbers of caskes both of foreign brandy and of British spirits, which they industriously laid and placed in the most confused and disorderly manner they could contrive, on purpose to perplex and confound the officers...'.

Manuscript volume, 1701-1704, containing the legal opinions of Sir Edward Northey, Attorney General, on cases submitted by the Treasury Board between 2 Oct 1701 and 29 Sep 1704 on matters including Customs and Excise, maritime law including the Navigation Act, prizes taken by Her Majesty's ships of war, the colonies, the Post Office, and the armed forces.

Copy of the memorial of Arthur Lemuel Shuldham [of Dunmanway, Co. Cork] to the commissioners of the Excise, asking them to remit the costs of a suit begun by the Commissioners against Shuldham's pleasure yacht, built at Bristol in May 1789 at a cost of £2000. The yacht was condemned by the jury, and orders were given to dispose of it 'and your memorialist thereby lost many things therein not belonging to the said vessel'. The peculiar hardship of the case, and the largeness of Shuldham's family make him hope that the commissioners will remit the costs. The document is neither signed nor dated.

Collection of papers relating to the Parker family of London, 1765-1891, especially of Wilmot Parker the elder (born 1762) and of his son of the same name (born 1804), both solicitors, comprising:

1. Printed diary The ladies new and polite pocket memorandum-book, for...1765, completed in manuscript and containing details of expenditure on clothes and social engagements. The diary was kept by an unnamed girl under the age of 21, who appears to have lived near Rugby, Warwickshire. The entries are fairly regular until August, occasional for the rest of the year. A typical entry reads: Monday 11 March 'I sent a letter to dear Mrs.Grimes. I made me [a?] black ribbon ruff & set a row of white beads upon it. 1 pair of fine cotton stockings' 4s. 6d. The names of those who called, or who are visited, are given. The period from 25 Jan to 10 Jun appears to have been spent on a visit to Hircott, near Kidderminster, Worcestershire. She also mentions reading Gil Blas de Santillane by Alain-Rene LeSage (1715-1735) and the Tatler, and playing the harpsichord. Some pages of printed matter, and the diary for 1-6 Jan, are wanting. The accounts for 1-6 Jan. survive.
2. Notebook containing notes on legal subjects made by Wilmot Parker senior, 1786-1808, mostly paraphrases and extracts from legal authorities and cases. On the flyleaf are the signatures of W. Parker, 1786, and 'Mrs.Redman - Reading'. On the spine is written 'H[?]P Miscell[any]'. Inserted at the end of the volume is a draft of the 'Petition of Charles Rogier to the...Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, delivered 12 January 1808'.
3. Annotated copy of An Analysis of the Practice of the Court of Chancery (London, 1794), by Wilmot Parker senior, with the additions and corrections probably made by the author and by his son. Additions were made up to 1821 at least. Pages 129-32 of the printed text are wanting.

Manuscript volume of extracts from the record of the Court of Queen's (and King's) Bench, and also from the Court of Common Pleas, for proceedings from the 15th century to the reign of Elizabeth, probably compiled c1590-1600. The extracts include pleas, posteas and memoranda of the 15th and 16th centuries, with marginal notes describing the subjects of the pleas, and perhaps acted as a lawyer's precedent book. References to the original court rolls are sometimes given.

Manuscript copy of 13 Charles II c.2, or 'An act for confirmation of judicial proceedings', enacted in Dublin' on 12 Jun 1661, and printed by William Bladen in 1661. The English act is 12 Charles II c.12. The manuscript may have been bound with the printed copy of the act, now item 6 in a Goldsmiths' Library volume (Ref: G.L. F) lettered 'Acts Charles II-1660-82'. The manuscript is accompanied by 8 leaves containing legal notes in a contemporary hand.

Four wills, details as follows:

1. Probate copy of the will of William Batte of Shoreham, Kent, making 'my loving master John Baker' the overseer of his will, 27 Dec [1615]. Lacking letters of probate and seal.
2. Probate copy of the will of Joseph Wright of Maidstone, Kent, 'practitioner of physick', 12 May 1701. Lacking letters of probate and seal.
3. Copy of the will of John Streatfield of Maidstone, Kent, 12 Apr 1766, with a note of probate on 4 Nov 1768, 'Extracted from the registry of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury. The will mentions bequests to the Charity School of Maidstone and monies to be distributed to the poor of the parished of Maidstone, Hever, Mayfield (Sussex), Tonbridge and Penshurst.
4. Copy of the will dated 11 Oct 1777, with a codicil of 28 Mar 1781, of Robert Streatfield of Burwack [Burwash], Sussex, with a note of probate on 19 Mar 1782. The will was extracted from the registry of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury.

