The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1844-04-02
A CIRCULAR TO STUDENTS OF LAW
In THE UNITED STATES.

!
TN the year 1874 under the auspices ofthe Uniser-
sily OF Maryland | established Ia the city OF Bal
timoro Law School, under the denominatio" oil inc
Maryland Law Institute. This establishments CONT
nu ed in successful operation nearly elesrn years nav
ing receive. students from esren OF the States, and
from foreign countries. Owing TO the pressure
of en extensive practice, simultaneously win 'ne du-
ties which the Institution involved resolved In the
wear 1886 abandon not lily the practice oil my ever
and long cherished profession, but also the La" lns'-
tule and for health and ease, sought the more GENIAL
climates of Europe Finding al this unie my htai'h
perfectly restored and with abatement whatever
Of my zeal and devotion TO that great science WINCH
in this county, OF all others, needs TO be n'ehodieay
and carefully siudied-and seeking, moreover, INDUS
rious and continued occupatoD essential To hapP-
ness in land that knows oilers resos ed 10 re-esa-
blish the Law lnstltution-ond have selected Fh,ia-
deipha as he place of It's location In 30 soirg have
thought that no city in the u MON affords such various
and ample inducements for all the purposrs OF The
Law Sutherland that In none can more worthy
economy be preserved, and yet with every requisite
comfort.
The frequent applications made to from dis
lance ON the former aston, ia regard to the parte
ars of my enterprise, induce 10 anticipate similar
inquiries now--and 10 meet all such in advance,
now address this Circular, as all that can offer IN
Ipanston, and probably, as all that may be requi-
site.
The institution dedicated alone to law studies,
and their cognate and auxiliary TOPICS Is spacious
and beautiful building, N, III South Fifih street,
suitable for the accommodation Of about sixty stu
dents. The all suitably furnished, supplied
with an extensive law and miscellaneous library
ci precedenis Of practice in every conceivable and APP
proved f)rn. students are admitted at any time
throughout the year--courses OF study, and the re-
quisite books supplied, so a. exactly to nee the
wants and of the student, according he may
design practice his profession either in the country
in some of the maritime cities. The laws of every
State in the Union are in some degree dwelt upon
practice is constantly blended with theory-but the
deep and radical of parens well of students
is carefully AVOIDED audc to the too
lion tina, law students to be made mechanical
arti,ans-mere attorneys learning practice by rote and
jealous of book-knorledge, being theo reiicai
This mlschievous error must inevitably degrade the
science and profession and Is gross mistake since
no practising Attorney was good and lasting une
who not also deeply seIsed in the reasons and
theory of the law. therefore cannot acquiesce in,
and never will yield to, the vulgar Of putting
practice before and above theory-t is an unnatural
irersion Of the established order of naiure--an gno-
rant and slovenly way of urging young on 10 at
tempts far beyond the powers of the human mind
for If The grounds and of the science be not
well known, the practice cannot be well known.
But the error, to which | so earnestly aude is
founded uPoh another, which is equally false and
row, vz.hat students learn the practice only in
practising lawyers office On he conlr,ry as gen.
eral rule II Is the very last place in which he ever
does or can learn the praclce-and this can be made
extremely manifest. What is practice distinguish
ed from theory? Take single example-and uno
dt:ce omnes The theory or a law point saws TO the
student, if A lends b his watch and sells It, or re-
fuses to return 1t, may bring what is called
ton of Trover and Conversion. Now irorer means
hndlng and conversion means appropriatug il to his
own use and here, again, the student learns two
other theoretical law polnts-viz that the finding is
now verbal fiction not at all material or To be
prorsd-and secondly, that the conversion by the de-
fcndant 10 his consists The mere WITHHOLD
ing the properly from the plaintiff although it should
be ever SO clearly proved tina, he in way the
property for himself for any purpose whatever but
TO withhold II from the plaintiff
Now all this theory must be learnt and good
deal more before the practice that practice
on the plaintiff par Consists Of borough know ledge
OF The forms rprtetdenisand. the defendants part
ofthe like knowledge TO the JorrniaG of The pleas
rejoinders &C. There are, therefore books Of preoe-
dents these books unfold every practical proceeding
whatever, in every action known TO the law-pro
gressvey from the importation Of the rrif to the final
return upon The erec,aon. These formula of wrs
returns 10 wrhs-appearaDces-bail- PAL lances
-continuances-impanBeng Of juries -lrai-e1-
cep,ions-yerdct- judg Observation-Disclosures Of
eXecuiion-or, on the other hand new tridl--or APP
peal &C. &c.-are all set forth in the pTeeed, MS so
that, he who knows moAt Of preeedeHt, knows most
of practice but still these precedents cannot them
selves be understood without previous theoretical
know ledge. The question: then resolve itsef into this
Cannot law student be well grounded in all the
ptccedens, iaio ,e,asU, who never saw practising
lawyers office And why no, , On the contrary,
cannot be learn far more Of practice by the Judi
eious and careful study of all The Jornuia (Which he
never docs ia practising lawyers oflice) than by
writing, OF rather copying tho.e siEpk and ccason.
al dec 'aratons pleas &c which the master fan Office
assigns to the sudentl L. it not uniformly the case
that all really difficult and responsible business of tins
is done by the master himself without ever reach
ing the eye of the sudent-or " does only TO me
chanically copy 1t Again: Who can distinguish be.
tween real sutin court and fictitious one In which
one student prepares the writ-another the return
another The declaration some other the pea &c
until all the practical proceedings are gone through
And What prevents these students making record of
the whole, and then comparing all with rlfied re-
cord Fl ON court Of justice in a like action All
this surely may be done IN a Law Instiuton-and far
uer-more quietl, and with more time tina n in bus.
nes offices where many precious hours are often lost in
useless messages-.ong waks-tfansorbinr letters
copting mot depising) declaia tions pleas rcpica-
tons sc. % generally the sole workmanship OF the
master Of The office, and very seldom that Of the
student ! confess that all this is 10 my mind extreme
ly plain, and has long isfed of The popular and
serious error which has placed young men 10 Offices
where little either oftheory practice is learnt This
surely il not always the case bot II is too often such
nsmany depondng students have found and as others
have been compelled TO confess, that they never
learned much OF theory Of practice until aaer heu
came 10 the bar but at which tune 1t Was foun very
90 bill and aIduous work, and sometimes not accom-
pilshed even through whole life Of toll Doubtless
there many noble exceptions to he correctness Of
these remarks but still, aver 1t a fact that my
| experience has never made me acquainted With any
young a,oyer, who, 10 candid conversation was not
willing 20 confess that his legal education had been
very hapbazard-and that practice to any really val
liable and abiding extent ~ the last thing student
can ever hope for n practising lawyers ofice.
After an extensive practice Of seven and twenty
wears IN all Of the courts and de oion to the int
rests Of ino students, during much Of that period it may
not be too much to say that practice be los,
light ofn this institution and that nothing but meehani-
cal Of legal education unworthy f an en-
lighened lawyer could ever palrooise the int-
nation that such an Inst utun only adopted for