The Register of Pennsylvania : devoted to the preservation of facts and documents and every other kind of useful information respecting the state of Pennsylvania, Vol. XII, Part 97

Author: Hazard, Samuel, 1784-1870
Publication date: 1828
Publisher: Philadelphia : Printed by W.F. Geddes ;
Number of Pages: 438

USA > Pennsylvania > The Register of Pennsylvania : devoted to the preservation of facts and documents and every other kind of useful information respecting the state of Pennsylvania, Vol. XII > Part 97

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It is intended that the principal, in this department, shall be an accomplished scholar and teacher, so as to make it an elevated and efficient academy.

By order of the Board.

Printed by Wm. F. Geddes, No. 9, Library street.

HAZARD'S REGISTER OF PENNSYLVANIA.

DEVOTED TO THE PRESERVATION OF EVERY KIND OF USEFUL INFORMATION RESPECTING THE STATE.

EDITED BY SAMUEL HAZARD.

VOL. XIII .- NO. 22. PHILADELPHIA, NOVEMBER 30, 1833. NO. 30

SCOTT'S ADDRESS BEFORE THE LAW ACA- DEMY OF PHILADELPHIA.

An Address delivered to the Law Academy of Phila- delphia, at the opening of the session, in September, 1830, by John M. Scott, one of the Vice-Provosts of the Academy.

Gentlemen of the Law Academy:

It is your request that the exercises of the session may be opened by an address from the Chair. The paternal character of the intercourse between the mem- bers of this institution and the officers who are selected to preside over its discussions, makes a compliance with your wish a source of pleasure to him on whom the duty devolves. Your own pursuit and intended career in life, shall form his theme.

The object of each member of this academy is to su- peradd to its honors those of the Bar: to assume when he lays down the mantle of the academy, the forensic gown; to attain membership-to be received as a bro- ther of the Bar of Pennsylvania-of the Bar of the Uni- ted States-to obtain the patent which shall authorise him to proclaim himself the asserter of their rights- the avenger of their wrongs-the protector of their estates-the defender of their fame, to the free citizens of the freest nation upon earth-a patent far surpassing in real nobility, those, of which the emblems are rib- bands and tinsel, the origin, the breath of princes, -- the cause, too often, subserviency to their will. The hope of you all, the destiny of some, is, to attain the highest excellence in this noble pursuit-to reach

"The stecp where fame's proud temple shines afar."

It is an animating hope, a brilliant destiny-worthy of the young, the ardent, the aspiring spirits, whom I ad- dress. The portals of this temple, Gentlemen, are open to all; in this land of equal institutions, to all, who have courage to dare, and perseverance to accomplish the as- cent. There is here no hereditary right to excellence- no exclusive ancestral claim to honors. Each individual may and must be the architect of his own fortunes. Be not however deceived: do not suppose the path you are to travel is strewed with flowers, and redolent of sweets -it is rough, precipitous, arduous: and when surmount. ed, its termination beholds the votary not effeminated by ease, but braced by toil, and hardened into vigorous manhood.

Reflect a moment upon the dignity and character of this profession: upon the duties it imposes towards so- ciety -- upon the stations it may call upon you to occu- py, and you can then better estimate the nature and degree of preparation requisite to the attainment of success.

Your profession-for yours, and that of each of you, I trust it will be-yields in the respectability it confers, and in its influence upon society, to none but the minis. try of the altar. Pursued by an upright and honorable mind, it frowns upon crime-it spurns at baseness-it abhors fraud-it advocates pure morality-it upholds truth-it illustrates virtue. In the grasp of an unwor- thy intellect or a depraved heart, it becomes the instru- ment of oppression-the pander of vice-the patron and partaker of crime: and while it preys upon others, VOL. XII.

becomes itself the victim of the satirist's scourge, a mark of obloquy and scorn.

Gentlemen-there are attributes almost of holiness belonging to this profession. Men repose upon you with unwavering confidence-they stake their fortunes upon your counsel-they entrust to you, their estates and those of their descendants-they put their fame into your keeping, the precious treasure of their reputation -they submit to you their private griefs, - their do- mestic secrets-they open to you the inmost recesses of their bosoms, and with a sincerity suited to the con- fessional itself, admit you to a knowledge of all that passes within that region of storm and passion, of weak- ness and of folly, of blighted hope, of wild ambition- the heart of man. All this they do, and ask for your aid, your counsel, your sympathy, for your discrimina- tion between right and wrong, for your guidance of their bewildered course. They throw themselves un- reservedly upon you, and take the colour of their future fate from your hands. It is a splendid confidence which is reposed-a profound responsibility that is thus creat- ed. The advice given may preserve integrity of cha- racter-domestic peace-moral worth -- or make utter shipwreck of them all.

