The Savannah morning news., 1902-06-20
JUDGE sPEER's REPORT.
On the Law Department of Mercer
University.

! macon, "a. MY Lear MI. TOllOCh-
Pursuant to the request of your recent
letter, l have the honor to submit for
the consideration of yourself and the
board of trustees, a report relative to
the law department of Mercer Uni
versity.
This department was recognized in
1893 with eleven matriculates and eight
| graduates. There has been on The
whole a steady increase in attendance
until this year we have over fifty ma
triculates and there will be forty-four
| graduates. 1t will be observed that
there has been an increase of Asa per
cent. in the attendance. During the
period mentioned the total number of
| matriculates has been 1856. The aver
age attendance for ten years has been
twenty and about 10 per cent of the
students have graduated. The states
represented among the graduates have
been Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Iowa,
Tennessee, Massachusetts, New York,
South Carolina and Arkansas. The
members of the present class the larg-
est in the history of the school, are
! all from Georgia and very generally
distributed over the state. The aver
age age of the students has been %
years. OF the graduates certainly fif-
ty-seven and probably twenty others
are actively engaged in the practice of
the law.
1t is with great pleasure that 1 can
| state with entire accuracy that many
of our graduates occupy leading places
at the bar of the state, and of the
United States courts. A number of
them are in receipt of considerable in
comes from their professional work,
and all so far as known, are animated
by true sense of professional ethics
and have demonstrated in the clearest
way that they entertain genuine re-
spect and attachment not only for the
| laws of the state, but for the consti-
tuition and laws OF the United States.
The faculty of the Law Department
from the inception of their work, have
| enforced a rigid system of marking.
The class standing and the average
made by the graduates OF preceding
classes for nine years is 80 per cent,
100 being the maximum. The average
of the graduating class this year is 81
per cent.
The work required of the student
since 1892 has been regularly increased
each year, and the standard of duty
! ana excellence as dQNdHCeQ.
! This year the work required of the
students and done by them is perhaps
one-t third more than in any preceding
| year. 1t is true that no student can
waste his time or indulge in idleness
and hope to graduate. In those infre-
quent cases where Indifference or neg
| lect on the part of the student has been
| apparent. the diploma has been rigor-
ously withheld. This has had the eff
N n n
tlemen of fine natural ability and ex-
cellent social station. But while the
refusal of a diploma has been scarcely
less painful to the members of the fac
ulty than to the student, the require
ment of a high standard of excellence
| has been memorable. We have deemed
| this essential to the welfare of the
students, to the future of the Law De-
partment, and to the reputation of the
| University itself.
The method of instruction, save in
| the Department of Constitutional Law,
| is by lessons assigned in standard text
books supplemented by appropriate
| lectures on the particular subject by
the instructor. Lectures Independently
| of the text books are also made by each
| of the instructors. In addition to this
by system of illustrative cases the
student is afforded vivid examples of
the practical application of the prin-
| ciples he has mastered Those instruc-
tors teaching pleading and practice,
also exact from the students much
! practical work in these branches, so
essential to the practitioner. In the
| Department of Constitutional Law the
| instruction is by lecture exclusively.
The examinations in all departments
| are in writing. and not only is the hon.
or of the student pledged to the fidel-
ity and integrity of his work, but ac-
tual precautions are taken to make
these certain and unquestionable.
The students have received valuable
| instruction from accomplished lectures
upon the science of medical jurispru-
dence, and while the curriculum OF
study and instruction is so eXactins
that they have little leisure, they oc-
casionally have the opportunity to at
tend the trials of interesting cases ir
the courts of the state, and of the
| United States, both in session a large
part of the year in the city of Macon
and are thus enabled to observe anC
appropriate object lessons in the adj
1 ministration of the law.
| With regard to the looted question
of a two years course of legal study
the members of the faculty are of the
opinion that this is at present imprac'
ticable This is especially clear in view
| of the fact that no definite period Of
study is fixed by state law as a prereq-
! uisite to examination and admission OF
applicants to the bar of the state ex-
aminers. The one year course of this
university with the expenses of board
and tuition make upon the students
| means exactions much more serious
than those borne by the applicant be-
fore the state board. If in addition
to these an additional year of study
with double cost should b. required il
would in our judgment so deplete the
attendance upon the law department
es practically to destroy the usefulness
Of the school to the young men of the
state. and to largely detract from the
hopeful interest felt in the future Of
the school by its PROFESSIONAL body. Al
of the professors are busy men witt
many responsibilities. and the chief
| incentive which inspires them in the
| continuous and truly exacting labori
Of their respective chairs is the con.
sciousness that they are training q
large number OF their young country.
men In the science OF their noble pro-
fession. The pecuniary consideration
20 the professorisl body is quite incon-
siderable.
The school AZ present has no endow-
ment and IN a financial sense IS sup
ported entirely by tuition charges. W.
substantial assistance by friends 81
are not without hope, however. Of such
hrOaa and liberal legal culture - wil
enable W ~ no distant day 10 make the
law department ~ Mercer University
q free school ~ iaa. II this can b. ~,
ccmplishe4 We VIII then be permitted
20 lenEthen ths period N study and