The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1844-06-10
A CIRCULAR TO STUDENTS or LAW
IN THE UNITED STATES.


TN the year Ies2t under the auspices otthe Unset-
| / sny OF Maryland established ia the city OF Bal
timofe Law School under the denomination OF sho
Maryland Law Institute. Ibis establishment CONT
nued in successful operation nearly eleven wears ha'
ing receive students FROM eisrea OF the Staies, and
from two foreign countries. Owing TO the pressure
OF an extensive practice simultaneously with tb" du-
ties which The Institution involved, resolved, IN the
year 1886 90 abandon lily the practice OF my ever
and long cherished profession also the Law insll-
tue aud, for health aud ease soaght the more genial
climates ut Europe. Finding at this Tune, my heaith
perfectly restored, and with abatement whatever
Of my zeal and devotion that great science, which,
in this country Of all others, needs To be mehodieaiy
and carefully studed-spd seeking, moreover INDUS
trious and continued occupation essential To hspp-
ia land that knows dies reso cd TO re-e.ta-
biish the Law losti,u,ioo-aDd have selected I'ha'
deiph,a as he place OF IFS location In so eoig nave
thought that city Ia the mon affords such various
and ample Inducements for all the purposes Of the
Law Sutherland that in can a more worthy
economy be preserved and yet with every requisite
comfort.
The frequent app icarions made TO from dis
lance, the former OCCASION in regard 10 the pdfe-
tars pi enterprise induce me To anticipate similar
! inquiries now--aDd, To meet all such in advance,
now address this Circular, as all that offer IN
explanation, and, probably, as all that may be requ'-
site.
The Institution, dedicated alone to law studies,
and their cognate and auxiliary topics, spacious
and beautiful building, NJ. III South Fifth street,
suitable Tor the accommodation OF dbout sixty stu
dents. The all suitably tuIn shed, supplied
with extensive law and miscellaneous library
ct precedetS Of practice every conceivable and APP
proved firm. Studens admitted at any time
! q roughout the year-courses Judy, Ui the re-
| q cite book supplied, exactly 10 meet the
wants and views of the student, according he may
design practice his profession eher the country
or in some Of the maritime cities. The laws of every
State in the Union in some degree dwet upon
practice is constantly bended with heCry-but the
and lIral raIi we'll If denis
is efully avoided aiiude the too erroneous
ton that law students TO be made mechanical
arsans-mere attorneys, leaning practice by rote and
jealous of book-knotoiedge, being too theoretical
This mlschievous error must inevitably degrade the
science and profession, and is gross mistake since
no practising attorney good and lasting ne,
who was not also deeply yersed 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 theoryt is AN unnatural
inrerson Of the established order of igno.
rant and sloveniy way of urging young on at
Temps far beyond the powers of the human mind-
for II The grounds and of the science be not
well known, the practice cannot be well known.
| But the error 10 which | earnestly aude is
fou ded upoh another which is equally false and
row, vzthat students learn the practice only in
practising lawyers Office On the conI.Iy as gen.
eral rule is the Very last place IN uhioh he ever
does learn the praciice-and this can be made
extremely manifest W hat is practice is distinguish
ed from theory? Take a single example-and sr uno
disco onnes The theory law point says 10 the
student, If lends b hts watch and sells it, or re-
nses 10 return Il, A may bring what is called ac-
| ton of Iroyer and Conversion. Now frorer means
bnding and eonrers'on means aPpr priaing IT TO his
! own use; and here, again, the student learns two
other theoretical law pUInls-vz. that the find, ny j.
now mere verbal fiction, not at all material To be
prored-aEd secondly that the conversion by the de-
4 ndont TO his oicr, consists a. tho WITHHOLD
ing the properly from the plaintiff, although it should
be ever 81 clearly proved tha be IN way the
property for himself Tor any purpose whatever, but
| 10 Withhold 1t trom the plaintiff.
| Now all this theory nu-t be learn, and good
deal more before The practice and that practice
the plaintiff part con, lists Of a thorough knowledge
of he forms prtetdens-and, the defendant, part
OF the like knowIedge the tor,n,g of the plea
rejonders, &c. There are therefore books Of preee-
dents these books unfold every practical proceeding
whatever, 10 every action known TO the law--pro
gressiyely, from the Importation of the pr 10 the hnal
return upon The erectaion. These formula of wrlts
returns 10 ~riis-appearan ces-bai-mpaI ances
-contnuances-impanne of juries --lriaI-ex-
cepions-yerdict- udgment--ex, culion-return Of
execuuOn-or, on the other hand, trial-or ap-
peal &c, Gc.are all st forth in the lpreeed ns so
that, he who knows mo>t of precoderts, knows most
of practice but sull these pIecedens canoot them.
selves be understood, without previous theoretical
owledge The question, then resolves itself into this
Cannot law student be well GROUNDED ia all the
precedepts, iaio Sensu, who never a practising
lawyers oficel Add why not 2 On the contrary,
cannot be learn far more Of practice by the ud.-
cous and careful study of alt the formula when he
does IN practising lawyers oilical than hy
writing rather copying tho-c simple and occasion.
al dec aratons pleas &C. which The master e Office
assigns 90 the sudentl IL il Uniformly the case
thai all really difficult and responsible bu sness Of tins
is done by the master himself without ever feath.
log the eye Of the sudent-or # II does only to me
chanically copy It Again: Who can di.tnguisi be
tween real suit in court and fictitious one IN which
one student prepares the Nrt-another The return
another he deelara,ion- some other the pea, &c
until all the practical proceedings gone through
And hat prevents these Students NAL ing record of
the whole, and then comparing all with rtifed re-
cord ON court of justce in like action All
this surely may be done IN Law Insnuton--and FAR
tter-mofe quiet Y-and with time thar in busi
ne.s offices where many precious hours are often los, in
useless messagos-'ong waiks-nanscr hing letters
copying (no devising) declarations pleas, replica.
tons, sc. so generally the sole workmanship the
ma.t,r Of The ufice and very seldom that Of the
student confess hat all this il to my mind extreme
ly plain, and has long is6ed Of H. popular and
serious error which has placed young men IN Offices |
where little either oftheory ofprsccc Is learnt This
surely = always the case-but It is too often such
asmany dspondng students have found nd rs olhers
have been compelled TO confess, that they never |
learned much ofheofy Of practice until after het,
came 10 fhs b- but, at which time, found very
10 hill and arduous work and sometimes no, accom-
nj shed even through whole life Of toll Doubtless
there are many noble exceptions The correctness of
these remarks hut still aver IL ~ fact that nv
experience has never made ne acquainted With any |
young inrycr, who m candid cOnycnaiDn, was not |
wiling confess that his legal education had been
very hap-bszard-and that practice TO any really val
liable aud abiding extent ~ the last thing student
can ever hope Tor IN practising lawyers flee
After extensive practice Of seven and twenty
years IN all Of the cruts, aud devotion to the ini,-
rests Of ise ,d,'s, dunng much OF that period may
be much to say that practice never be lost
ght oin this Institution aud that nothing but utebani-
cal Of legal education, unworthy # an en-
ghtcncd iasyef could patrouise even the init.
nation, that such al lnst was only adopted for
the ncucaton Of the science and not Of the art of our
a iIilnnIinn