The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1844-02-10
A CIRCULAR TO STUDENTS OF LAW
8f IN THE UNITED STATES. "

TN the yesr ie2i under the auspices OF tho n,sei-
siy Of Maryland, established in the city OF Bal
timors Law School, under tho denominauo" oi TUG
Maryland Law Institute This establishment eohi-
nued IN soceessiul operation nearly sss'sn Ssa, na
ing receis, students from esrea oil The States, ana
from two foreign countries, Owing TO the pressure
of ensiye practice, simultaneously WIN tue du-
ties which The Institution Involved resolved IN Tue
year 1886 TO abandon not y the practice OF my ever
and long cherished profession, but also the Law ins-
tute and for health and ease sought the more genial
climates VI Europe. Finding at this time, my health
perfectly restored and with u no abatement whatever
Of my zeal and devotion that great science, which
in this country OF all others needle TO be meihocatiy
and carefully siudied--and seeking, moreover indus
t-ious and continued occupaii"n, essential to happ-
ness in land that knows oilers reso we'd 10 zee sta
blsh the Law Instiution-and have selected Phiia
deiphia he place Of It's location In do,g have
thought that city in the Union affords such various
and ample Inducements for all the purpos,s OF the
! Law Sutherland that in none a worthy
| economy be preserved and yet with every requisite
| comfon. f.
| The frequent app icalioDs made TO from dis
lance, he former OCCASION in regard to the pare
ulars of my enterprise induce me 10 anticipate similar
| inquiries now--and, To meet all such ia advance,
now address this Circular, all that | can offer in
EXPLANATION, and, probably, all that may be rqui-
| site.
| The Institution, dedicated alone to law studies,
and their cognaie and auxiliary topics Is spacious
and beautiful building, N. ~ South Fifth street,
suitable Tor the accommodation of about sixty stu
dents. The all suitably fufn she'd supplied
with extensive law and miscellaneous library
oih precedes Of practice in every conceivable and APP
| proved firm. Siud,n are admitted at any Tine
throughout The year--courscs Of study, and the
quisic books are supplied, exactly 10 meet the
wants and views of the student, according he may
design to practice his profession eher in the country,
or in some of the maritime cities The laws Of every
State IN tile Union IN some degree dwet upon
practice is constantly blended with Mecry--but the
deep and radical parents, well of students
Is carefully AVOIDED aude the too erroneous
ton that law students be made mechanical
atisans-mere attorneys learning practice by rote, and
jealous of book knowledge, being too theoretical =
This mschievous error must inevitably degrade the
science and profession, and is gross mistake since
practising attorney good and lasting enc,
who was not also deeply versed in the reasons and
theory of the law. therefore cannot acquiesce in,
and never will yield TO, the vulgar error Of putting
practice before and above theory-it is unnatural
Inversion Of the established oder of naiuresn igno
rant and sloveny way of urging young men 10 at
temp,s far beyond the powers Of the human ind
Tor If The grounds and of the scicnce be not
| well known, the practice cannot be well known.
But the error, to which | earnestly aIlude, is
fou ded upon another, which is equally false and mar
row, viz.-that students learn the practice only in
practising lawyers office! On the csnlI.ry, as gen
era rule, II Is the very last place in which he
does, or can learn the praciice-and this be made
| extremely manifest w hat is practice as distinguish
cd from theory? Take a single example and tr uno
disco The theory or law point says to the
student, if lends his watch, and sells it,
fuses TO return it, A may bring what is called
ton of Trpver and Conversion. Now frorer means
hnding and conversion means Apr priaiug IL to his
own use; and here, again, the student learns two
other theoretical law pon's-vz. that the find ng Is
now mere verbal fiction, not at all material, to be
prorsd-and SECONDLY that the conversion by the de-
frndant to his consists IN The mere WITHHOLD
ing The properly from the plaintiff although ii should
be ever 90 clearly proved that he in way the
property for himself or Tor any purpose whatever but
to withhold II from the plaintiff.
Now all this theory mu,t be learn, and good
deal more before the pacce comes-and that practice
on the plaintiffs part con lists of thorough know ledge
of The forms rprectdens-and the defendants part
ofthe like knowledge TO the formula of the pleas
rejoinders &c There are, therefore books Of preee-
denis these books unfold every practical proceeding
whatever, in every action known to the law-pro
gressvey from The importation of the mrifo the final
return Jpn The ersetaion These Jormtle of wrts
returns 10 ELECTROMAGNETIC pailances
ntinuances-impanneiliog of juies -trial-eI-
cep,ions-veIdct- judgment-eX, cu,ion-return of
execu,ioD-or, on the other hand, tria-)r APP
peal, &c &c.-are all set forth in the lp,eced mis- SO
that, be who knows most Of pretedeRts, knows mos,
Of practice but STILL these preceJenis cannot them.
selves be understood, withou, previous theoretical
know ledge The question: then reso itself into this
Cannot law student be well grounded in all the
pieeedens, iao sensu, who never saw pr actising
lawyers office 7 Aud why not On the contrary
cannot he learn far more OF practice by the jud :
cious and careful study Of all The tormuia (which he
never does in practising lawyers ofiice) than by
writing, OF rather copying, those simple and occasion
al dec arbt ons pleas &c, which The master Office
assigns 10 the siuden1 Is it uniformly the Sc
that all really difficult and responsible business Of this
is done by the master himself without reach
ing the eye Of the sudentor, If it does only to me-
chanically copy il Again: Who can distinguish be
tween real suit in court, and fictitious one In VIII Oh
one student prepares the wrt another the return
, | another The declaration other the Ca &c
until ali the practical proceedings gone through
And " hat prevents these students making record oil
the whole, and then comparing all with a !, ruicd re-
cord Il ON some court of justice 10 like action All
this surely may be done IN Law lnsItuton-and far
bsuei-more qvet land with time than in bus-
ness Offices many precious hours are often lost ia
useless messages-long walks-iIanscr bling letters
copying QUOT derising) destinations, pleas, replica
tons &c. so generally the sole workmanship o the
master of The Office and very seldom that Of the
student ] confess that all thsis to my mind extreme.
Iy plain and has long sfed me of he popular and
serious error which has pliced young In offices
where little either oftheory or oprpcuce is learnt This
surely Is always the casebut II is too often such
as'many despondpg students have found and as Others
have been compelled TO confess, that they never
learned much oftbeoy or of practice until after hey
came 10 he bar but, at which tine 1t found very
. up hin and sfdoous work, and sometimes not accom-
, plshed even through whole life Of toll Doubtless
there are many noble exceptions TO The correctness of
these remarks but still aver it a fact that my
experience has never made me acquainted With any
voung Lroyer, who, in candid conversation, not
wiling 20 confess that his legal education had been
very hap-hazard-snd that prso>, to any really val
liable and abiding extent, IS the last thing student
can ever hope for u practising lawyers of,ce.
After IN extensive practice of seven and twenty
wears in all OF the courts and devotion to the int
resi- Of no suIenis during much of that period may
mol be much to say that procoe be lost
light ofin this Institution and that nothing but meehi-
| NJ led fhu #
Igbtened lawyer, could ever paropise the inti-
nation that such Inst uiiun only adopted tor
tn. of the science and not Of the of our
profe.sion-an intmation confined, dpubuess, to a