The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1844-01-24
A CIRCULAR TO STUDENTS OF LAW
IN THE UNITED STATES.


Maryland Law Institute This establishment CONT
Dued IA successful operation nearly eleven years has
ing received students from eeeen 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 In the
year 1886 To abandon not y the practice OF my ever
and long cherished profession but also the Law lnsti-
ue and for health and ease, sought the more genial
climates OF Europe Finding, at this time, 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 methodeay
and carefully studied-and seeking, moreover, indus
trious and continued occuaiion essential to hopp-
ness IN land that knows iders reso ed 10 re-esta
llish the Law lnstliulion-and have selected Phila-
depha as the place of lis location. In doing have
thought that city la the Union affords such various
and ample Inducements for all the PURPOSES of the
Law Sutherland that In none can more worthy
economy be preserved, and yet with every requisite
comfort
The frequent app icalions made TO from dis
lance on the former OCCASION in regard to the parc
l,ars of my enterprise, induce TO anticipate similar
inquiries now-and, to meet all such in advance,
now address this Circular, all that | offer in
explanaton and, probably as all that may be requi-
site.
The Institution dedicated alone to law studies,
and their cognate and auxiliary TOPICS spacious
and beautiful building, N. III South Fifth street,
suitable for the accommodation of about sixty stu.
dents The rooms are all suitably urn shed, supplied
with an extensive law and miscellaneous library
'o peeedents Of practice in every conceivable and APP
| proved Grp otudtn's admitted al any time
throughout the year--courses Of study, and the re-
quisite books supplied exactly TO .ntet the
wants and views OF the student according he may
design practice his profession either in 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 blended with Mso,y--but the
deep and radical of pnens well of sidsis
is carefully AVOIDED allude the too erroneous
ton that law students to be made mechanical
a,tisonsmere attorneys learning practice by role, and
jealous of book knowledge, being too theoretical
This mlschlevous 'rroT must inevitably degrade the
science and profession, and Is gross mistake, since
no practising attorney was good and lasting enc,
who was not also deeply veTsed in the reasons and
theory Of the law. | therefore cannot acquesce in,
and never will yield to, the vulgar error of putting
practice before and above heory-it is an unnatural
Inversion Of the established order of naure-an igno-
rant and slovenly way of urging young 10 at
temp,s lar beyond the powers Of the human II ind
for The grounds and reasons of the science be not
| well known, the practice cannot be well known.
| But the error to which | earnestly allude, is
ou ded upo" another, which is equally false and
row, vz.-that students learn the practice only in
practising fdpyers office! On the CONTRARY, gen
erai rule IT The very last place in which he
does or can learn tae pracce-and this can be made
extremely manifest. What is practice as distinguish
ed from theory? Take single exampe-and er ,.no
disce onnes The theory law point says to the
student, if A lends b his watch and sells it, or re-
fuses to return it, A may bring what is called an ac-
ton of Trover and Conversion Now iropsr means
hndiDg, and conversion means appropraiing ii to his
own use and here, again. the student learns two
other theoretical law poinls-viz that the find ,g is
now mere verbal fiction, not at all material or TO be
propsd-and secondly that the conversion by the de-
PENDANT to his oon use consists in the withhold
ing the properly from the plaintiff although it should
be ever so clearly proved that he in way USED the
property for himself, OF for any pose whatever but
to Withhold IL from the plaintiff.
Now all this theory be learnt and a good
deal more before the practice comes-and that practice
on the plaintiffs part lists OF thorough Knowledge
fihe forms prectdenis-and, the defendant part
ofthe like knowledge TO the Jorni,iie of The pleas
rejoinders &c There are therefore, books Of prece
dents these books unfold every practical proceeding
whatever IN every action known to the Iaw-pro
excessively from the importation of the prf to the final
return up'n the erectIon. These fornulG of wri,s
returns TO wriis-appearances-ha-Im
-contlnuances-impanne of unes -lrial-ex-
| ceptions-verdct-Judg ment-eXt cution-return of
| eXecutlon--oT, on the other hand, tral-pr ap-
peal &c, &c.-are all Sc, forth in the preced. MS so
that, he who knows most of precsdeats, knows most
OF practice but sui, these precedens cannot them
selves be understood without previous theoretical
know ledge. The question: then resolves Itself into thus
Cannot law student be well grounded in all the
pIecedens, laio sensu, who never saw Or actisinp
lawyers office And why not On the contrary
cannot he learn far more of practice by the iud :
cious and careful study of all the formula (Which he
| never uotH III UhClnlbB lawyers Oftce1 than Dy
writing, of rather copying those simple and occasion.
al declarations pleas, &C. which The master an office
assigns to the student7 Is il not unif,ruly the gse
that all really difficult and responsible business Of this
sort Is done by the master himself without reach
ing the eye of the sudent-or, if II does only to me-
chanically copy 1T Again: Who can dist ngush be.
| tween real suit in court, and fictitious one IN which
one student prepares the wut-aDother the return
another The declaration some other the pea &c
until all the practical proceedings are gone through
| 4 al hat these Il
the whole, and then comparing all with rtifird re-
cord Fl ON souie court OF utce in like action All
this surely may be done in Law lnstilution-and far
ttef-more quetl' with more time than in busi-
nes offices where many precious hours are often ns ia
useless messages-'ong saks-'ianscr hing letters-
copying (uot deriSing) declarations pleas replica.
tons &c. so generally the sole woIkmanship OF the
master of the Office, and very seldom that Of the
student confess that p this is to my mind extreme
IN pain and has long ished me of The popular nd
serious error which has placed young men IN offices
where little either oftheory ofpracce learnt This
surely - not always the case but It is too often such
asmany dspondng students have found and as othefs
have been compelled 10 confess, that they never
learned much oftheory Of practice until after ha
cam, 10 The bar but at which time It was found very
uphil and arduous work, and sometimes not accom-
pished even through whole life Of toll Doubtless,
there are many noble exceptions 10 he correctness of
these remarks but still, aver a. fact, that my
/ experience has made the acquainted With any
young lurVer who, IN candid conversation was not
wiling 20 COMES. that his legal education had been
very haphazard-and that practice TO any really val
liable and abiding extent Is the last thing student
can ever hope Tor m practising lawyers office.
After an extensive practice Of seven and twenty
wears IN all Of the courts, and do, oon To the ins-
rests Of lnr Students during much Of that period may
not be much to say that practice be lost
igbt Of IN this Insuon that nothnp but niechani-
cal rarro,cnes Of legal education, unworthy # an en-
! thened lawyef could ever palronise the init
nation that such Inst utinn only adopted for
the ucaon Of the science and not Of the Of our
professon-an intmation confined, doubtless, to
very few, but which, still Is one fatal TO the inte-
rests Of law students, and captivating 10 unn
formed parents and gusrdians and to the ardent
| ~. La