Manuscript notebook, describing cases to illustrate legal procedure in different forms of action. The cases given relate chiefly to Liverpool and Lancashire, but also to Chester, Berkshire and Middlesex. A table of fees allowed in West Derby Court (Lancashire) occupies the last written leaf. Many of the cases date from 1769, but there are additions to 1776.

Legal commonplace book, [1708-1732], containing miscellaneous memoranda, mainly relating to ecclesiastical courts, including the following:

1. Tables of fees, including those payable to officials in the archdeaconry of Leicester (c 1708); visitation fees; 'Fees due to the Clerk of the Peace and other Officers at the General Quarter Sessions of the Peace'; fees taken by Proctors at Norwich and Leicester and by officials of the archdeaconry of Sudbury; lists of stationery required for legal transactions, available at 'Mr. Moley's near the Cross in Bury St Edmunds'; and 'Mr. Nelsons account of artificers servants & labourers wages etc', giving 61 occupations.
2. List of deaneries in Norfolk and Suffolk giving the churches in each, and the apparitors of each deanery, with a 'Table of fees where the court proceeds of its own accord', and a note of activities of Mr. Clagett in 1732.

Miscellaneous papers, 1497-1793, collected by Aubrey John Toppin, consisting of some letters, but mostly of 18th century legal papers, notes on cases, judgements and fees.

Leaf, foliated 142 in a 14th century hand, from the register of the Court of Criminal Justice of the Commune of Pistoia, written by Andreas, son of the notary Johannes Thome de Aquata, as notary and 'officialis' of the Podestà, Parisanus de Parisanis de Castiniano. The sentences are dated 19 July 1337, and marginal notes by other notaries of subsequent payment of fines are dated 11 Aug 1337 and 6 Jun 1342. Includes a specimen of the notarial sign of Andreas.
The manuscript was folded to make a bifolium to act as fly-leaves for a book measuring about 302 mm x 210 mm. The fly-leaves contain the following inscriptions in the same humanist hand, probably all made on the leaf in 1563:(i) 'Hic Liber est Antonii de Ce(n)tiis et suorum amicorum. Non est amicus noster qui nostra bona tulit'. (ii) 'Hic liber est Antonii d(e) Ce(n)tiis'. (iii) [1563] 'Valeri [sic] Max(i)mo. fu sta(m)pato da Bernado de Benali in Venetia MCCCCLXXXVIII, die VIIII Novembris, che sono anni 75 de [?] fu sta(m)pato questo libro'.

A collection of mediaeval and early nineteenth century legal documents, which include letters of administration, bankruptcy and insurance papers.

Copy of the will of Robert Thomas de Veil, 22 May 1747, addressed to Catherine, wife of Philip De La Port. Includes applied seal.

Legal papers, memoranda, correspondence and other papers relating to the proceedings of James Wilson against Emile Ferrand in France and England, 1869-1874.

Papers of Miles Harris Phillips, [1888-1960], chiefly comprising reprints of articles by Phillips with accompanying research material, reprints of articles by others and correspondence. Includes reprints, correspondence, diagrams, case notes and other papers relating to articles and lectures by Phillips on topics including constriction rings, Sims' posture, puerperal fever, obstetric shock, caesarean section, the death of Princess Charlotte in childbirth, 1817, biographical histories of famous obstetricians including Thomas Denman, Percival Willughby and William Smellie and the history of obstetrics; drawings and photographs of gynaecological pathological specimens; records of the Gynaecological Visiting Society including reports of meetings and obituaries of members; papers relating to the Departmental Committee on Maternal Mortality and Morbidity, 1928-1932, including letters to Phillips from Neville Chamberlain; papers relating to Historical Review of British Obstetrics and Gynaecology, 1800-1950, by J M Munro Kerr, R W Johnstone and Phillips (Livingstone, 1954) including correspondence and publisher accounts; Phillips' letters to the Lancet, and the British Medical Journal, 1924-1938; photostats of illustrations in The Workes of that Famous Chirurgion Ambrole Parey (1634); papers relating to the court case Marshall vs Lindsay County Council: a claim for damages for negligence, 1933; papers relating to the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists including a history, memoranda and annual reports; photostat copies of letters from William Smellie to Peter Camper, Dr Clephane and Dr Pitcairn, [1750-1759] compiled by Phillips; correspondence with American obstetricians, 1936-1938; reprints of obstetrical articles with accompanying card index, complied by Phillips; notebooks containing analysis of Percival Willughby's cases in his Observations in Midwifery; index complied by Phillips of the cases in Smellie's

Treatise on the Theory and Practice of Midwifery and John Glaister's notes for his biography of William Smellie Dr. William Smellie and His Contemporaries, (Glasgow, 1894), including copies of legal documents relating to Smellie.

