The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1844-01-12
A CIRCULAR To STUDENTS OF LAW
IN THE, UNITED STATES.

in THE UNITED STATES.
TN the year 1924, under the auspices the Unyel-
i si,y Of Maryland established IN the cry OF bal
timore Law School, under ihs dsnom.Iatlon " sne
MARYLAND Law Institute This establishment CONT
nued in successful operation sssry eleven yc' has
ing received students from eren Of the States, and
from Two foreign countries Owing TO the pressure
Of extensive practice, rmults neousiy WIN tne uu-
ties which the lnsitution involved resolved 10 thc
year 1886 abandon ly the practice OF my evcs
and long cherished profession, but also Inc la" ios'
.uts and for health and csss sought the more GENIAL
climates u Europe. Finding, at this ume my health
perfectly restored and with no aba,sn.sna whatever
Of my zeal and devotion that great science, which,
ia this country of all Others needs 10 BE- alphabetically
and carefully studicdsnd seeking. moreover, indus
ious aud continued occupation, 50 Essential 70 happ-
in land that knows no idrs reso - te-e.,a-
irish the Law Northumberland have selected !,Ala-
dphs a. the place Of ito location. In doing have
thought that city in the Union affords such various
and ample Inducements for all the purposss Of the
Law Siudent-and that in none can more worthy
economy be preserved, and yet with every requisite
comfort.
The frequent ppp icalions made 10 INC from dis
lance on the former OCCASION in regard to the pGyic
ulsss Of my enterprise induce to anticipate similar
inquiries now--and, To meet all such in advance,
now address this Circular, all that can offer in
explanation and, probably as altthat may be rcqui-
site. .nsl 80 ID 10 tf1c. oil y'fiA38l ti tit
The Institution, dedicated alone TO law studies,
aud their cognale and auxiliary topics, spacious
and beautiful building, NJ. IL South Fifth street,
suitable for tho accommodation Of about sixty stu
dents. The rooms all suitably furnished. supplied
with an extensive law and miscellaneous library
Nth precedents Of practice in every conceivable and APP
proved f,rm. students are admitted 81 any time
throughout The ycar-courscs Of study, and The 70
qusite books supplied, exactly 10 nset the
wants and views of The student according a. he may
design practice his profession, either in the country,
or 10 some Of the maritime cities. The laws Of every
State iu the Union orc in some degree dwelt upon
practice is constantly blended with theGyy--but the
deep and radical error ofpavens, we'll Of students,
is carefully avoJedI sIludc TO tho erroneous no
ton that law students be made mseksnicai
artisaSmere attorneys, learning practice by rote and
jealous Of bookknopledge, being too tksoreiieai-
This mschievous error must inevitably degrade the
science and profession, and is gross mistake since
practising attorney WAS ever good and lasting one,
who not also deeply veIsed in the reasons and
theory Of the law. therefore cannot acquiesee in,
and never will yield to, the vulgar Of putting
practice before and above theory--it il an unnatural
;npersion Of the established order of naiurean gno-
rant and siovenly way of urging young men 70 at
tempts far beyond the powers Of the human mind.
for if The grounds and reasons Of the science be not
well known the practice CANNOT be well known.
But the error, to which | earnestly allude, 10
founded upoa another which is equally false and mar.
row, viz.that students learn the practice only in
practising lawyers Office! On the contT ~ Us gen
erai rule il is the very last place in which he ever
does, or can learn the pracice-and this be made
extremely manifest. What is practice as
ed from theory Take single example-and ca .no
disce ornss The theory, or a law point says TO the
student, If A lends his watch and sells ii, or re-
fuses to return il, may bring what is called an
ton Of Trover and Conversion. Nov froper means
hnding and conversion means appropriating TO his
own use; and here, again., the student learns two
other theoretical law pointsviz that the finding is
verbal fiction not at all material or to be
prorsd-and secondly that the conversion by the de-
ing the property from the plaintiff, although il should
be ever clearly proved that he in way USED the
property for himself for any purpose whatever but
to withhold il from the plaintiff.
Now all this theory must be learn, and good
deal more before the practice comesand that practice
on the plaintiffs pari consists of thorough kno
Oft forms or precedens-an the defendants part
ofhe like knowledge TO the Jor1nue of the pleas
rejOnders, &c. There are, therefore, books of prece-
dents these books unfold every practical proceeding
whatever, IN every action known 10 the la w-pro,
gressvey from the Importation Of the crii TO the final
return upon the eree1tiom These Jor1aria Of writs
returns 10 s-baiI-in,par ances
continue nces--impanneIlin of jores -iria--ex-
vcrdict- udgment-execuiion--r return of
execuuon--or, on The other hand, trisl--or APP
peal, SC, &c-are oil set forth in the fp,eced mis- so
that, he who knows most Of preeedenis, knows most
Of practice but STILL these presidents cannot them
selves be understood, without previous theoretical
knowledge The question, then resolves itself this
Cannot law student be well grounded in all the
precedents Laio sensu, who never saw a or act 81 no
lawyers office And why not On the contrary,
cannot be learn far more Of practice by The jud-
cious and careful study Of all the formula which he
never docs in practising lawyers offce) than BY
writing, OF rather copying, those simple and occasion
al declarations, pleas &c, which The master Of Office
assigns to the STUDENT Ia il unformly the csse
that all really difficult and responsible business of this
is done by the master himself without ever reach
ing the eye OF the s'udcnt-or if il does only me-
III. 30, liz ~ a.
tween real sui, in court and fictitious one In which
student prepares the wrIt-another the return
another the declaraiion- some other the pea, &c
until all the practical proceedings gone through
A nd hat prevents these students making record of
the whole and then comparing all with c, rtified re-
cord ION some court of justice in like action All
this surely may be done IN Law Instuton-and far
uer-more quiet, and with more time than in busi
Offices, where many precious hours often or 10
useless messages-long waks-iranscr binq letters
copying mot deriung) declarations pleas, replica
TONS &c. so generally the sole work manship OF the
master Of The Office, and very seldom that of the
student confcssthat all this is to my mind e1trcmc-
ly plain, and has long isfcd of he popular and
serious which has placed young men In Offices
where little either ofthcory prscice learnt This
surely, Is not always the casebut It rs too often such
amany d,ponding students have found and as others
have been compelled 10 confess, that they never
learned much oflheory or ofwaciicc until qfer they
came The bar but at which time II found very
no hill and arduous work, and sometimes not accom- |
pished even through whole life of toll Doubtless
there many noble exceptions TO the correctness of
these remarks but still aver as fact, that my
experience has never made acquainted With any |
yosas lasryr, who, in candid conversation, was no,
willing 20 confess that his legal education had been |
very baphszsrJ-and that practice, TO any really val
liable and abiding extent " the last thing student
can ever hope for m pracfising lawyers Office.
After an extensive practice of seven and twenty |
years in all Of the courts, and devotion TO the nie
rests Of inr students during much of that period may
not be much to say that practice be lost
light ofin this institution and that nothing but meohan
cal unrro,cnes Of legal education unworthy e an en-
ightencd lawyer could patronisc even the init
nation that such Institution only adopted for