【正文】
far as no public opinion supports it. Wendell phillips, American leader against slavery ? 若是沒有公眾輿論的支持,法律是 絲毫沒有力量的。 美國廢奴運動領袖 菲力普斯 W 2022/8/14 法律英語 3 Background ? Two periods of legal history: The Period of the English Colonies The Period of the United States On May 14, 1607, the Virginia Company explorers landed on Jamestown (詹姆斯頓) Island to establish the Virginia English colony(英屬殖民地) 2022/8/14 法律英語 4 2022/8/14 法律英語 5 Characteristics ? Common law legal system ?普通法系 Decentralization 分散制 Case law 判例法 Stare decisis 遵從前例 2022/8/14 法律英語 6 Text——Part One ? The United States is at once ? a very new nation ?a very old nation 既年輕又古老的國家 2022/8/14 法律英語 7 ? it is constantly being renewed by the addition of new elements of population and of new States ? 不斷有新的人口成分和新州的加入 It is a new nation Compared with many other countries 與其他國家相比 2022/8/14 法律英語 8 ? It is the oldest of the new nations — ? the first one to be made out of an Old World colony. ? 第一個從 舊大陸 殖民地脫胎而出的國家 ? the oldest written constitution成文憲法the oldest continuous federal system 聯(lián)邦制the oldest practice of selfgovernment 自治 It is old 2022/8/14 法律英語 9 ? The whole of its history belongs in the period since the invention of the printing press. ? 美國歷史是印刷發(fā)明以后的歷史。 The whole of its history is recorded 2022/8/14 法律英語 11 ? And the American record Comprehensive 全面 Immense 浩繁 2022/8/14 法律英語 12 ? Record of the colonial era ? 殖民時代的記載 ? Record of the Nation since 1776 ? 國家從 1776年開始的記載 ? Record of the present fifty States ? 當前 50個州的記載 ? The intricate work of relationships between States and Nation ? 各州與聯(lián)邦之間錯綜復雜關系的記載 2022/8/14 法律英語 13 ? The reports of the United States Supreme Court fill 350 volumes ? The reports of some States are almost equally voluminous. 卷數多 聯(lián)邦最高法院判例匯編 州法院判例匯編 2022/8/14 法律英語 14 ? The reader who wants to trace the history of law in America is confronted with over 5,000stout volumes of legal cases. ? 想要探索美國法律歷史的人面對的是5000多巨冊 的 法律案