These influences and these responsibilities pertain to almost every member of the profession, however hum- ble the sphere of his action-however modest his pre- tensions, There are, moreoever, towering pinnacles reached by few-elevated platforms for chosen spirists -alpine heights, perilous of ascent, rich in reward. It can happen but to few, to be called to the defence of a royal female-to stand like the talented Brougham; between the rejected consort of a king, and the anger of the throne, and the vituperations of a powerful aris- tocracy-to assert with fearless independence the cause of the prostrate princess upon an arena, surrounded by the nations of the civilized world as spectators of the contest. To you, this can never happen. You have to be grateful that your lot is cast in a land, where kings and queens and powerful aristocracies are known but as the pageants of history-as shadows which once overcast the land, but have been long since dispersed by the light of freedom. But your own country at this moment furnishes the spectacle, far more impressive, of a nation-a whole people-humble it is true-but still a whole people-a part of the original lords and native proprietors of the soil-primitive occupants of its magnificent forests-the first navigators of its bold streams-of a whole people maintaining their right to the homes of their ancestors, to their dwelling places in the wilderness, against a young and powerful and vigorous race, which has sprung up amidst and around them, and choked the springs of their prosperity-and calling to their aid, and selecting as the champion of their rights and the arbiter of their destinies, a member of your elevated profession. This too is an event which is not of probable recurrence. But what other ques- tions of as great interest may occur in this republic, it is impossible to foretell. Our situation is peculiar, and is daily creating subjects of contest which agitate the nation, and exercise the talents of the profession in our legislative halls, or in the national judidical forum --- questions which involve the stability of our government -the ultimate destinies of this people. How they may

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multiply as these united sovereignties shall multiply, as this vast continent shall double and redouble its popu- jing the rank to which it is entitled in the public es- lation, and this nation shall extend wider and wider the teem. limits of civilization, no eye less than prophetic can foresee. You may be called upon to bear a part in th se discussions-prepare for the task : if you attain the abi- lity, there is little doubt the occasion will arise to call your powers into action. Here the knowledge and ac- quirements of the statesman are as much a part of your profession, as is an acquaintance with the rules of pro- perty. Itis not intended by this remark to arrogate an exclusive claim-a claim which would be false in princi- ple, and repelled by historic truth, but simply to inti- mate that among your body the country has a right to Jook for a portion of those who are to guide her coun. sels, and controul her destinies.

There are however stations in this government which should be occupied by you alone: stations of great mag- nitude and infinite responsibility-the judgment seats of the land. You may be called upon to fill the posts which have been illustrated by the talents of a Marshall -a Tilghman-a Washington; to sit in judgment upon property and upon life-to decide those great constitu- tional questions which are still to be elicited from the jarring elements of our confederacy, and by your deci- sions to allay or exacerbate intestine tumult. You ought to anticipate such a destiny as is natural and probable; and should be prepared to discharge the duties it in- volves with ability, with fidelity and with honor. And if, Gentlemen, you are to occupy these stations, how accurate and profound should be your legal acquire- ments-how calm and subdued your passions-how patient and investigating your habits-how stern and incorruptible your integrity-how urbane and conciliat- ing your deportment! All these, and more than these qualities are indispensable to the character of a Judge who is worthy of the ermine: and it cannot be doubted that high as is now the standard of excellence which an occupant of the bench is required to attain, it will be- come with the progress of time more and more elevated -and the rewards for judicial services be so far increas- ed, as to render these seats worthy the aim of honorable ambition, and their acceptance consistent with a pro· per regard to individual prosperity.

Gentlemen-whether your future career shall be that of the advocate, the statesman, or the Judge, you owe it to your profession to signalize that career, if not by the exhibition of brilliant talents, at least by undeviating uprightness of conduct, and strict abstinence from eve- ry thing which can engender reproach. Conspicuous to public view, the conduct of a professional man is peculiarly exposed to public criticism-and his errors obnoxious to public censure. Jealousy of supposed pre-eminence, quickens perception of his faults, and adds bitterness to reproach. The follies or crimes of the individual are seized upon with eagerness as cha- racteristic of his class, and made to reflect disgrace upon all who are embarked in the same pursuit. Our pro- fession has suffered deeply from the unworthiness of in- dividuals who have worn its garb without adopting its principles.

