The occasion of these remarks is the one-hundredth anniversary of the publication of Holmes' The Common Law, but it is not so much his book as it is his later career that explains why we observe the occasion. The Common Law is a widely known book but one more widely known than read, while perhaps it is more often read than understood. Unlike William Blackstone, who wrote an extraordinarily influential book before becoming an obscure judge, Holmes is a famous judge who wrote a difficult book. If he had died shortly after finishing the book, as he thought he might,I it is very unlikely that we would be talking today about it or him. The prominence of the book owes a great deal to the reputation of the judge. It is also true, however, that The Common Law, together with a few essays, contains some marvelous aphorisms, a few pages altogether, that served to reinforce the reputation Holmes gained on the United States Supreme Court. Just what Holmes' reputation ought to be has become problematic. For a long time the mention of his name seemed to require as if by reflex some such term as "master of jurisprudence." Fifty years ago Jerome Frank felt confident that Holmes was "one of the finest idealists