[1] In 1897, the Westminster Review said: So vast is the body of English law that, as has been well said, the knowledge of even one of its branches requires the continuous study of a lifetime.
[2]In 1907, the Law Magazine and Review said of the third edition: In his Preface the learned Author of this work states that he " has learnt that it has been in use in South Africa, Canada and New Zealand, and in other widely separated parts of the English-speaking world."
Many a weary lawyer must have blessed the learned Author for saving him an incalculable amount of trouble when searching for a treatise in which some particular point is dealt with.
He would be a daring man who attempted to preserve a tithe of this accumulation in his head; with Mr. Jelf to lead him, he can, however, place his finger on the right source for information in a very short time.
After all, most lawyers do not want to burden their minds with more than an everyday fund of knowledge, but it is essential to be able to put one's finger on the law affecting any unusual point at a moment's notice.