Hoc fonte derivata clades.

In the drama, and in the productions of the novelist it has long stood forth in most unenviable relief; and in the affections of men it is to be feared its rank is not high. In this state, we know, it has at times been the target of obloquy and the victim of injustice. He, of our body, who commits a wrong, is responsible not only to the injured individual, but is morally amenable to all his brethren. His conduct obscures the medium through which theirs is viewed-and presents them in distorted shapes and unnatural colors to the public gaze. From you, gentlemen, and from each of you, the pro- fession anticipates an increase of respectability, and an additional portion of general regard. It hopes from you, reared amidst a bar which presents many exam-

ples of unblemished purity, a powerful aid in support-

But, what is to be the preparation, what the disci- pline, what the training, which is to fit the youthful spi- rit for the career which has been referred to? Be as- sured the task you have assumed is not easy; the labor is not light. It demands from you unceasing industry, untiring vigilance : not only during your period of pro- bation, but after you shall have been admitted within the pale. The foundations of success should be laid in early life in a liberal education: and though there may be in your ranks, honored members, worthy of all praise, who have not possessed this advantage, it is pressed without hesitation, because the deficiency may still be supplied by their own exertions. There is cer- tainly no part of these United States in which access is more easy to all the means of education, than in this city. Accomplished professors abound in every branch -public lectures are delivered in every science-libra- ries are offered to the studious, adapted to all tastes- admirable collections of philosophical and mathematical apparatus exist-museums in every department of na- tural science are established-refined society may be enjoyed of every European tongue; and for the inter- vals of recreation and of leisure, abundant enjoyments are provided, intellectual in their character and promo- tive of good taste. All these accessaries to the main design are attainable at a moderate expense: and, using them well, what may not a fresh and vigorous intellect accomplish in that green and bright and glorious period of existence which precedes the full maturity of man- hood.

It has been the fashion of late years to decry classical learning, and a knowledge of the ancient languages, as unnecessary in a country like ours, where active exer- tion and laborious effort are the lot of all-where forests are to be subdued, wildernesses to be cultivated, com- munities to be created, nations to be formed; where every thing is energetic, and where amid the general bustle and universal commotion of the scene, there is no resting place for the literary idler,

"patulæ recubans sub tegmine fagi."

This has been the fashion, and it has been ably and suc- cessfully denounced by scholars of whom this city has reason to be proud. The argument will not be resum- ed here. But as connected with your profession, be assured, Gentlemen, that an accurate acquaintance with the dead languages will be prized by those who possess it as immediately subsidiary to professional success, and an entire deficiency will be deplored as an inconvenient obstacle, and be felt as a source of pain. That the fin- est specimens of eloquence are to be found in those languages is not denied-that the Latin is the original language of our science, and still embodies many of its apothegms, and retains possession of its technical terms is equally true: and derivatives both from it and the Greek are so interwoven with our own tongue, that it may be safely affirmed, that tongue cannot be as tho- roughly understood, its beauties as fully appreciated, its shades and distinctions as thoroughly comprehended as they should be by a public speaker, without a know- ledge of these, the sources, from which it has drawn so largely. Let those therefore who possess these advan- tages, be studious to retain them by frequent recurrence to their collegiate pursuits-and where the acquisition is still to be made, let it be attempted with zeal and as- siduity, and the attempt will not be unavailing.

To refer except in very general terms to the course of your legal studies, would be an improper intrusion upon the duties, faithfully and ably discharged, of the gentlemen of the profession, whose aid you have indi- vidually invoked. I may however be permitted to re- mark, without being obnoxious to the charge of indeli- cacy, that in Pennsylvania, and I believe in all the states of our Union, a member of the bar is presumed

