Colony of the Cape of Good Hope Statutes. Sessions. Vol V: 1902-06. Pages 4349- 5222. With tables of contents and index

The Parliamentary Indemnity Act (Act 5 of Sept 15, 1902), referred to in the subtitle, explained and indemnified Parliament and the Government for there being no session of Parliament since 15 October 1900 - or more than the 12 months provided by existing law. The reason was that "at the time of and subsequent to [15 October 1900) there existed and continued to be a state of war between the Government of Her late Majesty Queen Victoria and of His Majesty King Edward the Seventh and the Governments respectively of the late Orange Free State and the late South African Republics, followed by invasion of Her Majesty's Territories in this Colony, and rebellion and by the proclamation or continued imposition of Martial Law throughout the Colony . . . "

Apart from this important and necessary Act, this heavy volume's 938 pp include 46 other Acts for 1902 (including the Immigration Act), 16 for 1903 (including the Census Act), 37 for 1904 (including the Chinese Exclusion Act), 50 for 1905 (including the Copyright of Works of Art Act) and 42 for 1906 (including the Wine, Brandy, Whisky, and Spirits Act) - or more than half the total number of laws passed by the Cape Colony between the beginning of the previous century and the proclamation of the Union of South Africa. This 110-year-old volume is indeed a veritable mine of information and commentary on the workings of South Africa's largest colony after the outbreak of the Anglo-Boer War.

Apart from the text of the Acts themselves, the volume includes chronological and alphabetical lists of the Acts passed during the six-year period, a list of repeals and amendments, and a detailed subject index.

Half tan leather and watered cloth-boards with gilt-on-red and gilt-on-black spine title-labels. Plain endpapers. pp 1-26, 4349-5222 and i-xxxix.

CONDITION NOTES. The leather corners are lightly rubbed. The spine labels are peeling at some of the corners. Part of the front edge of the lower board is rubbed. There are some rubber stamps near the front and a 1926 receipt for the volume by a Komgha police sergeant pasted to the front free endpapers. The fly-leaf and last leaf of the volume are heavily foxed but the rest of the volume is unfoxed and unsunned. The pages of some repealed Acts are marked with blue, sometimes red, vertical rules, and there are a few marginal notes in ink. There are binding cracks front and back. Although the hinges are not damaged the binding has loosened slightly. There is a 20 x 30 mm black ink stain on the top page edge.

Overall, this is complete and attractive copy of a valuable work of reference.