The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1844-04-16
A CIRCULAR TO STUDENTS or LAW
IN THE UNITED STATES.

sny of Maryland | established in the city of Bal
tmore Law School, under the denomination OF the
Maryland Law lnslitute. This establishment eonli-
nued in successful operation nearly eleven years, bav-
ing received Students frol eeren of the States, and
from two foreign countries. Owing to the pressure
OF an extensive practice, simultaneously with The du-
ties which the Institution involved resolved IA the
year 1886 To abandon not y the practice OF my ever
and long cherished profession, but also the Law lnst-
tute and for health and ease, sought the genial
climates OF Europe. Finding, at this une my health
perfectly restored and with II abatement whatever
of my zeal and devotion 10 that great science which,
IN this country OF all others, needs 10 be nethodieay
and carefully siudied-and seeking, moreover, indus
trious and continued occupaiun essential to happi
In a land that knows idlers reso ed To e-esta
bsh the Law lnstluion-and have selected Phla.
dephia as he place of ito location. Ia eoiag have
thought that city in the Union affords such various
and ample inducements for all the purposes Of the
Law Sutherland that ia none can a worthy
| economy be preserved, and yet with every requisite
comfort
The frequent app icalions made to me from a dis
lance on the former OCCASION in regard to the patic
uta,s of my enterprise induce to anticipate similar
inquiries now--and, To meet all such in advance,
now address this Circular, all that | offer in
explanation and, probably all that may be requi-
site.
The Institution, dedicated alone to law studies,
and their cognate and auxiliary Iopics, is spacious
and beautiful building NJ. III South Fifth street,
| suitable for the accommodation of about sixty stu
dents The all suitably fun shed, supplied
with extensive law and miscellaneous library
ic precedents Of practice every conceivable and APP
proved firm. Studen's are admitted at any time
tbrougho the year--courses Of study, and the re-
qusile books are supplied, exactly to meet the
wants and views of the student, according he may
design to practice his profession either in the country
or in some OF the maritime cities. The laws of every
State IN the Union are in some degree dwet upon
practice is constantly blended with Meo,y--but the
deep and radical error OF pnen well Of students
Is carefully AVOIDED allude TO the too erroneous no
ton that law students TO be made mere mechanical
a'ti,ansmere attorneys learning practice by rote, and
jealous of -kno,ciedge being too theoretical
This mischevous error must inevitably degrade the
science and profession, and is gross mistake, since
no practising attorney was good and lasting one
| who was not also deeply versed in the reasons and
theory of the law. therefore cannot acq uesce in,
| and never will yield to- the vulgar error Of putting
practice before and above theoryit is an unnatural
Inversion of the established order Of naure-an igno
rant ana Sloven'y way OF urging young men on 10 at
| tempts far beyond the powers Of the human ind
for if the grounds and reasons of the science be
| well known, the practice cannot be well known.
But the error, to which ! earnestly alludc, is
fou ded upoh another which is equally false and
row, vz-that students learn the practice only in
practising incyer's office! On The canr.ry as a gen.
era rule, IT Is the very Iast place in which he
does can learn the praciice-and this be made
extremely manifest What is practice is distinguish
ed from theory? Take a single eXample-and tr uto
student if A lends b his watch and b sells it, or re-
fuses to return it, A may bring what is called an ac-
| ton Of Trover and Conversion. Now irorer means
hnding, and conversion means approprating it to his
! own use and here, again, the student learns two
other heorefical law ponis-viz. that the find ng
now verbal fiction, not all material or To be
propsd-and secondly that the conversion by the de-
fndant TO his otrn consists in the withhold
ing the property from the plaintiff although should
be ever clearly proved that he in way used the
property for himself r.psc wi hut
| TO Withhold II from the plaintiff.
Now all this theory must be learn, and good
deal more before the practice comesand that practice
on the plaintiffs part Consists of thorough knowledge
Of he forms or prectdeMs-and the defendants part
OF the like knowledge TO the formula of the pleas
rejonders, &c. There are therefore books of prece-
dents these books unfold every practical proceeding
whatever, in every action known to the law-pro
gress,ey from the importation Of the crit the final
return upon the ereeuion These formula of wriis
returns TO Observation-Disclosures
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS of juries -lria-ex-
| ceptioDs-verdict- Observation-Disclosures Of
! executon-or, on The other hand, trial--or ap-
peal, SC, &c.-nre all set forth in he Ipreeed MS so
that, he who knows mo,i of preeedeats, knows most
| Of practice but STILL these precedents cannot them
| selves be derstood, without a previous theoretical
knowledge The question, then, into this
| Cannot law student be well grounded in all the
pIeeedents lato sensu, who never saw a or act sing
| lawyers ofiicel And why not 2 On the contrary
| cannot he learn far more OF practice by The ud-
cious and careful study Of all the formula which he
never does in practising lawyers oiiice) than by
writing, OF rather copying, thoe supple and occasion
al dec sratons, pleas &c, which he mas er of office
assigns TO the STUDENT l. not unfornly the case
that all really difficult and responsible business of this
sort is done by The master himself, without reach
ing the eye of the student-or f does only to me-
chanicalIy copy III Again: Who can distinguish be
tween real suit In court, and fictitious 10 which
one student prepares the ~rt-another the return
another he declaration some other the pea &c
until all the practical proceedings are gone through
And what prevents these students making a record of
the whole and then comparing all with a rtied re-
cord Fl ON some court of justice in a like action All
this surely may be done IN Law lnsItuton-and far
ief-more quiet, land with more time tina n in bus-
Offices, where many precious hours often lost il
useless messages--lopg walks--ranscrbing letters
copying (net derising) decai atoms, pleas, replica
tons &c. generally the sole workmanship o. the
master Of The office and very seldom that Of th.
student. confess that all this is To my mind extreme
ly plain and has long isied me of he popular and
serious which has placed young men m Offices
where little either oftbeory of practice is learnt This
surely Is not always The casebut it is too often such
ssmany dePonding students have found and others
| have been compelled TO confess, that they never
learned much otheory or of practlce until after hey
came 10 tbs bar but at which time it wm found very
up hill and arduous work, and sometimes no, accom-
pished through a whole life of toll Doubtless
there many noble exceptions TO he correctness of
these remarks but still | aver il fact, that nv
experience has never made me acquainted with any
vo,lpg larurr, who, in candid conversation was not
willing 20 confess that his legal education had been
very hap-hszard-and hat practice any really val
liable and abiding extent rs the last thing student
can ever hope for IN practising lawyers Office.
After an extensive practice Of seven and twenty
years IN all Of the courts and devotion 10 the in
rests Of air rnden during much that period IL NAV
not be much to say that practice never be lost
light ofin this institution and that nothing but tohan
cal Of Legal education, unworthy e an en-
lghleDed lawyer could ever patronise even the init.
nation, that such an Institution only adopted for
the inculcaion the science and not Of the arr If IN,