Plain Dealing or News from New England, with an Introduction and Notes (Library of New-England History. No. IV. [4])

xl, 211 pp. 4to. 8 3/4 x 7 3/8. Original cloth, beveled board edges, gilt titles & rules. Rubricated title page. 1867 reissue of 1642 original, with new introduction and notes by J. Hammond Trumbull. Sabin 39642. The original subtitle describes it as 'a short view of New-England's present Government, both Ecclesiasticall and Civil, compared with the anciently-received and established Government of England, in some materiall points; fit for the gravest consideration in these times.' "Lechford sailed for America, arriving at Boston on 27 June 1638. He was the first practicing lawyer in Massachusetts Bay Colony, though others, such as John Winthrop (1588-1649), had been attorneys in England... Lechford, who had skill as a chirographer, worked as a conveyancer, scrivener, and draftsman. He drew up deeds and leases and exercised powers of attorney. He drafted many arbitration bonds for persons settling their differences out of court. He kept a meticulous account of all his legal business in his Note-Book (published 1885)... Occasionally Lechford was allowed to act as counsel in court. In summer 1639 he was debarred for "pleading" with the jury "out of Court."" (Ward, American National Biography)