could compel the neighbor to gi\e a guarantee against hiss hv the collapse [ciintio damiii iiifi’cti). It the building did then collapse, the neighbor would be liable; but ot course he had been put on notice of the dangerous state of his building, so failure to repair would be negligence. Indeed, if the defect was not the cause of the collapse, but for instance an e\traordinar^• storm was, the neighbor woidd escape liability (D. ;9.2.24.4-n; ;9.2.4; pr.) It would, of course, be possible to gi\ e many more e.xamples from the code civil, bhe Roman causa which was important in property law for acquisition of ownership by deli\er\' or prescription became the basis for article up; " I'he obligation without cause, or on a false cause or on an illicit cause can ha\e no effect." From propert\’ to contract. .\nd in contract modern scholars dispute whether cause makes an\’ sense or not.^' .Vgain, the Roman error in substantia as a ground of xoiding a contract became a \er\' different thing in the hands of Robert Pothier, and different again in the code civil article mo, and its subsequent interpretation.^' 1 cannot in this chapter lea\ e the code civil without a further question. \\ hy are so man\' articles dewoted to nnuulat Aud so few to dclit? \h’ answer deri\es from mv^ belief that it is delict that is largely ignored in the code —witness the now e.\tensi\e commentar\’ in Dalloz. \\ hy." 1 would reph' that the treatment results from reliance on Domat and his successors. Domat's approach, reasonable as it ma\’ ha\ e been in the circumstances of his time and in the arrangement of his book, casts shadows on subsequent accounts. d'he lessons for a common pri\ ate law for Furope are obtdous, and scarce!}’ need to be stressed. Law is a conser\ ati\ e, traditional, disci41 See, e.g., Watson, Evolution, pp. i35f.; Matthias Storme, 'The Binding Character of Contracts — Causa and Consideration,' in European Civil Code, pp. 239ff, at p. 244; and most illuminatingly the discussion of article 1131 in Dalloz, Code Civil. 42 See, e.g., Watson, Evolution, pp. i33ff.; and most importantly the treatment of article 1110 in Dalloz, Code Civil. 84
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