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to be competent to every branch of the profession. His studies must radiate into all its departments. It is our peculiar privilege to be at liberty to avail ourselves of whatever is excellent wheresoever it may be found. We are gradually constructing a system for ourselves-adapt- ed to our own country-to our own frame of civil polity -suited to our own wants amd to our state of society: we are therefore at liberty to adopt, and we do from time to time adopt salutary principles from all codes To an American student therefore all codes and all sys- tems are objects of study, as fountains of light and sources of argument. His daily practice demands from him a knowledge of common law and equity-of eccle- siastical and maritime law-of commercial law and the law of nations-as the statutes of his own country local and national, and of those of the people from whom our origin is derived. This field would seem to be in it- self wide enough for the researches of the most enamor- ed explorer of legal science. But your task is still greater. You are to superadd to the skill of the con- veyancer and the acuteness of the pleader, and the sagacity of counsel, the information and ingenuity of the advocate. You are to discuss all topics-to range through all sciences-to speak familiarly of all arts-to address all classes of men-to rouse and to allay all passions- to excite hope-to create fear-to touch all the springs of the human heart, and make them subservient to your designs. All this falls within the scope of your profession. Hence there is no species of information, the acquisition of which can be deemed unimportant -no art, no trade, no science to be considered foreign to your pursuit. From every source which may be open to you, learn all you can; from the formation of the pin which contributes to the adornment of a lady's person, to the management of the mighty power which the genius of our Fulton has taught to "annihilate space and time"-from the habits of the household fly to those of the splend d bird which wings its flight against the sun-from the modest violet, which with its droop- ing head and early perfume solicits the admiration of childhood's innocence, to the never dying oak, which under the plastic hand of the builder is converted into our nation's bulwark and her glory. Believe no subject too abstruse-none too simple to be moulded to your purposes: The perjury of a witness has been detected by the pleader's acquaintance with the natural history of a fruit: we have all seen juries listen with delight to illustrations of complicated machinery, flowing from the lips of a distinguished advocate as though he had been himself the master spirit of the combinations he described.

Seek unremittingly to acquire historical knowledge. Of the history of your own country and of that from whose shores your forefathers came, pilgrims to a new world, it would be shame to be ignorant. Unacquainted with them, the charter of your rights, the constitutions of the Union,and of the individual states, would be almost sealed letters: their spirit could not be appreciated- nor their wise precautions understood. They were framed by men conversant with the evils of oppres- sive government: who knew from the lessons of history the devices which power will invent to destroy free- dom, and the engines it will employ to break down re- sistance and punish contumacy. To be thoroughly understood they must be studied by minds imbued with the same knowledge, and prepared by the same discipline.

Saracen, meet in conflict for the Holy Land-trace the early glories of Venice and Genoa, and mourn for their decline-shudder at the religious wars of France, and weep with her suffering protestants-lament for the fate of the Scottish Queen, and be indignant with her hard and sterile rival-pursue the wanderings of the Russian Czar from the workshop of the English artizan, to the foundation of his mighty Northern Capi- tal-start on his meteor course with the artillerist of Toulon, and follow him an emperor, and the world's wonder, to his humble grave on the rock of St. Helena -turn to any page of historic truth, and you will find more to captivate your fancy, and interest your heart, than all the ingenuity of fiction can supply.

Pay your devotions too, at the shrine of the muses. Enrich your fancy and improve your taste by famil arity with the standard poets of at least your own language- with that ancient race wliose rich imagery and musical numbers form the attractive dress of manly sense, of natural feeling, of pure ethics, of legitimate satire- with Milton and with Young-with Pope-with Gold- smith, and with Cowper. But waste not your strength -corrupt not your hearts, with the effeminacies of Moore, and licentious impurities of Byron. Let your intellectual exercises like those of the body be whole- some and vigorous, such as to fit you to become a bles- sing instead of a curse to that circle of which in the pro- gress of time you are to become the centre. Learn therefore to contemn as unmanly the morbid sentiments, and to reject as nauseous the libidinous painting of the titled poet.

But beware, gentlemen, that the muse does not se- duce you from your severer studies. Pass with her, only your moments of recreation. In her close em- brace there may be lurking danger: and beautiful and lovely as she is, you may rise from too much dalliance with shorn locks and enfeebled strength. Your busi- ness is with men, and lies among the realities of life. In all your excursions into the flowery paths and verdant avenues which may tempt your feet from the onward road to eminence, keep your eye fixed upon that road, and the means of instant return within your grasp.

In your preparation forget not the living languages. You are destined to intercourse with men of all nations. If you do not seek them abroad, they will seek you on your own shores -Learn therefore to address them in sounds which will be melodious to their ear, and cheat them into forgetfulness that they are strangers in the land. Forget not that language which is a passport of communion from one extremity of Europe to the other- the language of Corneille, Racine, and Moliere-the language of that gallant people who brought succour to our ancestors in the day of their extremity-and carried back with them those seeds of liberty which implanted in one century, have in another burst into the full and perfect fruit of freedom; the language in which will be told the story of that recent revolution, of which we know not whether most to admire the courage with which it was accomplished, the rapidity of its consum- mation, the oblivion of self and devoted patriotism of the actors, or the refined humanity and generous for- giveness of injury which has ennobled ils termination, the language of the friend and guest of this nation, the father of regenerated France.

