The book of the general lawes and libertyes concerning the inhabitants of the Massachusets: Reproduced in facsimile from the unique 1648 edition in the Huntington Library

Lawes and Libertyes of Massachusets Edited with an Introduction by Thomas G. Barnes This facsimile edition is reproduced from the Huntington Library's unique 1648 copy of the first printed book of laws in the history of our country. Although it has obvious interest and value for any student of law or of colonial history, the subject matter of many of its statutes will give the lay-man a revealing glimpse of everyday life in colonial America. The laws range from matters as modern as highway construction and maintenance, and the administration of "Harvard Colledge in the County of Midlesex," to a regulation giving drovers permission to rest and refresh their cattle "if they be weak and hungry, or sick and lame," in any open space that is not "inclosed for some particular use." Another law standardizes the quality and dimensions of pipe staves and provides penalties for shipping any staves that have not been inspected and approved. Six hundred copies of the Lawes and Libertyes were printed, but so far as is known the only copy still extant is at the Huntington Library. The where-abouts of even this remaining copy remained a mystery for many years until, after intensive search, it was discovered in a small library in Rye, England, in 1906. It was then acquired by E. Dwight Church and came to the Huntington with the rest of the Church Collection in 1911. As Mr. Barnes explains in his introduction, the Lawes and Libertyes was the result of three years' continuous involvement by the General Court of Massachusetts, which, in turn, was based on over a decade of labor by "committees for the laws." He has provided a detailed table indicating the sources of the laws and including the early codification of law, the "Body of Liberties" of 1641. The book is a remarkable document, one that had direct influence on printed law in other English colonies in America. It is an important milestone in America's legal history.