or Tacitus were obliged to resign the parchment to

missals, homilies, and the golden legend. ^84 If such was the

fate of the most beautiful compositions of genius, what stability

could be expected for the dull and barren works of an obsolete

science? The books of jurisprudence were interesting to few, and

entertaining to none: their value was connected with present use,

and they sunk forever as soon as that use was superseded by…