The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1844-04-05
A CIRCULAR TO STUDENTS OF LAW
IN THE UNITED STATES.

TN the wear ls2i under the auspices Of the Uniset
i city of Maryland, established IN the cry OF bal
umoro Law School, under the denomination oil inc
Maryland Law Institute. This establishment, CONT
nued in successful operation nearly eleven years bas-
ing receive students from slsrea OF the States ana
from two iorelgn countries. OWING TO me pressure
OF an ex enslse practices simultaneously WIN 'ne uu-
Ties which the Institution involved resolved IN tue
year 1886 10 abandon not lily the practice oil my ever
and long cherished profession bu, also the Law insii.
tue and for health and ease, sought The more gehai
climates OF Europe. Finding, al this umei my heailh
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 usefhodioaay
and carefully studied-and seeking, moreover, indus
rious and continued occupation, essential 10 hopP-
in land that knows iders reso' ed to re-esla-
blish the Law lnsttution-and have selected Phiia'
depha the place of lie location. In 30 soing have
thought that city o the Union affords such various
and ample Inducements for all the purposrs oi the
Law Sutherland that in none can more worthy
economy be preserved, and yet with every requisite
comfort
The frequent applications made TO me from dis
lance the former OCCASION in regard TO the partie-
itars Of my enterprise induce me to anticipate similar
inquiries now-and, 10 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 cognae and auxiliary topics, spacious
| and beautiful building N. III South Filh street
suitable for the accommodation OF about sixty stu
dents The all suitably furn shed, supplied
with extensive law and miscellaneous library
ic precedets Of practice in every conceivable and APP
proved form. Studens admitted at any time
throughout the year-courses Of study, and the re-
qulsile books are supplied SO as exactly 10 neet the
wants and views Of the student, according he may
design practice his profession elher in the country
or in some Of the maritime cities The laws of every
State in the Union in some degree dwelt upon
practice is constantly blended with heory--but the
deep and radical error OF parens well of students
is carefully AVOIDED aliude the too erroneous
ton that law students to be made mechanical
a'tisdnsmere attorneys, learning practice by roe, and
jealous of book-knouisdge, as being too theoretical =
This mischievous error must inevitably degrade the
science and profession and is gross mistake, since
no practising attorney was ever good and lasting one
who was not also deeply sersed 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 heory-it is unnatural
Inversion Of the established order Of naurean igno-
rant and sloveniy way of urging young men to at
| tempts far beyond the powers Of the human ind
for if 'he grounds and of the science be not
well known, the practice cannot be well known.
But the error TO which | so earnestly allude, is
fou pded upoa another, which is equally false and
row, yz.-that students learn the practice only in
practising laoyer's office On the CONTRARY, gen
| era rule, 1t Is The very last place in which he
does, or can learn the pracce-and this be made
extremely manifest w hat is practice as distinguish
| ed from theory? Take single exampe-and er uno
disco 0rines The theory a law point says to the
student, if A lends b his watch and sells 1t,
fuses 10 return it, A may bring wha, ID called an ac
ton of Trover and Conversion. Now means
hDdtpg and CONVERSION means pprnpratlng IL to his
own use and here, again. the student learns two
other theoretical law poins-yiz that the fndng is
verbal fiction, not at all material, 10 be
propsd-and secondly that the conversion by the de-
fendant to his consists IN the WITHHOLD
ing the properly from the plaintiff, although it should
be ever clearly proved that be in way the
property for himself, for any purpose whatever bot
to withhold IT from the plaintiff.
Now all this theory must be learnt and a good
deal more before he practice comes-and that practice
on the plaintiffs part conssts of thorough know ledge
of he forms precedents-and the defendant part,
of the like knowledge TO the JorrnuiG Of the plea
rejonders &c. There are therefore books of preoe-
dents these books unfold every practical proceeding
whatever, in every action known to the law--pro
gressivey from the importation OF the Ur ~ the final
return upon the execution These torniui9 of wri,s
returns TO wrns-appesrauces-bail-lm parlaDces
acknowledgement of jures -irial-e1-
ceptions-verdict- Observation-Disclosures of
eNecuton-oI, on the other hand, new tral-or ap-
peal, Sc &c-are all set forth in The Ipreced MS so
that, he who knows most of preoedenLs, knows most
of practice but STILL these precedents cannot them
selves be understood, without a previous theoretical
knowl ledge The question: then reso YES se into h
Cannot law student be well grounded in all The
pfecedents iaio sensu, who never u pr acsing
lawyers oflice1 And why not 2 On the contrary
cannot he learn far Of practice by the iud-
cous and careful study of all the formula (Which he
never does In practising lawyers office than by
writing, rather copying, tho-e simple and occasion
al declarations, pleas &c, which the master of Office
assigns to the student l. IL not uniformly the
that all really difficult and responsible business of this
is done by the master himself without ever reach.
ing the eye of the siudent-or If II does only to me
chanically copy III Again Who can distinguish be
tween real suit in court and fictitious one in VIII oh
| one student prepares the wnt-another the return
! another he declaration- some other the pea sc.
until all the practical proceedings are gone through
And hat prevents these students making record of
the whole and then comparing all with a C, rtfed re-
cord Il ON some court of justice in like action All
this surely may be done IN Law lnsutution-and far
b,uer-more quleti and with more time than in bu ST.
ness offices here many precious hours often lost il
! useless messages-ong walks-fanscrbing letters
copying mot derisng) declai atoms, pleas replica
tons &c generally the sole workmanship OF the
master Of the Office and very seldom that Of the
student confess that all this is my mind extreme
ly plain and has long isfed of the popular and
serious which has placed young men IN Offices
where little either OF theory or practice is learnt This
surely - always the csse-but is too often such
asmany depending students have found and as Others
/ have been compelled TO confess that thew never
learned much oftheory Of practice until qaer heu
came 10 the bar but, at which time WaS found very
10. hill and arduous work and sometimes not accom-
| piished even through whole life Of toll Doubtless
there many noble exceptions to he correctness of
these remarks but still, it az a fact that my
experience has never made me acquainted With any
Young larger who IN candid Conversation was not
willing 20 confess that his legal education had been
very hap-haz,rd-and th, practice to any really val
liable and abiding extent, Is the last thing student
can ever hope for IN practising lawyers oflce
After an extensive practice Of seven and twenty
years IN all Of the courts, and devotion TO the inis-
rests lno students, dunng much Of that period it may
not be too much to say that practice never be lost
light ofn this institution md that nothing but nsoani-
cal narroioness Of legal education unworthy an en-
ghtened lawyer, could paronisc even the init
nation that such Institution was only adopted for
the incubation ofthc science and not Of the f Of our
profe,son--an intmation confined, doubtless To