Chief-Justice Oakley died May 11th, 1857. His term of office expired the 31st of December, 1857. Judge Duer was appointed Chief-Justice the 16th of May, 1857. He died on the 8th of August, 1858. His term of office expires on the 31st of December, 1859. Judge Pierrepont was elected in November, 1857, for the full term of six years. commencing January 7th, 1858. PREFACE. JOHN DUER, CHIEF-JUSTICE of this Court, and also its REPORTER, died before this volume was completed. At the time of his death, all the cases, except the Practice Cases, had been selected by him, and had been prepared in the form in which they are reported. He had corrected the proof of the first impressions to the 364th and the plate proof to the 118th page. The Practice Cases were prepared by the undersigned. The latter also prepared the Calendar Cases in which he wrote the opinion of the court, (including Forrest v. Forrest, Page v. The New York Central R. R. Co., and Brown v. Davis,) in the form in which they are published. This has been done under an arrangement between the deceased and the undersigned, which embraced as well the third, fourth, and fifth volumes of Duer's Reports as the sixth. In consequence of this arrangement, it seemed to the undersigned that the sad event, to which reference has been made, not only rendered it proper that he should attempt to complete this volume, but devolved upon him that duty. He has prepared the Index and revised the whole proof. Some unimportant errors, no doubt, still exist. The authorities cited in the POINTS and in the OPINIONS could not be printed so as to avoid all errors without comparing them with the reports referred to. This comparison has been made to some extent, but not to such extent as to render |