An Original India Office Handwritten Letter Signed by Future Prime Minister 3rd Marquess of Salisbury to Sir Henry James Maine. Dated 1875. A letter to Maine regarding political matters. Robert Arthur Talbot Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury 1830-1903 was a British statesman and Conservative politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom three times for a total of over thirteen years. He was also Foreign Secretary for much of his tenure, and during his last two years of office he was Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal. Sir Henry James Sumner Maine 1822-1888, was a British Whig comparative jurist and historian. He is famous for the thesis outlined in his book Ancient Law that law and society developed "from status to contract." According to the thesis, in the ancient world individuals were tightly bound by status to traditional groups, while in the modern one, in which individuals are viewed as autonomous agents, they are free to make contracts and form associations with whomever they choose. Because of this thesis, Maine can be seen as one of the forefathers of modern legal anthropology, legal history and sociology of law. Size is 187mm x 1175mm. Condition is good. Light folding creases