Having  dealt  with  what  will  amoimt  to  an
agreement  sufficient  to  found  a  contract,  it  is  now
necessary  to  state  the  shape  in  which  that  agreement
must  be  expressed.  In  many  systems  of  law,  and
more  especially  in  those  of  more  archaic  nations,
some  form  is  necessary  ;  hut  in  the  English  system,
we  may  say  that,  as  a  rule,  notliing  but  mere  agree-
ment, however  shown  or  expressed,  is  required,
though,  in  the  absence  of  form,  consideration  (as
hereafter  defined)  must  be  present.  The  form  requi-
site in  om'  law,  where  any  is  requisite,  is  either  that
of  a  deed  (see  before),  or  of  writing.  In  the  former
case,  consideration  is  not  usually  required ;  in  the
latter  it  is  so  always.
T^hen  a  deed  is  necessary. — The  parties  may  use
a  deed  or  not  at  their  pleasure,  except  in  a  few  trans-
actions. Such  are :  leases  within  the  provisions  of
8  &  9  Yict.  c.  106,  transfers  of  British  ships,  and
contracts  made  by  corporations  (/).
What  contracts  must  he  in  icriting. — By  the  com-
mon law,  bills  of  exchange  and  promissory  notes
must  be  in  writing,  and  so  must  acceptances  of  a  bill.
Contracts  of  life  and  marine  insurance  (30  Vict.
c.  23),  assignments  of   copyright,    acknowledgment


U)  Page  73.
{k)  The  historical  questions  connected  with  this  part  of  the
subject  may  be  studied  in  the  works  on  Contracts  of  Pollock  and
Anson,  and  in  Mr.  Justice  Holmes'  work  on  the  Common  Law.
{I)  See  later,  p.  34.
10         GENERAL  VIEW  OF  THE  LAW  OF  CONTRACTS.