Study too, the tongue of the land of romance, of the Ebro and the Tagus, of the noble Spaniard who is now listening with greedy ear to the shouts of freedom as they burst across the Pyrenees, and startle the affrighted te- nants ofthe Escurial. It is the language of a large portion of our own western world; of nations yet in their infancy, with whom our connections are destined to be impor- tant, and with their interests ours to be deeply mingled. These languages will be rich acquisitions: they will open to you mines of intellectual wealth, and largely contribute to your professional advancement. In fine, gentlemen, let your early life be a life of improvement.

Become familiar with ancient history as an inexhaus- tible fund of delight, and a means of salutary induction from the past to the future: and with modern, as a part and parcel of your own existence. Substitute for the seducing romance of fiction, the equally fascinating ro- mance of history, and if you demand excitement and crave to have your imagination roused. go to the wars of the Moor and the Spaniard, to the fields of Granada and the banks of the Gaudalquivir-follow the armies of Europe until the Christian sabre, and scimitar of the | Learn all you can, Above all endeavour to be accurate

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in your knowledge; carry mathematical exactness into all your researches, and remember always that clear and distinct ideas are the foundations of logical reason- ing.

Gentlemen-the training of the mind has been rapidly glanced at. It remains to allude to a more important training; that of the morals and the heart, a topic which though applicable to all, is conceived to be specially connected with your pursuit. The law emphatically demands integrity of conduct, and purity of morals from its worshippers. How gross the inconsistency, should they whose whole study it is to know how to prescribe the rule of right to others, be found themselves to be transgressors of that rule. He whose declared province it is, to protect the weak, to avenge the injured, to lash the licentious, should take especial care to be himself

"Integer vitæ, scelerisque purus."

How else, can he hope to escape the bitter smile of incredulity, the sarcastic glance, telling him plainly, as he describes with fervid eloquence some flagrantinjury, that he is but depicting his own character. How would his spirit quail, should he hear, in the " very torrent, tempest and whirlwind of his passion," the ejaculation,

" Mutato nomine, de te fabula narratur."

Guard therefore your integrity. Endeavour to be as spotless as your erring nature will permit: and if higher and better motives are not sufficient, let the conviction that your professional prosperity will be advanced, be an inducement to cultivate sedulously all that is no- ble, and shun all that is base.

So interlinked and entwined are the virtues, that where one exists in perfection, it is impossible the oth- ers should be wanting: and where all are excellent, it is difficult to assign pre-eminence. Yet if it were demand- ed to point out that virtue which sits with especial grace upon a member of your profession; the answer would be, beautiful and spotless truth. Truth to your client -truth to your brethren-truth to the Court-truth to the Jury. It is the sentiment of our own statute, which admits us within the pale of the bar, under the sanction of an oath, requiring fidelity to the court, as well as to the client; and, alas that such a sanction should be required !! abstinence from all falsehood. Let the spirit of this solemn engagement be scrupulously ob- served, and your profession will indeed be one to com- mand your love and gratify your pride. And as such, and only as such, gentlemen, is that profession worth pursuing. It is a most mistaken idea, an unfounded calumny, that its spirit tends to perversion and so- phistry. It is a lying and a false spirit, which leads to disingenuity, and not the spirit of your profession .- Your profession is a manly and an honourable profession. Fair argument, and sound logic, and dauntless truth, intrepidity which fears no frown, independence which courts no favour, are its manly and honorable weapons: and he is a recreant to the order, and unworthy of its emblazonry, who enters its listed fields with less noble instruments of warfare.

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The Register of Pennsylvania : devoted to the preservation of facts and documents and every other kind of useful information respecting the state of Pennsylvania, Vol. XII, Part 97

Author: Hazard, Samuel, 1784-1870 Publication date: 1828 Publisher: Philadelphia : Printed by W.F. Geddes ; Number of Pages: 438

Author: Hazard, Samuel, 1784-1870
Publication date: 1828
Publisher: Philadelphia : Printed by W.F. Geddes ;
Number of Pages: 438