Papers relating to the case Irving v Penguin Books and Lipstadt, 1996, and papers relating to Nazi gold, including the London Conference on Nazi Gold held at Lancaster House, 2-4 December 1997.

Papers of the Royal Commission on Criminal Procedures collected by its Chairman Sir Cyril Philips, 1978-1984, including minutes, oral and written evidence, associated correspondence and copies of final reports and research studies published by the Commission.

Five bound volumes containing typescript transcripts of the Matteotti trial, 1924-1925, with photocopied pages from an article about the affair by Gaetano Salvernini, [1947].

Papers, 1817-1951, of and relating to John Philip, comprising correspondence and papers, 1817-1849, including manuscripts and pamphlets, on his call to South Africa and the reluctance of his Aberdeen congregation that he should leave; the situation in South Africa and government policy, leading to the writing of his Researches; the ensuing court case (against William Mackay); the Wesleyan intrusion in Griqualand; also including editions of South African newspapers, 1824; letters from Robert Moffat concerning the mission station at Kuruman, 1845; manuscript papers by Philip concerning South Africa and the life of Sir Thomas Fowell Buxton sent to Sir Edward Buxton, 1846; papers concerning Philip and South Africa, 1910-1951, including correspondence and press cuttings, some relating to W M Macmillan's Cape Colour Question (1927). The subjects include missionary activities and journeys, settlement in the region, race relations, slavery, and colonial policy.

Papers, 1846-1950s, of Elizabeth Lomas, comprising certificates and testimonials for her education and teaching posts in England, 1888-1918; postcards of England; typescript and manuscript notes, addresses, stories, poems, etc, from her life in Madagascar [1919-1939]; diaries and notebooks including notes on personal and domestic matters, poetry, and press cuttings, 1920s-1930s; photographs of individuals, groups and places in Madagascar [1919-1939]; typescript circulars relating to missionary work in Madagascar, 1947-1950; various letters received, 1890s-1950s; various personal papers, 1900s-1950s; papers relating to Lomas family affairs, 1846-1916, including documents relating to probate and property and various certificates; photographs of her family and ancestors [19th-20th century].

Papers, 1946-1974, of Mary Benson, comprising drafts, research notes and transcripts for interviews she used for her publication The African Patriots: The Story of the African National Congress of South Africa (London, Faber & Faber, 1963). Also includes articles on famous African leaders written by Z K Matthews, and newspaper cuttings and pamphlets concerning political protest in South Africa.

Typescript legal papers (some copies) on a case of Civil Appeal in the Federal Court, Malaysia, 1980, concerning the succession to the 14th Undang (ruling chief) of the luak (territory) of Jelebu in the state of Negri Sembilan, including constitutional questions, and some information on the historical background; with two related booklets, 1981.

Papers, 1949-1957, of Sir Charles Noble Arden-Clarke, giving an insight into events during the transition of the Gold Coast to independent Ghana, including the State of Emergency (1950). The papers comprise typescripts of speeches to local clubs and societies, discussions with the Legislative Council, and some correspondence arranging meetings, 1949-1957, including two congratulatory telegrams received on the independence of Ghana, 1956, and speech when sworn in as Governor-General of Ghana, 1957; text of a radio broadcast on democracy and elections at the General Election, 1956; other papers, 1954-1957, comprising letters received congratulating him on his work, legal documents concerning a libel by the Ghana Nationalist newspaper, articles on Arden-Clarke from The Observer and The Ghana Evening News, and copy letter by Arden-Clarke concerning appointment of the next Governor of Ghana, 1957.

Typescript papers, 1930-1931, on the court case Rex v C Diedericks and others, concerning alleged unrest between Europeans and coloured people and a supposed meeting by the Plaatjes in the coloured township of Bulawayo, Swellendam, South Africa, including police witness statements, and correspondence between the police and the magistrate relating to alleged inconsistencies between the statements.

Papers, 1890-1987, of Melvin Perlman, comprising correspondence; research data gathered during 1959-1962 for his study on Toro marriages in Uganda; data gathered for his research on Tea Estate Workers in Uganda; and his articles and lectures.

Records, 1902-1977 and undated, of and accumulated by the Restatement of African Law Project (RALP), School of Oriental and African Studies, comprising papers of RALP relating to administration, including minutes; and research material, such as notes, publications, theses, and other collected papers, on tribes and places including Basutoland (Lesotho), Cameroon, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Nigeria, Northern Rhodesia and Zambia, Sierra Leone, the Sudan, Tanganyika, Zanzibar and Tanzania, and Uganda, relating to customs, aspects of law including succession, slavery, marriage and divorce, land tenure, legal systems, including customary law, legislation, courts, and particular legal cases.