The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1844-05-30
A CIRCULAR TO STUDENTS OF LAW
In THE UNITED STATES.

In InE UNI Ell % ~ h~
TN ths wear 1924 under the auspices OF the UniseI-
/ sity Of Maryland | established IN the cry OF pal
| timors Law School, under The DENOMINATION OF 'be
| Maryland Law Institute. THIS establishment 0onr
nued la successful operation nearly eleven years paw
inc received students from eleven of the States, ana
from Two foreign countries. owing 10 Tue pressure
of extensive practice, simultaneously WIN "io ~
ties which the Institution involved resolved IN TUG
wear 1886 TO abandon oay the practice oil my ever
and long cherished profession but also the Law lnst-
tute and for health and ease, sought the more gena
climates Of Europe. Finding, at this unc, 10y hedth
perfectly restored and with II no abatement Whatever
of my zeal al devotion TO that great science, which
in this county of all others, needs To be msshodieay
and carefully studied--and seeking, moreover, indus
trious and continued occupation, SO essential To happ
ness 10 land tina, knows oilers resols we'd to te-es,a
bsh tho Law lnstiu,ion-and have selected i'hifa
dipha he place OF It's location In so dong nave
thought that city in 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 ications made from dis
lance the former OCCASION in regard to the pGriio
,lors of my enterprise, induce to anticipate similar
inquiries Dow--and, To meet all such in advance,
now address this Circular all that can offer IN
explanation, and, probably, as all that may be requ
site.
The Institution, dedicated alone to law studies
and their cognaie and auxiliary topics, spacious
and Dtautltui Dulluug, IN. IL DOuln rum suCtl
suitable for the accommodation of about sixty stu
| dents. The rooms are all suitably furn she'd supplied
with an extensive law and miscellaneous library
Nth preesdenis Of practice IN every conceivable and APP
proved firm. otudsn . are admitted at any time
throughout The year-courses OF study, apd the Ie
quste books are supplied, as exactly to rect the
wants and views of the student, according as he may
design 10 practice his profession, cnher IN the country
in Of the maritime cities. The laws of every
State in the Union in some degree dwelt upun-
| hIanteI With lint no.
deep md radical of parents, well Of students
is carefully AVOIDED allude 10 the t erroneous
ton that law students be made mere mechanical
ntisansmere attorneys, learning practice by role and
jealous Of book knowledge, being too theoretical -
This mischevous error must inevitably degrade the
science and profession, and is gross mistake since
practising attorney was good and lasting one
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 of putting
practice before and above ,heory--i is an unnatural
Inversion Of the established order Of nature-an gno
rant and sloveny way Of urging young msn 10 at
tempts far beyond the powers of the human ind
for, If The grounds and of the science be
well known, the practice cannot be well known
But the error, to which | so earnestly allude is
founded upo., another, which is equally false and
row, viz-that students learn the practice only in
practising lTcyers office! On The contrary as gen
eral role, II is he very last place in which he
does, or can learn the practice-and this be made
extremely manifest w hat is practice dsting uish-
ed from hcoryY Take single example-and tr u:io
disco The theory or law point says to the
student if lends b his watch, and sells it, or re-
fuses TO return it, A may bring what is called an
ton Of Trover and Conversion. Now frorsr means
Ending, and conversion means appropriatug to his
own use; and here again, the student learns two
other theoretical law poln,s-yz. that the find ng is
now mere verbal fiction not at all material, to be
proped-and secondly, that the conversion by the de-
irndant to his consists in the WITHHOLD
ing the property from the plaintiff although IL should
be ever clearly proved that be in way the
property for himself OF for any purpose whatever, but
to withhold It from the plaintiff
Now all this theory must be learnt and a good
deal more before the practice that practice
on the plaintiffs part consists of thorough knowledge
of the forms preetdens-and. the defendants part
of the like knowledge 10 the formula Of the pleas
relonders, &c. There are therefore books Of prees-
dents these books unfold every practical proceeding
| whatever, in every action known to the iaw-pro
gressively from the Importation of the cr 10 the fnal
return upon the erscaion. These tormula of writs
returns TO wriis-appearance s-bail--npai ances
acknowledgement of juHes -iria-eN-
cep,ions-verdict- jgment-execuon-return of
eXecution-or, on The other hand, new tral-or APP
peal SC, &c-are all set forth IN The fpreced MS so
that, he who knows mo.t of precedeHts, knows most
of practice but still these precedens cannot ihsm-
selves be understood, without previous theoretical
know ledge The question, then resolves se into this
Cannot law student be well grounded in all the
| pIecedents aio Sensu, who never saw a practising
lawyers Office Aud why not 2 On the contrary,
| cannot d. learn far mo.e OF practice by the ud
cous and careful study Of all the formula (which he
/ never does in practising lawyers ofice) than by
writing OF rather copying ho'e simple and occasion
al decaratlons pleas &C. which he master Of office
assigns to the sudentl l. it not uniformly 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 II does only to
chanically copy it Again; Who distinguish be-
tween a real suit in court end fictitious one ia which
Tho. az.
another he declaration some other the p ca &c
until all the practical proceedings gone through
| And hat prevents these students making record of
the whole and ihcn comparing all with certified re-
cord Fl om court Of justice in a like action An
this surely may be done Law Institution-and far
b uef-more qulet, and with more time than in bus.
meas offices where many precious hours are often lost 10
useless messages-!ong ~aks-transcr bing letters
copying (not dsrtsiag) declarations, pleas, replica
tons &c so generally the sole workmanship o the
master of the office, and very seldom that Of tho
student confess hat all this is 10 my mind extreme
y plain and has long sd isGed me of The popuia, and
! serious which hos placed young In Offices
where little either otheory or OF practice 10 learnt This
surely is not always the Case but II is too often such
asnany depending students have found and others
/ have been compelled 10 confess, that they never
learned much oftheory or ofpraccc until after they
cam, 10 the bar but at which time II wAf found very
up-bill and arduous work, and sometimes not accom-
piished even through whole life of toll Doubtless
there are many noble exceptions 10 he correctness of
these remarks but still, aver It fact, that my
experience has never made me acquainted with any
young la,oyer who in candid conversation, was not
Wiling 20 confess that b,s legal education had been
very hap-hazardand that practice to any really val
liable and abiding extent the last thing student
can ever hope tor IN practising lawyers Office
After an extensive practice Of seven and twenty
years in all Of the courts and devotion to the int
rests Of lac students, during much OF that period may
not be mech to say that practice be st
light ofn this Instituu'n and that nothing but msohan
cal narocness Of legal education unworthy # IN en-
,htened lawyer could ever paironise the init
nation, that such an lnst uton only adopted for
] L.. nnLr. -i.LIL.