The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1844-03-20
A CIRCULAR TO STUDENTS OF LAW
IN THE UNITED STATES

TN the year 1924 under the auspices OF VI. oniss,
si,y Of Maryland established IN the city OF Bal
t,mo,s a Law School under the denomination oil INC
MARYLAND Law Institute This establishment eV"u-
nued in successful operation nearly eleven S.ns,
ing received students from eisrtn oil inc STATES anu
| from two foreign countries. Owing TO 'he pressure
of an extensive practee simultaneously with the du-
ties which the Institution involved Resolved III "e
year 1886 abandon not iy the pracnee OF my ever
and long cherished profession, but also the La" i"su
lute; and for health and ease, songht 'he more
climates OF Europe. Finding, al this time, my hea'h
perfectly restored and with II abatement Whatever
of my zeal and devotion To that great science, whion
in this country, OF all others, needs 10 DC "emoaoy
and carefully studied-and seeking, moreover, ihuus
trous and continued occupation, go essential To hsPlh
ness in land that knows oilers reso ed 10 Ie-esta
| bIish the Law lnstiution-and have selected ih"d
deiphia The place OF its location In 80 dong nave
thought that city in the Union affords such various
and ample inducements for all the PURPOSES OF The
Law Sutherland that in can more worthy
economy be preserved, and yet with every requisite
comfort.
The frequent applications made 10 from dis
lance, the former occasion, IN regard to the parie-
uLas OF my enterprise induce me TO anticipate similar
inquiries now-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 cognae and auxiliary topics, Is spacious
and beautiful bu lding N. 1T South Fifth street,
| suitable for the accommodation of about sixty stu
dents. The all suitably furn shed, supplied
with an extensive law and miscellaneous library
10Th precedents Of practice every conceivable and APP
| proved form. Studen are admitted at any time
throughout the year-courses Of study, and the re-
quisile books supplied exactly to heet the
wants and OF the student, according he may
design practice his profession eher IN the country
in some of the maritime cities. The laws Of every
State in the Union in some degree dwelt upon
practice is constantly blended with teCry-but the
deep and radical error of parents well Of students,
is carefully avoided allude to the too
ton that law students TO be made mechanical
artisans attorneys learning practice by rote and
jealous of ok-knopiedge, being too theoretieat-
This mischievous error must inevitably degrade the
science and profession, and is gross mistake since
practising attorney good and lasting enc,
who not also deeply versed in the and
theory of the law. therefore cannot acquesce in,
and will yield TO, the vulgar error Of putting
practice before and above theoy-it is unnatural
Inversion Of the established order of na,ure-an igno-
rant and slovenly way of urging young 10 at
tempts far beyond the powers of the human mind
for il he grounds and reasons of the science be
well known, the practice cannot be well known.
But the error to which | so earnestly aude, is
fou ded upoI another which is equally false and
row, vzthat students learn the practice only in
practising lawyers office! On the contrary gen
eral rule II Is the very last place in which he
does or can learn the practice-and this be made
extremely manifest W hat is practice as distinguish
ed from theory? Take a single e1ample-and er tno
disco oniies The theory or law point says to the
student, If lends his watch, and b sells it,
fuses to return it, A may bring what is called
| ton of Trover and Conversion. Now troper
hndiDg and conversion means 'priatiag It to his
own use and here, sgaIn, the student learns two
other theoretical law ponis-vz. that the find ng
now verbal fiction, not at all material TO be
propsd-and secondly that the conversion by the de-
f. ndant TO his consists in the withhold
ing the properly from the plaintiff although should
be ever c!eaily proved that he way USED the
property for himself OF for any purpose whatever but
| 10 withhold 1t from the plaintiff.
Now all this theory must be learnt and good
deal more before the practice comesand that practice
on the plaintiff part COM lists Of thorough know ledge
of he forms rpreo,dn,-and the defendant part,
of the like knowledge TO the formula of the p a.
rejonders &c. There are therefore books of preee-
dents these books unfold every practical proceeding
| whatever, in every action known to the iaw--pro.
gressyey from the importation of the ,crii the final
| return upon the execution. These fornui9 of wrts
returns 10 es-bail-impa ilaDres
-contnuances-mpanneiIi of juries -tral-ex-
ceptions-veId'ct- JudgmeDt-e1t cul,on--return of
executon-or, on The other hand, tridl--or APP
peal &c, &c--are all set forth in the fpteed nts so
that, he who knows most of preeede is knows most
of practice bu, stll these pIecedents cannot them
selves be understood, without previous theoretical
know ledge The question, then reso'v YES itse into this
Cannot law student be well grounded in all the
| pIecedents iato SenSu who never a pr act sing
! lawyers office Aud why not On the contrary
cannot he learn far more OF practice by the Jude
cious and careful study of all the formula hch n,
never does 10 practising lawyer oiiice) than by
writing rather copying tho.e simple and occasion.
al dec arat ons pleas &C. which the sier If an Office
assigns to the sudentl Is it uniformly the case
that all really difficult and responsible business of Tins
is done by the master himself without ever reach.
ing the eye of the sludent-or, II 1t does only To me
| chanically copy II Again: Who can distinguish be-
tween real suit IN court and fictitious 10 VIII ch
one student prepares the wnt-anuthcr the return
| a.. h.. sinraf A ~. a..
until all the practical proceedings are gone through
And uhat prevents these students making record of
the whole and then comparing all with a c. rti6ed re-
cord 4 ON some court OF justice in like action All
this surely may be done IN Law lnsiltuton-and far
b uer-more quiet, and with more time than in busi-
ness offices where many precious hours often lost in
| useless messages-iong ~aiks-iianscr bling letters
eoplnng mot derising) declarations pleas REPLICA
tons &c so generally the sole workmanship o. the
master Of The office, and very seldom that Of the
student confess that all this 20 my mind extreme
ly plain and has LING ished me Of the popular and
serious error which has placed young men IN Offices
where little either otheoTy or ofpracce is learnt This
surey l. not always the case but II is too often such
asnany depending students have found and as others
have been compelled TO confess, that they never
learned much oftheoy or Of practice until after they
came 10 The bar but at which time az found very
M hill and arduous work and sometimes not accom-
piished even Though whole life Of toll Doubtless
there are many noble exceptions TO he correctness Of
these remarks but still, aver 1t fact, that my
experience has never made nc acquainted With any
young lncyer, who, IN candid conversation was MOI
willing 20 confess that his legal education had been
very hap-hazsr dand that practice TO any really val
liable and abiding extent is the last thing 81 udcat
can ever hope tor IN practising lawyers office.
After a n extensive practice Of seven and twenty
wears in all Of the courts, and devotion 10 the nfe
rests u lac students, during much Of that period II may
not be much to say tina, practice be lost
ight ofn this institution and that nothing bu, meohan
cal nalTouness Of legal education, unworthy e an en-
llghtened lswyef could patrobise even the init
nation that such an lnst uton only adopted for
the incubation Of the science and not Of the art of our