An abridgment

AN ABRIDGMENT. An epitome or compendium of another and larger work, wherein the principal ideas of the larger work are summarily contained. When fairly made, it may justly be deemed, within the meaning of the law, a new work, the publication of which will not infringe the copyright of the work abridged. An injunction, however, will be granted against a mere colorable abridgment. 2 Atk. 143; 1 Bro. C. C. 451; 5 Ves. 709; Lofft's R. 775; Ambl. 403; 5 Ves. 709.; 1 Story, R. 11. See Quotation.
     2. Abridgments of the Law or Digests of Adjudged Cases, serve the very useful purpose of an index to the cases abridged, 5 Co. Rep. 25. Lord Coke says they are most profitable to those who make them. Co. Lit. in preface to the table at the end of the work. With few exceptions, they are not entitled to be considered authoritative. 2 Wils. R. 1, 2; 1 Burr. Rep. 364; 1 Bl. Rep. 101; 3 T. R. 64, 241. See North American Review, July, 1826, pp. 8, 13, for an account of the principal abridgments.

A Law Dictionary, Adapted to the Constitution and Laws of the United States. By John Bouvier. Published 1856.
References in classic literature ?
Of all this mass of epic poetry only the scantiest fragments survive; but happily Photius has preserved to us an abridgment of the synopsis made of each poem of the "Trojan Cycle" by Proclus, i.e.
To be master of the sea, is an abridgment of a monarchy.
It was long, but I can do no less than favour you with an abridgment of it.
Vain der School favored the jury with an abridgment of the testimony, recounted in such a manner as utterly to confuse the faculties of his worthy listeners.
In a word, I gave him an abridgment of this whole history; I gave him a picture of my conduct for fifty years in miniature.
When the matter was mentioned yesterday, Senator Abe's counsel, Henry Bello, moved a motion praying the apex court to, among others prayers, grant accelerated hearing in the matter, an abridgment of time within which parties are to file their processes and a definite date for the hearing of the appeal.
Lovecraft's most influential works presents several of his most famous stories, a sampling of his poetry and an abridgment of his monograph Supernatural Horror in Literature, with commentary providing background and context.
This is not an abridgment, they say, but an entirely new book, covering the correctional context, corrections in the community, institutional corrections, and correctional issues.
It's nothing outstanding on its own an abridgment by the churchman Thomas Langley of an earlier book, De inventoribus rerum, by Polidore Vergil, an Italian scholar, a kind of history of institutions like the Catholic Church (Vergil's book got him in trouble with the church, which put it on its index of banned books).
The book, an abridgment of Glyer's critically acclaimed The Company They Keep: C.
Since it is an abridgment of the database, the text represents only books given the highest ratings (highly recommended and core collection) by the experienced librarian reviewers who look at books in English published or distributed in the United States.
Each of the three parts runs roughly four columns in the Times: the first column of the first part contains general comments about this particular biography and the practice of biography generally; the second column is an overview of Charles Napier's character; and the remaining ten columns are an abridgment of the biography, beginning with Napier's parentage and ending with his death.