The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1844-06-15
!, e;uai,i IA IA afupxNTs or LAW
IN THK UNITED bTArEs'


TN the year 1924, under tbs auspices OF the uni,s,
si,y Of MARYLAND established in the city OF BAL
umore . Law School, under the denominh"o" oil '"s
MARYLAND Law Institute. Thu" establishment eoi''
nued in successful operation nearly eless" year" ~
ing received students from ssren VI the o'ses' anu
from two foreign countries. Owing TO the pressure
OF an extensive practice, simultaneously WIN inc au
ties which the Institution Involved resolved J" tue
year 1886 To abandon not lily the practice OF my ever
and long cherished profession, but also tue La" ihs
tute and for health and ease, sought the more grnia
climates vi Europe. Finding al this time, my nrai'h
perfectly restored and with II no abatrnent Whatever
Of my zeal and devotion TO that great science woIn
in this country OF all others, needs TO be mefhodeaty
and carefully studied-and seeking, moreover, INDUS
t-ious and continued patton, essential 10 haPI
ness ia land that knows tders resoi ed to ie-e.,a
bsh the Law Institution--and have selected i,""a
afIpha as he place OF its location In 50 eong nave
that city 10 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 icaiions made 10 mo from DIS
ance on the former cason regard to the porf'c
,ia Of my enterprise, induce TO anticipate similar
inquiries now-and to meet all such IN advance,
now address this Circular all that can oier Ia
explanation and, probably, as all that may be- requ
site.
The Institution, dedicated alone to law studies,
and their cogna,e and auxiliary topics, Is spacious
and beautiful building, N, .Il7 South Fifth street
suitable for the accommodation of about sixty stu
dents. The rooms are all suitably fuTn she'd supplied
with an extensive law and miscellaneous library
,ciLt precedens Of practice in every conceivable and APP
proved f,rm. students admitted at any time
throughout The year--courses OF study and the
quise books are supplied, exactly TO meet the
wants and views Of the student, according he may
design practice his profession, eher in the country
in of the maritime cities. The laws of every
State in the Union in some degree dwelt upon
practice is constantly blended with hecry--but the
deep and radical of parents, well of students
is carefully AVOIDED allude the too
ton that law students TO be made mechanical
a,tisansmere attorneys learning practice by roe, and
jealous of book acknowledge, being too theore -
This mschievous error must inevitably degrade the
science and profession, and is gross mistake, since
no practising attorney was ever good and lasting me-
who was not also deeply versed in the reasons and
theory of the law. | therefore cannot acquiesce in
and will yield to, the vulgar error Of putting
practice before and above theory-il is an unnatural
Inversion of the established order of nalurean igno
rant and soveniy way of urging young men on 10 at
tenpis far beyond the powers Of the human n ind
for If The grounds and of the science be not
well known, the practice cannot be well known.
But the error, to which | 30 earnesy aliude, is
fou uded upol another, which is equally false and
row, vlz-that students learn the practice only in
practising lawyers office! On The conir.ry, gen
era rule, it is the very last place in which he ever
does, can learn the praclice-and this be made
extremely manifest. hat is practice dsng uish-
ed from theory? Take single exanpe-and eI uno
student if A lends his watch, and sells it, or re-
fuses to return it, A may bring what is called
ton of Trover and Conversion. Now trorer means
finding, and conversion approprating it to his
own use and here, again, the student learns two
other theoretical law poinis-yz. that the finding is
verbal felton, not at all material, to be
proUed-and secondly that the conversion by the de-
fendan to his use consists in the mere WITHHOLD
ing the property from the plaintiff although it should
be clearly proved that lac IN way used the
property for himself for any purpose whatever, bot
To withhold II from the plaintiff
Now all this theory must be learnt and good
deal more before the practice comes-and that practice
the plaintiff part consists OF thorough knowl ledge
of the forms prectdenisand, the defendants part
of the like knowledge TO the Jorntle of the pleas,
joinderr &c. There are, therefore, books Of prece-
dents these books unfold every practical proceeding
whatever, in every action known to the iaw-pro
gressively from the importation of the Uriito the final
return upon the ereetaion. These formula of
returns 10 wrlts-appesra nces-bail-mpai ances
-continuances-impanne of junes -tria-ex-
cepions-verdict- ment--execution-return of
execution-or, on the other hand, tral-or APP
peal &c, &c.-ore all set forth in the fp,sced n 20
that he who knows most Of preeedepts, knows most
of practice but still, these precedens them
selves be unde rsood without previous theoretical
know ledge. The question: then resolves Itself into this
Cannot law student be well grounded in all the
piecedents, laio Se,lsu, who never a pr actsing
lawyers Office : And why not On the contrary,
cannot be learn far more OF practice by the JUDI
cous and Careful study OF all the tormui0 Which he
never does in practising lawyers ofhce) than by
writing, rather copying those simple and OCCASION
al dec larstons pleas which he master Of IN office
assigns to the STUDENT Ia il uniformly the Case
that all really difficult and responsible business of thus
sorl done by the master himself without ever reach
ing the eye of the sudent-or, if II does only To
chanicslly copy IL Again: Who distinguish be
tween a real suit in court, and fictitious In which
one student prepares the wrt-anotber the return
another he declaration some other the . Ca &c
1 I.lt hc ,,h Z
And hat prevents these students making record of
| The whole, and Thea comparing all with srliieJ
cord Fl ON court Of ju-tics in a like action All
this surely may be done IN Law n-litution-and far
b uer-morc quetI,-snd with time than in BUR-
Offices where many precious hours often lost il
useless mcssaRcs-'ong ~alks--iIanscr binr letters
copying mot derisirg) declarations, pleas, replica
tous, &c. SO generally the sole workmanship o the
master of The Office, and seldom that Of the
student confess that all this is TO my mind e1reme-
" plain, and hs. Lng sfed me of The popular and
serious error which has placed young men Offices,
where little either oiheory or OF prsclce learnt Tins
surely 10 not always the case-b but 1t is often such
asna ny despondng students have found and as others
| have been compelled to confess that they never
learned much OF theory or ofpracce until after they
cam, 10 iks ksr bot, which time found yer,
nj hill and nrduous work and sometimes not accom-
pished even through whole life of toll Doubtless
there are many noble exceptions TO he correctness OF
these remarks but still ! aver II az fact that my
| e1 perence has never made me acquainted with any
Young Inryer who IN candid conversation was no, |
willing 20 confcss that his legal education had been
very hap-hszsrdand ,bs, practice to any really val
liable and abiding extent ~ the last thing student
can ever hope Tor IN practising lawyers ofiice.
After an extensive practice of seven and twenty |
years in all # the courts and devotion TO the inis
rests Of a,c students during much Of that period may
not be too much TO say that practice be Io-
h ofin this institution and that nothing bu, peehnn
cal na,rocnes Of legal education unworthy e an en-
h,btened lawyer, could ever patronise the init
nation that such an instiu only adopted for
the incubation of The science and not of the our
profe.sion-an intimstion confined, doubtless 10