cal divisions and political history of the world; and whatever should be generally known within the limits of their jurisdiction.5

Section 459 of the Code of Civil Procedure provides for pleading a private statute, but since a private statute is an official act of the legislative and executive departments of the state government, the courts should take judicial notice of a private statute.

A private statute of this state is one which concerns only certain designated individuals and affects only their private rights. All other statutes are public, including statutes creating or affecting corporations.7

CHAPTER XVII.

OF THE CLASSIFICATION OF EVIDENCE.

Evidence is:

Written or parol;

Primary or secondary;

Conclusive or disputable;

Cumulative or corroborative;

Indispensable, partial, prima facie, satisfactory, direct or circumstantial;

Written evidence is of two kinds, namely, public writings and private writings.

Primary evidence is that kind of evidence which under every possible circumstance affords the greatest certainty of the fact in question.1

A written instrument is primary of the best evidence of its

contents.

Secondary evidence is evidence of the contents of a written instrument introduced instead of the original written instrument. Such secondary evidence is not admissible except as provided by law in cases in which the original written instrument cannot be produced at the trial.

I know of no case in which it has been held that any evidence is secondary other than evidence introduced in place of such original written instrument.

Some evidence may be less satisfactory and convincing than other evidence of the existence of a fact, but this of itself does not make the less satisfactory evidence inadmissible.

Before a written instrument or secondary evidence of its contents can be admitted in evidence, the genuineness and due

1. 1 Greenleaf on Evidence, Sec. 84.

execution of the original written instrument must be proven or admitted.

Prima facie evidence is that which suffices for the proof of a particular fact until contradicted or overcome by other evidence.2

Indispensable evidence is that without which a particular fact cannot be proved.3

Conclusive evidence is that which the law does not permit to be contradicted.4

Disputable evidence is that which the law permits to be contradicted by other evidence

Cumulative evidence is additional evidence of the same character to the same point.

Corroborative evidence is additional evidence of a different character to the same point.5

Satisfactory evidence is that which ordinarily convinces to a moral certainty an unprejudiced mind.R

Direct evidence is that by which the fact to be proven is directly testified to by those who speak from their own actual and personal knowledge of its existence.

Circumstantial evidence is direct evidence of the existence of facts from which the fact to be proven may be inferred.

There must be direct evidence in both direct and circumstantial evidence, but in direct evidence the existence of the fact to be proven must be directly testified to by the witness; while in circumstantial evidence the existence of a fact is to be inferred from other facts, the existence of which is directly testified to by a witness or by witnesses.

No inference which is based on another inference will be admitted as circumstantial evidence.8

In the case of direct evidence belief of the truth of the fact to be proven is based on our faith in human veracity.

In a case of circumstantial evidence belief in the truth of a

fact to be proven is based on the same ground with the additional ground of the experienced connection between the collateral facts directly proven and the fact to be proven.9

It is provided in the Code of Civil Procedure of California that when an action is brought upon a written instrument and the complaint contains a copy of such instrument or a copy is annexed thereto, the genuineness and due execution of such instrument are deemed admitted, unless the answer denying the same be verified; and that when the defense to an action is founded on a written instrument, and a copy thereof is contained in the answer or annexed thereto, the genuineness and due execution of such instrument are deemed admitted unless the plaintiff within ten days after receiving a copy of such answer file with the clerk an affidavit denying the same, and serve a copy thereof on the defendant; in neither of those cases, however, will the execution of such instrument be deemed admitted by failure to deny the same under oath if the party desiring to controvert the same is, upon his written demand for an inspection of the original served by copy upon the adverse party or his attorney and filed with the papers in the case refused such inspection.10

9. 1 Greenleaf Ev., Sec. 13.

10. Code of Civil Procedure, Secs. 447, 448, 449.

CHAPTER XVIII.

OF DISPUTABLE PRESUMPTIONS Of fact.

Section 1963 of the California Code of Civil Procedure mentions a number of disputable presumptions of fact which are satisfactory if uncontradicted, but which may be controverted by other evidence.

Among the most important of these are the following, namely:

That the things which a person possesses are owned by him; That a person is the owner of property from exercising acts of ownership over it, or from common reputation of such ownership;

That a person acting in a public office was regularly appointed to it;

That official duty has been regularly performed;

That a court or judge acting as such, whether in this state or any other state or country, was acting in the lawful exercise of his jurisdiction;

That an indorsement of a negotiable instrument was made at the time and place of making the instrument;

That a writing was truly dated;

That a letter duly directed and mailed was received in the regular course of mail;

That persons acting as copartners have entered into contract of copartnership;

That a man and woman deporting themselves as husband and wife have entered into a lawful contract of marriage;